In Greek mythology, Chronos is the embodiment of time.
Due to the similarities in names, Chronos was often mistaken with, or possibly purposefully connected with, the Titan Cronus in Greek mythology in antiquity. During the Renaissance, the identification grew increasingly prevalent, giving birth to the metaphor of "Father Time" holding the harvesting scythe.
Chronus was described as a serpent-like deity in the oldest surviving stories, but also as a god with three heads, one of a man, one of a bull, and one of a lion. Generations later, the concept of Chronus would be picked up by Roman authors, who would associate the Greek primaeval deity with another god, Aion (Eternity), and the god's depiction would alter. Chronus became a "Father Time" figure at this point, an elderly man with a white beard carrying an hourglass and a sickle, and this imagery is still remembered when people think of Father Time.
