The Muses: three, four or nine?

Ancient writers disagreed on how many Muses there were — and Eukelade’s namesake is one of the obscure ones.

Published 2026-10-23

The Muses were Greek goddesses of inspiration for literature, science and the arts.^[4]

The famous nine

From the Classical period the number was standardised at nine: Calliope, Clio, Polyhymnia, Euterpe, Terpsichore, Erato, Melpomene, Thalia and Urania.^[4]

The original three

According to Pausanias, there were originally three Muses worshipped on Mount Helicon: Aoide (song), Melete (practice) and Mneme (memory).^[4]

A set of four

A later tradition recognised four: Thelxinoë, Aoide, Archē and Melete.^[4] Jupiter also has a moon named Thelxinoe.^[5]

Eucelade

Eukelade’s namesake, Eucelade, was listed by some Greek writers as a Muse, according to John Tzetzes.^[1]

Numbered citations link to the sources list on the Eukelade overview page.