Listed 100 (total found 183) sub titles with search on: Mythology for wider area of: "THIVES Province VIOTIA" .
PLATEES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
The Plataeans were originally, in my opinion, sprung from the soil
THIVES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
An aboriginal, king of the Ectenians, father of Alalcomenia and of Eleusis. Epithet of Thebes, gate of Thebes.
Ogyges (Oguges) or Ogygus. Son of Boeotus, and the first ruler of Thebes, which was called after him Ogygia. In his reign a great deluge is said to have occurred. The name of Ogyges is also connected with Attic story, for in Attica an Ogygian flood is likewise mentioned. He was said to be the father of the Athenian hero Eleusis. From Ogyges the Thebans are called by the poets Ogygidae, and Ogygius is used in the sense of Theban.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
KITHERON (Mountain) VIOTIA
Son of Echion and Agave, king of Thebes, tries to stop the Bacchic orgies, is torn to pieces by his mother, insults Dionysus and is torn to pieces by Bacchanals on Mt. Cithaeron.
Son of Aristaeus and Autonoe, a hunter, woos Semele or sees Artemis bathing, torn to pieces by his dogs, painted by Polygnotus, his death, his spectre, his bed, annual sacrifices to him.
Actaeon (Aktaion). Son of Aristaeus and Autonoe, a daughter of Cadmus. He was trained in the art of hunting by the centaur Cheiron, and was afterwards torn to pieces by his own 50 hounds on mount Cithaeron. The names of these hounds are given by Ovid (Met. iii. 206, &c.) and Hyginus. (Fab. 181; comp. Stat. Theb. ii. 203). The cause of this misfortune is differently stated: according to some accounts it was because he had seen Artemis while she was bathing in the vale of Gargaphia, on the discovery of which the goddess changed him into a stag, in which form he was torn to pieces by his own dogs. (Ov. Met. iii. 155, &c.; Hygin. Fab. 181; Callim. h. in Pallad. 110). Others relate that he provoked the anger of the goddess by his boasting that he excelled her in hunting, or by his using for a feast the game which was destined as a sacrifice to her. (Eurip. Bacch. 320; Diod. iv. 81). A third account stated that he was killed by his dogs at the command of Zeus, because he sued for the hand of Semele. (Acusilaus, ap. Apollod. iii. 4.4). Pausanias (ix. 2.3) saw near Orchomenos the rock on which Actaeon used to rest when he was fatigued by hunting, and from which he had seen Artemis in the bath; but he is of opinion that the whole story arose from the circumstance that Actaeon was destroyed by his dogs in a natural fit of madness. Palaephatus (s. v. Actaeon) gives an absurd and trivial explanation of it. According to the Orchomenian tradition the rock of Actaeon was haunted by his spectre, and the oracle of Delphi commanded the Orchomenians to bury the remains of the hero, which they might happen to find, and fix an iron image of him upon the rock. This image still existed in the time of Pausanias (ix. 38.4), and the Orchomenians offered annual sacrifices to Actaeon in that place. The manner in which Actaeon and his mother were painted by Polygnotus in the Lesche of Delphi, is described by Pausanias.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Sep 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
PLATEES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
On the road from Megara there is a spring on the right, and a little farther on a rock. It is called the bed of Actaeon, for it is said that he slept thereon when weary with hunting, and that into this spring he looked while Artemis was bathing in it. Stesichorus of Himera says that the goddess cast a deer-skin round Actaeon to make sure that his hounds would kill him, so as to prevent his taking Semele to wife.
Hera, they say, was for some reason or other angry with Zeus, and had retreated to Euboea. Zeus, failing to make her change her mind, visited Cithaeron, at that time despot in Plataea, who surpassed all men for his cleverness. So he ordered Zeus to make an image of wood, and to carry it, wrapped up, in a bullock wagon, and to say that he was celebrating his marriage with Plataea, the daughter of Asopus. ] So Zeus followed the advice of Cithaeron. Hera heard the news at once, and at once appeared on the scene. But when she came near the wagon and tore away the dress from the image, she was pleased at the deceit, on finding it a wooden image and not a bride, and was reconciled to Zeus. To commemorate this reconciliation they celebrate a festival called Daedala, because the men of old time gave the name of daedala to wooden images. (Paus. 9,3,1-3).
POTNIES (Ancient city) THIVA
Son of Sisyphus, father of Bellerophon, killed by his horses.
Glaucus, (Glaukos). A grandson of Aeolus, son of Sisyphus and Merope, and father of Bellerophontes. (Hom. Il. vi. 154; Apollod. i. 9.3; Paus. ii. 4.2.) He lived at Potniae, despised the power of Aphrodite, and did not allow his mares to breed, that they might be the stronger for the horse race. According to others, he fed them with human flesh, for the purpose of making them spirited and warlike. This excited the anger of Aphrodite or the gods in general, who punished him in this way:--when Acastus celebrated the funeral games of his father, Pelias, at lolcus, Glaucus took part in them with a charict and four horses; but the animals were frightened and upset the chariot. (Paus. iii. 18.9, v. 17.4; Apollod. i. 9.28; Nonn. Dionys. xi. 143.) According to others, they tore Glaucus to pieces, having drunk from the water of a sacred well in Boeotia, in consequence of which they were seized with madness; others, again, describe this madness as the consequence of their having eaten a herb called hippomanes. (Hygin. Fab. 250, 273; School. ad Eurip. Or. 318, Phoen. 1159; Strab.; Eustath. ad Hom.; Etym. Magn.; Paus. ix. 8.1; Aelian, H. A. xv. 25; Virg. Georg. iii. 267.) It was believed on the Corinthian isthmus that it was haunted by the shade of Glaucus, who frightened the horses during the race, and was therefore called taraxippos. (Paus. vi 20.9.) Glaucus of Potniae (Glaukos Potnieus) was the title of one of Aeschylus' lost tragedies. (Welcker, Die Aeschyl. Triloa. n 561 Nachtrag, Die Griech. Tragoed. vol. i.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Nov 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Glaucus (Glaukos). A son of Sisyphus, king of Corinth, by Mero pe, the daughter of Atlas, born at Potniae, a village of Boeotia. According to one account, he restrained his mares from having intercourse with the stallions; upon which Aphrodite inspired the former with such fury that they tore his body to pieces as he returned from the games which Adrastus had celebrated in honour of his father. Another version of the story makes them to have run mad after eating a certain plant at Potniae (Etymol. Mag. s. v. Potniades; Hyg. Fab.250; Georg.iii. 268).
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Jan 2003 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
SKOLOS (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Agave, (Agaue). Daughter of Cadmus and wife of Echion. She,
with other women, in a bacchanalian frenzy, tore to pieces her own son Pentheus.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
(Scolus) said to be the place from which Pentheus was brought when he was torn to pieces. For more information see Ancient Thebes, Mythology, Ancient Fables
TANAGRA (Ancient city) VIOTIA
The grander of the two versions of the Triton legend relates that the women of Tanagra before the orgies of Dionysus went down to the sea to be purified, were attacked by the Triton as they were swimming, and prayed that Dionysus would come to their aid. The god, it is said, heard their cry and overcame the Triton in the fight. The other version is less grand but more credible. It says that the Triton would waylay and lift all the cattle that were driven to the sea. He used even to attack small vessels, until the people of Tanagra set out for him a bowl of wine. They say that, attracted by the smell, he came at once, drank the wine, flung himself on the shore and slept, and that a man of Tanagra struck him on the neck with an axe and chopped off his head. for this reason the image has no head. And because they caught him drunk, it is supposed that it was Dionysus who killed him.
TEFMISSOS (Ancient city) THIVES
There is also another legend, which tells of a fox called the Teumessian fox, how owing to the wrath of Dionysus the beast was reared to destroy the Thebans, and how, when about to be caught by the hound given by Artemis to Procris the daughter of Erechtheus, the fox was turned into a stone, as was likewise this hound.
THESPIES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
(Narkissos). The beautiful son of the river-god Cephissus. He
rejected the love of the nymph Echo, and Nemesis punished
him for this by inspiring him with a passion for the reflection of himself which
he saw in the water of a fountain. He pined away in the desire for it; and to
see one's reflection in the water was hence considered as a presage of death.
The flower of the same name, into which he was changed, was held to be a symbol
of fragility and death, and was sacred to Hades, the divinity of the world below.
Persephone had just gathered a narcissus, when she was carried off by Hades.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Narcissus (Narkissos), a son of Cephissus and the nymph Liriope of Thespiae. He was a very handsome youth, but wholly inaccessible to the feeling of love. The nymph Echo, who loved him, but in vain, died away with grief. One of his rejected lovers, however, prayed to Nemesis to punish him for his unfeeling heart. Nemesis accordingly caused Narcissus to see his own face reflected in a well, and to fall in love with his own image. As this shadow was unapproachable Narcissus gradually perished with love, and his corpse was metamorphosed into the flower called after him narcissus. This beautiful story is related at length by Ovid (Met. iii. 341). According to some traditions, Narcissus sent a sword to one of his lovers, Ameinius, who killed himself with it at the very door of Narcissus' house, and called upon the gods to avenge his death. Narcissus, tormented by love of himself and by repentance, put an end to his life, and from his blood there sprang up the flower narcissus (Conon, Narrat. 24). Other accounts again state that Narcissus melted away into the well in which he had beheld his own image (Paus. ix. 31.6); or that he had a beloved twin sister perfectly like him, who died, whereupon he looked at his own image reflected in a well, to satify his longing after his sister. Eustathius (ad Hom. p. 266) says that Narcissus was drowned in the well.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited April 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Narcissus and Echo
The vocal nymph this lovely huntsman view'd,
As he into the toils his prey pursu'd,
Though of the power of speaking first debarr'd,
She could not hold from answering what she heard.
The jealous Juno by her wiles betray'd,
Took this revenge on the deceitful maid,
For when she might have seiz'd her faithless Jove,
Often in am'rous thefts of lawless love;
Her tedious talk would make the goddess stay,
And give her rivals time to run away:
Which when she found, she cried, "For such a wrong,
Small be the power of that deluding tongue."
Immediately the deed confirm'd the threats,
For Echo only what she hears repeats.
Now at the sight of the fair youth she glows,
And follows silently where'er he goes.
The nearer she pursu'd, the more she mov'd
Thro' the dear track he trode, the more she lov'd.
Still her approach inflamed her fierce desire,
As sulph'rous torches catch the neighb'ring fire.
How often would she strive, but strove in vain,
To tell the passion and confess her pain?
A thousand tender things her thoughts suggest,
With which she would have woo'd; but they suppress'd
For want of speech, lay buried in her breast.
Begin she could not, but she staid to wait
Till he should speak, and she his speech repeat.
Now several ways his young companions gone,
And for some time Narcissus left alone;
Where are you all?" at last she hears him call;
And she straight answers him, "Where are you all?"
Around he lets his wandering eye-sight roam,
But sees no creature whence the voice should come.
"Speak yet again," he cries, "is any nigh?"
Again the mournful Echo answers, "I."
"Why come not you!" says he, "appear in view:
" She hastily returns, " Why come not you ?"
Once more the voice th' astonish'd huntsman tried,
Louder he called, and louder she replied.
Then let us join," at last Narcissus said;
"Then let us join," replied the ravish'd maid.
Scarce had she spoke, when from the woods she sprung,
And on his neck with close embraces hung.
But he with all his strength unlocks her fold,
And breaks unkindly from her feeble hold:
Then proudly cries, "Life shall this breast forsake
Ere you, loose nymph, on me your pleasure take."
"On me your pleasure take," the nymph replies,
While from her the disdainful huntsman flies.
Repuls'd, with speed she seeks the gloomiest groves,
And pines to think on her rejected loves.
Alone laments her ill-requited flame,
And in the closest thickets shrouds her shame.
Her rage to be refus'd yields no relief,
But her fond passion is encreas'd by grief.
The thoughts of such a slight all sleep suppress'd,
And kept her languishing for want of rest:
Now pines she quite away with anxious care,
Her skin contracts, her blood dissolves to air,
Nothing but voice and bones she now retains,
These turn to stones, but still the voice remains:
In woods, caves, hills, for ever hid she lies,
Heard by all ears, but never seen by eyes.
Thus her and other nymphs his proud disdain
With an unheard of cruelty had slain;
Many on mountains and in rivers born,
Thus perish'd underneath his haughty scorn;
When one who in their suffrings bore a share,
With suppliant hands address'd this humble pray'r,
Thus may he love himself, and thus despair!"
Nor were her pray'rs at an ill hour preferr'd;
Rhamnusia, the revengeful goddess, heard.
Nature had plac'd a crystal fountain near,
The water deep, but to the bottom clear;
Whose silver spring ascended gently up,
And bubbled softly to the silent top.
The surface smooth as icy lakes appear'd,
Unknown by herdsman, undisturb'd by herd.
No bending tree above its surface grows,
Or scatters thence its leaves or broken boughs;
Yet at a just convenient distance stood,
All round the peaceful spring, a stately wood,
Thro' whose thick tops no sun could shoot his beams,
Nor view his image in the silver streams.
Thither from hunting, and the scorching heat,
The wearied youth was one day led by fate:
Down on his face to drink the spring he lies,
But as his image in that glass he spies,
He drinks in passion deeper at his eyes.
His own reflection works his wild desire,
And he himself sets his own self on fire:
Fix'd as some statue, he preserves his place,
Intent his looks, and motionless his face;
Deep thro' the spring his eye-balls dart their beams,
Like midnight stars that twinkle in the streams.
His iv'ry neck the crystal mirrow shows,
His waving hair above the surface flows,
His cheeks reflect the lily and the rose.
His own perfection all his passions mov'd,
He loves himself who for himself was lov'd;
Who seeks, is sought; who kindles the desires,
Is scorch'd himself; who is admir'd, admires.
Oft would he the deceitful spring embrace,
And seek to fasten on that lovely face
Oft with his down-thrust arms he thought to fold
About that neck that still deludes his hold,
He gets no kisses from those coz'n'ng lips;
His arms grasp nothing; from himself he slips;
He knows not what he views, and yet pursues
His desp'rate love, and burns for what he views.
"Catch not so fondly at a fleeting shade,
And be no longer by yourself betray'd;
It borrows all it has from you alone,
And it can boast of nothing of its own:
With you it comes, with you it stays, and so
Would go away, had you the power to go."
Neither for sleep nor hunger would he move,
But gazing still augments his hopeless love;
Still o'er the spring lie keeps his bending head,
Still with that flatt'ring form his eyes lie fed,
And silently surveys the treacherous shade.
To the deaf woods at length his grief he vents,
And in these words the wretched youth laments:
Tell me, ye hills, and dales, and neighboring groves,
You that are conscious of so many loves;
Say, have you ever seen a lover pine
Like me, or ever knew a love like mine ?
I know not whence this sudden flame should come,
I like and see, but see I know not whom;
What grieves me more, no rocks, nor rolling seas,
Nor strong-wall'd cities, nor untrodden ways,
Only a slender silver stream destroys,
And casts the bar between our sundred joys;
E'en he too seems to feel an equal flame,
The same his passion, his desires the same;
As oft as I my longing lips incline
To join with his, his mouth to meet with mine.
So near our faces and our mouths approach,
That almost to ourselves we seem to touch.
Come forth, whoe'er thou art, and do not fly
From one so passionately fond as I;
I've nothing to deserve your just disdain,
But have been lov'd, as I love you, in vain.
Yet all the signs of mutual love you give,
And my poor hopes in all your actions live;
When in the stream our hands I strive to join,
Yours straight ascend, and half way grasp at mine.
You smile my smiles; when I a tear let fall,
You shed another, and consent in all;
And when I speak, your lovely lips appear
To utter something which I cannot hear.
Alas! 'tis I myself; too late I see,
My own deceitful shade has ruin'd me;
With a mad passion for myself I'm curs'd,
And bear about those flames I kindled first.
In so perplex'd a case, what can I do ?
Ask, or be ask'd? shall I be woo'd, or woo?
All that I wish, I have ; what would I more?
Ah ! 'tis my too great plenty makes me poor.
Divide me from myself, ye powers divine,
Nor let his being intermix with mine!
All that I love and wish for, now retake;
A strange request for one in love to make!
I feel my strength decay with inward grief,
And hope to lose my sorrows with my life;
Nor would I mourn my own untimely fate,
Were he I love allow'd a longer date:
This makes me at my cruel stars repine,
That his much dearer life must end with mine.'
This said, again he turns his wat'ry face,
And gazes wildly in the crystal glass,
While streaming tears from his full eye-lids fell,
And drop by drop rais'd circles in the well;
The several rings larger and larger spread,
And by degrees dispers'd the fleeting shade,
Which when perceiv'd, "Oh, whither would you go?
(He cries,) ah! whither, whither fly you now?
Stay, lovely shade, do not so cruel prove,
In leaving me, who to distraction love;
Let me still see what ne'er can be possess'd,
And with the sight alone my phrensy feast."
Now frantic with his grief, his robe he tears,
And tokens of his rage his bosom bears;
The cruel wounds on his pure body show,
Like crimson mingling with the whitest snow;
Like apples with vermilion-circle's stripe,
Or a fair bunch of grapes not fully ripe.
But when he looks and sees the wounds he made,
Writ on the bosom of the charming shade,
His sorrows would admit of no relief,
But all his sense was swallow'd in his grief.
As wax, near any kindled fuel plac'd, Melts,
and is sensibly perceiv'd to waste;
As morning frosts are found to thaw away,
When once the sun begins to warm the day;
So the fond youth dissolves in hopeless fires,
And by degrees consumes in vain desires.
His lovely cheeks now lost their white and red,
Diminish'd was his strength, his beauty fled;
His body from its just proportions fell,
Which the scorn'd Echo lately lov'd so well
Yet though her first resentments she retaind,
And still remember'd how she was disdain'd,
She sigh'd, and when the wretched lover cried,
"Alas! alas!" the woful nymph replied.
Then when, with cruel blows his hands would wound
His tender breast, she still restor'd the sound.
Now hanging o'er the spring his drooping head,
With a sad sigh these lying words lie said:
"Ah! boy, belov'd in vain!" through all the plain
Echo resounds, " Ah! boy, belov'd in vain!"
"Farewell," he cries, and with that word he died;
"Farewell!" the miserable nymph replied.
Now pale and breathless on the grass he lies,
For death had shut his self-admiring eyes;
Now wafted over to the Stygian coast,
The waters there reflect his wandering ghost;
In loud laments his weeping sisters mourn,
Which Echo makes the neighb'ring hills return.
All signs of desp'rate grief the nymphs express,
Great is the moan, yet is not Echo's less.
Charles Hopkins, ed.
This text is from: P. Ovidius Naso, History of Love. Cited Jan 2003 from The Perseus Project URL below.
The 50 daughters of Thespius who slept with Heracles and their sons.
Procris, sons Antileon and Hippeus; Panope, son Threpsippas; Lyse, son Eumedes; .., son Creon; Epilais, son Astyanax; Certhe, son Iobes; Eurybia, son Polylaus; Patro, son Archemachus; Meline, son Laomedon; Clytippe, son Eurycapys; Eubote, son Eurypylus; Aglaia, son Antiades; Chryseis, son Onesippus; Oriahe, son Laomenes; Lysidice, son Teles; Menippis, son Entelides; Anthippe, son Hippodromus; Eury.., son Teleutagoras; Hippo, son Capylus; Euboea, son Olympus; Nice, son Nicodromus; Argele, son Cleolaus; Exole, son Erythras; Xanthis, son Homolippus; Stratonice, son Atromus; Iphis, son Celeustanor; Laothoe, son Antiphus; Antiope, son Alopius; Calametis, son Astybies; Phyleis, son Tigasis; Aeschreis, son Leucones; Anthea ... ; Eurypyle, son Archedicus; Erato, son Dynastes; Asopis, son Mentor; Eone, son Amestrius; Tiphyse, Lyncaeus; Olympusa, son Halocrates; Heliconis, son Phalias; Hesychia, son Oestrobles; Terpsicrate, son Euryopes; Elachia, son Buleus; Nicippe, son Antimachus; Pyrippehe, son Patroclus; Praxithea, son Nephus; Lysippe, son Erasippus; Toxicrate, son Lycurgus; Marse, son Bucolus; Eurytele, son Leucippus; Hippocrate, son Hippozygus.
THIVES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Megara, Hercules' First Wife
After defeating the Minyans at Orchomenos, King Creon offered his eldest daughter, Megara, to Hercules as a bride in reward for his prowess in battle. Together, Hercules and Megara had anywhere between three and eight children. Although many different versions of Hercules' doomed marriage to Megara survive, Euripides' Heracles is the most popular account. There still remains much debate surrounding the sequencing of events.
According to Euripides, when Hercules returned home from his trip to the underworld to fetch Cerberus, he found Greece in chaos. During his absence, Lycus had come to Eubea to overthrow Creon and murdered him. At the precise moment of Hercules' return, Lycus was about to murder Megara and their children. Hercules rushed to the defense of his family and slew Lycus with an arrow. Just as Hercules was about to sacrifice to Zeus, however, Hera interfered, causing Hercules to fall into a state of delusion and rage. Hercules shot their children with his arrows, believing them to be Eurystheus' sons and not his own. (Although Apollodoros reports that Megara escaped and married Iolaus, Euripides reports that Hercules shot Megara too.) As Hercules was about to kill his own adopted father, Amphitryton, thinking him to be Eurystheus' father Sthenelus, Athena intervened and pelted Hercules on the chest with a rock, knocking him out cold and sending him into a deep sleep. Once Hercules awoke and realized what he had done, he was horrified by his actions and wanted to commit suicide. Luckily his friend Theseus was there to calm him down, eventually convincing Hercules to go into exile.
Traditionally, Hercules' momentary insanity is explained by Hera's desire to make Hercules commit a crime that would require atonement. Some versions say that following the murders, Hercules traveled to Delphi, and was instructed by the oracle to go to Tiryns and to serve Eurystheus for twelve years and perform any tasks that he might ask of him. If Hercules would complete these tasks and serve his sentence to Eurystheus in full, Hercules would be made immortal. The tasks that followed were to be known later as the labors of Hercules.
This text is cited July 2004 from Perseus Project URL bellow, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Megara. Daughter of Creon of Thebes, married to Herakles, Herakles burns the children he had by her, given by him to Iolaus, her sons by Herakles.
Son of Echion and Agave, king of Thebes, tries to stop the Bacchic orgies, insults Dionysus and is torn to pieces by Bacchanals and his mother on Mt. Cithaeron.
Pentheus. The son of Echion by Agave, daughter of Cadmus. He was the successor of Cadmus as king of Thebes, and on the introduction of the Bacchic worship resisted it. It is said that Pentheus concealed himself in a tree in order to witness secretly the orgies of the Bacchanals, and on being discovered by them was taken for a wild beast, and torn in pieces by his own mother and his two sisters, Ino and Autonoe, in their Bacchic frenzy. The scene of this occurrence was said to be Mount Cithaeron or Mount Parnassus. The story forms the subject of the Bacchae of Euripides. The Corinthians had a tradition that the tree in which Pentheus hid was afterwards carved into images of the god Dionysus and worshipped (Pausan. ii. 6, 6). Hence some have tried to connect the story of Pentheus with the primitive tree-worship.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Agave. The daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia. Her sisters were Autonoe, Ino
and Semele, and she also had a brother: Polydoros. She was married to Echion,
who was one of the Sparti who had been born out of the dragon's teeth that Cadmus
had sown when founding Thebes. Together with Echion she had a son: Pentheus.
When Semele was killed after she had gotten pregnant with Zeus, Agave
and her sisters spread the rumour that their sister had been promiscuous. They
said that Semele had been so ashamed of being pregnant that she said that she
had slept with a god. Therefore, the sisters said, she got what she deserved.
Semele's child, Dionysus, had been saved, and Agave and her sisters
were to become his followers. Pentheus, who was curious to see what his sisters
were up to in the forests, hid in a tree one day and spied on them. When they
discovered him they tore him to pieces, but were forced to worship the tree afterwards.
Agave was later to go with her father to Illyria
where she married the king Lycotherses. She later killed him so that her father
could take the throne.
This text is cited Sept 2003 from the In2Greece URL below.
Agave (Agaue). A daughter of Cadmus, and wife of the Spartan Echion, by whom she became the mother of Pentheus, who succeeded his grandfather Cadmus as king of Thebes. Agave was the sister of Autonoe, Ino, and Semele (Apollod. iii.4.2), and when Semele, during her pregnancy with Dionysus, was destroyed by the sight of the splendour of Zeus, her sisters spread the report that she had only endeavoured to conceal her guilt, by pretending that Zeus was the father of her child, and that her destruction was a just punishment for her falsehood. This calumny was afterwards most severely avenged upon Agave. For, after Dionysus, the son of Semele, had traversed the world, he came to Thebes and compelled the women to celebrate his Dionysiac festivals on mount Cithaeron. Pentheus wishing to prevent [p. 67] or stop these riotous proceedings, went himself to mount Cithaeron, but was torn to pieces there by his own mother Agave, who in her frenzy believed him to be a wild beast (Apollod. iii. 5.2; Ov. Met. iii. 725). Hyginus (Fab. 240, 254) makes Agave, after this deed, go to Illyria and marry king Lycotherses, whom however she afterwards killed in order to gain his kingdom for her father Cadmus. This account is manifestly transplaced by Hyginus, and must have belonged to an earlier part of the story of Agave.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Sep 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Echion, one of the Sparti, son-in-law of Cadmus, father of Pentheus, husband of Agave. Agave; daughter of Cadmus, wife of Echion, kills her son Pentheus in a fit of Bacchic frenzy
Echion, one of the five surviving Spartae that had grown up from the dragon's teeth, which Cadmus had sown. (Apollod. iii. 4.1; Hygin. Fab. 178; Ov. Met. iii. 126.) He was married to Agave, by whom he became the father of Pentheus. (Apollod. iii. 5.2.) He is said to have dedicated a temple of Cybele in Boeotia, and to have assisted Cadmus in the building of Thebes. (Ov. Met. x. 68.6.)
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The plot of "The Bacchantes", the tragedy written by Euripides, of which the e-text(s) is (are) found in Greece (ancient country) under the category Ancient Greek Writings , is taking place in Thebes.
Armed men sprung from dragon's teeth at Thebes, race of Sparti at Thebes.
Sparti (spartoi, "the men sown"). The men in full armour who sprang up from the teeth of the dragon of Ares when sown by Cadmus. On their birth they immediately fought with one another, till only five remained. The survivors helped Cadmus to found Thebes, and were the ancestors of the Theban nobility.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Their names were: Electridian, Proetidian, Neistan, Creanean, Hypsistan, Ogygian, Homoloid. The fable has it that the walls of the town were built by the sounds of the seven-string lyre of Amphion.
In the circuit of the ancient wall of Thebes were gates seven in number, and these remain to-day. One got its name, I learned, from Electra, the sister of Cadmus, and another, the Proetidian, from a native of Thebes. He was Proetus, but I found it difficult to discover his date and lineage. The Neistan gate, they say, got its name for the following reason. The last of the harp's strings they call nete, and Amphion invented it, they say, at this gate. I have also heard that the son of Zethus, the brother of Amphion, was named Neis, and that after him was this gate called. The Crenaean gate and the Hypsistan they so name for the following reason. . . and by the Hypsistan is a sanctuary of Zeus surnamed Hypsistus (Most High ). Next after these gates is the one called Ogygian, and lastly the Homoloid gate. It appeared to me too that the name of the last was the most recent, and that of the Ogygian the most ancient. The name Homoloid is derived, they say, from the following circumstance. When the Thebans were beaten in battle by the Argives near Glisas, most of them withdrew along with Laodamas, the son of Eteocles. A portion of them shrank from the journey to Illyria, and turning aside to Thessaly they seized Homole, the most fertile and best-watered of the Thessalian mountains. When they were recalled to their homes by Thersander, the son of Polyneices, they called the gate, through which they passed on their return, the Homoloid gate after Homole. (Paus. 9.8.4)
This extract is from: Pausanias. Description of Greece (ed. W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., & H.A. Ormerod, 1918). Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains comments & interesting hyperlinks.
Daughter of Tantalus, wife of Amphion, her sons and daughters, boasts herself happier than Latona, children of Niobe slain by Apollo and Artemis, but two of them survive, goes to her father at Sipylus and is turned to stone, story of Niobe connected with Mt. Sipylus, her figure in the rock on Mt. Sipylus, sheds tears in summer.
Niobe. The daughter of Tantalus and Dione. She was the sister of Pelops
and wife of Amphion of Thebes. Like her father, she stood in close connection
with the gods, especially with Leto, the wife of Zeus, and fell into misfortune
by her own arrogance. In her maternal pride for her numerous progeny of six sons
and six daughters, the ill-fated woman ventured to compare herself to Leto, who
had only two children. To punish this presumption Apollo and Artemis slew with
their arrows all Niobe's children in their parents' palace. For nine days they
lay in their blood without any one to bury them, for Zeus had changed all people
into stone. On the tenth day the gods buried them. Niobe, who was changed to stone
on the lonely hills of Sipylus, could not, even in this form, forget her sorrow.
So runs Homer's account (Il. xxiv. 612), in which we have the earliest reference
to "a colossal relief roughly carved on the rocks" of Mount Sipylus,
in Lydia, the face of which is washed by a stream in such a manner that it appears
to be weeping (cf. Jebb on Soph. Antig. 831). Pausanias (i. 21, 5) declares that
he saw this relief which modern archaeologists now regard as referable to the
art of the Hittites.
The accounts of later writers vary greatly in respect of the number
of the daughters of Niobe and of the scene of her death. Sometimes the spot where
the disaster occurs is Lydia, sometimes Thebes, where, moreover, the grave of
Niobe's children was pointed out; the sons perish in the chase, or on the race-course,
while the daughters die in the royal palace at Thebes, or at the Niobe. This story
describes Niobe as returning from Thebes to her home on Sipylus, and as there
changed into a stone by Zeus, at her own entreaty. The fate of Niobe was often,
in ancient times, the theme both of poetry and of art. The group of the children
of Niobe, discovered at Rome, near the Lateran Church, in 1583, and now (since
1775) at Florence, is well known; it is probably the Roman copy of a Greek work
which stood in Pliny's time in a temple of Apollo at Rome, and with regard to
which it was a mooted point with the ancients whether it was from the hand of
Scopas or of Praxiteles (Pliny, H. N. xxxvi. 28).
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
1. Amphion, son of Amphion and Niobe, survives his brothers. 2. Amyclas, son of Amphion and Niobe, survives his brothers. 3. Meliboea, daughter of Amphion and Niobe, survives her sisters, her name changed to Chloris.
Ilioneus, a son of Amphion and Niobe, whom Apollo would have liked to save, because he was praying; but the arrow was no longer under the control of the god. (Ov. Met. vi. 261)
Daughters of Antipoenus. For when Heracles and the Thebans were about to engage in battle with the Orchomenians, an oracle was delivered to them that success in the war would be theirs if their citizen of the most noble descent would consent to die by his own hand. Now Antipoenus, who had the most famous ancestors, was loath to die for the people, but his daughters were quite ready to do so. So they took their own lives and are honored therefor.
Echion. One of the heroes who sprang from the dragon's teeth sown by Cadmus. He was the husband of Agave and father of Pentheus, who is hence called Echionides.
Agave (Agaue). Daughter of Cadmus and wife of Echion. She, with other women, in a bacchanalian frenzy, tore to pieces her own son PentheusThis text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Higher up than the Ismenian sanctuary you may see the fountain which they say is sacred to Ares, and they add that a dragon was posted by Ares as a sentry over the spring. By this fountain is the grave of Caanthus. They say that he was brother to Melia and son to Ocean, and that he was commissioned by his father to seek his sister, who had been carried away. Finding that Apollo had Melia, and being unable to get her from him, he dared to set fire to the precinct of Apollo that is now called the Ismenian sanctuary. The god, according to the Thebans, shot him. Here then is the tomb of Caanthus. They say that Apollo had sons by Melia, to wit, Tenerus and Ismenus. To Tenerus Apollo gave the art of divination, and from Ismenus the river got its name. Not that the river was nameless before, if indeed it was called Ladon before Ismenus was born to Apollo.
Caanthus (Kaanthos), a son of Oceanus and brother of Melia. He was sent out by
his father in search of his sister who had been carried off, and when he found
that she was in the possession of Apollo, and that it was impossible to rescue
her from his hands, he threw fire into the sacred grove of Apollo, called the
Ismenium. The god then killed Caanthus with an arrow. His tomb was shewn by the
Thebans on the spot where he had been killed, near the river Ismenius. (Paus.
ix. 10.5)
Here are portraits of women in relief, but the figures are by this time rather indistinct. The Thebans call them Witches, adding that they were sent by Hera to hinder the birth-pangs of Alcmena. So these kept Alcmena from bringing forth her child. But Historis, the daughter of Teiresias, thought of a trick to deceive the Witches, and she uttered a loud cry of joy in their hearing, that Alcmena had been delivered. So the story goes that the Witches were deceived and went away, and Alcmena brought forth her child.
Historis, a daughter of Teiresias, and engaged in the service of Alcmene. By her cry that Alcmene had already given birth, she induced the Pharmacides to withdraw, and thus enabled her mistress to give birth to Heracles. (Paus. ix. 11. 3.) Some attribute this friendly act to Galinthias, the daughter of Proetus of Thebes.
From Apollodorus LIBRARY Book III (and epitome). Translated by J. G. Frazer, 1921
First inhabitants of land of Thebes.
Boeotian tribe, defeated by Cadmus, flee from Thebes and found Hyampolis.
Boeotian tribe, defeated by Cadmus.
(Aones). An ancient Boeotian race, said to have been so called from Aon, son of Poseidon. Hence the poets frequently use Aonia as equivalent to Boeotia. As Mount Helicon and the fountain Aganippe were in Aonia, the Muses are called Aonides or Aoniae.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Cadmus goes to dwell in, Laodamus retires to, customs of the Eneti there, river Angrus there, flight to Illyria of the Temenid brothers, Illyrian invasion of Greece, traversed by Io, Colchians journey to, Herakles journeys through.
Thebe is the fourth known satellite of Jupiter. Thebe was a nymph and the daughter of the river god Asopus. Thebe rotates synchronously around Jupiter.
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The plot of "The Seven Against Thebes" a tragedy written by Aeschylus, of which the e-text(s) is (are) found in Greece (ancient country) under the category Ancient Greek Writings , is taking place at Thebes.
Seven Against Thebes: Various WebPages
Leades, a son of Astacus, who, according to Apollodorus (iii. 6.8), fought in the defence of Thebes against the Seven, and slew Eteocles; but Aeschylus (Sept. 474) represents Megareus as the person who killed Eteocles.
A poem attributed by some to Homer, reference therein to Hyperboreans, their war on Thebes, march against Thebes, capture Thebes, hold Nemean games, their graves, statues of E. at Delphi.
Epigoni (Epigonoi, "descendants").The sons of the Grecian heroes who were killed in the First Theban War. The War of the Epigoni is famous in ancient history. It was undertaken ten years after the first. The sons of those who had perished in the first war resolved to avenge the death of their fathers. The god, when consulted, promised them victory if led by Alcmaeon, the son of Amphiaraus. Alcmaeon accordingly took the command. Another account, however, given by Pausanias (ix. 9, 2), makes Thersander, son of Polynices, to have been at the head of the expedition. The other leaders were Amphilochus, brother of Alcmaeon; Aegialeus, son of Adrastus; Diomedes, of Tydeus; Promachus, of Parthenopaeus; Sthenelus, of Capaneus; and Eurypylus, of Mecisteus. The Argives were assisted by the Messenians, Arcadians, Corinthians, and Megarians. The Thebans obtained aid from the neighbouring States. The invaders ravaged the villages about Thebes. A battle ensued, in which Laodamas, the son of Eteocles, slew Aegialeus, and fell himself by the spear of Alcmaeon. The Thebans then fled; and, by the advice of Tiresias, they secretly left their city, which was entered and plundered by the Argives, and Thersander was placed on the throne. With the exception of the events of the Trojan War and the return of the Greeks, nothing was so closely connected with the Iliad and Odyssey as the War of the Argives against Thebes, since many of the principal heroes of Greece, particularly Diomedes and Sthenelus, were themselves among the conquerors of Thebes, and their fathers before them, a bolder and wilder race, had fought on the same spot, in a contest which, although unattended with victory, was still far from inglorious. Hence, also, reputed Homeric poems on the subject of this war were extant, which perhaps really bore a great affinity to the Homeric time and school. The second part of the Thebais, which related to the exploits of the Epigoni, was, according to Pausanias (ix. 9, 2), ascribed by some to Homer himself. The Epigoni was still commonly ascribed to Homer in the time of Herodotus
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Epigoni (Epigonoi), that is, the heirs or descendants. By this name ancient mythology understands the sons of the seven heroes who had undertaken an expedition against Thebes, and had perished there. Ten years after that catastrophe, the descendants of the seven heroes went against Thebes to avenge their fathers, and this war is called the war of the Epigoni. According to some traditions, this war was undertaken at the request of Adrastus, the only surviver of the seven heroes. The names of the Epigoni are not the same in all accounts (Apollod. iii. 7.2, &c.; Diod. iv. 66; Paus. x. 10.2; Hygin. Fab. 71); but the common lists contain Alemaeon, Aegialeus, Diomedes, Promachus, Sthenelus, Thersander, and Euryalus. Alcmaeon undertook the command, in accordance with an oracle, and collected a considerable band of Argives. The Thebans marched out against the enemy, under the command of Laodamas, after whose fall they took to flight to protect themselves within their city. On the part of the Epigoni, Aegialeus had fallen. The seer Teiresias, however, induced the Thebans to quit their town, and take their wives and children with them, while they sent ambassadors to the enemy to sue for peace. The Argives, however, took possession of Thebes, and razed it to the ground. The Epigoni sent a portion of the booty and Manto, the daughter of Teiresias, to Delphi, and then returned to Peloponnesus. The war of the Epigoni was made the subject of epic and tragic poems (Paus. ix. 9. 3). The statues of the seven Epigoni were dedicated at Delphi (Paus. x. 10.2).
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Dec 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Epigonoi: Various WebPages
OLMONES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Son of Sisyphus, receives land from Eteocles, succeeds to kingdom of Orchomenus, his daughters.
Holmus, (Holmos), a son of Sisyphus, and father of Minyas. He was believed to have founded the town of Holmones or Halmones, in the neighbourhood of Orchomenus. (Paus. ix. 24.3; Steph. Byz. s. v.)
THESPIES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Thespius (Thespios), a son of Erectheus, who, according to some, founded the town of Thespiae in Boeotia (Paus. ix. 26.4; Diod. iv. 29; comp. Schol. ad Hom. Il. ii. 948; Apollod. ii. 7.8). His descendants are called Thespiades (Apollod. ii. 4.10; Senec. Herc. Oet. 369), which name is also given to the Muses (Ov. Met. v. 310.).
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited April 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Descendant of Erechtheus, king of Thespiae, his fifty daughters have intercourse with Herakles, purifies Herakles, Herakles instructs him as to his sons, sons of Herakles by the daughters of.
ASKRA (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Oeoclus Oioklos), a son of Poseidon by Ascra, who in conjunction with the Aloadae, is said to have built the town of Ascra in Boeotia. (Paus. ix. 29.1)
TANAGRA (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Perseus Encyclopedia
Poemander, (Poimandros). The father by Tanagra, daughter of Aeolus, of Ephippus and Leucippus. He was the reputed founder of the town of Tanagra, in Boeotia.
EFTRISSIS (Ancient city) PLATEES
Eutresites, a surname of Apollo, derived from Eutresis, a place between Plataeae and Thespiae, where he had an ancient oracle. (Steph. Byz. s. v. Eutresis; Eustath. ad Hom. p. 268.)
POTNIES (Ancient city) THIVA
Aegobolus (Aigobolos), the goat-killer, a surname of Dionysus, at Potniae in Boeotia. (Paus. ix. 8.1)
THESPIES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Of the gods the Thespians have from the beginning honored Love most, and they have a very ancient image of him, an unwrought stone. Who established among the Thespians the custom of worshipping Love more than any other god I do not know (Paus. 9.27.1).
Eros, in Latin Amor, the god of love. In the sense in which he
is usually conceived, Eros is the creature of the later Greek poets; and in order
to understand the ancients properly we must distinguish three Erotes: viz. the
Eros of the ancient cosmogonies, the Eros of the philosophers and mysteries, who
bears great resemblance to the first, and the Eros whom we meet with in the epigrammatic
and erotic poets, whose witty and playful descriptions of the god, however, can
scarcely be considered as a part of the ancient religious belief of the Greeks.
Homer does not mention Eros, and Hesiod, the earliest author that mentions him,
describes him as the cosmogonic Eros. First, says Hesiod (Theog. 120,), there
was Chaos, then came Ge, Tartarus, and Eros, the fairest among the gods, who rules
over the minds and the council of gods and men. In this account we already perceive
a combination of the most ancient with later notions. According to the former,
Eros was one of the fundamental causes in the formation of the world, inasmuch
as he was the uniting power of love, which brought order and harmony among the
conflicting elements of which Chaos consisted. In the same metaphysical sense
he is conceived by Aristotle (Metaph. i. 4) and similarly in the Orphic poetry
(Orph. Hymn. 5; comp. Aristoph. Av. 695) he is described as the first of the gods,
who sprang from the world's egg. In Plato's Symposium he is likewise called the
oldest of the gods. It is quite in accordance with the notion of the cosmogonic
Eros, that he is described as a son of Cronos and Ge, of Eileithyia, or as a god
who had no parentage, and came into existence by himself (Paus. ix. c. 27). The
Eros of later poets, on the other hand, who gave rise to that notion of the god
which is most familiar to us, is one of the youngest of all the gods (Paus. l.
c. ; Cic. de Nat. Deor. iii. 23). The parentage of the second Eros is very differently
described, for he is called a son of Aphrodite (either Aphrodite Urania or Aphrodite
Pandemos), or Polymnia, or a son of Porus and Penia, who was begotten on Aphrodite's
birthday (Plat. l. c. ; Sext. Emp. adv. Math. i. 540). According to other genealogies,
again, Eros was a son of Hermes by Artemis or Aphrodite, or of Ares by Aphrodite
(Cic. de Nat. Deor. iii. 23), or of Zephyrus and Iris (Plut. Amal. 20; Eustath.
ad Hom. p. 555), or, lastly, a son of Zeus by his own daughter Aphrodite, so that
Zeus was at once his father and grandfather (Virg. Cir. 134). Eros in this stage
is always conceived and was always represented as a handsome youth, and it is
not till about after the time of Alexander the Great that Eros is represented
by the epigrammatists and the erotic poets as a wanton boy, of whom a thousand
tricks and cruel sports are related, and from whom neither gods nor men were safe.
He is generally described as a son of Aphrodite; but as love finds its way into
the hearts of men in a manner which no one knows, the poets sometimes describe
him as of unknown origin (Theocrit. xiii. 2), or they say that he had indeed a
mother, but not a father (Meleagr. Epigr. 50). In this stage Eros has nothing
to do with uniting the discordant elements of the universe, or the higher sympathy
or love which binds human kind together; but he is purely the god of sensual love,
who bears sway over the inhabitants of Olympus as well as over men and all living
creatures: he tames lions and tigers, breaks the thunderbolts of Zeus, deprives
Heracles of his arms, and carries on his sport with the monsters of the sea (Orph.
Hymn. 57 ; Virg. Eclog. x. 29; Mosch. Idyll. vi. 10; Theocrit. iii. 15). His arms,
consisting of arrows, which he carries in a golden quiver, and of torches, no
one can touch with impunity (Mosch. Idyll. vi.; Theocrit. xxiii. 4; Ov. Trist.
v. 1, 22). His arrows are of different power: some are golden, and kindle love
in the heart they wound; others are blunt and heavy with lead, and produce aversion
to a lover (Ov. Met. i. 468; Eurip. Iphig. Aul. 548). Eros is further represented
with golden wings, and as fluttering about like a bird (Comp. Eustath. ad Hom.
p. 987). His eyes are sometimes covered, so that he acts blindly (Theocrit. x.
20). He is the usual companion of his mother Aphrodite, and poets and artists
represent him, moreover, as accompanied by such allegorical beings as Pothos,
Himeros, Dionysus, Tyche, Peitho, the Charites or Muses (Pind. Ol. i. 41; Anacr.
xxxiii. 8; Hesiod, Theog. 201; Paus. vi. 24.5, vii. 26.3, i. 43.6). His statue
and that of Hermes usually stood in the Greek gymnasia (Athen. xiii. p. 551; Eustath.
ad Hom. p. 1596).
We must especially notice the connexion of Eros with Anteros, with
which persons usually connect the notion of "Love returned". But originally Anteros
was a being opposed to Eros, and fighting against him (Paus. i. 30.1, vi. 23.4).
This conflict, however, was also conceived as the rivalry existing between two
lovers, and Anteros accordingly punished those who did not return the love of
others; so that he is the avenging Eros, or a deus ultor (Paus. i. 30.1; Ov. Met.
xiii. 750; Plat. Phaedr.). The number of Erotes (Amores and Cupidines) is playfully
extended ad libitum by later poets, and these Erotes are described either as sons
of Aphrodite or of nymphs. Among the places distinguished for their worship
of Eros, Thespiae in Boeotia stands foremost: there his worship was very ancient,
and the old representation of the god was a rude stone (Paus. ix. 27.1), to which
in later times, however, the most exquisite works of art were added (Eustath.
ad Hom. p. 266). At Thespiae a quinquennial festival, the Erotidia or Erotia,
were celebrated in honour of the god (Paus. l. c.; Athen. xiii. p. 561). Besides
Sparta, Samos,
and Parion on the Hellespont,
he was also worshipped at Athens,
where he had an altar at the entrance of the Academy
(Paus. i. 30.1). At Megara
his statue, together with those of I imeros and Pothos, stood in the temple of
Aphrodite (Paus. i. 43.6, comp. iii. 26.3, vi. 24.5, vii. 26.3). Among the things
sacred to Eros, and which frequently appear with him in works of art, we may mention
the rose, wild beasts which are tamed by him, the hare, the cock, and the ram.
Eros was a favourite subject with the ancient statuaries, but his representation
seems to have been brought to perfection by Praxiteles, who conceived him as a
full-grown youth of the most perfect beauty (Lucian, Am. ii. 17; Plin. H. N. xxxvi.
4, 5). In later times artists followed the example of poets, and represented him
as a little boy.Respecting the connexion between Eros and Psyche, see below Psyche.
Psyche (Psuche), that is, "breath" or "the soul", occurs in the
later times of antiquity, as a personification of the human soul, and Apuleius
(Met. iv. 28), relates about her the following beautiful allegoric story. Psyche
was the youngest of the three daughters of some king, and excited by her beauty
the jealousy and envy of Venus. In order to avenge herself, the goddess ordered
Amor to inspire Psyche with a love for the most contemptible of all men: but Amor
was so stricken with her beauty that he himself fell in love with her. He accordingly
conveyed her to some charming place, where he, unseen and unknown, visited her
every night, and left her as soon as the day began to dawn. Psyche might have
continued to have enjoyed without interruption this state of happiness, if she
had attended to the advice of her beloved, never to give way to her curiosity,
or to inquire who he was. But her jealous sisters made her believe that in the
darkness of night she was embracing some hideous monster, and accordingly once,
while Amor was asleep, she approached him with a lamp, and, to her amazement,
she beheld the most handsome and lovely of the gods. In her excitement of joy
and fear, a drop of hot oil fell from her lamp upon his shoulder. This awoke Amor,
who censured her for her mistrust, and escaped. Psyche's peace was now gone all
at once, and after having attempted in vain to throw herself into a river, she
wandered about from temple to temple, inquiring after her beloved, and at length
came to the palace of Venus. There her real sufferings began, for Venus retained
her, treated her as a slave, and inmposed upon her the hardest and most humiliating
labours. Psyche would have perished under the weight of her sufferings, had not
Amor, who still loved her in secret, invisibly comforted and assisted her in her
labours. With his aid she at last succeeded in overcoming the jealousy and hatred
of Venus; she became immortal, and was united with him for ever. It is not difficult
to recognise in this lovely story the idea of which it is merely the mythical
embodiment, for Psyche is evidently the human soul, which is purified by passions
and misfortunes, and is thus prepared for the enjoyment of true and pure happiness.In
works of art Psyche is represented as a maiden with the wings of a butterfly,
along with Amor in the different situations described in the allegoric story.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited April 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Eros. The god of love among the Greeks. His name does not occur in Homer;
but in Hesiod (Theog. 120 foll.) he is the fairest of the deities, who subdues
the hearts of both gods and men. He is born from Chaos at the same time as the
Earth and Tartarus, and is the comrade of Aphrodite from the moment of her birth.
Hesiod conceives Eros not merely as the god of sensual love, but as a power which
forms the world by inner union of the separated elements--an idea very prevalent
in antiquity, especially among the philosophers. According to the later and commoner
notion, Eros was the youngest of the gods, generally the son of Aphrodite by Ares
or Hermes, always a child, thoughtless and capricious. He is as irresistible as
fair, and has no pity even for his own mother. Zeus, the father of gods and men,
arms him with golden wings, and with bow and unerring arrows, or burning torches.
Anteros, the god of mutual love, is his brother, and his companions are Pothos
and Himeros, the personifications of longing and desire, with Peitho (Persuasion),
the Muses, and the Graces. In later times he is surrounded by a crowd of similar
beings, Erotes or Loves.
One of the chief and oldest seats of his worship was Thespiae
in Boeotia. Here was his most ancient image, a rough, unhewn stone. His festival,
the Erotia or Erotidia, continued till the time of the Roman Empire to be celebrated
every fifth year with much ceremony, accompanied by gymnastic and musical contests.
Besides this he received special honour and worship in the gymnasia, where his
statue generally stood near those of Hermes and Heracles. In the gymnasia, Eros
was the personification of devoted friendship and love between youths and men;
the friendship which proved itself active and helpful in battle and bold adventure.
This was the reason why the Spartans and Cretans sacrificed to Eros before a battle,
and the sacred band of youths at Thebes was dedicated to him; why a festival of
freedom (Eleutheria) was held at Samos in his honour, as the god who bound men
and youths together in the struggle for honour and freedom; and why at Athens
he was worshipped as the liberator of the city, in memory of Harmodius and Aristogiton.
In works of art Eros was usually represented as a beautiful boy, close upon the
age of youth. In later times he also appears as a child with the attributes of
a bow and arrows, or burning torches, and in a great variety of situations. The
most celebrated statues of this god were by Lysippus, Scopas, and Praxiteles whose
Eros at Thespiae was regarded as a masterpiece, and unsurpassable. The famous
torso in the Vatican, in which the god wears a dreamy, lovelorn air, is popularly,
but probably erroneously, traced to an original by Praxiteles. The Eros trying
his bow, in the Capitoline Museum at Rome, is supposed to be the copy of a work
by Lysippus. The Roman god Amor or Cupido was a mere adaptation of the Greek Eros,
and was never held in great esteem. Anteros was the brother of Eros and punished
those who did not requite the love of others (Ovid, Met.xiii. 750).
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Jan 2003 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Eros. There are two versions of Eros's character and origin, the first making
him the oldest deity as the son of Chaos. It was Eros's creative powers that made
order emanate out of Chaos, making the creation of Earth possible.
The more popular, and later, version of Eros as that of a winged baby
or youth shooting arrows into people's and god's hearts, making them fall in love.
This is the best known image of him, and it is often believed that it was Eros
that stood model for the christian cherubs.
Aphrodite was his mother and the difference between the two is traditionally
that Eros symbolized the crazed, many times blind love, and Aphrodite more of
a deep love but also sexual lust.
One of the most famous stories of Eros is the one about the young
princess Psyche, but it is a late story told by Apuleius in the second century
AD, often called the last great myth of antiquity.
The word “erotic” is derived of Eros's name, and in Roman
mythology he was called Cupid or Amor.
This text is cited Sept 2003 from the In2Greece URL below.
THIVES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Amphietes or Amphieterus, a surname of Dionysus. (Orph. Hymn. 52. 1, 51. 10.) It is believed that at Athens, where the Dionysiac festivals were held annually, the name signified yearly, while at Thebes, where they were celebrated every third year, it was interpretated to be synonymous with trietes.
Apotrophia, "the expeller", a surname of Aphrodite, under which she was worshipped at Thebes, and which described her as the goddess who expelled from the hearts of men the desire after sinful pleasure and lust. Her worship under this name was believed to have been instituted by Harmonia, together with that of Aphrodite Urania and Pandemos, and the antiquity of her statues confirmed this belief. (Paus. ix. 16.2)
Ismenius. A surname of Apollo at Thebes, who had a temple on the river Ismenus. (Paus. ii. 10. Β 4, iv. 27. Β 4, ix. 10. Β 2, 5.) The sanctuary of the god, at which the Daphnephoria was celebrated, bore the name of Ismenium, and was situated outside the city.
AKREFNION (Ancient city) THIVES
Acraephnian: discovers oracle of Trophonius.
OGCHISTOS (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Evippus. A son of Megareus, who was killed by the Cithaeronean lion. (Paus. i. 41.4)
TANAGRA (Ancient city) VIOTIA
Eunostus, (Eunostos). A hero of Tanagra in Boeotia. he was a son of Elinus, and
brought up by the nymph Eunoste. Ochne, the daughter of Colonus, fell in love
with him; but he avoided her, and when she thereupon accused him before her brothers
of improper conduct towards her, they slew him. Afterwards Ochne confessed that
she had falsely accused him, and threw herself down a rock. Eunostus had a sanctuary
at Tanagra in a sacred grove, which no woman was allowed to approach. (Plut. Quaest.
Gr. 40.)
THIVES (Ancient city) VIOTIA
The Neistan gate, they say, got its name for the following reason. The last of the harp's strings they call nete, and Amphion invented it, they say, at this gate. I have also heard that the son of Zethus, the brother of Amphion, was named Neis, and that after him was this gate called.
A Boeotian.
Homoleus, (Homoloeus), a son of Amphion, from whom the Homoloian gate of Thebes was believed to have derived its name. (Schol. ad Eurip. Phoen. 1126.) Others, however, derived the name of the gate from the hill Homole, or from Homolois, a daughter of Niobe. (Paus. ix. 8.3; Schol. ad Eurip. l. c. ; Tzetz, ad Lycoph. 520.)
Father of Hipponome, his charioteer Perieres, father of Jocasta or Epicasta, father of Creon.
Son of Creon, kills himself in obedience to oracle to save Thebes, his tomb.
A legendary Theban hero; his cult introduced at Sicyon, slays Tydeus and Mecisteus, slain by Amphiaraus, his grave.
A Theban, son of Poseidon and Chloris, daughter of the seer Tiresias. In the war of the Seven against Thebes he slew Parthenopaeus, and was in pursuit of Amphiaraus at the moment when the latter sank into the earth.
Amphidicus (Amphidikos), a Theban who, in the war of the Seven against his native city, slew Parthenopaeus (Apollod. iii. 6.8). According to Euripides (Phoen. 1156), however, it was Periclymenus who killed Parthenopaeus. Pausanias (ix. 18.4) calls him Asphodicus, whence sone critics wish to introduce the same name in Apollodorus.
A Theban, son of Iphicles and nephew of Herakles, charioteer of Herakles, shares labours of Herakles, father of Lipephile, kills Eurystheus, wins chariot-race at Olympia and at funeral games of Pelias, leads colony of Athenians and Thespians to Sardinia, worshipped by Sardinians, altar of I. at Athens, gymnasium and shrine at Thebes, receives Megara in marriage from him.
A Theban, descendant of Peneleos, joint founder of Priene.
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