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 ...

, Athamas (; grc, Ἀθάμας, Athámas) was a

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its lar ...

n king.

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: ...

1.9.1
/ref>

Family

Athamas was formerly a

Thessalian Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessa ...

prince and the son of King

Aeolus In Greek mythology, Aeolus or Aiolos (; grc, Αἴολος , ) is a name shared by three mythical characters. These three personages are often difficult to tell apart, and even the ancient mythographers appear to have been perplexed about which A ...

of Aeolia and

Enarete In Greek mythology, Enarete (, Ancient Greek: "virtuous" literally "in virtue", from ''en'' "in" and ''arete'' "virtue") or Aenarete ( ''Ainarete''), was a queen of Aeolia (i.e. Thessaly) and ancestor of the Aeolians. Biography Enarete was t ...

, daughter of

Deimachus Deimachus or Daimachus (; grc, Δηΐμαχος or Δαΐμαχος) was a Greek from Plataeae, who lived during the third-century BCE. He became an ambassador to the court of the Mauryan ruler Bindusara "Amitragatha" (son of Chandragupta Mau ...

. He was the brother of

Salmoneus In Greek mythology, Salmoneus (; Ancient Greek: Σαλμωνεύς) was 'the wicked'Hesiod, '' Ehoiai'' fr. 4 as cited in Plutarch, ''Moralia'' p. 747; Scholia on Pindar, ''Pythian Ode'' 4.263 eponymous king and founder of Salmone in Pisatis. ...

Sisyphus In Greek mythology, Sisyphus or Sisyphos (; Ancient Greek: Σίσυφος ''Sísyphos'') was the founder and king of Ancient Corinth, Ephyra (now known as Corinth). Hades punished him for cheating death twice by forcing him to roll an immense bo ...

Cretheus In Greek mythology, Cretheus (; Ancient Greek: Κρηθεύς ''Krētheus'') may refer to the following characters: * Cretheus, king and founder of Iolcus, the son of King Aeolus of Aeolia (son of Hellen) by either Enarete or Laodice. He was the ...

Perieres In Greek mythology, Perieres ( grc, Περιήρης) may refer to these two distinct individuals. * Perieres, king of Messenia and son of Aeolus. * Perieres, Theban charioteer of Menoeceus (father of Creon). He was the one who wounded Clymenus, ...

Deioneus In Greek mythology, Deioneus (; Ancient Greek: Δηιονεύς means "ravager") or Deion (; Ancient Greek: ) is a name attributed to the following individuals: *Deioneus, king of Phocis and son of King Aeolus of Aeolia and Enarete, daughter of ...

, Magnes, Calyce,

Canace In Greek mythology, Canace (; Ancient Greek: Κανάκη means "‘barking") was a Thessalian princess as daughter of King Aeolus of Aeolia and Enarete, daughter of Deimachus. She was sometimes referrred as Aeolis. Family Canace was the sister ...

, Alcyone,

Pisidice In Greek mythology, Pisidice (, grc, Πεισιδίκη, ''Peisidíkē'') or Peisidice, was one of the following individuals: * Pisidice, a Thessalian princess as the daughter of King Aeolus of Aeolia and Enarete, daughter of Deimachus. She was th ...

and Perimede. Athamas sired several children by his first wife, the goddess

Nephele In Greek mythology, Nephele (; Ancient Greek: Νεφέλη from νέφος ''nephos'' "cloud"; Latinized to ''Nubes'') was a cloud nymph who figured prominently in the story of Phrixus and Helle. Mythology Greek myth has it that Nephele is t ...

, and his other wives Ino and

Themisto In Greek mythology, Themisto (; Ancient Greek: Θεμιστώ) was a Ancient Thessaly, Thessalin princess as the daughter of King Hypseus of LapithsBibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus), Apollodorus, 1.9.2 and the naiad Chlidanope. Her name is derived ...

. Nephele first bore to him twins, a son

Phrixus In Greek mythology Phrixus (; also spelt Phryxus; el, Φρίξος, ''Phrixos'' means "standing on end, bristling") was the son of Athamas, king of Boeotia, and Nephele (a goddess of clouds). He was the twin brother of Helle and the father of ...

and a daughter Helle;Apollodorus
1.9.1
Hyginus, ''Fabulae'
1
/ref> and also a second son, Makistos. He subsequently married Ino, daughter of

Cadmus In Greek mythology, Cadmus (; grc-gre, Κάδμος, Kádmos) was the legendary Phoenician founder of Boeotian Thebes. He was the first Greek hero and, alongside Perseus and Bellerophon, the greatest hero and slayer of monsters before the da ...

, with whom he had two children: Learches and

Melicertes In Greek mythology, Melicertes ( grc, Μελικέρτης, Melikértēs, sometimes Melecertes), later called Palaemon or Palaimon (), was a Boeotian prince as the son of King Athamas and Ino, daughter of King Cadmus of Thebes. He was the brot ...

. By the daughter of

Hypseus In Greek mythology, the name Hypseus (; grc, Ὑψεύς "one on high", derived from ''hypsos'' "height") may refer to: *Hypseus, King of the Lapiths, son of the river god Peneus by the naiad Creusa, daughter of Gaia, or by Philyra, a daughter o ...

, Themisto, he was the father of Sphincius and Orchomenus

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'
1
/ref> or

Schoeneus In Greek mythology, Schoeneus (; Ancient Greek: Σχοινεύς ''Skhoineús'', literally "rushy") was the name of several individuals: *Schoeneus, a Boeotian king, the son of Athamas and Themisto. He may have emigrated to Arcadia, where a villag ...

and

Leucon In Greek mythology, the name Leucon (; Ancient Greek: Λεύκων) may refer to: *Leucon, a son of Themisto by either Athamas or Poseidon. His children were Erythras, Pisidice, Hyperippe and Euippe (mother of Eteocles by Andreus). He was said to h ...

and also, Erythrius and

Ptous In Greek mythology, Ptous (; Ancient Greek: Πτῶος) may refer to the following: * Ptous, eponym of Mount Ptous in Boeotia on which the town Acraephnium was situated. He was believed to have been a son of either Athamas and Themisto, or of Acra ...

.Apollodorus, 1.9.2;

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 ...

Lycophron Lycophron (; grc-gre, Λυκόφρων ὁ Χαλκιδεύς; born about 330–325 BC) was a Hellenistic Greek tragic poet, grammarian, sophist, and commentator on comedy, to whom the poem ''Alexandra'' is attributed (perhaps falsely). Life and ...

, 22

Mythology

Phrixus and Helle were hated by their stepmother, Ino. Ino hatched a devious plot to get rid of the twins, roasting all the town's crop seeds so they would not grow. The local farmers, frightened of famine, asked a nearby oracle for assistance. Ino bribed the men sent to the oracle to lie and tell the others that the oracle required the sacrifice of Phrixus. Athamas reluctantly agreed. But, before Phrixus could be killed, he and Helle were spirited away by a flying golden ram sent by Nephele, their natural mother. Helle fell off the ram into the

Hellespont The Dardanelles (; tr, Çanakkale Boğazı, lit=Strait of Çanakkale, el, Δαρδανέλλια, translit=Dardanéllia), also known as the Strait of Gallipoli from the Gallipoli peninsula or from Classical Antiquity as the Hellespont (; ...

(which was named after her) and died, but Phrixus survived all the way to

Colchis In Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia (country), Georgia. Its population, the Colchians a ...

, where King

Aeëtes Aeëtes (; , ; , ), or Aeeta, was a king of Colchis in Greek mythology. The name comes from the ancient Greek word (, "eagle"). Family Aeëtes was the son of Sun god Helios and the Oceanid Perseis, brother of Circe, Perses and Pasiphaë, and ...

took him in and treated him kindly, giving Phrixus his daughter

Chalciope Chalciope (; grc, Χαλκιόπη, Khalkiópē means "bronze-face"), in Greek mythology, is a name that may refer to several characters. * Chalciope, daughter of King Aeetes of Colchis, sister of Medea and wife of Phrixus, by whom she had four ...

in marriage. In gratitude, Phrixus gave the king the

golden fleece In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece ( el, Χρυσόμαλλον δέρας, ''Chrysómallon déras'') is the fleece of the golden-woolled,, ''Khrusómallos''. winged ram, Chrysomallos, that rescued Phrixus and brought him to Colchis, where P ...

of the ram, which Aeëtes hung in a tree in his kingdom. Later, Ino raised

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...

, her nephew, son of her sister

Semele Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia (Greek goddess), Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysu ...

, causing

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

's intense jealousy. In vengeance, Hera struck Athamas with insanity. Athamas went mad and slew one of his sons,

Learchus In Greek mythology, Learchus (Ancient Greek: Λέαρχος) or Learches was a Boeotian prince as the son of King Athamas and Ino, daughter of King Cadmus of Thebes. He was the brother of Melicertes. Mythology The story of Learchus is part ...

; Ino, to escape the pursuit of her frenzied husband, threw herself into the sea with her son

. Both were afterwards worshipped as marine divinities, Ino as

Leucothea In Greek mythology, Leucothea (; grc-gre, Λευκοθέα, Leukothéa, white goddess), sometimes also called Leucothoe ( grc-gre, Λευκοθόη, Leukothóē), was one of the aspects under which an ancient sea goddess was recognized, in this ...

, Melicertes as Palaemon.

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

, ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

'' 4.416 Athamas, with the guilt of his son's murder upon him, was obliged to flee from

. He was ordered by the oracle to settle in a place where he should receive hospitality from wild beasts. This he found at

Phthiotis Phthiotis ( el, Φθιώτιδα, ''Fthiótida'', ; ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Φθιῶτις) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. The capital is the city of Lamia. It is border ...

Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...

, where he surprised some wolves eating sheep; on his approach they fled, leaving him the bones. Athamas, regarding this as the fulfilment of the oracle, settled there and married a third wife,

(sons:

and/or others). The spot was afterwards called the Athamanian plain. When Athamas returned to his second wife, Ino, Themisto sought revenge by dressing her children in white clothing and Ino's in black. Ino switched their clothes without Themisto's knowledge, and she killed her own children. According to some accounts, Athamas was succeeded on the throne by

Presbon In Greek mythology, the name Presbon (Ancient Greek: Πρέσβων "elder, senior") may refer to: *Presbon, a son of Phrixus and Chalciope ( Iophassa), daughter of King Aeetes of Colchis, mentioned in few sources, and never enumerated alongside h ...

.Presbon
A part of Kingdom of Athamas, and himself, moved west north and took roots in a part of Pindus mountains in Epirus, called Athamanean mountains. So this population today is called Athamaneans.

Gallery

File:Atamante preso dalle Furie 0014.jpg, Atamante preso dalle Furie by Arcangelo Migliarini (1801) at Roma, Accademia di San Luca File:Athamas tue le fils d'Ino - Gaetano Gandolfi (1801).jpg, Athamas tue le fils d'Ino by Gaetano Gandolfi (1801) File:Athamas und Ino ubs G 0732 II.jpg, Athamas und Ino by Radierung (17th century) File:The Insane Athamas Killing Learchus, While Ino and Melicertor Jump into the Sea LACMA 65.37.123.jpg, The Insane Athamas Killing Learchus, While Ino and Melicertor Jump into the Sea by Wilhelm Janson (Holland, Amsterdam), Antonio Tempesta (Italy, Florence, 1555-1630) at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles

Notes

References

, ''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
*

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.
*

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet i ...

, ''Catalogue of Women'' from ''Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica'' translated by Evelyn-White, H G. Loeb Classical Library Volume 57. London: William Heinemann, 1914
Online version at theio.com
*

Publius Ovidius Naso Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

, ''Metamorphoses'' translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
*Publius Ovidius Naso, ''Metamorphoses.'' Hugo Magnus. Gotha (Germany). Friedr. Andr. Perthes. 1892
Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library
*

Stephanus of Byzantium Stephanus or Stephan of Byzantium ( la, Stephanus Byzantinus; grc-gre, Στέφανος Βυζάντιος, ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD), was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethni ...

, ''Stephani Byzantii Ethnicorum quae supersunt,'' edited by August Meineike (1790-1870), published 1849. A few entries from this important ancient handbook of place names have been translated by Brady Kiesling
Online version at the Topos Text Project.

External links

* Images of Athamas and Ino in th
Warburg Institute Iconographic Database
{{Authority control Aeolides Family of Athamas Princes in Greek mythology Kings in Greek mythology Metamorphoses characters Boeotian characters in Greek mythology Deeds of Hera Thessalian characters in Greek mythology Characters in Greek mythology Boeotian mythology Thessalian mythology Deeds of Zeus