Athena
(Minerva)

Athena is the goddess of civilization. Is is she who developed the science of agriculture, tamed horses, and invented the handicrafts that enable humans to plant seed, harvest crops, and ride horses. She is also the divine patron of the arts and literature. Naturally, she is the goddess of the city. She is also the most capable destroyer of cities. Athena gives and Athena takes away; great is her name!

Zeus's favorite daughter, Athena was born in full armor from his head, after he had swallowed her mother, Metis:

Zeus himself produced, from his own head,
Grey-eyed Athene, fearsome queen who brings
The noise of war and, tireless, leads the host,
She who loves shouts and battling and fights.
-- Hesiod, Theogony (trans. Dorothea Wender)

Athena was brought up along with Pallas, the daughter of the god Triton. Together they practiced the arts of war, until Athena, in the heat of an argument, mortally wounded her friend. Afterwards, to make amends, Athena carved a statue in the likeness of Pallas. This statue is called the Palladium, and Athena will never destroy the city that preserves it. (To the right is an image of Odysseus stealing the Palladium from the city of Troy.) The goddess herself is often referred to as Pallas Athena.