Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

, Bulis ( grc, Βοῦλις, Boulis) is a minor figure who partook in accidental incest with her own son,

Aegypius ''Aegypius'' is a genus of Old World vultures found in the subfamily Gypinae. Of the three species in the genus, only the cinereous vulture is extant. The Cinerous vulture (Aegypius Monachus) is a creature that is hard to find as it is “a nea ...

Family

Bulis married a man named Antheus and had a son, Aegypius.

Mythology

Bulis' son Aegypius became the lover of a much older woman, Timandra. Timandra's son

Neophron Neophron of Sicyon (Νεόφρων, -ονος) was one of the most prolific of the ancient Greek dramatists, to whom are accredited one hundred and twenty pieces, of which only a few fragments of his ''Medea'' remain. This, it is said, Euripides ...

disapproved of that affair, so in retribution he seduced Bulis himself. One day he brought Bulis into his house, having made sure Timandra was away. He made an excuse for himself and left around the time that Aegypius visited in order to see Timandra. Unbeknownst to each other, mother and son laid together. When they realized what had happened, Bulis grabbed a sword with the intention to blind him and kill herself. Aegypius prayed to the heavens to make him vanish; and

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek reli ...

transformed all four into birds. Bulis herself became a ''poynx'' (), perhaps a type of heron (as the word ''poynx'' occurs only in Antoninus Liberalis alone), which lives on the eyes of fishes birds and snakes, since she was so fond of taking out eyes. Antoninus Liberalis, ''Metamorphoses'
5
/ref>

References

Bibliography

* Antoninus Liberalis, ''The Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis'' translated by Francis Celoria (Routledge 1992)
Online version at the Topos Text Project.
* Metamorphoses into birds in Greek mythology Incest in Greek mythology Women in Greek mythology Deeds of Zeus {{Greek-myth-stub

Family

Mythology

See also

References

Bibliography