Antaeus (;
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
: Ἀνταῖος ''Antaîos'',
"opponent", derived from , ''antao'' – 'I face, I oppose'), known to the
Berbers
, image = File:Berber_flag.svg
, caption = The Berber ethnic flag
, population = 36 million
, region1 = Morocco
, pop1 = 14 million to 18 million
, region2 = Algeria
, pop2 ...
as Anti, was a figure in
Berber and
Greek mythology
A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...
.
He was famed for his defeat by
Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...
as part of the
Labours of Hercules
The Labours of Hercules or Labours of Heracles ( grc-gre, οἱ Ἡρακλέους ἆθλοι, ) are a series of episodes concerning a penance carried out by Heracles, the greatest of the Greek heroes, whose name was later romanised ...
.
Family
In Greek sources, he was the
half-giant
Half-giants are fictional beings that have one parent that is a giant and another parent that is a different species.
Description
In most cases, a half-giant is the result of a union between a human and a giant. Often they are of normal size or sl ...
son of
Poseidon
Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...
and
Gaia
In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthenog ...
, who lived in the interior desert of Libya. His wife was the goddess
Tinge, for whom it was claimed that the city of
Tangier
Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the cap ...
in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
was named (though it could be the other way around),
and he had a daughter named
Alceis or
Barce. Another daughter,
Iphinoe
''Iphinoe'' is a genus of crustaceans which belong to the family Bodotriidae. It includes the following species:
*''Iphinoe acutirostris'' Ledoyer, 1965
*'' Iphinoe adriatica'' Băcescu, 1988
*'' Iphinoe africana'' Zimmer, 1908
*'' Iphinoe ar ...
, consorted with Heracles.
Mythology
![Herakles Antaios Louvre G103](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Herakles_Antaios_Louvre_G103.jpg)
Antaeus would challenge all passers-by to
wrestling matches and remained invincible as long as he remained in contact with his mother, the earth. As Greek wrestling, like its
modern equivalent, typically attempted to force opponents to the ground, he always won, killing his opponents. He built a
temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
to his father using their
skull
The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...
s. Antaeus fought Heracles as he was on his way to the
Garden of Hesperides
In Greek mythology, the Hesperides (; , ) are the nymphs of evening and golden light of sunsets, who were the "Daughters of the Evening" or "Nymphs of the West". They were also called the Atlantides () from their reputed father, the Titan Atla ...
as his
11th Labour. Heracles realized that he could not beat Antaeus by throwing or pinning him. Instead, he held him aloft and then crushed him to death in a
bear hug
In wrestling, a bear hug, also known as a bodylock, is a grappling clinch hold and stand-up grappling position where the arms are wrapped around the opponent, either around the opponent's chest, midsection, or thighs, sometimes with one or bot ...
.
Hyginus
Gaius Julius Hyginus (; 64 BC – AD 17) was a Latin author, a pupil of the scholar Alexander Polyhistor, and a freedman of Caesar Augustus. He was elected superintendent of the Palatine library by Augustus according to Suetonius' ''De Grammatic ...
, ''Fabulae'
31
/ref>
The contest between Heracles and Antaeus was a favored subject in ancient
Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian language, Sumerian c ...
and Renaissance sculpture
Renaissance sculpture is understood as a process of recovery of the sculpture of classical antiquity. Sculptors found in the artistic remains and in the discoveries of sites of that bygone era the perfect inspiration for their works. They were als ...
.
Location in Africa
Antaeus is placed in the interior desert of Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
. He was probably incorporated into Greek mythology after the Greek conquest of Libya in the mid-seventh century BC.
A location for Antaeus somewhere far within the Berber world might be quite flexible in longitude: when the Roman commander Quintus Sertorius
Quintus Sertorius (c. 126 – 73 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who led a large-scale rebellion against the Roman Senate on the Iberian peninsula. He had been a prominent member of the populist faction of Cinna and Marius. During the l ...
crossed from Hispania to North Africa, he was told by the residents of Tingis
Tingis (Latin; grc-gre, Τίγγις ''Tíngis'') or Tingi ( Ancient Berber:), the ancient name of Tangier in Morocco, was an important Carthaginian, Moor, and Roman port on the Atlantic Ocean. It was eventually granted the status of a Roman colo ...
(Tangier
Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the cap ...
), far to the west of Libya, that the gigantic remains of Antaeus would be found within a certain tumulus
A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones buil ...
; digging it open, his men found giant bones; closing the site, Sertorius made propitiatory offerings and "helped to magnify the tomb's reputation". It is proposed that this monument is the Msoura
Msoura (also ''Mzoura'', ''Mezora'', ''Mçora'', ''M'Zorah'', ''M'Sora'' or ''Mzora'') is an archaeological site of a stone circle in northern Morocco. It is located near Chouahed village, 15 kilometers southeast of Asilah, and consists of 167 mon ...
stone circle, 50 km from Tangier. In Book IV of Marcus Annaeus Lucanus
Marcus Annaeus Lucanus (3 November 39 AD – 30 April 65 AD), better known in English as Lucan (), was a Roman poet, born in Corduba (modern-day Córdoba), in Hispania Baetica. He is regarded as one of the outstanding figures of the Imperial ...
' epic poem
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
...
''Pharsalia
''De Bello Civili'' (; ''On the Civil War''), more commonly referred to as the ''Pharsalia'', is a Roman epic poem written by the poet Lucan, detailing the civil war between Julius Caesar and the forces of the Roman Senate led by Pompey the Gre ...
'' (c. AD 65-61), the story of Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive ...
' victory over Antaeus is told to the Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
Curio
Curio may refer to:
Objects
*Bric-à-brac, lesser objets d'art for display
* Cabinet of curiosities, a room-sized collection or exhibit of curios or curiosities
*Collectables
*Curio cabinet, a cabinet constructed for the display of curios
People
...
by an unnamed Libyan citizen. The learned client king Juba II of Mauretania (died 23 BC), husband of the daughter of Antony and Cleopatra, claimed his descent from a liaison of Heracles with Tinga, the consort of Antaeus. In his ''Life of Sertorius'' cited above, Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
recounts what he says to be a local myth, according to which Heracles consorted with Tinge after the death of Antaeus and had by her a son Sophax, who named the city Tingis after his mother. Sophax in his turn was father of Diodorus who conquered many Libyan peoples with his army of Olbia
Olbia (, ; sc, Terranoa; sdn, Tarranoa) is a city and commune of 60,346 inhabitants (May 2018) in the Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called ''Olbia'' in the Roman age, ...
ns and Mycenae
Mycenae ( ; grc, Μυκῆναι or , ''Mykē̂nai'' or ''Mykḗnē'') is an archaeological site near Mykines in Argolis, north-eastern Peloponnese, Greece. It is located about south-west of Athens; north of Argos; and south of Corinth. Th ...
ans brought to Libya by Heracles. Moreover, some related that Heracles had a son Palaemon by Iphinoe, the daughter of Antaeus and (presumably) Tinge.Tzetzes
John Tzetzes ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Τζέτζης, Iōánnēs Tzétzēs; c. 1110, Constantinople – 1180, Constantinople) was a Byzantine poet and grammarian who is known to have lived at Constantinople in the 12th century.
He was able to pr ...
on Lycophron, 663
Scholia
Scholia (singular scholium or scholion, from grc, σχόλιον, "comment, interpretation") are grammatical, critical, or explanatory comments – original or copied from prior commentaries – which are inserted in the margin of th ...
sts on Pindar's Pythian Ode 9 also recorded a story which made Antaeus king of the city Irassa in Libya, and father of a daughter named either Alceis or Barce. Antaeus promised her hand to the winner of a race, just like Danaus
In Greek mythology, Danaus (, ; grc, Δαναός ''Danaós'') was the king of Libya. His myth is a foundation legend of Argos, one of the foremost Mycenaean cities of the Peloponnesus. In Homer's ''Iliad'', "Danaans" ("tribe of Danaus") and " ...
did to find new husbands for his daughters. Alexidamus beat all the other suitors in the race and married the daughter of Antaeus. Three versions of this story, with minor variations, were collected by the scholiasts; one of those versions made Antaeus, king of Irassa, a figure distinct from the Antaeus killed by Heracles, while another one suggested that they were one and the same.Scholia
Scholia (singular scholium or scholion, from grc, σχόλιον, "comment, interpretation") are grammatical, critical, or explanatory comments – original or copied from prior commentaries – which are inserted in the margin of th ...
on Pindar, '' Pythian Odes'' 9, 185, referring to Pherecydes, Pisander of Camirus and other unspecified writers
The ancient city of Barca, probably located at Marj, Libya
Marj ( ar, المرج, Al Marǧ, The Meadows), also spelt ''El Merj'', generally believed to be on the site of the ancient city of Barca (ancient city), Barca or Barce, is a city in northeastern Libya and the administrative seat of the Marj Di ...
, was also called Antapolis after Antaeus. ''Antaeopolis'' is also the Graeco-Roman name of Tjebu
Tjebu or Djew-Qa, was an ancient Egyptian city located on the eastern bank of the Nile in what is now Asyut Governorate, Egypt. In Greek and Roman Egypt, its name was Antaeopolis after its tutelary deity, the war god known by the Hellenized n ...
, an Egyptian city. They identified the tutelary god of Tjebu, Nemty
In Egyptian mythology, Nemty (Antaeus in Greek, but probably not connected to the Antaeus in Greek mythology) was a god whose worship centered at Antaeopolis in the northern part of Upper Egypt.
Nemty's worship is quite ancient, dating from at l ...
, a fusion of Seth
Seth,; el, Σήθ ''Sḗth''; ; "placed", "appointed") in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Mandaeism, and Sethianism, was the third son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, their only other child mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible. A ...
and Horus
Horus or Heru, Hor, Har in Ancient Egyptian, is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities who served many functions, most notably as god of kingship and the sky. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the P ...
, with Antaeus, although he may be different from the Libyan Antaeus.
Notes
References
* Apollodorus
Apollodorus (Ancient Greek, Greek: Ἀπολλόδωρος ''Apollodoros'') was a popular name in ancient Greece. It is the masculine gender of a noun compounded from Apollo, the deity, and doron, "gift"; that is, "Gift of Apollo." It may refer to: ...
, ''The Library'' with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.Greek text available from the same website
* Diodorus Siculus
Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...
, ''The Library of History'' translated by Charles Henry Oldfather
Charles Henry Oldfather (13 June 1887 – 20 August 1954) was an American professor of history of the ancient world, specifically at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was born in Tabriz, Persia.
Parentage
Oldfather's parents, Jeremiah and Fe ...
. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library
The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a series of books originally published by Heinemann in London, but is currently published by Harvard University Press. The library contains important works of ancient Greek and L ...
. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8
Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site
*Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2''. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888-1890
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*Gaius Julius Hyginus
Gaius Julius Hyginus (; 64 BC – AD 17) was a Latin author, a pupil of the scholar Alexander Polyhistor, and a freedman of Caesar Augustus. He was elected superintendent of the Palatine library by Augustus according to Suetonius' ''De Grammatic ...
, ''Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus'' translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
*John Tzetzes
John Tzetzes ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Τζέτζης, Iōánnēs Tzétzēs; c. 1110, Constantinople – 1180, Constantinople) was a Byzantine poet and grammarian who is known to have lived at Constantinople in the 12th century.
He was able to p ...
, ''Book of Histories,'' Book II-IV translated by Gary Berkowitz from the original Greek of T. Kiessling's edition of 1826.
Online version at theoi.com
*Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to:
*Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium''
*Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC
* Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...
, ''Description of Greece'' with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918.
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*Pausanias, ''Graeciae Descriptio.'' ''3 vols''. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903.
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*Philostratus the Elder
Philostratus of Lemnos ( grc-gre, Φιλόστρατος ὁ Λήμνιος; c. 190 – c. 230 AD), also known as Philostratus the Elder to distinguish him from Philostratus the Younger who was also from Lemnos, was a Greek sophist of the Roman Emp ...
. ''Imagines,'' translated by Arthur Fairbanks (1864-1944). Loeb Classical Library Volume 256. London: William Heinemann, 1931
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
*Philostratus the Lemnian (Philostratus Major), ''Flavii Philostrati Opera. Vol 2''. Carl Ludwig Kayser. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Lipsiae. 1871
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
, ''The Natural History.'' John Bostock, M.D., F.R.S. H.T. Riley, Esq., B.A. London. Taylor and Francis, Red Lion Court, Fleet Street. 1855
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
*Pliny the Elder, ''Naturalis Historia.'' Karl Friedrich Theodor Mayhoff. Lipsiae. Teubner. 1906
Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
*Publius Papinius Statius
Publius Papinius Statius (Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; ; ) was a Greco-Roman poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid''; a collection of occasional poetry, ...
'', The Thebaid'' translated by John Henry Mozley. Loeb Classical Library Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1928
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
*Publius Papinius Statius, ''The Thebaid. Vol I-II''. John Henry Mozley. London: William Heinemann; New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1928
Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
* Quintus Smyrnaeus, ''The Fall of Troy'' translated by Way. A. S. Loeb Classical Library Volume 19. London: William Heinemann, 1913
Online version at theoi.com
*Quintus Smyrnaeus, ''The Fall of Troy''. Arthur S. Way. London: William Heinemann; New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1913
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
, ''The Geography of Strabo.'' Edition by H.L. Jones. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
*Strabo, ''Geographica'' edited by A. Meineke. Leipzig: Teubner. 1877
Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
External links
*
''The Theoi Project''
{{Authority control
Greek giants
Children of Poseidon
Children of Gaia
Fictional half-giants
Libyan characters in Greek mythology
Characters in Greek mythology
Mythology of Heracles
Berber mythology
Kings in Berber mythology