Athene was said to have been produced from the head of Zeus, which Hephæstus had been ordered to cleave open. […] The princess had just been chained to a rock when Heracles arrived. […] Various explanations have been given. […] All these animals had once been men, but had been changed by Circe’s enchantments into the forms of beasts. […] Much would be lost had Iceland not been burst up from the sea, not been discovered by the Northmen!”