Hermes was the son of Zeus, King of Mount Olympus and Maia, the Pleiad. He was the messenger of the Olympian Gods which made him the God of roads and the protector of travelers, shepherds and merchants. Hermes was also known as a dream God. According to the myths, he could move freely and quickly between the worlds of the mortal and the divine, aided by his winged sandals. His main symbol is the caduceus, a winged staff intertwined with two snakes copulating. He was a divine ally of the Greeks during the Trojan War and he also helped the Greek hero, Perseus, slay Medusa by directing him to her lair.