Hephaestus
Hephaestus was a prominent figure in Greek mythology and literature. He is the Olympian god of fire, metalworking, stone masonry, sculpture, and blacksmithing. As the son of Zeus and Hera, he was also believed to be the protector of all craftsmen. In Homer's Iliad, he forged many weapons for gods, such as Achilles' armor, which made him an integral part of some classic works.
In Hesiod's Theogony, it states that when Hephaestus was born, his mother rejected him because she thought he was too ugly, so she threw him off Mount Olympus into the sea, where he landed on Lemnos Island. This event appears in several other pieces, including Virgil's Aeneid, where a Vulcan (the Roman equivalent) has been thrown from heaven by Juno due to his deformity after being born prematurely. Here we see how literature can expand upon mythological stories, giving them more depth and detail than what may have originally existed within oral traditions or written sources at the time they were first told centuries ago.
Many plays feature characters based on Hephaestus, with Euripides writing about one who ultimately helps Heracles find love despite his physical handicap in The Madness of Hercules, while Sophocles created another who helps Oedipus understand himself better through craftsmanship in Oedipus at Colonnius. In both of these instances, artistry proves to be a useful tool not only for external gain but also for internal exploration, something that resonates with modern audiences today even though this kind of thinking goes back millennia. It is, therefore, clear that throughout various literary works over hundreds, if not thousands, of years, there has always been great admiration for those like Hepahestes who are able to use their skills to make tangible objects out of intangible ideas, thus connecting us with our past whilst simultaneously pushing forward new ways forward towards our future understanding ourselves as individuals within our society.