Cerberus

Cerberus - a watercolour picture by William Blake

In Greek mythology, Cerberus (Greek: Κέρβεροςcode: el is deprecated , Kérberos; Latin: Cerberus) is the monstrous, multi-headed dog that guards the entrance to the Underworld, preventing the souls of the dead from leaving.

Often called the "hound of Hades", Cerberus was one of the numerous offspring of the monsters Typhon and Echidna; he is usually depicted as having three heads, along with a serpent for a tail.

Cerberus Media

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  Heracles, wearing his characteristic lion-skin, club in right hand, leash in left, presenting a three-headed Cerberus, snakes coiling from his snouts, necks and front paws, to a frightened Eurystheus hiding in a giant pot. Caeretan hydria (c. 530 BC) from Caere (Louvre E701).

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  Cerberus and Hades/Serapis. Heraklion Archaeological Museum, Crete, Greece.

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  Athena, Hermes and Heracles, leading a two-headed Cerberus out of the underworld, as Persephone looks on. Hydria (c. 550–500 BC) attributed to the Leagros Group (Louvre CA 2992).

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  Athena, Heracles, and a two-headed Cerberus, with mane down his necks and back. Hermes (not shown in the photograph) stands to the left of Athena. An amphora (c. 575–525 BC) from Kameiros, Rhodes (Louvre A481).

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  Hercules and Cerberus. Oil on canvas, by Peter Paul Rubens 1636, Prado Museum.

Other websites

Media related to Cerberus (mythology) at Wikimedia Commons