| “ | The shield has the head of Medusa molded into the bronze, and even though it won't turn you to stone, it's so horrible, most people will panic and run from the sight of it. | ” |
–Percy Jackson, describing Aegis in The Titan's Curse. | ||
Aegis on the cover of The Demigod Diaries.
Aegis is a shield that has the face of Medusa on it. It is often used by Zeus and his daughter Athena. A replica of the original shield is owned by Thalia Grace.
Aegis also refers to Athena's protective cloak.
Zeus, co-owner of the original Aegis
History[]
The shield was originally made by Hephaestus, using the head of Medusa as an imprint on the face after Perseus turned over Medusa's head to Athena. The shield itself was shared between Athena and Zeus after its creation, though other gods have also been known to carry the shield, including Apollo who Zeus sent to retrieve the injured Hector of Troy from the Achaeans.
Athena has given parts of Aegis to her favored heroes in the past. Throughout history, other people (such as Alexander the Great) would imprint the face of Medusa onto their armor in the hopes of replicating the effects of Aegis.
The Demigod Diaries[]
The Diary of Luke Castellan[]
While Luke Castellan and Thalia were trapped in the house of Halcyon Green, he showed them a safe that was in his closet, which Luke opened, and found a bracelet. Thalia couldn't find out how to use it to start off but Luke figured out that it had a code word, which activates when you tap it and say "Aegis." Then, Thalia used the shield to scare a Leucrota so they could escape the house. Many demigods were lured there by the shield, but were trapped and killed.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians[]
Thalia, who owns a replica of the shield.
Thalia uses a copy of Aegis as her main shield in battle. When it isn't active, she always wears the charm bracelet form. Some demigods will not even look at the face of Medusa on the shield because it is so terrifying. It also sends monsters scurrying in fear as seen when Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Thalia first encounter Dr. Thorn, a Manticore, in The Titan's Curse.
In the Battle of Manhattan, the shield is seen to have an aura that sends monsters and humans alike running away in fear.
The Heroes of Olympus[]
The Blood of Olympus[]
During Reyna's fight with Orion, her bravery causes Athena to infuse Reyna's cloak with the power of aegis. The power of aegis shields Reyna from an explosive arrow to the point that when the cloak covers the arrow, the explosion, which Orion believed would destroy the Athena Parthenos and a yacht, feels like a small pop like a helium balloon popping instead of a massive, deadly explosion. Athena sends Reyna a message about giving her aegis and the demigod uses it to great effect in battle: when Orion fires an arrow at her, she blocks it with her cloak and it shatters against it. With the strength of Bellona, Reyna is able to jump on Orion and strangle him with the cloak. As aegis it has Athena's power in it, allowing Reyna to kill the giant without a god physically being there to help her. Her cloak is described as having changed after having aegis added to it so now it has flecks of gold in it like it was laced with Imperial Gold.
During the battle in Athens against the giants, Athena wielded Aegis in battle. Later, she uses the shield to scare off Hermes when he attempts to put an arm around her.
Appearance[]
Aegis is a silver shield with the face of Medusa on it. It can sometimes change shape into a glowing mantle, that glitters "as if woven through with filaments of Imperial Gold."
Use[]
- When activated, the shield gives off a terrible, fearful aura that forces adversaries away from the shield and the wearer. This provides extremely good safety for the wielder
- The part of aegis given to Reyna is able to absorb a deadly explosion so it feels like a helium balloon popping rather than a devastating explosion, as even an arrow from the giant Orion just shatters against it. As it is infused with Athena's power, a demigod wearer is able to kill the giant by strangling him with her aegis-infused cloak without a god physically being there.
Trivia[]
- Aegis appears on the U.S. cover of The Demigod Diaries.
- Aegis is the name of the defense system used in modern US missile cruisers.