Centaurs, as most often stated in Greek mythological texts, were the offspring of Ixion (son of Ares, God of War), and Nephele (the cloud made in the image of Hera). These amazing creatures had the body of a man from the waist and above, but the body of a horse from the withers to the hindquarters. In later myths and stories, they are sometimes shown with horns, wings, or, sometimes, both at the same time.
Centaurs lived in Magnesia and Mount Pelion in Thessaly, the Foloi oak forest in Elis, and the Malean Peninsula in southern Laconia. Often depicted with bows and spears, they were great hunters. It’s not too far fetched that these high-strung humanoid creatures were omnivores and fed on meat and plants like we do — which they usually liked to pair with Greek wine.
Yes, these horse-men were known to be wild, lusty and overly indulgent drinkers. They came to symbolize the dark, unruly forces of nature. They were usually depicted as drunken followers of Dionysus (God of Wine), but Chiron, the gentlest, wisest and most learned of centaurs, was the tutor to some very well-known heroes.
In modern times, the centaur has reappeared in art, movies, TV and literature, especially in the genre of fantasy. J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson & the Olympians, C.S. Lewis’ The Narnian Chronicles and Piers Anthony’s Xanth series have prominent centaur characters. Science fiction has used the character as well; John Varley’s Titan, Wizard, Demon series, Jack Chalker’s Wellworld series, Walter Jon William’s Knight Moves and Elf Sternberg’s The Journal Entries series all feature prominent centaur characters.
