In classical mythology, the Lernaean Hydra was a snake-like water monster. It had both many heads and deadly poisonous breath. The Hydra's home was at Lake Lerna, in southern Greece. When the Hydra came out of the lake, it attacked and ate both the local villagers and their cattle. Heracles was sent to fight the Hydra by the goddess Hera. She did this because she believed he could neither kill the Hydra nor survive his fight with it. When Heracles came to the lake, he covered his mouth and nose with a cloth to protect himself from his breath. When Heracles saw the Hydra, he attacked it. However, as soon as Heracles had cut off one of his heads, two grew back on the same neck. Heracles then called on his nephew Iolaus. Iolaus thought of a plan which the two of them used. As soon as Heracles cut off a head, Iolaus burned the open wound, so no head was able to grow on the neck. Heracles removed all of the Hydras' heads except for one. This head could neither be cut off nor be burned. Heracles therefore hit it very hard with his club. After he had stunned this head, he ripped it off with his hands. He then buried it, and put a huge rock over it. After he had killed the Hydra, Heracles dipped his arrows into his blood. This blood made his arrows deadly, because it was extremely poisonous.
