Atlas

In Greek mythology, Atlas (Greek: Ατλας, "endures" or "dares") was one of the Titans who was condemned to holding the sky on his shoulders for all of eternity.

Mythology
During the Titanomachy, Atlas and his brother Menoetius sided with the Titans while their other brothers, Prometheus and Epimetheus, sided with the gods. Since Atlas was a leader on the Titan side of the war, he was punished to hold up the sky from the earth for all of eternity.

One of the twelve labors of Heracles was to fetch some of the golden apples which grow in the garden of Hera, tended to by Atlas' daughters, the Hesperides, and guarded by the dragon Ladon. Heracles went to Atlas and offered to hold up the heavens while Atlas retrieved the apples from his daughters. Upon Atlas' return with the apples, however, he attempted to trick Heracles into carrying the sky permanently by offering to deliver the apples to King Eurystheus himself, as anyone who purposely took the burden must carry it forever. Heracles, suspecting Atlas did not intend to return, pretended to agree to his offer, asking only that Atlas take the sky again for a few minutes so he could rearrange his cloak as padding on his shoulders. When Atlas set down the apples and took the heavens upon his shoulders again, Heracles took the apples and ran away.

In some versions of the Atlas and Heracles encounter, Heracles built the two great Pillars of Hercules to hold the sky away from the earth to liberate Atlas.

Some myths say that Perseus used the head of Medusa to transform Atlas to stone when he was returning from his quest, thus creating the Atlas Mountains.

Family
Atlas was a second-generation Titan and the son of Iapetus and Clymene. Atlas fathered the Hesperides by Hesperis. With Pleione, he fathered the Hyades, the Pleiades, and Hyas. He also was listed as the father for several minor deities without a mother, such as Calypso, Dione, and Maera.