MYTHOLOGY A-Z

ANDAUTONIA (near Zagreb, Croatia)

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 11:15:23 PST

I would like to introduce to you, my readers, a short documentary of my dear collegue Sime Sparica, a post-graduate student of prehistoric archaeology at University of Zagreb. This is a beta version of a more sofisticated and longer version which is currenty being worked on with my help also. When the sitation gets a little bit more serious you will be able to watch our documentarys on our site probably with HD recording and so on.
Our main goal is to present our cultural heritage throughout the world and in this try to connect people worldwide to interact with eachother and make interesting projects possible.
Please comment and feel free to make a suggestion and so on. ENJOY!

Odysseus

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 13:56:18 PST

Head of Odysseus from a Greek 2nd century BC marble group representing Odysseus blinding Polyphemus, found at the villa of Tiberius at Sperlonga

Odysseus (Greek: Ὀδυσσεύς, Odusseus) or Ulysses (Latin: Ulyssēs, Ulixēs) was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey.
Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle. King of Ithaca, husband of Penelope, father of Telemachus, and son of Laërtes and Anticlea, Odysseus is renowned for his guile and resourcefulness, and is hence known by the epithet Odysseus the Cunning (mētis, or "cunning intelligence"). He is most famous for the ten eventful years he took to return home after the ten-year Trojan War and his famous Trojan Horse trick.

"Cruel Odysseus"

Homer's Iliad and Odyssey portrayed Odysseus as a culture hero, but the Romans, who believed themselves the scions of Prince Aeneas of Troy, considered him a villainous falsifier. In Virgil's Aeneid, he is constantly referred to as "cruel Odysseus" (Latin "dirus Ulixes") or "deceitful Odysseus" ("pellacis", "fandi fictor").

Turnus, in Aeneid ix, reproaches the Trojan Ascanius with images of rugged, forthright Latin virtues, declaring (in John Dryden's translation), "You shall not find the sons of Atreus here, nor need the frauds of sly Ulysses fear." While the Greeks admired his cunning and deceit, these qualities did not recommend themselves to the Romans who possessed a rigid sense of honour. In Euripides's tragedy Iphigenia at Aulis, having convinced Agamemnon to consent to the sacrifice of his daughter, Iphigenia, to appease the goddess Artemis, Odysseus facilitates the immolation by telling her mother, Clytemnestra, that the girl is to be wed to Achilles. His attempts to avoid his sacred oath to defend Menelaus and Helen offended Roman notions of duty; the many stratagems and tricks that he employed to get his way offended Roman notions of honour.

Before the Trojan War

The majority of sources for Odysseus' antebellum exploits—principally the mythographers Apollodorus and Hyginus—postdate Homer by many centuries.
Two stories in particular are well known: When Helen was abducted, Menelaus called upon the other suitors to honour their oaths and help him to retrieve her, an attempt that would lead to the Trojan War. Odysseus tried to avoid it by feigning lunacy, as an oracle had prophesied a long-delayed return home for him if he went. He hooked a donkey and an ox to his plough (as they have different stride lengths, hindering the efficiency of the plough) and (some modern sources add) started sowing his fields with salt.
Palamedes, at the behest of Menelaus's brother Agamemnon, sought to disprove Odysseus's madness, and placed Telemachus, Odysseus's infant son, in front of the plough. Odysseus veered the plough away from his son, thus exposing his stratagem. Odysseus held a grudge against Palamedes during the war for dragging him away from his home. Odysseus and other envoys of Agamemnon then traveled to Scyros to recruit Achilles because of a prophecy that Troy could not be taken without him.
By most accounts, Thetis, Achilles's mother, disguised the youth as a woman to hide him from the recruiters because an oracle had predicted that Achilles would either live a long, uneventful life or achieve everlasting glory while dying young. Odysseus cleverly discovered which of the women before him was Achilles when the youth stepped forward to examine an array of weapons. Odysseus arranged for the sounding of a battle horn, which prompted Achilles to clutch a weapon; with his disguise foiled, he joined Agamemnon's army.

During the Trojan War

The Iliad

Odysseus was one of the most influential Greek champions during the Trojan War. Along with Nestor and Idomeneus he was one of the most trusted counsellors and advisers. He always championed the Achaean cause, especially when the king was in question, as in one instance when Thersites spoke against him.
When Agamemnon, to test the morale of the Achaeans, announced his intentions to depart Troy, Odysseus restored order to the Greek camp. Later on, after many of the heroes had left the battlefield due to injuries (including Odysseus and Agamemnon), Odysseus once again persuaded Agamemnon not to withdraw. Along with two other envoys, he was chosen in the failed embassy to try to persuade Achilles to return to combat.
When Hector proposed a single combat duel, Odysseus was one of the Danaans who reluctantly volunteered to battle him. Telamonian Ajax, however, was the volunteer who eventually did fight Hector. Odysseus aided Diomedes during the successful night operations in order to kill Rhesus, because it had been foretold that if his horses drank from the Scamander river Troy could not be taken.
After Patroclus had been slain, it was Odysseus who counselled Achilles to let the Achaean men eat and rest rather than follow his rage-driven desire to go back on the offensive—and kill Trojans—immediately. Eventually (and reluctantly), he consented. During the funeral games for Patroclus, Odysseus became involved in a wrestling match with Telamonian Ajax, as well as a foot race. With the help of the goddess Athena, who favoured him, and despite Apollo's helping another of the competitors, he won the race and managed to draw the wrestling match, to the surprise of all. Odysseus has traditionally been viewed in the Iliad as Achilles's antithesis: while Achilles's anger is all-consuming and of a self-destructive nature, Odysseus is frequently viewed as a man of the mean, renowned for his self-restraint and diplomatic skills. He is more conventionally viewed as the antithesis of Telamonian Ajax (Shakespeare's "beef-witted" Ajax) because the latter has only brawn to recommend him, while Odysseus is not only ingenious (as evidenced by his idea for the Trojan Horse), but an eloquent speaker, a skill perhaps best demonstrated in the embassy to Achilles in book 9 of the Iliad. And the pair are not only foils in the abstract but often opposed in practice; they have many duels and run-ins.

HERCULES vs. the HYDRA

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 17:11:59 PST

Twelve Labors of Hercules or Dodekathlos

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 16:45:25 PST

"Hercules and the hydra" by Antonio Pollaiuolo

The Twelve Labors of Hercules or Dodekathlos (Greek: δωδέκαθλον, dodekathlon) are a series of archaic episodes connected by a later continuous narrative, concerning a penance carried out by Heracles, the greatest of the Greek heroes, whose name was later romanised as Hercules. The establishment of a fixed cycle of twelve labours was attributed by the Greeks to an epic poem, now lost, written by Peisander, dated about 600 BC (Burkert).

Driven mad by Hera, Heracles slew his own children. To expiate the crime, Heracles was required to carry out twelve labors set by his archenemy, Eurystheus, who had become king in Heracles' place. If he succeeded, he would be purified of his sin and, as myth says, he would be granted immortality. Heracles accomplished these tasks, but Eurystheus did not accept the cleansing of the Augean stables because Heracles was going to accept pay for the labor. Neither did he accept the killing of the Lernaean Hydra as Heracles' nephew and charioteer, Iolaus, had helped him burn the stumps of the heads. Eurystheus set two more tasks (fetching the Golden Apples of Hesperides and capturing Cerberus), which Heracles performed successfully, bringing the total number of tasks up to twelve.

The labours

As they survive, the Labours of Heracles are not told in any single place, but must be reassembled from many sources. Ruck and Staples assert that there is no one way to interpret the labours, but that six were located in the Peloponnese, culminating with the rededication of Olympia. Six others took the hero farther afield. In each case, the pattern was the same: Heracles was sent to kill or subdue, or to fetch back for Hera's representative Eurystheus a magical animal or plant. "The sites selected were all previously strongholds of Hera or the 'Goddess' and were Entrances to the Netherworld".

A famous depiction of the labours in Greek sculpture is found on the metopes of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, which date to the 450s BC.

In his labours, Heracles was sometimes accompanied by a male companion (an eromenos), according to Licymnius and others, such as Iolaus, his nephew. Although he was only supposed to perform ten labours, this assistance led to him suffering two more. Eurystheus didn't count the Hydra, because Iolaus helped him, or the Augean stables, as he received payment for his work, or because the rivers did the work.

A traditional order of the labours found in Apollodorus is:

Slay the Nemean Lion.
Slay the nine-headed Lernaean Hydra.
Capture the Golden Hind of Artemis.
Capture the Erymanthian Boar.
Clean the Augean stables in a single day.
Slay the Stymphalian Birds.
Capture the Cretan Bull.
Steal the Mares of Diomedes.
Obtain the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons.
Obtain the cattle of the monster Geryon.
Steal the apples of the Hesperides.
Capture and bring back Cerberus.

As a reward for finishing these twelve treacherous tasks, he was given the gift of immortality after his death by Zeus, his father. Hera forgave him and gave him her daughter Hebe for his bride.

http://www.scribd.com/Heracles/d/4823207

Heracles and the Heracleidae

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 16:16:01 PST

Herakles with his baby Telephos (Louvre Museum, Paris)

Some scholars believe that behind Heracles' complicated mythology there was probably a real man, perhaps a chieftain-vassal of the kingdom of Argos. Some scholars suggest the story of Heracles is an allegory for the sun's yearly passage through the twelve constellations of the zodiac. Others point to earlier myths from other cultures, showing the story of Heracles as a local adaptation of hero myths already well established.

Traditionally, Heracles was the son of Zeus and Alcmene, granddaughter of Perseus. His fantastic solitary exploits, with their many folk-tale themes, provided much material for popular legend. He is portrayed as a sacrificier, mentioned as a founder of altars, and imagined as a voracious eater himself; it is in this role that he appears in comedy, while his tragic end provided much material for tragedy — Heracles is regarded by Thalia Papadopoulou as "a play of great significance in examination of other Euripidean dramas".

In art and literature Heracles was represented as an enormously strong man of moderate height; his characteristic weapon was the bow but frequently also the club. Vase paintings demonstrate the unparalleled popularity of Heracles, his fight with the lion being depicted many hundreds of times. Heracles also entered Etruscan and Roman mythology and cult, and the exclamation "mehercule" became as familiar to the Romans as "Herakleis" was to the Greeks. In Italy he was worshipped as a god of merchants and traders, although others also prayed to him for his characteristic gifts of good luck or rescue from danger.

Heracles attained the highest social prestige through his appointment as official ancestor of the Dorian kings. This probably served as a legitimation for the Dorian migrations into the Peloponnese. Hyllus, the eponymous hero of one Dorian phyle, became the son of Heracles and one of the Heracleidae or Heraclids (the numerous descendants of Heracles, especially the descendants of Hyllus — other Heracleidae included Macaria, Lamos, Manto, Bianor, Tlepolemus, and Telephus). These Heraclids conquered the Peloponnesian kingdoms of Mycenae, Sparta and Argos, claiming, according to legend, a right to rule them through their ancestor. Their rise to dominance is frequently called the "Dorian invasion".

The Lydian and later the Macedonian kings, as rulers of the same rank, also became Heracleidae. Other members of this earliest generation of heroes, such as Perseus, Deucalion, Theseus and Bellerophon, have many traits in common with Heracles. Like him, their exploits are solitary, fantastic and border on fairy tale, as they slay monsters such as the Chimera and Medusa. Bellerophon's adventures are commonplace types, similar to the adventures of Heracles and Theseus. Sending a hero to his presumed death is also a recurrent theme of this early heroic tradition, used in the cases of Perseus and Bellerophon.

Theseus and the Minotaur (Part 3 of 3)

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:07:08 PDT

Theseus and the Minotaur (Part 2 of 3)

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:06:51 PDT

Theseus and the Minotaur (Part 1 of 3)

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:06:32 PDT

Theseus and the Minotaur

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 10:55:06 PDT

Theseus’s father, Aegeus, was king of Athens. Aegeus’s younger brother, Pallas, always saw Aegeus more as a rival than a brother, and given a chance, he would gladly have taken Aegeus’s kingdom from him.

Pallas had fifty giant sons, called the Pallantids, but Aegeus, despite having been married twice, had no children at all. After his second wife died without bearing a child, Aegeus decided to consult the oracle of Apollo at Delphi, to learn if it was his fate never to have a son. The oracle promised that some day he would indeed have a son to inherit his kingdom.

On his way back from Delphi, Aegeus stayed with his friend Pittheus. There he fell in love with Pittheus’s beautiful daughter Aethra and, with her father’s blessing, married her. They kept the marriage a secret from all others, because Aegeus feared that his jealous brother might move to seize the throne of Athens if he knew that the oracle had promised Aegeus a son, and that Aegeus had taken another wife.

When Aegeus returned to Athens, he left Aethra with her father, for he feared she would come to harm if Pallas knew she was Aegeus’s wife. Before leaving Pittheus’s kingdom, Aegeus buried his sword and sandals under a heavy rock, telling Aethra that if she bore a son, she should bring him to the rock on the day he turned sixteen. If he had the strength to move the rock, he should put on the sword and sandals and go to Athens to be recognized as Aegeus’s heir.

When the child was born, he was given the name Theseus. No one was told who his real father was—not even Aegeus himself. Pittheus and Aethra feared that if Aegeus knew he had a son, he might let the information slip out, and Pallas’s spies, who were everywhere, would inform him, putting the baby’s life in danger. Instead, Pittheus and Aethra let it be rumored that the infant’s father was Poseidon, the mighty god of the sea.

When Theseus was sixteen, Aethra took him to the rock to test his strength. He moved the rock easily. Then she told him to put on the sword and sandals, and to go to Athens to make himself known to his father. Pittheus and Aethra tried to persuade Theseus to travel by water, rather than attempting the long, dangerous overland journey, but the adventurous young man was determined to seek out and overcome challenges, to prove his mettle before presenting himself to his father in Athens.

Along the way he encountered and defeated many monsters and enemies, including the treacherous Procrustes. Procrustes would offer hospitality to weary travelers, but when they lay down to sleep, they would inevitably find that the bed was either too short or too long. If the bed was too long, the poor traveler would be stretched mercilessly until he fit the bed. If it was too short, Procrustes would cut off his feet and as much of his legs as necessary to make the traveler fit the bed.

No one knows exactly how Theseus outwitted Procrustes or what he did to punish him, but after Theseus spent the night as Procrustes’s “guest,” Theseus was as healthy as ever—and Procrustes was never heard from again.

Theseus performed so many heroic deeds along the way to Athens that by the time he reached the city people were already talking about this young hero whose deeds were beginning to rival those of Hercules himself. King Aegeus was a bit nervous about this approaching hero: What if he had come to overthrow Aegeus and take his place on the throne? But when the stranger presented himself to Aegeus, the king could scarcely contain his joy, for he realized that the young man was wearing the sword and sandals he had buried beneath the rock for his son to find one day.

Unfortunately, the king’s joy in meeting his son soon turned to sorrow—a sorrow felt by all of Athens. It was a time of year that everyone dreaded: the time when Athens must pay its yearly tribute to King Minos of Crete. This merciless king demanded not gold or trade goods from Athens, but rather seven youths and seven maidens to be offered as sacrifice to the dreadful Minotaur, a huge monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man, who fed only on human flesh. The Minotaur lived at the heart of the great Labyrinth designed by Dedalus, a maze so intricate that no one could possibly find a way out of it. Even if by some miracle one of the Athenians managed to escape being devoured by the Minotaur, he would still have no hope of surviving, for he would soon starve to death in the Labyrinth.

Though cruel, the tribute demanded by Minos was not entirely without reason. Many years earlier, Minos’s most beloved son, Androgeus, had come to compete in the Athenian games. A superb athlete, Androgeus had triumphed in every competition. But on his way to compete in the games at Thebes, Androgeus had mysteriously disappeared. It was rumored that he had been ambushed and murdered by some of the men he had defeated and humiliated in the Athenian games.

The rumor was actually a lie deliberately spread by agents of King Aegeus. Knowing that Androgeus was very friendly with the Pallantids, Aegeus feared that Androgeus would persuade his father to support Pallas in a war against Athens. Since Minos had the most powerful navy in the known world, Athens could never withstand an attack by Pallas if he had the support of Crete. Aegeus had Androgeus waylaid on the road to Thebes, intending to have him held captive long enough to be persuaded to support Aegeus, or at least not to interfere on the side of Pallas if the two brothers should end up at war with each other. But Androgeus was a brave man. Though vastly outnumbered, he fought so fiercely that he was accidentally killed in his struggle with his would-be captors.

King Minos refused to believe the rumor that Androgeus had been killed by jealous athletic competitors. He sent his own spies to discover the real story. Once he knew what had happened to his son, his fury boiled over. He destroyed Athens’ ally Megara, and intended to destroy Athens as well. To save his city, King Aegeus had to agree to the enraged king’s bitter demands. Minos had lost his beloved son to the scheming of Athenians, so every year, he would deprive Athens of its own sons and daughters.

The victims were chosen by lot. Theseus volunteered to go in place of one of the youths, but Aegeus would not hear of it. Theseus insisted, assuring his father that he would kill the Minotaur and get Minos to remit the yearly tribute. Seeing that he could not change his son’s mind, Aegeus surrendered to the inevitable and agreed at last to allow him to face the Minotaur.

The ship the young Athenians were to travel in had black sails. Theseus also had a set of white sails made. He told his father that when the ship returned from Crete, it would hoist the white sails to let him know that his son and heir still lived.

When the Athenians arrived on the island of Crete, they were locked up, but on the way to the prison, they were paraded through the town. Minos’s two daughters, Ariadne and Phaedra, were watching the prisoners when Eros, on orders from his mother Aphrodite, who was particularly fond of Theseus, shot the elder sister with one of his arrows. Ariadne immediately fell in love with Theseus and determined to save him from the Minotaur.

She went to the prison and persuaded the guards to let her in to see the prisoners. She offered her help to Theseus, if he would promise to take her to Athens and marry her—not just because she loved him, but also because she was sure her father would have her killed once he learned she had betrayed him.

That night, as her father slept, she stole from him the key to the Labyrinth’s door. She led Theseus to the Labyrinth and handed him a ball of golden twine. She told him to tie the twine to the handle of the door and unwind it as he made his way through the Labyrinth. He would then be able to follow it back out once he had slain the Minotaur. As for that task, she explained to him that at midnight the Minotaur would go to sleep for exactly one hour, and Theseus would then have an opportunity to kill the creature.

After he had killed the sleeping Minotaur and followed the string out of the Labyrinth, Theseus rejoined Ariadne, and they returned to the prison. The guards were fast asleep, for Ariadne had supplied them with drugged wine. She released all of the Athenians, and they went down to the harbor. There they bored holes in all of the Cretan ships before setting sail in the ship that had originally brought them to Crete. When the Cretan ships attempted to pursue the Athenians, they all sank.

On the way to Athens, Theseus had the ship put in for awhile at the island of Naxos, to replenish their supplies of food and fresh water. As Ariadne slept in a field full of poppies, Theseus suddenly ordered the ship to set sail, leaving Ariadne behind. Some say he had a dream that Ariadne would one day betray him as she had once betrayed her father. Others say that Theseus believed he saw King Minos’s own ship approaching the island in pursuit of the escaped Athenians. Whatever the reason, the poor maiden was abandoned on the island, and when she awoke to her situation, she began to weep disconsolately.

As she wept, she was approached by an extraordinarily handsome young man, who asked her, “Why do you cry, Ariadne?” She wondered at first how he knew her name. Then she realized that this was no ordinary man, but a god. He told her he was Dionysus, the god of wine, and that he intended to make her his bride.

On the island of Delos, Theseus heard about Ariadne’s marriage to Dionysis, and dedicated a festival to them at the time of the vintage. That festival continued to be celebrated for over two thousand of years.

So much had happened, and Theseus was so exhausted and so preoccupied, that when the Athenians finally sailed into the harbor at Athens, he forgot to hoist the white sails. His father, who watched every day for a sign that his son still lived, saw the ship pull into harbor with its black sails. Believing his son had been killed, Aegeus in despair threw himself over a cliff into the sea, which to this day is called the Aegean Sea.

After he had made the proper sacrifice to the gods for his safe return, Theseus was told of his father’s death. Sorrowfully, he assumed his father’s throne, and ruled wisely and well in Athens for many years.

Dear readers!

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 10:46:43 PDT

We will continue our journey to the world of ancient greek myths with an article about Theseus and the Minotaur followed by a great documentary of the same. I have to ad that it is one of my favourite greek myths and I am enjoying doing this. So please you do the same and take a minute and enjoy the posted material.
Stay well and subscribe if you want more.

Greek Gods and Goddesses 8of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 01:29:51 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 7of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 01:29:13 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 7of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 01:29:12 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 6of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 09:59:00 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 5of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 09:58:38 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 4of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 11:24:48 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 3of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 11:24:26 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 2of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:56:30 PDT

Greek Gods and Goddesses 1of9

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:55:43 PDT

Dear subscribers!

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:54:39 PDT

After a few days without posting anything due to some personal issues I decided that we go on with a little series of documentarys and downloadable books for you my dear friends.
We will start today with first two parts of a nine part documentary about greek gods brought to us by history channel. Thats 20 minutes of pleasure each day for you, just the time period you can afford yourself to lose(gain)!
Ill hope you will enjoy and dont forget to visit us every day for upcoming treats!

Olympian Gods of Ancient Greek Mythology

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:43:23 PDT

HOUSE OF ATREUS AND THEBAN CYCLE (seven against Thebe)

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:47:24 PDT

Cadmus Sowing the Dragon's teeth, by Maxfield Parrish, 1908

In between the Argo and the Trojan War, there was a generation known chiefly for its horrific crimes. This includes the doings of Atreus and Thyestes at Argos. Behind the myth of the house of Atreus (one of the two principal heroic dynasties with the house of Labdacus) lies the problem of the devolution of power and of the mode of accession to sovereignty. The twins Atreus and Thyestes with their descendants played the leading role in the tragedy of the devolution of power in Mycenae.

The Theban Cycle deals with events associated especially with Cadmus, the city's founder, and later with the doings of Laius and Oedipus at Thebes; a series of stories that lead to the eventual pillage of that city at the hands of the Seven Against Thebes and Epigoni. (It is not known whether the Seven Against Thebes figured in early epic.) As far as Oedipus is concerned, early epic accounts seem to have him continuing to rule at Thebes after the revelation that Iokaste was his mother, and subsequently marrying a second wife who becomes the mother of his children — markedly different from the tale known to us through tragedy (e.g. Sophocles' Oedipus the King) and later mythological accounts.

ARGONAUTS

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:47:35 PDT

The only surviving Hellenistic epic, the Argonautica of Apollonius of Rhodes (epic poet, scholar, and director of the Library of Alexandria) tells the myth of the voyage of Jason and the Argonauts to retrieve the Golden Fleece from the mythical land of Colchis. In the Argonautica, Jason is impelled on his quest by king Pelias, who receives a prophecy that a man with one sandal would be his nemesis. Jason loses a sandal in a river, arrives at the court of Pelias, and the epic is set in motion. Nearly every member of the next generation of heroes, as well as Heracles, went with Jason in the ship Argo to fetch the Golden Fleece. This generation also included Theseus, who went to Crete to slay the Minotaur; Atalanta, the female heroine; and Meleager, who once had an epic cycle of his own to rival the Iliad and Odyssey. Pindar, Apollonius and Apollodorus endeavor to give full lists of the Argonauts.

Although Apollonius wrote his poem in the 3rd century BC, the composition of the story of the Argonauts is earlier than Odyssey, which shows familiarity with the exploits of Jason (the wandering of Odysseus may have been partly founded on it). In ancient times the expedition was regarded as a historical fact, an incident in the opening up of the Black Sea to Greek commerce and colonization. It was also extremely popular, forming a cycle to which a number of local legends became attached. The story of Medea, in particular, caught the imagination of the tragic poets.

AGE OF HEROES

noreply@blogger.com (captain Caveman) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:47:51 PDT

The age in which the heroes lived is known as the heroic age. The epic and genealogical poetry created cycles of stories clustered around particular heroes or events and established the family relationships between the heroes of different stories; they thus arranged the stories in sequence. According to Ken Dowden, "there is even a saga effect: we can follow the fates of some families in successive generations".

After the rise of the hero cult, gods and heroes constitute the sacral sphere and are invoked together in oaths and prayers which are addressed to them. In contrast to the age of gods, during the heroic age the roster of heroes is never given fixed and final form; great gods are no longer born, but new heroes can always be raised up from the army of the dead. Another important difference between the hero cult and the cult of gods is that the hero becomes the centre of local group identity.

The monumental events of Heracles are regarded as the dawn of the age of heroes. To the Heroic Age are also ascribed three great military events: the Argonautic expedition, the Theban War and the Trojan War.

Heracles and the Heracleidae

Herakles with his baby Telephos (Louvre Museum, Paris).

Some scholars believe that behind Heracles' complicated mythology there was probably a real man, perhaps a chieftain-vassal of the kingdom of Argos. Some scholars suggest the story of Heracles is an allegory for the sun's yearly passage through the twelve constellations of the zodiac. Others point to earlier myths from other cultures, showing the story of Heracles as a local adaptation of hero myths already well established. Traditionally, Heracles was the son of Zeus and Alcmene, granddaughter of Perseus. His fantastic solitary exploits, with their many folk-tale themes, provided much material for popular legend. He is portrayed as a sacrificier, mentioned as a founder of altars, and imagined as a voracious eater himself; it is in this role that he appears in comedy, while his tragic end provided much material for tragedy — Heracles is regarded by Thalia Papadopoulou as "a play of great significance in examination of other Euripidean dramas". In art and literature Heracles was represented as an enormously strong man of moderate height; his characteristic weapon was the bow but frequently also the club. Vase paintings demonstrate the unparalleled popularity of Heracles, his fight with the lion being depicted many hundreds of times.

Hera suckling the baby Heracles, surrounded by Athena (out of view) and Aphrodite on the left and on the right, Iris, the messenger of Hera, who carries the winged staff (caduceus), detail from an Apulian red-figure squat lekythos, c. 360-350 BC

Heracles also entered Etruscan and Roman mythology and cult, and the exclamation "mehercule" became as familiar to the Romans as "Herakleis" was to the Greeks. In Italy he was worshipped as a god of merchants and traders, although others also prayed to him for his characteristic gifts of good luck or rescue from danger.

Heracles attained the highest social prestige through his appointment as official ancestor of the Dorian kings. This probably served as a legitimation for the Dorian migrations into the Peloponnese. Hyllus, the eponymous hero of one Dorian phyle, became the son of Heracles and one of the Heracleidae or Heraclids (the numerous descendants of Heracles, especially the descendants of Hyllus — other Heracleidae included Macaria, Lamos, Manto, Bianor, Tlepolemus, and Telephus). These Heraclids conquered the Peloponnesian kingdoms of Mycenae, Sparta and Argos, claiming, according to legend, a right to rule them through their ancestor. Their rise to dominance is frequently called the "Dorian invasion". The Lydian and later the Macedonian kings, as rulers of the same rank, also became Heracleidae.

Other members of this earliest generation of heroes, such as Perseus, Deucalion, Theseus and Bellerophon, have many traits in common with Heracles. Like him, their exploits are solitary, fantastic and border on fairy tale, as they slay monsters such as the Chimera and Medusa. Bellerophon's adventures are commonplace types, similar to the adventures of Heracles and Theseus. Sending a hero to his presumed death is also a recurrent theme of this early heroic tradition, used in the cases of Perseus and Bellerophon.

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