Her parents were Zeus and Metis, a nymph. Zeus heard a prophecy that the child Metis bore after she gave birth to Athena would become the lord of heaven, so, to prevent this from happening, he swallowed Metis while she was still pregnant with Athena. read more
One day, Metis tried to elude Zeus by turning herself into a fly, and Zeus managed to swallow her, just as Cronus had swallowed him. Metis then stayed alive inside him until Athena was born. read more
Zeus had impregnated Metis and when the great goddess Gaia found out she issued a prophecy that any son of Zeus and Metis would usurp the throne of Zeus' father. Zeus wanted to prevent this from happening so naturally he decided to swallow Metis whole. read more
Athena leaped from Zeus's head, fully grown, armed, and armoured, and Zeus was none the worse for the experience. The similarities between Zeus swallowing Metis and Cronus swallowing his children have been noted by several scholars. read more
According to myth, the goddess Themis predicted any son she had would be a threat to Zeus just as he was to Cronus. One day, Metis tried to elude Zeus by turning herself into a fly, and Zeus managed to swallow her, just as Cronus had swallowed him. Metis then stayed alive inside him until Athena was born. read more
Zeus had impregnated Metis and when the great goddess Gaia found out she issued a prophecy that any son of Zeus and Metis would usurp the throne of Zeus' father. Zeus wanted to prevent this from happening so naturally he decided to swallow Metis whole. Unfortunately for Zeus Metis wasn't pregnant with a boy but with a girl. read more