The muse Polyhymnia, by Philiscus of Rhodes, 3rd century B.C. In Greek mythology, the nine Muses were the patron-goddesses of the arts. They were believed to be the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, a Titan who personified memory. During the Hellenistic period, the island of Rhodes was the home of a highly developed school of sculpture founded by Lysippus, sculptor to the court of Alexander the Great. His school continued to flourish well into the period of the Roman Empire.