Crius, god of heavenly constellations

Crius (Krios, the Ram, Aries) was a Titan god of heavenly constellations and was also known as a Pillar of the south pole. Crius, which means "Ram", was often referred as a starting season of the Greek year, because his constellation was called Aries which nowadays means the start of spring. Together with his other three brothers Coeus, Hyperion and Iapetus, they presided as the Pillars of holding Heaven and Earth apart. He was one of six sons of Uranus and Gaea and is mentioned by Apollodorus as one of the five brothers, all but Oceanus, who participated in rebellion against Uranus and later attacked him. When they overcame him, the four brothers probably held him down, while Cronus castrated him. According to Pausanias, Crius was the father of Python, a dragon slain by Apollo, and was also closely related with the island of Euboea. The author even names two rivers after the titan.

Titanomachy

In a time of war, he was mentioned siding with the Titans against the younger Olympian gods. After the war, where the titans had lost, Crius was along his brothers and many relatives imprisoned in Tartarus beneath the underworld. Although there is no clear statement made, he was supposed to be condemned to eternal punishment. However, according to Aeschylus' lost play , he was later released by Zeus from Tartarus with the rest of the titans.

Father of the Astraeus, Pallas, and Perses

In his time, he consorted with his half-sister Eurybia, a daughter of Gaea and Pontus. Together they had three children:


Astraeus - Titan god of the stars and the art of astrology. He was also the god of the dusk and father of the Four Winds and the Stars of the Heaven by Eos(goddess of dawn). They also had children who are often associated with the time of twilight.

Pallas - Titan god of warcraft who was defeated during Titanomachy by younger goddess Athena. He was a father of Rivalry, Victory, Strength and Power.

Perses - Titan god of destruction. He was married with his cousin Asteria with whom he fathered Hecate.