Hephaestus, God of the Forge

Hephaestus was the divine smith of Olympus — god of fire, metallurgy, and craftsmanship — the only Olympian who worked with his hands. Lame from birth, he was thrown from Olympus by his mother Hera, yet rose to forge the thunderbolts of Zeus, the armour of Achilles, the chariot of the Sun, and the very palace of the gods. Patron of every artisan and engineer who has ever shaped raw matter into something greater than itself, Hephaestus stands for the dignity of skilled labour.