At the birth of Athens, under its first king Cecrops, Poseidon and Athena both gave gifts to this mortal town to earn their worship. Upon arrival, Poseidon struck a rock, miles from the shoreline, and produced water from it, a deep well whose scent was similar to that of the sea. However, before he could claim the city as his, Athena caused a beautiful olive tree to spring up from the rocky soil. The two gods began to argue over rights to the city until Zeus intervened. With the other Olympians as jury, Cecrops declared that he favored Athena's gift over that of Poseidon, naming this new city after the goddess of wisdom.
