The Nereids

The Nereids are the fifty sea-nymph daughters of Nereus, lovely and benevolent maidens of the deep who attend Poseidon and come to the aid of sailors in distress. Among them are Thetis, the mother of Achilles, Amphitrite, the queen of Poseidon, and Galatea.

Dancing upon the waves and riding the backs of dolphins and sea-horses, they personify the kindly, beautiful face of the sea — its calm and shining surface, as against the storms of its depths.