Mythology/Culture: Greek Mythology
Time Period: Unknown
Physical Description: A centaur was a half-horse half-human creature. The lower body was that of a horse: four legs, a tail, ect. From the shoulders of the horse body and up, there was a human's body from the waist up.

History: Centaurs were said to have decended from Apollo, the god of music. Apollo's son, Centaurus, was the patriatch of the species.

Some myths also claim that the Centaurs decended from Ixion. These myths claim that Ixion fell in love with Hera and tried to rape her. Hera told Zeus, the king of the gods, and he decided to test this. He made a cloud look like Hera and sent it to be near Ixion. He boasted of how he slept with Hera, and Zeus punished him by tying him to a wheel and whirling him into the air. The cloud, however, gave birth to centaurs.

Centaurs were less than kind beasts, and most were like wild horses rather than men. And, if they drank wine, it would drive them insane.

Stories/Denoted Characters:
Pholus, one of the more civilized centaurs, was with Heracles one day. Heracles ask for some wine, and Pholus could not refuse. He knew what would happen, but opened the wine anyway. As soon as the bottle was opened, the other centaurs were driven to insanity. Heracles managed to escape their attacks with flaming arrows, but he barely got out alive.

Nessus offered Heracles and his wife, Deianeira, a ride across a terrible torrent. Heracles gladly accepted the offer. However, Nessus lost control and almost raped Deianeira. When she shrieked, he came to her aid and killed Nessus with an arrow through the heart.

Chiron was not like many centaurs at all. Unlike the others, he was not pained with the beastial troubles that most were. His father was the god Cronus. He tutored many heros, among which were Achilles, Aesculapius, and Actaeon. He was known for his wisdom, and taught others how to hunt, how to play music, and how to use medicine.

Rhoecus and Hylaeus were two savage centaurs. Their deaths were brought about when they attempted to rape Atalanta. Atalanta killed them with only a single arrow.

Eurytion sought the return of his lands. During a war with Lapiths, the centaurs claimed that they held rights to the lands. After short while, Peirithous arraged a peace treaty and even invited them to the wedding. At the wedding, there was a good amount of liquor, and this drove the centaurs mad. Under the guidance of Eurytion, they attempted to steal Peirithous' bride. They were defeated and driven away.

Related Creatures: onocentaur, bucentaur, and leontocentaurs

Literature:
Centaurs can be found in much of Greek literature. Most notably, there is the Iliad and Odyssey, both written by Homer. In Description of Greece, written by Pausanias, there is a good deal about centaurs. Apollodorus wrote of them in the Library. In book twelve of Ovid's Metamorphoses and in book six of Virgil's Aeneid there are centaurs.

Bibliography
Encyclopedia of Greek Mythology
Greek Mythology - Centaur
The Origin of the Centaur
Centaurs, Greek Mythology Link
The Legend of the Centaurs
The Centaurs of Greece