1/6 Greek God mythology figures

[lordnastrond]

Dionysus' body is a TBLeague/Phicen M33 body, which I liked because while its still muscular its a bit more svelte than the bulkier bodies and would reflect Dionysus' figure from his iconography a little more.

The head is a spare sculpt I have from my Hot Toys Winter Soldier figure - I liked the choice for a few reasons, firstly for having long hair and being beardless which are important parts of Dionysus' identity in Greek culture as a somewhat androgynous figure and it also culturally his bearlessness represents his eternal youthfulness like Apollo.
Plus the shadowed eyes is a nice reference to him as both a god of theatre and therefore masks, the fact his male cult members and the God himself in myths often wore makeup to break down the barrier of gender, and also his role as a God of mystery and his religion as a mystery cult.
Plus Sebastian Stan is insanely pretty which suits Dionysus to a tee.

the mini grapes and ivy and the bull skull are all from Etsy, the grapes represent his role as the God of the Vine and Wine and Agriculture, and the Ivy and grapevines are his iconic symbols, with him almost always depicted as wearing a crown of ivy and grapes.
The cup is from the Threezero Tyrion figure, and is used to represent his role as a God of Wine

The Bull skull has a few symbolic significances - firstly the Bull is his most sacred animal and the high priests of Dionysus would wear a horned hat or bull shaped helmet during important rites.
It is also a reference to the older iterations of Dionysus as 'The Horned God' called Zagreus, which was the name of Dionysus when he was a son of Persephone and Zeus/Hades [or both considering many Greeks considered these the same god] before he was torn apart by the Titans at Hera's urging and Zeus took his heart and impregnated Semele with it... only to have to finish carrying Zagreus to term by sowing the fetus into his "thigh" when Hera tricks Semele into being destroyed.
Consequently the Bull skull not only is a way of reflecting Dionysus' portrayal as being sometimes horned, its also a reference to his origins and position as God of Resurrection.
It also acts somewhat like a mask and when paired with the makeup over the eyes evokes his role as the God of the Theatre.

the harness and pauldrons are from the HaoYuToys 1/6 HH18036A Hunting Ground Warriors- Gallic Warrior figure, and I chose this not only because I thought the harness would show a little more skin and indicate his more sensual nature as a god in contrast to all the others I have assembled, but the large paws over the shoulders visually evoke big cats like tigers and leopards [the face of which is on the central medallion] which are also sacred animals of Dionysus.
The large threatening paws also evoke the sparagmos the ritual act of dismemberment and tearing apart with the bare hands which is associated with Dionysus' cult as an rite performed by his followers when they have been fully consumed and empowered by his ritual ecstasy, frenzy and insanity - an act showing the power of being possessed by the God Who Comes and a ritual that reenacts the Gods' death as Zagreus and rebirth as Dionysus.
Likewise the Leopard fur again references this rite, the sacridity of the Leopard to the God and adds a touch of wildness and sensuality.

The dress is made from a few fabric samples from Etsy and I am especially happy with them, the rich purple for evoking wine-like and royal imagery and the lower skirt is a really nice iridescent fabric which changes from green to a claret red depending on the angle which nicely represents Dionysus changeable nature, role as a god of transformation, his chaotic moods and the duel nature of him as both a god of greenery, life and agriculture as well as a god of death, bloodshed and insanity.
The lower fabric also has a Indian style pattern - which fits well as according to the Greek myths Dionysus was raised in secret in India before returning to Greece upon reaching manhood in order to protect him from Hera's wrath.

His Thrysus, the pinecone tipped wand covered in Ivy, and his symbol of authority and most consistently iconic piece of regalia, is made from a Harry Potter Hermione Granger Wand [which has an ivy pattern] which I cut to size and then used an electronic nail file to sand down so it was thinner, it tapered towards the bottom and to make the ivy pattern more pronounced by sanding away the rest of the wand till I reached the metal core at the centre of the resin. I then painted the remaining ivy patterened resin gold and the core brown to resemble wood and used a pinecone charm from Etsy for the headpiece of the staff.

The Satyr/Faun in the later images is the Neca Faun from Pan's Labyrinth and I have included him in some pictures as Fauns/Satyrs are among the most prominent servants of Dionysus in Greek Myth and I have him raising his arms in rapture and awe - ready to recieve the God Who Comes.

 

[lordnastrond]

Some pics of my current Greek Gods setup

Some changes - I got the base from the new Achilles figure which I felt was really imprressive visually with its broken greco-roman statues and columns and gold etc... so I felt that would work best with Zeus. I still have him raised on the taller pillar to both convey his status/being a sky god as well as to ensure he isn't obstructed by Medusa.

Hades I've removed the ram skull and the other coloured cloth for being a bit too busy visually and just have him wearing simple black velvet cape and skirt.

 

[lordnastrond]

As I was about to describe the changes to Apollo, I realized I neve did the breakdown of his pieces and the choices behind them in the first place!

So, the helmet is from the Greek Infantry figure that I originally used for Ares, sprayed gold and I glued a 1/6 scale metal Laurel Crown from the 1/6 Haoyu Toys Julius Caesar model to the helmet - I did this because I was committed to a gold aesthetic for Apollo as that has always been the colour most associated with him, hence his epithet as Phoebus "the radiant one" which he was known as even before his later solar attributions by the late Hellenists and the Romans.
I chose the Laurel Crown specifically, because despite it being used to signify all sorts of emperors/gods status in modern popular culture, the Laurel is actually the sacred plant of Apollo specifically due to its connection to his lover the Nymph Daphne.
I also got a second Laurel Crown for him to wear when he doesn't have his helmet on.
This way I can depict an Apollo with a more war-like persona as the vanquisher of evil or I can display him in his more peaceful aspect as the patron of the arts.

The bow is from Ebay, its metal and really high quality despite costing less than 5 pounds.
The quiver and arrows are from the TBLeague Spartan Commander figure
The feet are from the Haoyu Greek Infantry figure.
The harp is from Ebay and was a very cheap purchase but its verry high quality and made of brass but is actually plated in gold - and has a nice black and gold enamel design of flowers and birds on the sides which I think adds to the aspect of him as the god of the high arts like poetry, art, music etc.
The harp is my best 1/6 approximation of Apollo's iconic lyre, so If I find a good 1/6 lyre I will upgrade.
The underskirt is made from the same type of thick ribbon trim with Greek patterns as I used for Zeus, but instead of being a yellow-gold and sky-blue design its a antique gold and brown and cream design.

The breastplate [as well as the bracers and greaves in the third image] are from the HaoyuToys Roman General figure - specifically the bronze edition.
I chose this armor as not only did the real bronze have a nice almost golden colouring, but the motifs are very appropriate for Apollo.
Apollo is known by the epithet Lykaios 'the Wolf God' as he sometimes took the form of a wolf and avenged against evil in this form and he was known as the "wolf-born" for the myths about his mother either being in the form of a wolf, or midwifed/protected by wolves during his birth.
So the icon of the wolf's head in the centre of the armor seems appropriate, especially as it is supported by what appears to be two branches of laurel.
Likewise the Griffins have a very strong association with Apollo being one of his most important symbols - Apollo was often depicted riding a Griffin or having a chariot pulled by Griffins, also most famously his most important temple, the Temple of the Pythia at Delphi [which was also the most important temple in the Ancient World] was flanked by two large statues of Griffins.
So again, this was an ideal bit of symbology for Apollo.
Finally I enjoyed the floral/design flourish in the centre of the breastplate as another little nod to Apollo as the god of art, and fancy the idea of his armor having such artistic touches.
I wanted Apollo to have armor, unlike his usual half-naked or robed looks to both convey his strength/power but also to better represent the fact that Apollo, despite being the god of music/art/poetry and other lighter things, was also the god of disease/divine wrath/punishing evil and was the centre of several war and combat myths - so I needed to depict his more martial nature and didn't want to play into the more renaissance vision of the god.
The greaves and bracers from the helmet-less look are from the CooModel Ferdinand II figure, and I originally got them for Dionysus, however the images of the plants, people playing the lyre and other pastoral scenes seemed like a nice touch and as I said before I liked the idea of Apollo's armor being a touch more artistically decorated than that of some of the other gods.
Would love to hear what people prefer if they have an opinion?

Now the big design choice I committed to early on was I wanted to have Apollo's cape be the skin of his famous enemy, the giant serpent-dragon Python.
I LOVED the idea that after slaying the Great elder god/monster Apollo would skin his enemy and wear it for all to see his victory.
Apollo slaying Python was one of the most important and famous stories of Ancient Greeks and was a major example of the Kaoskampf myth archetype, it was the event that "solidified" his godhood and it was his slaying Python that allowed him and his cult to take the sacred site of Delphi as his own and to take the Oracle of Delphi, The Pythia [whose name comes from Python], as his own Oracle - making Apollo the God of Prophecy.
Given the monumental nature of this victory and the sheer deadliness of his enemy I felt that this event had to be represented in the figure.
So - the cape is made from a real cobra snake skin I was able to purchase from a farm with an Etsy storefront.
I went with a white and black cobra skin to keep the white/gold bright aesthetic and to tie it in to the white/black plume coloring of the helmet.
Stitching together this cape was weird, and ultimately impossible - however glue worked far better on the reptile skin [which behaved like a stiffer leather/paper hybrid] its a strange material and it doesnt really want to flow or drape like a cape should but in a museum pose I like to think it looks good and add a fun and unique twist!
I especially like how it has the head/face of the snake still visible, I decided to have this draped over a shoulder like the ceremonial animal skins worn by greco-roman dignitaries, however instead of being a lion/wolf/bear its a monstrous serpent.
Given the snake is actual size compared to a 1/6 figure the scale works well I think to convey the idea that Python was a giant or monstrous sized snake of incredible fierceness.
I love how the false "eye" of the cobra's hood looks on the back of the figure.
I also decided to add a bit more of the Python skin while changing up the style of Apollo's dress skirt by backing it with a brown leather brushed with gold, and forming an overskirt to the design.

Overall very happy with the figure, If a little unsure of whether I prefer his helmeted look or unhelmeted or which greaves/bracers I prefer.
If you stuck through this long *** post please give your opinion

 

[lordnastrond]

Just remembered that I had a spare rooted headsculpt from my Figuremasters Louis from 'Interview With The Vampire'
I think this youthful Brad Pitt sculpt + the long flowing hair, are a much better fit for Apollo and looks great with the helmet on especially.
Think this is the look for Apollo I will be defaulting to from now on.