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 ...
), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine
hero
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...
in
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 o ...
, the son of
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 relig ...
and
Alcmene
In Greek mythology, Alcmene () or Alcmena (; Ancient Greek: Ἀλκμήνη or Doric Greek: Ἀλκμάνα, Latin: Alcumena means "strong in wrath") was the wife of Amphitryon by whom she bore two children, Iphicles and Laonome. She is best ...
, and the foster son of
Amphitryon
Amphitryon (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιτρύων, ''gen''.: Ἀμφιτρύωνος; usually interpreted as "harassing either side", Latin: Amphitruo), in Greek mythology, was a son of Alcaeus, king of Tiryns in Argolis. His mother was named ...
.By his adoptive descent through Amphitryon, Heracles receives the epithet Alcides, as "of the line of Alcaeus", father of Amphitryon. Amphitryon's own, mortal son was
Iphicles In Greek mythology, Iphicles ( or ; grc, Ἰφικλῆς ''Iphikles''), also called Iphiclus, was the maternal half-brother of Heracles and one of the Calydonian boar hunters.
Family
Iphicles was the son of Alcmene and her human husband ...
. He was a great-grandson and half-brother (as they are both sired by the god
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 relig ...
) of
Perseus
In Greek mythology, Perseus ( /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek: Περσεύς, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus and Bellerophon, the greatest Greek hero and slayer ...
, and similarly a half-brother of
Dionysus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, the ancestor of royal clans who claimed to be
Heracleidae
The Heracleidae (; grc, Ἡρακλεῖδαι) or Heraclids were the numerous descendants of Heracles (Hercules), especially applied in a narrower sense to the descendants of Hyllus, the eldest of his four sons by Deianira (Hyllus was also ...
chthonic
The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...
monsters. In
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
and the
modern
Modern may refer to:
History
*Modern history
** Early Modern period
** Late Modern period
*** 18th century
*** 19th century
*** 20th century
** Contemporary history
* Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century
Philosophy ...
West
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
, he is known as
Hercules
Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Romans adapted the ...
Commodus
Commodus (; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was a Roman emperor who ruled from 177 to 192. He served jointly with his father Marcus Aurelius from 176 until the latter's death in 180, and thereafter he reigned alone until his assassination. ...
and
Maximian
Maximian ( la, Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus; c. 250 – c. July 310), nicknamed ''Herculius'', was Roman emperor from 286 to 305. He was '' Caesar'' from 285 to 286, then ''Augustus'' from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his ...
, often identified themselves. The Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged, but added anecdotal detail of their own, some of it linking the hero with the geography of the Central Mediterranean. Details of his
cult
In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. Thi ...
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
n poets of the
Hellenistic age
In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in 31 ...
drew his mythology into a high poetic and tragic atmosphere.Burkert 1985, pp. 208–09 His figure, which initially drew on Near Eastern motifs such as the lion-fight, was widely known.
Heracles was the greatest of Hellenic
chthonic
The word chthonic (), or chthonian, is derived from the Ancient Greek word ''χθών, "khthon"'', meaning earth or soil. It translates more directly from χθόνιος or "in, under, or beneath the earth" which can be differentiated from Γῆ ...
heroes, but unlike other Greek heroes, no tomb was identified as his. Heracles was both hero and god, as
Pindar
Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar ...
says ''heros theos''; at the same festival sacrifice was made to him, first as a hero, with a chthonic
libation
A libation is a ritual pouring of a liquid, or grains such as rice, as an offering to a deity or spirit, or in memory of the dead. It was common in many religions of antiquity and continues to be offered in cultures today.
Various substanc ...
, and then as a god, upon an altar: thus he embodies the closest Greek approach to a "
demi-god
A demigod or demigoddess is a part-human and part-divine offspring of a deity and a human, or a human or non-human creature that is accorded divine status after death, or someone who has attained the "divine spark" (spiritual enlightenment). An ...
".
The core of the story of Heracles has been identified by
Walter Burkert
Walter Burkert (; 2 February 1931 – 11 March 2015) was a German scholar of Greek mythology and cult.
A professor of classics at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, he taught in the UK and the US. He has influenced generations of studen ...
as originating in Neolithic hunter culture and traditions of
shaman
Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spir ...
istic crossings into the netherworld. It is possible that the myths surrounding Heracles were based on the life of a real person or several people whose accomplishments became exaggerated with time.
Hero or god
Heracles' role as a culture hero, whose death could be a subject of mythic telling (see below), was accepted into the
Olympian Pantheon
Olympian or Olympians may refer to:
Religion
* Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion
* Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic
Fiction
* ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fictio ...
during Classical times. This created an awkwardness in the encounter with
Odysseus
Odysseus ( ; grc-gre, Ὀδυσσεύς, Ὀδυσεύς, OdysseúsOdyseús, ), also known by the Latin variant Ulysses ( , ; lat, UlyssesUlixes), is a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the ''Odyssey''. Odys ...
in the episode of ''
Odyssey
The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Iliad'', ...
'' XI, called the
Nekuia
In ancient Greek cult-practice and literature, a ''nekyia'' or ''nekya'' ( grc, νέκυια, νεκυία; νεκύα ) is a "rite by which ghosts were called up and questioned about the future," i.e., necromancy. A ''nekyia'' is not necessarily ...
, where Odysseus encounters Heracles in
Hades
Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...
:
Ancient critics were aware of the problem of the aside that interrupts the vivid and complete description, in which Heracles recognizes Odysseus and hails him, and some modern critics deny that the verse's beginning, in Fagles' translation ''His ghost I mean ...'', was part of the original composition: "once people knew of Heracles' admission to Olympus, they would not tolerate his presence in the underworld", remarks Friedrich Solmsen, noting that the interpolated verses represent a compromise between conflicting representations of Heracles.
Cult
The ancient Greeks celebrated the festival of the '' Heracleia'', which commemorated the death of Heracles, on the second day of the month of Metageitnion (which would fall in late July or early August). What is believed to be an
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
ian Temple of Heracles in the
Bahariya Oasis
El-Wahat el-Bahariya or el-Bahariya ( ar, الواحات البحرية "''El-Wāḥāt El-Baḥrīya''", "the Northern Oases"); is a depression and a naturally rich oasis in the Western Desert of Egypt. It is approximately 370 km away from ...
dates to 21 BCE. A reassessment of
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
's descriptions of the island of
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
attempted to link the site at
Ras ir-Raħeb
Ras ir-Raħeb, known also as Ras il-Knejjes is a scenic limestone promontory in north western Malta, close to the hamlet of Baħrija. The headland is located in the administrative area of the council of Rabat. Ras ir-Raħeb lies in the north wes ...
with a temple to Heracles, but the arguments are not conclusive. Several ancient cities were named Heraclea in his honor. A very small island close to the island of
Lemnos
Lemnos or Limnos ( el, Λήμνος; grc, Λῆμνος) is a Greek island in the northern Aegean Sea. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Lemnos regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean region. The p ...
was called Neai (Νέαι), from νέω which means I dive/swim, because Heracles swam there.
Although the Athenians were among the first to worship Heracles as a god, there were Greek cities that refused to recognize the hero's divine status. There are also several ''poleis'' that merely provided two separate sanctuaries for Heracles, one recognizing him as a god, the other only as a hero. This ambiguity helped create the Heracles cult especially when historians (e.g. Herodotus) and artists encouraged worship such as the painters during the time of the
Peisistratos
Pisistratus or Peisistratus ( grc-gre, Πεισίστρατος ; 600 – 527 BC) was a politician in ancient Athens, ruling as tyrant in the late 560s, the early 550s and from 546 BC until his death. His unification of Attica, the triangular ...
, who often presented Heracles entering Olympus in their works.
Some sources explained that the cult of Heracles persisted because of the hero's ascent to heaven and his suffering, which became the basis for festivals, ritual, rites, and the organization of mysteries. There is the observation, for example, that sufferings (''pathea'') gave rise to the rituals of grief and mourning, which came before the joy in the mysteries in the sequence of cult rituals. Also, like the case of Apollo, the cult of Hercules had been sustained through the years by absorbing local cult figures such as those who share the same nature. He was also constantly invoked as a patron for men, especially the young ones. For example, he was considered the ideal in warfare so he presided over gymnasiums and the ''ephebes'' or those men undergoing military training.
There were ancient towns and cities that also adopted Heracles as a patron deity, contributing to the spread of his cult. There was the case of the royal house of Macedonia, which claimed lineal descent from the hero, primarily for purposes of divine protection and legitimator of actions.
The earliest evidence that shows the worship of Heracles in popular cult was in 6th century BCE (121–122 and 160–165) via an ancient inscription from Phaleron.Oitaeans worshiped Heracles and called him Cornopion (Κορνοπίων) because he helped them get rid of
locust
Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstanc ...
s (which they called ''cornopes''), while the citizens of
Erythrae
Erythrae or Erythrai ( el, Ἐρυθραί) later Litri, was one of the twelve Ionian cities of Asia Minor, situated 22 km north-east of the port of Cyssus (modern name: Çeşme), on a small peninsula stretching into the Bay of Erythrae ...
at Mima called him Ipoctonus (ἰποκτόνος) because he destroyed the vine-eating ''ips'' (ἀμπελοφάγων ἰπῶν), a kind of
cynips
''Cynips'' is a genus of gall wasps in the tribe Cynipini, the oak gall wasps. One of the best known is the common oak gall wasp (''Cynips quercusfolii''), which induces characteristic spherical galls about two centimeters wide on the undersides ...
wasp, there.
Character
Extraordinary strength,
courage
Courage (also called bravery or valor) is the choice and willingness to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. Valor is courage or bravery, especially in battle.
Physical courage is bravery in the face of physical pain, h ...
, ingenuity, and sexual prowess with both males and females were among the characteristics commonly attributed to him. Heracles used his wits on several occasions when his strength did not suffice, such as when laboring for the king
Augeas
In Greek mythology, Augeas (or Augeias, , grc-gre, Αὐγείας), whose name means "bright", was king of Elis and father of Epicaste. Some say that Augeas was one of the Argonauts.Hyginus, ''Fabulae'14/ref> He is best known for his stables, w ...
of
Elis
Elis or Ilia ( el, Ηλεία, ''Ileia'') is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it was ...
, wrestling the giant
Antaeus
Antaeus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀνταῖος ''Antaîos'', "opponent", derived from , ''antao'' – 'I face, I oppose'), known to the Berbers as Anti, was a figure in Berber and Greek mythology. He was famed for his defeat by Heracles as part o ...
, or tricking
Atlas
An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth.
Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic ...
into taking the sky back onto his shoulders. Together with
Hermes
Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orato ...
palaestra
A palaestra ( or ;
also (chiefly British) palestra; grc-gre, παλαίστρα) was any site of an ancient Greek wrestling school. Events requiring little space, such as boxing and wrestling, took place there. Palaestrae functioned both indep ...
e. His iconographic attributes are the lion skin and the
club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises
...
. These qualities did not prevent him from being regarded as a playful figure who used games to relax from his labors and played a great deal with children. By conquering dangerous archaic forces he is said to have "made the world safe for mankind" and to be its benefactor. Heracles was an extremely passionate and emotional individual, capable of doing both great deeds for his friends (such as wrestling with
Thanatos
In Greek mythology, Thanatos (; grc, Θάνατος, pronounced in "Death", from θνῄσκω ''thnēskō'' "(I) die, am dying") was the personification of death. He was a minor figure in Greek mythology, often referred to but rarely appe ...
on behalf of Prince
Admetus
In Greek mythology, Admetus (; Ancient Greek: ''Admetos'' means 'untamed, untameable') was a king of Pherae in Thessaly.
Biography
Admetus succeeded his father Pheres after whom the city was named. His mother was identified as Periclymene or ...
, who had regaled Heracles with his hospitality, or restoring his friend
Tyndareus
In Greek mythology, Tyndareus (; Ancient Greek: Τυνδάρεος, ''Tundáreos''; Attic: Τυνδάρεως, ''Tundáreōs''; ) was a Spartan king.
Family
Tyndareus was the son of Oebalus (or Perieres) and Gorgophone (or Bateia). He married ...
to the throne of
Sparta
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...
after he was overthrown) and being a terrible enemy who would wreak horrible vengeance on those who crossed him, as Augeas, Neleus, and
Laomedon
In Greek mythology, Laomedon (; grc, Λαομέδων means "ruler of the people") was a Trojan king, son of Ilus and thus nephew of Ganymede and Assaracus.
Family
Laomedon's mother was variously identified as Eurydice,Apollodorus3.12.2/ ...
all found out to their cost. There was also a coldness to his character, which was demonstrated by Sophocles' depiction of the hero in ''
The Trachiniae
''Women of Trachis'' or ''The Trachiniae'' ( grc, Τραχίνιαι, ) c. 450–425 BC, is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles.
''Women of Trachis'' is generally considered to be less developed than Sophocles' other works, and its dating has been ...
''. Heracles threatened his marriage with his desire to bring two women under the same roof; one of them was his wife
Deianeira
Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...
.
In the works of
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
involving Heracles, his actions were partly driven by forces outside rational human control. By highlighting the divine causation of his madness, Euripides problematized Heracles' character and status within the civilized context. This aspect is also highlighted in '' Hercules Furens'' where
Seneca
Seneca may refer to:
People and language
* Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname
* Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America
** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people
Places Extrat ...
linked the hero's madness to an illusion and a consequence of Heracles' refusal to live a simple life, as offered by
Amphitryon
Amphitryon (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιτρύων, ''gen''.: Ἀμφιτρύωνος; usually interpreted as "harassing either side", Latin: Amphitruo), in Greek mythology, was a son of Alcaeus, king of Tiryns in Argolis. His mother was named ...
. It was indicated that he preferred the extravagant violence of the heroic life and that its ghosts eventually manifested in his madness and that the hallucinatory visions defined Heracles' character.
In "
The Frogs
''The Frogs'' ( grc-gre, Βάτραχοι, Bátrakhoi, Frogs; la, Ranae, often abbreviated ''Ran.'' or ''Ra.'') is a comedy written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes. It was performed at the Lenaia, one of the Festivals of Dionysus in ...
," Heracles' stolid pragmatism foils
Dionysus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
' rabid love of
Greek tragedy
Greek tragedy is a form of theatre from Ancient Greece and Greek inhabited Anatolia. It reached its most significant form in Athens in the 5th century BC, the works of which are sometimes called Attic tragedy.
Greek tragedy is widely believed t ...
, forcing him to attempt to explain it, providing dramatic exposition. ἦ μὴν κόβαλά γ᾽ ἐστίν, ὡς καὶ σοὶ δοκεῖ — "I swear it's all bullshit and you know it."
Mythology
Birth and childhood
A major factor in the well-known tragedies surrounding Heracles is the hatred that the
goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes of s ...
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 ...
, wife of
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 relig ...
, had for him. A full account of Heracles must render it clear why Heracles was so tormented by Hera, when there were many illegitimate offspring sired by Zeus. Heracles was the son of the affair Zeus had with the mortal woman
Alcmene
In Greek mythology, Alcmene () or Alcmena (; Ancient Greek: Ἀλκμήνη or Doric Greek: Ἀλκμάνα, Latin: Alcumena means "strong in wrath") was the wife of Amphitryon by whom she bore two children, Iphicles and Laonome. She is best ...
. When Zeus desired Alcmene, he decided to make one night last three by ordering
Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyper ...
, the god of the sun, not to rise for three days, so he would have more time with Alcmene. Zeus made love to her after disguising himself as her husband,
Amphitryon
Amphitryon (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιτρύων, ''gen''.: Ἀμφιτρύωνος; usually interpreted as "harassing either side", Latin: Amphitruo), in Greek mythology, was a son of Alcaeus, king of Tiryns in Argolis. His mother was named ...
, home early from war (Amphitryon did return later the same night, and Alcmene became pregnant with his son at the same time, a case of heteropaternal
superfecundation
Superfecundation is the fertilization of two or more ova from the same cycle by sperm from separate acts of sexual intercourse, which can lead to twin babies from two separate biological fathers. The term superfecundation is derived from fecund, ...
, where a woman carries twins sired by different fathers). Thus, Heracles' very existence proved at least one of Zeus' many illicit affairs, and Hera often conspired against Zeus' mortal offspring as revenge for her husband's infidelities. His twin mortal brother, son of Amphitryon, was
Iphicles In Greek mythology, Iphicles ( or ; grc, Ἰφικλῆς ''Iphikles''), also called Iphiclus, was the maternal half-brother of Heracles and one of the Calydonian boar hunters.
Family
Iphicles was the son of Alcmene and her human husband ...
, father of Heracles' charioteer
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
.
On the night the twins Heracles and Iphicles were to be born, Hera, knowing of her husband Zeus' adultery, persuaded Zeus to swear an oath that the child born that night to a member of the House of
Perseus
In Greek mythology, Perseus ( /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek: Περσεύς, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus and Bellerophon, the greatest Greek hero and slayer ...
would become High King. Hera did this knowing that while Heracles was to be born a descendant of Perseus, so too was
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
. Once the oath was sworn, Hera hurried to Alcmene's dwelling and slowed the birth of the twins Heracles and Iphicles by forcing
Ilithyia
Eileithyia or Ilithyiae or Ilithyia (; grc-gre, Εἰλείθυια; (''Eleuthyia'') in Crete, also (''Eleuthia'') or (''Elysia'') in Laconia and Messene, and (''Eleuthō'') in literature)Nilsson Vol I, p. 313 was the Greek goddess of chi ...
, goddess of childbirth, to sit cross-legged with her clothing tied in knots, thereby causing the twins to be trapped in the womb. Meanwhile, Hera caused Eurystheus to be born prematurely, making him High King in place of Heracles. She would have permanently delayed Heracles' birth had she not been fooled by
Galanthis
In Greek mythology, Galanthis or Galinthias was the woman who interfered with Hera's plan to hinder the birth of Heracles in favor of Eurystheus, and was changed into a weasel or cat as punishment for being so insolent as to deceive the goddesse ...
, Alcmene's servant, who lied to Ilithyia, saying that
Alcmene
In Greek mythology, Alcmene () or Alcmena (; Ancient Greek: Ἀλκμήνη or Doric Greek: Ἀλκμάνα, Latin: Alcumena means "strong in wrath") was the wife of Amphitryon by whom she bore two children, Iphicles and Laonome. She is best ...
had already delivered the baby. Upon hearing this, she jumped in surprise, loosing the knots and inadvertently allowing Alcmene to give birth to Heracles and Iphicles.
Fear of Hera's revenge led Alcmene to
expose
Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to:
News sources
* Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism
* '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website
Film and TV Film
* ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film
* ''Exposed'' (1932 ...
the infant Heracles, but he was taken up and brought to Hera by his half-sister
Athena
Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...
, who played an important role as protectress of heroes. Hera did not recognize Heracles and nursed him out of pity. Heracles suckled so strongly that he caused Hera pain, and she pushed him away. Her milk sprayed across the heavens and there formed the Milky Way. But with divine milk, Heracles had acquired supernatural powers. Athena brought the infant back to his mother, and he was subsequently raised by his parents.
The child was originally given the name Alcides by his parents; it was only later that he became known as Heracles. He was renamed Heracles in an unsuccessful attempt to mollify Hera, with Heracles meaning Hera's "pride" or "glory". He and his twin were just eight months old when Hera sent two giant snakes into the children's chamber. Iphicles cried from fear, but his brother grabbed a snake in each hand and strangled them. He was found by his nurse playing with them on his cot as if they were toys. Astonished, Amphitryon sent for the seer
Tiresias
In Greek mythology, Tiresias (; grc, Τειρεσίας, Teiresías) was a blind prophet of Apollo in Thebes, famous for clairvoyance and for being transformed into a woman for seven years. He was the son of the shepherd Everes and the nymph ...
, who prophesied an unusual future for the boy, saying he would vanquish numerous monsters.
Youth
After killing his music tutor
Linus
Linus, a male given name, is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Linos''. It's a common given name in Sweden. The origin of the name is unknown although the name appears in antiquity both as a musician who taught Apollo and as a son of Apollo who di ...
with a
lyre
The lyre () is a stringed musical instrument that is classified by Hornbostel–Sachs as a member of the lute-family of instruments. In organology, a lyre is considered a yoke lute, since it is a lute in which the strings are attached to a yoke ...
, he was sent to tend cattle on a mountain by his foster father Amphitryon. Here, according to an allegorical
parable
A parable is a succinct, didactic story, in prose or verse, that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles. It differs from a fable in that fables employ animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature as characters, w ...
Prodicus
Prodicus of Ceos (; grc-gre, Πρόδικος ὁ Κεῖος, ''Pródikos ho Keios''; c. 465 BC – c. 395 BC) was a Greek philosopher, and part of the first generation of Sophists. He came to Athens as ambassador from Ceos, and became known as ...
(c. 400 BCE) and reported in
Xenophon
Xenophon of Athens (; grc, wikt:Ξενοφῶν, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Anci ...
's ''
Memorabilia
A souvenir (), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collected or purchased and transported home by the traveler as a m ...
'' 2.1.21–34, he was visited by two allegorical figures—Vice and Virtue—who offered him a choice between a pleasant and easy life or a severe but glorious life: he chose the latter. This was part of a pattern of "ethicizing" Heracles over the 5th century BCE.
Later in Thebes, Heracles married King
Creon Creon may refer to:
Greek history
* Creon, the first annual eponymous archon of Athens, 682–681 BC
Greek mythology
* Creon (king of Thebes), mythological king of Thebes
* Creon (king of Corinth), father of Creusa/Glauce in Euripides' ''Medea' ...
's daughter,
Megara
Megara (; el, Μέγαρα, ) is a historic town and a municipality in West Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis Island, Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, befo ...
. In a fit of madness, induced by Hera, Heracles killed his children and Megara. After his madness had been cured with
hellebore
Commonly known as hellebores (), the Eurasian genus ''Helleborus'' consists of approximately 20 species of herbaceous or evergreen perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, within which it gave its name to the tribe of Helleboreae. ...
by Antikyreus, the founder of
Antikyra
Antikyra or Anticyra ( el, Αντίκυρα) is a port on the west coast of the Gulf of Antikyra named after it. That gulf is a north-coast bay of the Gulf of Corinth. The settlement was made basically on a floor and beach fringing the northeas ...
, he realized what he had done and fled to the
Oracle of Delphi
Pythia (; grc, Πυθία ) was the name of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She specifically served as its oracle and was known as the Oracle of Delphi. Her title was also historically glossed in English as the Pythoness ...
. Unbeknownst to him, the Oracle was guided by Hera. He was directed to serve King
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
for ten years and perform any task Eurystheus required of him. Eurystheus decided to give Heracles ten labours, but after completing them, Heracles was cheated by Eurystheus when he added two more, resulting in the Twelve Labors of Heracles.
Labours of Heracles
Driven mad by Hera, Heracles slew his own children. To expiate the crime, Heracles was required to carry out ten labours set by his archenemy,
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
, who had become king in Heracles' place. If he succeeded, he would be purified of his sin and, as myth says, he would become a god, and be granted immortality.
Other traditions place Heracles' madness at a later time, and relate the circumstances differently. In some traditions there was ''only'' a divine reason for Heracles twelve labours: Zeus, in his desire not to leave Heracles the victim of Hera's jealousy, made her promise that, if Heracles executed twelve great works in the service of Eurystheus, he should become immortal. In the play ''
Herakles
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 ...
'' by
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
, Heracles is driven to madness by Hera and kills his children ''after'' his twelve labours.
Despite the difficulty, Heracles accomplished these tasks, but Eurystheus in the end did not accept the success the hero had with two of the labours: the cleansing of the Augean stables, because Heracles was going to accept pay for the labour; and the killing of the Lernaean Hydra, as Heracles' nephew,
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
, had helped him burn the stumps of the multiplying heads.
Eurystheus set two more tasks, fetching the Golden Apples of Hesperides and capturing
Cerberus
In Greek mythology, Cerberus (; grc-gre, Κέρβερος ''Kérberos'' ), often referred to as the hound of Hades, is a multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. He was the offspring of the mo ...
. In the end, with ease, the hero successfully performed each added task, bringing the total number of labours up to the magic number ''twelve''.
Not all versions and writers give the labours in the same order. The '' Bibliotheca'' (2.5.1–2.5.12) gives the following order:
;1. Slay the Nemean Lion: Heracles defeated a lion that was attacking the city of
Nemea
Nemea (; grc, Νεμέα; grc-x-ionic, Νεμέη) is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional unit of Corinthia ...
with his bare hands. After he succeeded he wore the skin as a cloak to demonstrate his power over the opponent he had defeated.
;2. Slay the nine-headed
Lernaean Hydra
The Lernaean Hydra or Hydra of Lerna ( grc-gre, Λερναῖα Ὕδρα, ''Lernaîa Hýdra''), more often known simply as the Hydra, is a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid, whi ...
: a fire-breathing monster with multiple serpent heads that when one head was cut off, two would grow in its place. It lived in a swamp near
Lerna
In classical Greece, Lerna ( el, Λέρνη) was a region of springs and a former lake near the east coast of the Peloponnesus, south of Argos. Even though much of the area is marshy, Lerna is located on a geographically narrow point between moun ...
. Hera had sent it in hope it would destroy Heracles' home city because she thought it was invincible. With help from his nephew
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
, he defeated the monster and dipped his arrows in its poisoned blood, thus envenomizing them.
;3. Capture the Golden Hind of Artemis: not to kill, but to catch, this hind that was sacred to
Artemis
In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...
. A different, but still difficult, task for a hero. It cost time but, having chased it for a year, Heracles wore out the Hind. Artemis intervened, but as soon as Heracles explained the situation to her, she allowed him to take it, and he presented it alive to
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
.
;4. Capture the
Erymanthian Boar
In Greek mythology, the Erymanthian boar ( Greek: ὁ Ἐρυμάνθιος κάπρος; Latin: ''aper Erymanthius'') was a mythical creature that took the form of a "shaggy and wild" "tameless" "boar" "of vast weight" "and foaming jaws". It wa ...
: a fearsome marauding boar on the loose. Eurystheus set Heracles the Labour of catching it, and bringing it to
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 ...
. Again, a time-consuming task, but the tireless hero found the beast, captured it, and brought it to its final spot. Patience is the heroic quality in the third and fourth Labours.
;5. Clean the Augean stables in a single day: the Augean stables were the home of 3,000 cattle with poisoned faeces which Augeas had been given by his father
Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyper ...
. Heracles was given the near impossible task of cleaning the stables of the diseased faeces. He accomplished it by digging ditches on both sides of the stables, moving them into the ditches, and then diverting the rivers Alpheios and Pineios to wash the ditches clean.
;6. Slay the Stymphalian Birds: these aggressive man-eating birds were terrorizing a forest near
Lake Stymphalia
Lake Stymphalia (Greek: Λίμνη Στυμφαλία - ''Límnē Stymphalía'') is located in the north-eastern part of the Peloponnese, in Corinthia, southern Greece.
It is a closed karst basin with a wetland area and an agrarian area. The lake ...
in northern Arcadia. Heracles scared them with a rattle given to him by Athena, to frighten them into flight away from the forest, allowing him to shoot many of them with his bow and arrow and bring back this proof of his success to Eurystheus.
;7. Capture the Cretan Bull: the harmful bull, father of the
Minotaur
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( , ;. grc, ; in Latin as ''Minotaurus'' ) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "pa ...
, was laying waste to the lands round
Knossos
Knossos (also Cnossos, both pronounced ; grc, Κνωσός, Knōsós, ; Linear B: ''Ko-no-so'') is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete and has been called Europe's oldest city.
Settled as early as the Neolithic period, the na ...
on
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
. It embodied the rage 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 ...
at having his gift (the Bull) to
Minos
In Greek mythology, Minos (; grc-gre, Μίνως, ) was a King of Crete, son of Zeus and Europa. Every nine years, he made King Aegeus pick seven young boys and seven young girls to be sent to Daedalus's creation, the labyrinth, to be eaten ...
diverted from the intention to sacrifice it to himself. Heracles captured it, and carried it on his shoulders to Eurystheus in
Tiryns
Tiryns or (Ancient Greek: Τίρυνς; Modern Greek: Τίρυνθα) is a Mycenaean archaeological site in Argolis in the Peloponnese, and the location from which the mythical hero Heracles performed his Twelve Labours. It lies south of Myce ...
. Eurystheus released it, when it wandered to
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...
which it then terrorized, until killed by
Theseus
Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages.
Theseus is sometimes describe ...
.
;8. Steal the
Mares of Diomedes
The Mares of Diomedes ( grc-gre, Διομήδους ἵπποι), also called the Mares of Thrace, were a herd of man-eating horses in Greek mythology. Magnificent, wild, and uncontrollable, they belonged to Diomedes of Thrace (not to be confuse ...
: stealing the horses from
Diomedes
Diomedes (Jones, Daniel; Roach, Peter, James Hartman and Jane Setter, eds. ''Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary''. 17th edition. Cambridge UP, 2006.) or Diomede (; grc-gre, Διομήδης, Diomēdēs, "god-like cunning" or "advised by ...
' stables that had been trained by their owner to feed on human flesh was his next challenge. Heracles' task was to capture them and hand them over to Eurystheus. He accomplished this task by feeding King Diomedes to the animals before binding their mouths shut.
;9. Obtain the girdle of
Hippolyta
In Classical Greek mythology, Hippolyta, or Hippolyte (; grc-gre, Ἱππολύτη ''Hippolytē'') was a daughter of Ares and Otrera, queen of the Amazons, and a sister of Antiope and Melanippe. She wore her father Ares' ''zoster'', the Gr ...
, Queen of the
Amazons
In Greek mythology, the Amazons (Ancient Greek: Ἀμαζόνες ''Amazónes'', singular Ἀμαζών ''Amazōn'', via Latin ''Amāzon, -ŏnis'') are portrayed in a number of ancient epic poems and legends, such as the Labours of Hercules, ...
: Hippolyta was an Amazon queen and she had a girdle given to her by her father
Ares
Ares (; grc, Ἄρης, ''Árēs'' ) is the Greek god of war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for success in war b ...
. Heracles had to retrieve the girdle and return it to Eurystheus. He and his band of companions received a rough welcome because, ordered by Hera, the Amazons were supposed to attack them; however, against all odds, Heracles completed the task and secured the girdle for Eurystheus.
;10. Obtain the cattle of the monster
Orthrus
In Greek mythology, Orthrus ( grc-gre, Ὄρθρος, ''Orthros'') or Orthus ( grc-gre, Ὄρθος, ''Orthos'') was, according to the mythographer Apollodorus, a two-headed dog who guarded Geryon's cattle and was killed by Heracles. He was the ...
, which belonged to Geryon; a giant with three heads and six arms who lived in
Erytheia Erytheia or Erythia ( grc, Ἐρυθεία) ("the red one"), part of Greek mythology, is one of the three Hesperides. The name was applied to the island close to the coast of southern Hispania, that was the site of the original Punic colony of Gade ...
. While travelling to Erytheia, he passed through the Libyan desert and was so annoyed by the heat he shot an arrow at Helios, the sun. Helios, impressed, lent him his giant cup which Heracles used to find Orthrus, the herdsman Erytion and the owner, Geryon. He killed the first two with his club and the third with a poisoned arrow. Heracles then herded the cattle and, with difficulty, took them to Eurystheus.
;11. Steal the golden apples of the
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 Atlas ...
: these sacred fruits were protected by Hera who had set Ladon, a fearsome hundred-headed dragon as the guardian. Heracles had to first find where the garden was; he asked
Nereus
In Greek mythology, Nereus ( ; ) was the eldest son of Pontus (the Sea) and Gaia (the Earth), with Pontus himself being a son of Gaia. Nereus and Doris became the parents of 50 daughters (the Nereids) and a son ( Nerites), with whom Nereus liv ...
for help. He came across
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...
on his journey. Heracles shot the eagle eating at his liver, and in return he helped Heracles with knowledge that his brother would know where the garden was. His brother
Atlas
An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth.
Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic ...
offered him help with the apples if he would hold up the heavens while he was gone. Atlas tricked him and did not return. Heracles returned the trickery and managed to get Atlas taking the burden of the heavens once again, and returned the apples to Mycenae.
;12. Capture and bring back
Cerberus
In Greek mythology, Cerberus (; grc-gre, Κέρβερος ''Kérberos'' ), often referred to as the hound of Hades, is a multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. He was the offspring of the mo ...
: his last labour and undoubtedly the riskiest. Eurystheus was so frustrated that Heracles was completing all the tasks that he had given him that he imposed one he believed to be impossible: Heracles had to go down into the underworld of
Hades
Hades (; grc-gre, ᾍδης, Háidēs; ), in the ancient Greek religion and myth, is the god of the dead and the king of the underworld, with which his name became synonymous. Hades was the eldest son of Cronus and Rhea, although this also ...
and capture the ferocious three-headed dog Cerberus who guarded the gates. He used the souls to help convince Hades to hand over the dog. He agreed to give him the dog if he used no weapons to obtain him. Heracles succeeded and took the creature back to Mycenae, causing Eurystheus to be fearful of the power and strength of this hero.
Further adventures
After completing these tasks, Heracles fell in love with Princess
Iole
In Greek mythology, Iole (; grc, Ἰόλη ) was the daughter of King Eurytus of Oechalia. According to the brief epitome in the '' Bibliotheca'', Eurytus had a beautiful young daughter named Iole who was eligible for marriage. Iole was claimed ...
King Eurytus of Oechalia
In Greek mythology King Eurytus (; Ancient Greek: Εὔρυτος) of Oechalia (, ''Oikhalíā''), Thessaly, was a skillful archer who even said to have instructed Heracles in his art of using the bow. Scholaist ''on Sophocles, Trachiniae'' 268
...
promised his daughter,
Iole
In Greek mythology, Iole (; grc, Ἰόλη ) was the daughter of King Eurytus of Oechalia. According to the brief epitome in the '' Bibliotheca'', Eurytus had a beautiful young daughter named Iole who was eligible for marriage. Iole was claimed ...
, to whoever could beat his sons in an archery contest. Heracles won but Eurytus abandoned his promise. Heracles' advances were spurned by the king and his sons, except for one: Iole's brother Iphitus. Heracles killed the king and his sons—excluding Iphitus—and abducted Iole. Iphitus became Heracles' best friend. However, once again, Hera drove Heracles mad and he threw Iphitus over the city wall to his death. Once again, Heracles purified himself through three years of servitude—this time to Queen
Omphale
In Greek mythology, Omphale (; Ancient Greek: Ὀμφάλη) was queen of the kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor. Diodorus Siculus provides the first appearance of the Omphale theme in literature, though Aeschylus was aware of the episode. The Gree ...
of
Lydia
Lydia (Lydian language, Lydian: 𐤮𐤱𐤠𐤭𐤣𐤠, ''Śfarda''; Aramaic: ''Lydia''; el, Λυδία, ''Lȳdíā''; tr, Lidya) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the mod ...
.
Omphale
Omphale
In Greek mythology, Omphale (; Ancient Greek: Ὀμφάλη) was queen of the kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor. Diodorus Siculus provides the first appearance of the Omphale theme in literature, though Aeschylus was aware of the episode. The Gree ...
was a queen or princess of
Lydia
Lydia (Lydian language, Lydian: 𐤮𐤱𐤠𐤭𐤣𐤠, ''Śfarda''; Aramaic: ''Lydia''; el, Λυδία, ''Lȳdíā''; tr, Lidya) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the mod ...
. As penalty for a murder, imposed by
Xenoclea
Xenoclea (Ancient Greek: Ξενόκλεια), who appears as a character in the legend of Hercules, was the '' Pythia'', or priestess and oracle, of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi.
The Delphic oracle was a historical reality and was establish ...
, the
Delphic Oracle
Pythia (; grc, Πυθία ) was the name of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She specifically served as its oracle and was known as the Oracle of Delphi. Her title was also historically glossed in English as the Pythoness ...
, Heracles was to serve as her slave for a year. He was forced to do women's work and to wear women's clothes, while she wore the skin of the Nemean Lion and carried his olive-wood club. After some time, Omphale freed Heracles and married him. Some sources mention a son born to them who is variously named. It was at that time that the
cercopes
In Greek mythology, the Cercopes ( el, Κέρκωπες, plural of Κέρκωψ, from κέρκος (''n''.) ''kerkos'' "tail") were mischievous forest creatures who lived in Thermopylae or on Euboea but roamed the world and might turn up anywhe ...
, mischievous wood spirits, stole Heracles' weapons. He punished them by tying them to a stick with their faces pointing downward.
Hylas
While walking through the wilderness, Heracles was set upon by the
Dryopes Dryopes (; grc, Δρύοπες) or Dryopians () were one of the aboriginal tribes of ancient Greece. According to Herodotus, their earliest abode is said to have been on Mount Oeta and its adjacent valleys, in the district called after them, Dryopi ...
. In
Apollonius of Rhodes
Apollonius of Rhodes ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; la, Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an ancient Greek author, best known for the ''Argonautica'', an epic poem about Jason and t ...
' ''
Argonautica
The ''Argonautica'' ( el, Ἀργοναυτικά , translit=Argonautika) is a Greek epic poem written by Apollonius Rhodius in the 3rd century BC. The only surviving Hellenistic epic, the ''Argonautica'' tells the myth of the voyage of Jason a ...
'' it is recalled that Heracles had mercilessly slain their king,
Theiodamas In Greek mythology, the name Theiodamas or Thiodamas () may refer to:
*Theiodamas, king of the Dryopes, father of Hylas by the nymph Menodice, daughter of Orion. The '' Bibliotheca'' and Apollonius Rhodius relate of him that one day when he was wor ...
, over one of the latter's bulls, and made war upon the Dryopes "because they gave no heed to justice in their lives". After the death of their king, the Dryopes gave in and offered him Prince
Hylas
In classical mythology, Hylas () was a youth who served as Heracles's (Roman Hercules) companion and servant. His abduction by water nymphs was a theme of ancient art, and has been an enduring subject for Western art in the classical tradition ...
. He took the youth on as his weapons bearer. Years later, Heracles and Hylas joined the crew of the ''
Argo
In Greek mythology the ''Argo'' (; in Greek: ) was a ship built with the help of the gods that Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The ship has gone on to be used as a motif in a variety of sour ...
''. As Argonauts, they only participated in part of the journey. In
Mysia
Mysia (UK , US or ; el, Μυσία; lat, Mysia; tr, Misya) was a region in the northwest of ancient Asia Minor (Anatolia, Asian part of modern Turkey). It was located on the south coast of the Sea of Marmara. It was bounded by Bithynia on the ...
, Hylas was kidnapped by the nymphs of a local spring. Heracles, searched for a long time but Hylas had fallen in love with the nymphs and never showed up again. In other versions, he simply drowned. Either way, the ''Argo'' set sail without them.
Rescue of Prometheus
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 ...
's ''
Theogony
The ''Theogony'' (, , , i.e. "the genealogy or birth of the gods") is a poem by Hesiod (8th–7th century BC) describing the origins and genealogies of the Greek gods, composed . It is written in the Epic dialect of Ancient Greek and contains 10 ...
'' and
Aeschylus
Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...
' '' Prometheus Unbound'' both tell that Heracles shot and killed the eagle that tortured
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...
(which was his punishment by Zeus for stealing fire from the gods and giving it to mortals). Heracles freed the Titan from his chains and his torments. Prometheus then made predictions regarding further deeds of Heracles.
Heracles' constellation
On his way back to
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 ...
from
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
Liguria
Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...
in North-Western
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
where he engaged in battle with two giants,
Albion
Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than 'Britain' today. The name for Scot ...
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 ...
. The opponents were strong; Hercules was in a difficult position so he prayed to his father
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 relig ...
for help. Under the aegis of Zeus, Heracles won the battle. It was this kneeling position of Heracles when he prayed to his father Zeus that gave the name Engonasin (''"Εγγόνασιν"'', derived from "εν γόνασιν"), meaning "on his knees" or "the Kneeler",
to the constellation known as Heracles' constellation. The story, among others, is described by
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς,
; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...
.
Heracles' sack of Troy
Before
Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
's Trojan War, Heracles had made an expedition to Troy and sacked it. Previously, Poseidon had sent a sea monster (Greek: kētŏs, Latin:
cetus
Cetus () is a constellation, sometimes called 'the whale' in English. The Cetus (mythology), Cetus was a sea monster in Greek mythology which both Perseus and Heracles needed to slay. Cetus is in the region of the sky that contains other water- ...
) to attack
Troy
Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...
. The story is related in several digressions in the ''Iliad'' (7.451–53; 20.145–48; 21.442–57) and is found in pseudo-Apollodorus' Bibliotheke (2.5.9). This expedition became the theme of the Eastern pediment of the
Temple of Aphaea
The Temple of Aphaia ( el, Ναός Αφαίας) or Afea is located within a sanctuary complex dedicated to the goddess Aphaia on the Greek island of Aigina, which lies in the Saronic Gulf. Formerly known as the Temple of Jupiter Panhellenius, ...
.
Laomedon
In Greek mythology, Laomedon (; grc, Λαομέδων means "ruler of the people") was a Trojan king, son of Ilus and thus nephew of Ganymede and Assaracus.
Family
Laomedon's mother was variously identified as Eurydice,Apollodorus3.12.2/ ...
planned on sacrificing his daughter
Hesione
In Greek mythology and later art, the name Hesione ( /hɪˈsaɪ.əniː/; Ancient Greek: Ἡσιόνη) refers to various mythological figures, of whom the Trojan princess Hesione is most known.
Mythology
According to the '' Bibliotheca'', the ...
to Poseidon in the hope of appeasing him. Heracles happened to arrive (along with
Telamon
In Greek mythology, Telamon (; Ancient Greek: Τελαμών, ''Telamōn'' means "broad strap") was the son of King Aeacus of Aegina, and Endeïs, a mountain nymph. The elder brother of Peleus, Telamon sailed alongside Jason as one of his Argona ...
and
Oicles In Greek mythology, Oicles or Oecles (; grc, Οἰκλῆς), also Oicleus or Oecleus (; Οἰκλεύς), was the father of the seer Amphiaraus. He accompanied Heracles on his campaign against Troy.
Family
According to Homer's ''Odyssey'', Oicle ...
) and agreed to kill the monster if Laomedon would give him the horses received from Zeus as compensation for Zeus' kidnapping Ganymede. Laomedon agreed. Heracles killed the monster, but Laomedon went back on his word. Accordingly, in a later expedition, Heracles and his followers attacked Troy and sacked it. Then they slew all Laomedon's sons present there save
Podarces
In Greek mythology, Podarces ( grc, Ποδάρκης) was a son of Iphiclus (son of Phylacus, founder of Phylace) by Diomedeia and the brother of Protesilaus. In some accounts, he and his brother were called the sons of Phylacus and Astyoche in ...
, who was renamed Priam, who saved his own life by giving Heracles a golden veil Hesione had made. Telamon took Hesione as a war prize and they had a son,
Teucer
In Greek mythology, Teucer (), also Teucrus, Teucros or Teucris ( grc, Τεῦκρος, Teûkros), was the son of King Telamon of Salamis Island and his second wife Hesione, daughter of King Laomedon of Troy. He fought alongside his half-broth ...
.
Colony at Sardinia
After Heracles had performed his Labours, gods told him that before he passed into the company of the gods, he should create a colony at
Sardinia
Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...
and make his sons, whom he had with the daughters of
Thespius In Greek mythology, Thespius (; Ancient Greek: Θέσπιος ''Théspios'') or Thestius (; Ancient Greek: Θέστιος)Pausanias, 9.27.7 was a legendary founder and king of Thespiae, Boeotia. His life account is considered part of Greek mythology ...
, the leaders of the settlement. When his sons became adults, he sent them together with
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
to the island.
Other adventures
* Heracles defeated the
Bebryces The Bebryces ( el, Βέβρυκες) were a tribe of people who lived in Bithynia. According to Strabo they were one of the many Thracian tribes that had crossed from Europe into Asia, although modern scholars have rather argued for a Celtic origin ...
(ruled by King Mygdon) and gave their land to Prince Lycus of
Mysia
Mysia (UK , US or ; el, Μυσία; lat, Mysia; tr, Misya) was a region in the northwest of ancient Asia Minor (Anatolia, Asian part of modern Turkey). It was located on the south coast of the Sea of Marmara. It was bounded by Bithynia on the ...
, son of
Dascylus In Greek mythology, Dascylus or Daskylos ( grc, Δάσκυλος) is a name that may refer to:
*Dascylus, a king who ruled over Mysia or Mariandyne. He is presumably the eponym of the coastal city of Dascylaeum or Dascylium (but see below). The w ...
.
* He killed the robber
Termerus In Greek mythology, Termerus (Ancient Greek: Τέρμερος) was a bandit who was killed by Heracles.
Mythology
The episode is referenced in Plutarch's ''Life of Theseus'', in description of Theseus' method of slaying his assailants by returnin ...
.
* Heracles visited
Evander
Evander is a masculine given name. It is an anglicization of the Greek name Εὔανδρος (lit. "good man", Latinized ''Evandrus'').
It has also been adopted as an anglicization of the Gaelic name Iomhar (the Gaelic variant of the name Ivor ...
with Antor, who then stayed in Italy.
* Heracles killed King Amyntor of
Ormenium Ormenium ( grc, Ὀρμένιον) was a town of ancient Thessaly, mentioned in the Catalogue of Ships in Homer's ''Iliad'', along with Hypereia and Asterium, as belonging to Eurypylus. In Greek mythology, it was said to have been founded by Orm ...
for not allowing him into his kingdom. He also killed King
Emathion In Greek mythology, the name Emathion ( Ancient Greek: Ἠμαθίων) refers to four individuals.
* Emathion, king of Aethiopia or Arabia, the son of Tithonus and Eos, and brother of Memnon. Heracles killed him. Herakles had to fight Emathion, w ...
of
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
.
* Heracles kills the Egyptian King Busiris and his followers after they attempt to sacrifice him to the gods.
* Heracles killed
Lityerses In Greek mythology, Lityerses (Ancient Greek: Λιτυέρσης) was an illegitimate son of Midas (or of Comis) dwelling in Celaenae, Phrygia.
Mythology
Lityerses was a talented swordsman, and was bloodthirsty and aggressive. He challenged peop ...
after beating him in a contest of harvesting.
* Heracles killed
Periclymenus In Greek mythology, the name Periclymenus (; Ancient Greek: Περικλύμενος ''Periklymenos'') may refer to:
*Periclymenus, a Pylian prince as the son of King Neleus (the son of Poseidon) and Chloris. He was one of the Argonauts. His grand ...
at
Pylos
Pylos (, ; el, Πύλος), historically also known as Navarino, is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is th ...
.
* Heracles killed Syleus for forcing strangers to hoe a vineyard.
* Heracles rivaled with Lepreus and eventually killed him.
* Heracles founded the city
Tarentum Tarentum may refer to:
* Taranto, Apulia, Italy, on the site of the ancient Roman city of Tarentum (formerly the Greek colony of Taras)
**See also History of Taranto
* Tarentum (Campus Martius), also Terentum, an area in or on the edge of the Camp ...
(modern
Taranto
Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...
in Italy).
* Heracles learned music from
Linus
Linus, a male given name, is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Linos''. It's a common given name in Sweden. The origin of the name is unknown although the name appears in antiquity both as a musician who taught Apollo and as a son of Apollo who di ...
(and
Eumolpus
In Greek Mythology, Eumolpus (; Ancient Greek: Εὔμολπος ''Eúmolpos'', "good singer" or "sweet singing", derived from εὖ ''eu'' "good" and μολπή ''molpe'' "song", "singing") was a legendary king of Thrace. He was described as hav ...
), but killed him after Linus corrected his mistakes. He learned how to wrestle from
Autolycus
In Greek mythology, Autolycus (; Ancient Greek: Αὐτόλυκος ''Autolykos'' 'the wolf itself') was a successful robber who had even the power of metamorphosing both the stolen goods and himself. He had his residence on Mount Parnassus and w ...
. He killed the famous boxer
Eryx
Eryx is a French short-range portable semi-automatic command to line of sight (SACLOS) based wire-guided anti-tank missile (ATGM) manufactured by MBDA France and by MKEK under licence. The weapon can also be used against larger bunkers and smal ...
Argonaut
The Argonauts (; Ancient Greek: ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, ''Argo'', n ...
Hippocoon In Greek mythology, the name Hippocoön (; grc, Ἱπποκόων, ''Hippokóōn'') refers to several characters:
*Hippocoon, in one account, father of Neleus, who is otherwise called son of Cretheus or Poseidon.
* Hippocoon, a Spartan king, f ...
overthrew his brother,
Tyndareus
In Greek mythology, Tyndareus (; Ancient Greek: Τυνδάρεος, ''Tundáreos''; Attic: Τυνδάρεως, ''Tundáreōs''; ) was a Spartan king.
Family
Tyndareus was the son of Oebalus (or Perieres) and Gorgophone (or Bateia). He married ...
, as King of
Sparta
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...
, Heracles reinstated the rightful ruler and killed Hippocoon and his sons.
* Heracles killed
Cycnus :''The butterfly genus ''Cycnus'' is now synonymized with ''Panthiades.
In Greek mythology, multiple characters were known as Cycnus (Ancient Greek: Κύκνος) or Cygnus. The literal meaning of the name is "swan", and accordingly most of them end ...
, the son of
Ares
Ares (; grc, Ἄρης, ''Árēs'' ) is the Greek god of war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for success in war b ...
. The expedition against Cycnus, in which Iolaus accompanied Heracles, is the ostensible theme of a short epic attributed to
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 ...
, ''
Shield of Heracles
The ''Shield of Heracles'' ( grc, Ἀσπὶς Ἡρακλέους, ''Aspis Hērakleous'') is an archaic Greek epic poem that was attributed to Hesiod during antiquity. The subject of the poem is the expedition of Heracles and Iolaus against Cyc ...
''.
* Heracles killed the
Giants
A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore.
Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to:
Mythology and religion
*Giants (Greek mythology)
*Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...
Porphyrion
In Greek mythology, Porphyrion ( grc-gre, Πορφυρίων) was one of the Gigantes ( Giants), who according to Hesiod, were the offspring of Gaia, born from the blood that fell when Uranus (Sky) was castrated by their son Cronus. In some other ...
.
* Heracles killed
Antaeus
Antaeus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀνταῖος ''Antaîos'', "opponent", derived from , ''antao'' – 'I face, I oppose'), known to the Berbers as Anti, was a figure in Berber and Greek mythology. He was famed for his defeat by Heracles as part o ...
the giant who was immortal while touching the earth, by picking him up and holding him in the air while strangling him.
*
Pygmies
In anthropology, pygmy peoples are ethnic groups whose average height is unusually short. The term pygmyism is used to describe the phenotype of endemic short stature (as opposed to disproportionate dwarfism occurring in isolated cases in a pop ...
tried to kill Heracles because they were brothers of Antaeus and wanted to avenge Antaeus's death.
* Heracles went to war with Augeias after he denied him a promised reward for clearing his stables. Augeias remained undefeated due to the skill of his two generals, the Molionides, and after Heracles fell ill, his army was badly beaten. Later, however, he was able to ambush and kill the Molionides, and thus march into Elis, sack it, and kill Augeias and his sons.
* Heracles visited the house of
Admetus
In Greek mythology, Admetus (; Ancient Greek: ''Admetos'' means 'untamed, untameable') was a king of Pherae in Thessaly.
Biography
Admetus succeeded his father Pheres after whom the city was named. His mother was identified as Periclymene or ...
on the day Admetus' wife,
Alcestis
Alcestis (; Ancient Greek: Ἄλκηστις, ') or Alceste, was a princess in Greek mythology, known for her love of her husband. Her life story was told by pseudo-Apollodorus in his '' Bibliotheca'', and a version of her death and return from t ...
, had agreed to die in his place. Admetus, not wanting to turn Heracles away, nor wanting to burden him with his sadness, welcomes him and instructs the servants not to inform Heracles of what has occurred. Heracles, thus unaware of Alcestis's fate, enjoys the hospitality of Admetus's house, drinking and revelling, which angers the servants, who wish to mourn as is their right. One scolds the guest and Heracles is ashamed of his actions. By hiding beside the grave of Alcestis, Heracles was able to surprise Death when he came to collect her, and by squeezing him tight until he relented, was able to persuade Death to return Alcestis to her husband.
* Heracles challenged wine god
Dionysus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
to a drinking contest and lost, resulting in his joining the
Thiasus
In Greek mythology and religion, the ''thiasus'' ( el, θίασος, thíasos), was the ecstatic retinue of Dionysus, often pictured as inebriated revelers. Many of the myths of Dionysus are connected with his arrival in the form of a processi ...
for a period.
* Heracles also appears in
Aristophanes
Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme
In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states ...
' ''
The Frogs
''The Frogs'' ( grc-gre, Βάτραχοι, Bátrakhoi, Frogs; la, Ranae, often abbreviated ''Ran.'' or ''Ra.'') is a comedy written by the Ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes. It was performed at the Lenaia, one of the Festivals of Dionysus in ...
'', in which Dionysus seeks out the hero to find a way to the underworld. Heracles is greatly amused by Dionysus' appearance and jokingly offers several ways to commit suicide before finally offering his knowledge of how to get to there.
* Heracles appears as the ancestral hero of Scythia in Herodotus' text. While Heracles is sleeping out in the wilderness, a half-woman, half-snake creature steals his horses. Heracles eventually finds the creature, but she refuses to return the horses until he has sex with her. After doing so, he takes back his horses, but before leaving, he hands over his belt and bow, and gives instructions as to which of their children should found a new nation in Scythia.
* In the fifth book of the ''New History'', ascribed by
Photius
Photios I ( el, Φώτιος, ''Phōtios''; c. 810/820 – 6 February 893), also spelled PhotiusFr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Materia ...
to
Ptolemy Hephaestion Ptolemy Chennus or Chennos ("quail") ( grc-koi, Πτολεμαῖος Χέννος ''Ptolemaios Chennos''), was an Alexandrine grammarian during the reigns of Trajan and Hadrian.
According to the ''Suda'', he was the author of an historical drama ...
, mention that Heracles did not wear the skin of the Nemean lion, but that of a certain Lion giant killed by Heracles whom he had challenged to single combat.
* Heracles fought and killed
Cacus
In Roman mythology, Cacus ( grc, Κάκος, derived from κακός, meaning bad) was a fire-breathing giant and the son of Vulcan (Plutarch called him son of Hephaestus). He was killed by Hercules after terrorizing the Aventine Hill before the ...
.
* Heracles fought with the
Sicani
The Sicani (Ancient Greek Σῐκᾱνοί ''Sikānoí'') or Sicanians were one of three ancient peoples of Sicily present at the time of Phoenician and Greek colonization. The Sicani dwelt east of the Elymians and west of the Sicels, having, ac ...
people, killing many including the famous Leucaspis.
Death
This is described in
Sophocles
Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...
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 ...
's ''
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 ...
'' Book IX. Having wrestled and defeated
Achelous
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Achelous (also Acheloos or Acheloios) (; Ancient Greek: Ἀχελώϊος, and later , ''Akhelôios'') was the god associated with the Achelous River, the largest river in Greece. According to Hesiod, he ...
, god of the Acheloos river, Heracles takes
Deianira
Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...
as his wife. Travelling to
Tiryns
Tiryns or (Ancient Greek: Τίρυνς; Modern Greek: Τίρυνθα) is a Mycenaean archaeological site in Argolis in the Peloponnese, and the location from which the mythical hero Heracles performed his Twelve Labours. It lies south of Myce ...
, a
centaur
A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse.
Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as being ...
, Nessus, offers to help Deianira across a fast flowing river while Heracles swims it. However, Nessus is true to the archetype of the mischievous centaur and tries to steal Deianira away while Heracles is still in the water. Angry, Heracles shoots him with his arrows dipped in the poisonous blood of the
Lernaean Hydra
The Lernaean Hydra or Hydra of Lerna ( grc-gre, Λερναῖα Ὕδρα, ''Lernaîa Hýdra''), more often known simply as the Hydra, is a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid, whi ...
. Thinking of revenge, Nessus gives Deianira his blood-soaked tunic before he dies, telling her it will "excite the love of her husband".
Several years later,
rumor
A rumor (American English), or rumour (British English; see spelling differences; derived from Latin:rumorem - noise), is "a tall tale of explanations of events circulating from person to person and pertaining to an object, event, or issue in p ...
tells Deianira that she has a rival for the love of Heracles. Deianira, remembering Nessus' words, gives Heracles the bloodstained shirt. Lichas, the herald, delivers the shirt to Heracles. However, it is still covered in the Hydra's blood from Heracles' arrows, and this poisons him, tearing his skin and exposing his bones. Before he dies, Heracles throws
Lichas
:''Lichas can also refer to Lichas the Spartan, who discovered the bones of Orestes, or a genus of trilobite''
In Greek mythology, Lichas (; el, Λίχας) was Hercules's servant, who brought the poisoned shirt from Deianira to Hercules beca ...
into the sea, thinking he was the one who poisoned him (according to several versions, Lichas turns to stone, becoming a rock standing in the sea, named for him). Heracles then uproots several trees and builds a
funeral pyre
A pyre ( grc, πυρά; ''pyrá'', from , ''pyr'', "fire"), also known as a funeral pyre, is a structure, usually made of wood, for burning a body as part of a funeral rite or execution. As a form of cremation, a body is placed upon or under the ...
on
Mount Oeta
Mount Oeta (; el, Οίτη, polytonic , ''Oiti'', also transcribed as ''Oite'') is a mountain in Central Greece. A southeastern offshoot of the Pindus range, it is high. Since 1966, the core area of the mountain is a national park, and much of t ...
, which
Poeas
In Greek mythology, Poeas, or Poias (Ancient Greek: Ποίας) was a king of Meliboea or Malis (Maleae) and one of the Argonauts.
Family
Poeas was the son of King Thaumacus of Thaumacia and the father of the hero Philoctetes by Methone.
M ...
, father of
Philoctetes
Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...
, lights. As his body burns, only his immortal side is left. Through Zeus'
apotheosis
Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The term has ...
, Heracles rises to Olympus as he dies.
No one but Heracles' friend
Philoctetes
Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...
(
Poeas
In Greek mythology, Poeas, or Poias (Ancient Greek: Ποίας) was a king of Meliboea or Malis (Maleae) and one of the Argonauts.
Family
Poeas was the son of King Thaumacus of Thaumacia and the father of the hero Philoctetes by Methone.
M ...
in some versions) would light his funeral pyre (in an alternative version, it is
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
who lights the pyre). For this action, Philoctetes or Poeas received Heracles' bow and arrows, which were later needed by the Greeks to defeat Troy in the Trojan War.
Philoctetes confronted
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and shot a
poisoned arrow
Arrow poisons are used to poison arrow heads or darts for the purposes of hunting and warfare. They have been used by indigenous peoples worldwide and are still in use in areas of South America, Africa and Asia. Notable examples are the poisons se ...
at him. The Hydra poison subsequently led to the death of Paris. The Trojan War, however, continued until the
Trojan Horse
The Trojan Horse was a wooden horse said to have been used by the Greeks during the Trojan War to enter the city of Troy and win the war. The Trojan Horse is not mentioned in Homer's ''Iliad'', with the poem ending before the war is concluded, ...
was used to defeat
Troy
Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...
.
According to
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
, Heracles lived 900 years before Herodotus' own time (c. 1300 BCE).
Christian chronology
In Christian circles, a
Euhemerist
Euhemerism () is an approach to the interpretation of mythology in which mythological accounts are presumed to have originated from real historical events or personages. Euhemerism supposes that historical accounts become myths as they are exagge ...
reading of the widespread Heracles cult was attributed to a historical figure who had been offered cult status after his death. Thus
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian ...
Clement
Clement or Clément may refer to:
People
* Clement (name), a given name and surname
* Saint Clement (disambiguation)#People
Places
* Clément, French Guiana, a town
* Clement, Missouri, U.S.
* Clement Township, Michigan, U.S.
Other uses
* ...
could offer historical dates for Hercules as a king in Argos: "from the reign of Hercules in
Argos
Argos most often refers to:
* Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece
** Ancient Argos, the ancient city
* Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland
Argos or ARGOS may also refer to:
Businesses
...
to the
deification
Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The term has ...
of Hercules himself and of
Asclepius
Asclepius (; grc-gre, Ἀσκληπιός ''Asklēpiós'' ; la, Aesculapius) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of ...
there are comprised thirty-eight years, according to
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 chronicler: and from that point to the deification of
Castor and Pollux
Castor; grc, Κάστωρ, Kástōr, beaver. and Pollux. (or Polydeukes). are twin half-brothers in Greek and Roman mythology, known together as the Dioscuri.; grc, Διόσκουροι, Dióskouroi, sons of Zeus, links=no, from ''Dîos'' ('Z ...
fifty-three years: and somewhere about this time was the capture of
Troy
Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...
."
Readers with a literalist bent, following Clement's reasoning, have asserted from this remark that, since Heracles ruled over
Tiryns
Tiryns or (Ancient Greek: Τίρυνς; Modern Greek: Τίρυνθα) is a Mycenaean archaeological site in Argolis in the Peloponnese, and the location from which the mythical hero Heracles performed his Twelve Labours. It lies south of Myce ...
in Argos at the same time that
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
ruled over
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 ...
, and since at about this time
Linus
Linus, a male given name, is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Linos''. It's a common given name in Sweden. The origin of the name is unknown although the name appears in antiquity both as a musician who taught Apollo and as a son of Apollo who di ...
was Heracles' teacher, one can conclude, based on
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
's date—in his
universal history
A universal history is a work aiming at the presentation of a history of all of mankind as a whole, coherent unit. A universal chronicle or world chronicle typically traces history from the beginning of written information about the past up to t ...
, his ''Chronicon''—given to Linus' notoriety in teaching Heracles in 1264 BCE, that Heracles' death and deification occurred 38 years later, in approximately 1226 BCE.
Lovers
Women
Marriages
During the course of his life, Heracles married four times.
* Heracles waged a victorious war against the kingdom of Orchomenus in Boeotia and married his first wife Megara, daughter of Creon, king of Thebes. But he killed their children in a fit of madness sent by Hera and, consequently, was obliged to become the servant of Eurystheus. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus (Bibliotheca 2.4.12 Megara was unharmed. According to Hyginus (Fabulae, 32), Heracles also killed Megara.
* His second wife was
Omphale
In Greek mythology, Omphale (; Ancient Greek: Ὀμφάλη) was queen of the kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor. Diodorus Siculus provides the first appearance of the Omphale theme in literature, though Aeschylus was aware of the episode. The Gree ...
, the
Lydia
Lydia (Lydian language, Lydian: 𐤮𐤱𐤠𐤭𐤣𐤠, ''Śfarda''; Aramaic: ''Lydia''; el, Λυδία, ''Lȳdíā''; tr, Lidya) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the mod ...
n queen to whom he was delivered as a slave (Hyginus, Fabulae, 32).
* His third marriage was to
Deianira
Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...
, for whom he had to fight the river god
Achelous
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Achelous (also Acheloos or Acheloios) (; Ancient Greek: Ἀχελώϊος, and later , ''Akhelôios'') was the god associated with the Achelous River, the largest river in Greece. According to Hesiod, he ...
(upon Achelous' death, Heracles removed one of his horns and gave it to some nymphs who turned it into the
cornucopia
In classical antiquity, the cornucopia (), from Latin ''cornu'' (horn) and ''copia'' (abundance), also called the horn of plenty, was a symbol of abundance and nourishment, commonly a large horn-shaped container overflowing with produce, flowers ...
). Soon after they wed, Heracles and Deianira had to cross a river, and a
centaur
A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse.
Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as being ...
named Nessus offered to help Deianira across but then attempted to
rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
her. Enraged, Heracles shot the centaur from the opposite shore with a poisoned arrow (tipped with the Lernaean Hydra's blood) and killed him. As he lay dying, Nessus plotted revenge, told Deianira to gather up his blood and spilled semen and, if she ever wanted to prevent Heracles from having affairs with other women, she should apply them to his vestments. Nessus knew that his blood had become tainted by the poisonous blood of the Hydra, and would burn through the skin of anyone it touched. Later, when Deianira suspected that Heracles was fond of
Iole
In Greek mythology, Iole (; grc, Ἰόλη ) was the daughter of King Eurytus of Oechalia. According to the brief epitome in the '' Bibliotheca'', Eurytus had a beautiful young daughter named Iole who was eligible for marriage. Iole was claimed ...
, she soaked a shirt of his in the mixture, creating the poisoned
shirt of Nessus
In Greek mythology, the Shirt of Nessus, Tunic of Nessus, Nessus-robe, or Nessus' shirt was the poisoned shirt that killed Heracles. It was once a popular reference in literature. In folkloristics, it is considered an instance of the "poison dres ...
. Heracles' servant,
Lichas
:''Lichas can also refer to Lichas the Spartan, who discovered the bones of Orestes, or a genus of trilobite''
In Greek mythology, Lichas (; el, Λίχας) was Hercules's servant, who brought the poisoned shirt from Deianira to Hercules beca ...
, brought him the shirt and he put it on. Instantly he was in agony, the cloth burning into him. As he tried to remove it, the flesh ripped from his bones. Heracles chose a voluntary death, asking that a
pyre
A pyre ( grc, πυρά; ''pyrá'', from , ''pyr'', "fire"), also known as a funeral pyre, is a structure, usually made of wood, for burning a body as part of a funeral rite or execution. As a form of cremation, a body is placed upon or under the ...
be built for him to end his suffering. After death, the gods transformed him into an immortal, or alternatively, the fire burned away the mortal part of the demigod, so that only the god remained. After his mortal parts had been incinerated, he could become a full god and join his father and the other Olympians on
Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...
.
* His fourth marriage was to Hebe, his last wife.
Affairs
An episode of his female affairs that stands out was his stay at the palace of
Thespius In Greek mythology, Thespius (; Ancient Greek: Θέσπιος ''Théspios'') or Thestius (; Ancient Greek: Θέστιος)Pausanias, 9.27.7 was a legendary founder and king of Thespiae, Boeotia. His life account is considered part of Greek mythology ...
, king of
Thespiae
Thespiae ( ; grc, Θεσπιαί, Thespiaí) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek city (''polis'') in Boeotia. It stood on level ground commanded by the low range of hills which run eastward from the foot of Mount Helicon to Thebes, Greece, Thebe ...
, who wished him to kill the
Lion of Cithaeron
The Lion of Cithaeron was a lion in Greek mythology which was harassing the lands of king Amphitryon and king Thespius or of king Megareus. According to the ''Suda'', it was also called Thespian lion and ravine lion ( grc, Χαραδραῖος λ ...
. As a reward, the king offered him the chance to perform
sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse (or coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion and thrusting of the penis into the vagina for sexual pleasure or reproduction.Sexual intercourse most commonly means penile–vaginal penetrat ...
with all fifty of his daughters in one night. Heracles complied and they all became pregnant and all bore sons. This is sometimes referred to as his Thirteenth Labour. Many of the kings of ancient Greece traced their lines to one or another of these, notably the kings of
Sparta
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...
and
Macedon
Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by ...
.
Yet another episode of his female affairs that stands out was when he carried away the oxen of
Scythians
The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Eastern Iranian languages, Eastern
* : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved f ...
. Once there, while asleep, his horses suddenly disappeared. When he woke and wandered about in search of them, he came into the country of Hylaea. He then found the dracaena of
Scythia
Scythia (Scythian: ; Old Persian: ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) or Scythica (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ), also known as Pontic Scythia, was a kingdom created by the Scythians during the 6th to 3rd centuries BC in the Pontic–Caspian steppe.
His ...
(sometimes identified as
Echidna
Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the family Tachyglossidae . The four extant species of echidnas and the platypus are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the ...
) in a cave. When he asked whether she knew anything about his horses, she answered, that they were in her own possession, but that she would not give them up, unless he would consent to stay with her for a time. Heracles accepted the request, and became by her the father of Agathyrsus,
Gelonus
Gelonus ( grc, Γελωνός) was, according to Herodotus, the capital of the Gelonians. Search for Gelonus
In his account of Scythia (''Inquiries'' book 4), Herodotus writes that the Gelonii were formerly Greeks, having settled away from the ...
, and
Scythes
Scythes ( grc, Σκύθης, ''Skýthi̱s'') was tyrant or ruler of Zancle in Sicily. He was appointed to that post in about 494 BC by Hippocrates of Gela.
The Zanclaeans had contacted Ionian leaders to invite colonists to join them in founding a ...
. The last of them became king of the Scythians, according to his father's arrangement, because he was the only one among the three brothers that was able to manage the bow which Heracles had left behind and to use his father's girdle.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς,
; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...
writes that Heracles and Lavinia, daughter of
Evander
Evander is a masculine given name. It is an anglicization of the Greek name Εὔανδρος (lit. "good man", Latinized ''Evandrus'').
It has also been adopted as an anglicization of the Gaelic name Iomhar (the Gaelic variant of the name Ivor ...
, had a son named Pallas.
Men
As a symbol of masculinity and warriorship, Heracles also had a number of male lovers.
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 ...
, in his ''Eroticos,'' maintains that Heracles' male lovers were beyond counting. Of these, the one most closely linked to Heracles is the Theban
Iolaus
In Greek mythology, Iolaus (; Ancient Greek: Ἰόλαος ''Iólaos'') was a Theban divine hero. He was famed for being Heracles' nephew and for helping with some of his Labors, and also for being one of the Argonauts.
Family
Iolaus was t ...
. According to a myth thought to be of ancient origins, Iolaus was Heracles' charioteer and squire. Heracles in the end helped Iolaus find a wife. Plutarch reports that down to his own time, male couples would go to Iolaus's tomb in Thebes to swear an oath of loyalty to the hero and to each other. He also mentions
Admetus
In Greek mythology, Admetus (; Ancient Greek: ''Admetos'' means 'untamed, untameable') was a king of Pherae in Thessaly.
Biography
Admetus succeeded his father Pheres after whom the city was named. His mother was identified as Periclymene or ...
, known in myth for assisting the
Calydonian boar hunt
The Calydonian boar hunt is one of the great heroic adventures in Greek legend. It occurred in the generation prior to that of the Trojan War, and stands alongside the other great heroic adventure of that generation, the voyage of the Argonauts ...
, as one of Heracles's male lovers.
One of Heracles' male lovers, and one represented in ancient as well as modern art, is
Hylas
In classical mythology, Hylas () was a youth who served as Heracles's (Roman Hercules) companion and servant. His abduction by water nymphs was a theme of ancient art, and has been an enduring subject for Western art in the classical tradition ...
.
Another reputed male lover of Heracles is Elacatas, who was honored in
Sparta
Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...
with a sanctuary and yearly games, Elacatea. The myth of their love is an ancient one.
Abdera's eponymous hero,
Abderus
In Greek mythology, Abderus or Abderos (Ancient Greek: Ἄβδηρος) was a divine hero, reputed by some to be one of Heracles' lovers ( eromenoi), and reputedly a son of Hermes by some accounts, and eponym of Abdera, Thrace. Pseudo-Scymnos, ''Ci ...
, was another of Heracles' lovers. He was said to have been entrusted with—and slain by—the carnivorous mares of Thracian
Diomedes
Diomedes (Jones, Daniel; Roach, Peter, James Hartman and Jane Setter, eds. ''Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary''. 17th edition. Cambridge UP, 2006.) or Diomede (; grc-gre, Διομήδης, Diomēdēs, "god-like cunning" or "advised by ...
. Heracles founded the city of Abdera in
Thrace
Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to t ...
in his memory, where he was honored with athletic games.
Another myth is that of Iphitus.
Another story is the one of his love for
Nireus
In Greek mythology, Nireus (Ancient Greek: Νιρεύς) was a king of the island Syme (according to Diodorus Siculus, also of a part of Cnidia) and one of the Achaean leaders in the Trojan War.
Biography
Nireus was the son of King Charopus ...
, who was "the most beautiful man who came beneath Ilion" (''
Iliad
The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...
'', 673). But Ptolemy adds that certain authors made Nireus out to be a son of Heracles.
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 ...
Achaea
Achaea () or Achaia (), sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia (, ''Akhaïa'' ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The ...
, as a lover of Heracles. Sostratus was said to have died young and to have been buried by Heracles outside the city. The tomb was still there in historical times, and the inhabitants of Dyme honored Sostratus as a
hero
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...
. The youth seems to have also been referred to as Polystratus.
A series of lovers are only known in later literature. Among these are
Eurystheus
In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos.
Famil ...
,
Adonis
In Greek mythology, Adonis, ; derived from the Canaanite word ''ʼadōn'', meaning "lord". R. S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, p. 23. was the mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite.
One day, Adonis was gored by ...
,Ptolemaeus Chennus, ''New History'' as summarized in
Bibliotheca (Photius)
The ''Bibliotheca'' ( el, Βιβλιοθήκη) or ''Myriobiblos'' (Μυριόβιβλος, "Ten Thousand Books") was a ninth-century work of Byzantine Patriarch of Constantinople Photius, dedicated to his brother and composed of 279 reviews of b ...
Corythus Corythus is the name of six mortal men in Greek mythology.
*Corythus, son of Marmarus, and one of the court of Cepheus. He wounded Pelates during the battle at the wedding feast of Perseus and Andromeda.
*Corythus, an Italian king and father, ...
,Argus, and Nestor who was said to have been loved for his wisdom. In the account of Ptolemaeus Chennus, Nestor's role as lover explains why he was the only son of Neleus to be spared by the hero.
A
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 ...
Argonautica
The ''Argonautica'' ( el, Ἀργοναυτικά , translit=Argonautika) is a Greek epic poem written by Apollonius Rhodius in the 3rd century BC. The only surviving Hellenistic epic, the ''Argonautica'' tells the myth of the voyage of Jason a ...
'' lists the following male lovers of Heracles: "Hylas,
Philoctetes
Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...
,
Diomus
''Diomus'' is a genus of lady beetles in the family Coccinellidae. There are at least 20 described species in ''Diomus''.
Species
These 65 species belong to the genus ''Diomus'':
* ''Diomus akonis'' (Ohta, 1929)
* ''Diomus amabilis'' (LeConte, ...
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 ...
was named". Diomus is also mentioned by Stephanus of Byzantium as the eponym of the
deme
In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside seem to have existed in the 6th century BC and ear ...
Diomeia Diomea or Diomeia ( grc, Διόμεια) was a deme of ancient Attica, located in the city of Athens, both within and outside the walls of Themistocles, in interior portion included the eastern sector of the city, and the external portion contained ...
of the Attic
phyle
''Phyle'' ( gr, φυλή, phulē, "tribe, clan"; pl. ''phylai'', φυλαί; derived from ancient Greek φύεσθαι "to descend, to originate") is an ancient Greek term for tribe or clan. Members of the same ''phyle'' were known as ''symphylet ...
Aegeis: Heracles is said to have fallen in love with Diomus when he was received as guest by Diomus' father Collytus. Perithoas and Phrix are otherwise unknown, and so is the version that suggests a sexual relationship between Heracles and Philoctetes.
Children
All of Heracles' marriages and almost all of his heterosexual affairs resulted in births of a number of sons and at least four daughters.
One of the most prominent is
Hyllus
In Greek mythology, Hyllus (; Ancient Greek: Ὕλλος) or Hyllas (Ὕλᾱς) was son of Heracles and Deianira, husband of Iole, nursed by Abia.
Mythology
Heracles, whom Zeus had originally intended to be ruler of Argos, Lacedaemon and Mes ...
, the son of Heracles and
Deianeira
Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...
or Melite. The term ''Heracleidae'', although it could refer to all of Heracles' children and further descendants, is most commonly used to indicate the descendants of Hyllus, in the context of their lasting struggle for return to Peloponnesus, out of where Hyllus and his brothers—the children of Heracles by Deianeira—were thought to have been expelled by Eurystheus.
The children of Heracles by Megara are collectively well known because of their ill fate, but there is some disagreement among sources as to their number and individual names. Apollodorus lists three, Therimachus, Creontiades and Deicoon; to these Hyginus adds Ophitus and, probably by mistake, Archelaus, who is otherwise known to have belonged to the Heracleidae, but to have lived several generations later. A scholiast on
Pindar
Pindar (; grc-gre, Πίνδαρος , ; la, Pindarus; ) was an Ancient Greek lyric poet from Thebes. Of the canonical nine lyric poets of ancient Greece, his work is the best preserved. Quintilian wrote, "Of the nine lyric poets, Pindar ...
' s odes provides a list of seven completely different names: Anicetus, Chersibius, Mecistophonus, Menebrontes, Patrocles, Polydorus, Toxocleitus.
Other well-known children of Heracles include
Telephus
In Greek mythology, Telephus (; grc-gre, Τήλεφος, ''Tēlephos'', "far-shining") was the son of Heracles and Auge, who was the daughter of king Aleus of Tegea. He was adopted by Teuthras, the king of Mysia, in Asia Minor, whom he succeeded ...
, king of
Mysia
Mysia (UK , US or ; el, Μυσία; lat, Mysia; tr, Misya) was a region in the northwest of ancient Asia Minor (Anatolia, Asian part of modern Turkey). It was located on the south coast of the Sea of Marmara. It was bounded by Bithynia on the ...
(by
Auge
In Greek mythology, Auge (; Ancient Greek: Αὐγή 'sunbeam, daylight, dawn') was the daughter of Aleus the king of Tegea in Arcadia, and the virgin priestess of Athena Alea. She was also the mother of the hero Telephus by Heracles.
Auge had ...
), and
Tlepolemus
In Greek mythology, Tlepolemus (; Ancient Greek: Τληπόλεμος ''Tlēpólemos'') was the leader of the Rhodes, Rhodian forces in the Trojan War.Homer, ''Iliad'2.653–70
Family
Tlepolemus was a son of Heracles and Astyoche, daughter of P ...
, one of the Greek commanders in the
Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has ...
(by Astyoche).
According to
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
, a line of 22
Kings of Lydia
Kings or King's may refer to:
*Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings
*One of several works known as the "Book of Kings":
**The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts
**The ''Shahnameh' ...
descended from Hercules and Omphale. The line was called Tylonids after his Lydian name.
The divine sons of Heracles and Hebe are Alexiares and Anicetus.
Consorts and children
#
Megara
Megara (; el, Μέγαρα, ) is a historic town and a municipality in West Attica, Greece. It lies in the northern section of the Isthmus of Corinth opposite the island of Salamis Island, Salamis, which belonged to Megara in archaic times, befo ...
Omphale
In Greek mythology, Omphale (; Ancient Greek: Ὀμφάλη) was queen of the kingdom of Lydia in Asia Minor. Diodorus Siculus provides the first appearance of the Omphale theme in literature, though Aeschylus was aware of the episode. The Gree ...
Deianira
Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...
##
Hyllus
In Greek mythology, Hyllus (; Ancient Greek: Ὕλλος) or Hyllas (Ὕλᾱς) was son of Heracles and Deianira, husband of Iole, nursed by Abia.
Mythology
Heracles, whom Zeus had originally intended to be ruler of Argos, Lacedaemon and Mes ...
##
Ctesippus :''The name Ctesippus may also refer to a character in Plato's Euthydemus and Lysis, and to a historical figure, see Leptines and Against Leptines.''
In Greek mythology, the name Ctesippus (; Ancient Greek: Κτήσιππος means 'possessing hor ...
## Glenus
## Oneites
##
Macaria
Macaria or Makaria (Greek Μακαρία) is the name of two figures from ancient Greek religion and mythology. Although they are not said to be the same and are given different fathers, they are discussed together in a single entry both in the ...
Astydameia In Greek mythology, Astydamea or Astydamia (; Ancient Greek: Ἀστυδάμεια ''Astudámeia'', derived from ἄστυ ''ástu'', "town", and δαμάω ''damáo'', "to tame") is a name attributed to several individuals:
* Astydamea, also known ...
, daughter of
Ormenus In Greek mythology Ormenus or Ormenos (Ancient Greek: Ὄρμενος) is the name of eight men.
* Ormenus, one of the Telchines.
*Ormenus, king of Ormenion in Thessaly and son of Cercaphus. He was the father of Amyntor and Euaemon.
*Ormenus, one ...
Ctesippus :''The name Ctesippus may also refer to a character in Plato's Euthydemus and Lysis, and to a historical figure, see Leptines and Against Leptines.''
In Greek mythology, the name Ctesippus (; Ancient Greek: Κτήσιππος means 'possessing hor ...
#
Astyoche The name Astyoche (; Ancient Greek: Ἀστυόχη means 'possessor of the city') or Astyocheia was attributed to the following individuals in Greek mythology:
*Astyoche, naiad daughter of the river god Simoeis, mother of Tros by Erichthonius.
...
, daughter of
Phylas In Greek mythology, the name Phylas (Ancient Greek: Φύλας, genitive case, gen. Φύλαντος) may refer to:
*Phylas, king of Cichyrus, Ephyra, a descendant of Dryops of Oeta, Dryopes. Heracles led a war against him and killed him. Phylas ha ...
##
Tlepolemus
In Greek mythology, Tlepolemus (; Ancient Greek: Τληπόλεμος ''Tlēpólemos'') was the leader of the Rhodes, Rhodian forces in the Trojan War.Homer, ''Iliad'2.653–70
Family
Tlepolemus was a son of Heracles and Astyoche, daughter of P ...
#
Auge
In Greek mythology, Auge (; Ancient Greek: Αὐγή 'sunbeam, daylight, dawn') was the daughter of Aleus the king of Tegea in Arcadia, and the virgin priestess of Athena Alea. She was also the mother of the hero Telephus by Heracles.
Auge had ...
##
Telephus
In Greek mythology, Telephus (; grc-gre, Τήλεφος, ''Tēlephos'', "far-shining") was the son of Heracles and Auge, who was the daughter of king Aleus of Tegea. He was adopted by Teuthras, the king of Mysia, in Asia Minor, whom he succeeded ...
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 ...
, daughter of
Antaeus
Antaeus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀνταῖος ''Antaîos'', "opponent", derived from , ''antao'' – 'I face, I oppose'), known to the Berbers as Anti, was a figure in Berber and Greek mythology. He was famed for his defeat by Heracles as part o ...
Olynthus
Olynthus ( grc, Ὄλυνθος ''Olynthos'', named for the ὄλυνθος ''olunthos'', "the fruit of the wild fig tree") was an ancient city of Chalcidice
Chalkidiki (; el, Χαλκιδική , also spelled Halkidiki, is a peninsula and ...
#
Celtine In Greek mythology, Celtine ( grc, Κελτίνη, ''Keltine'') was the daughter of Bretannus and mother of Celtus. She is known for having been one of the consorts of Heracles.
Mythology
Her story, recorded by Parthenius of Nicaea, is as follows ...
##
Celtus
In Greek mythology, Celtus (; grc, Κέλτος ''Keltos'' ) may refer to three various figures:
* Celtus, the eponymous progenitor of the Celts. There are two alternative traditions. One, found in Appian's ''Illyrian Wars'', holds that Celtus w ...
#
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 ...
##
Thessalus
In Greek mythology, the name Thessalus is attributed to the following individuals, all of whom were considered possible eponyms of Thessaly.
*Thessalus, son of Haemon,Strabo, 9.5.23 son of Chlorus, son of Pelasgus.
*Thessalus, son of Poseidon and ...
# Chania, nymph
## Gelon
# The
Scythia
Scythia (Scythian: ; Old Persian: ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) or Scythica (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ), also known as Pontic Scythia, was a kingdom created by the Scythians during the 6th to 3rd centuries BC in the Pontic–Caspian steppe.
His ...
Echidna
Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the family Tachyglossidae . The four extant species of echidnas and the platypus are the only living mammals that lay eggs and the ...
Gelonus
Gelonus ( grc, Γελωνός) was, according to Herodotus, the capital of the Gelonians. Search for Gelonus
In his account of Scythia (''Inquiries'' book 4), Herodotus writes that the Gelonii were formerly Greeks, having settled away from the ...
##
Scythes
Scythes ( grc, Σκύθης, ''Skýthi̱s'') was tyrant or ruler of Zancle in Sicily. He was appointed to that post in about 494 BC by Hippocrates of Gela.
The Zanclaeans had contacted Ionian leaders to invite colonists to join them in founding a ...
#
Epicaste
Epicaste (; Ancient Greek: Ἐπικάστη ''Epikaste'') or Epicasta () is a name attributed to five women in Greek mythology.
*Epicaste, a Calydonian princess as daughter of King Calydon by Aeolia, daughter of Amythaon, and thus, sister of ...
## Thestalus
# Lavinia, daughter of
Evander
Evander is a masculine given name. It is an anglicization of the Greek name Εὔανδρος (lit. "good man", Latinized ''Evandrus'').
It has also been adopted as an anglicization of the Gaelic name Iomhar (the Gaelic variant of the name Ivor ...
Dionysius of Halicarnassus
Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς,
; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...
, ''Roman Antiquities'', 1. 43. 1
## Pallas
# Malis, a slave of Omphale
## Acelus
#
Meda Meda may refer to:
Places
* Meda de Mouros, a parish in Tábua Municipality, Portugal
* Medas, a parish in Gondomar Municipality, Portugal
* Meda-Ela, Sri Lanka
* Međa (Leskovac), village in the municipality of Leskovac, Serbia
* Meda, Lombardy ...
Melite (naiad) In Greek mythology, Melite (; Ancient Greek: Μελίτη) was one of the Naiads, daughter of the river god Aegaeus, and one of the many loves of Zeus and his son Heracles. Given the choice, she chose Heracles over Zeus who went off in search of ot ...
## Hyllus (possibly)
#
Myrto
Myrto (; el, Μυρτώ; fl. 5th century BC) was, according to some accounts, a wife of Socrates.
Sources
The original source for the claim that she was Socrates' wife appears to have been a work by Aristotle called ''On Being Well-Born'',Athe ...
##
Eucleia
In Greek mythology, Eucleia or Eukleia (Ancient Greek: Ευκλεια) was the female personification of glory and good repute.
Family
Along with her sisters, Eupheme, Philophrosyne and Euthenia, Eucleia was likely regarded as a member of the ...
# Palantho of
Hyperborea
In Greek mythology, the Hyperboreans ( grc, Ὑπερβόρε(ι)οι, ; la, Hyperborei) were a mythical people who lived in the far northern part of the known world. Their name appears to derive from the Greek , "beyond Boreas" (the God of ...
Stymphalus (son of Elatus)
In Greek mythology, Stymphalus or Stymphalos (Ancient Greek: Στύμφαλος) was a king of Arcadia. He was the eponym of the town Stymphalus (now Stymfalia) and of a spring near it.
Family
Stymphalus was a son of Elatus and Laodice, br ...
##
Everes (mythology) In Greek mythology, Everes or Eueres (Ancient Greek: Εὐήρους or Εὐήρης "well-fitted") may refer to the following characters:
* Everes, the Theban father, by the nymph Chariclo, of Tiresias. He may be a descendant of Udaeus, one of ...
Psophis
Psophis (Ancient Greek: , '' Eth.'' ) was an ancient Greek city in the northwest end of Arcadia, bounded on the north by Arcadia, and on the west by Elis. It was located near the modern village Psofida, part of the municipality Kalavryta.
City ...
##
Echephron Echephron (; Ancient Greek: Ἐχέφρων, ''gen''.: Ἐχέφρωνος) is the name of three characters in Greek mythology.
*Echephron, a prince of Pylos and son of King Nestor and Eurydice (or Anaxibia). He was the brother of Thrasymedes, P ...
##
Promachus In Greek mythology and history, Promachus (; Ancient Greek: Πρόμαχος; English translation: "who leads in battle" or "champion") is a name that refers to several different people.
''Mythology''
*Promachus, son of Aeson. King of Iolcus, and ...
#
Pyrene
Pyrene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) consisting of four fused benzene rings, resulting in a flat aromatic system. The chemical formula is . This yellow solid is the smallest peri-fused PAH (one where the rings are fused through mor ...
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
Cleodaeus In Greek mythology, Cleodaeus (Ancient Greek: Κλεοδαῖος) was one of the Heracleidae, a grandson of Heracles. He was the son of Heracles's eldest son Hyllus and Iole of Oechalia. He became father of Aristomachus, who led the third attemp ...
# Unnamed daughter of Syleus (Xenodoce?)
# Unnamed daughter of
Aphra
''Aphra'' is a genus of moths in the subfamily Arctiinae
The Arctiinae (formerly called the family Arctiidae) are a large and diverse subfamily of moths with around 11,000 species found all over the world, including 6,000 neotropical species. ...
##
Diodorus
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 ...
Dexamenus
Dexamenus (; Ancient Greek: Δεξάμενος means "hospitable") was a name attributed to at least three characters in Greek mythology.
*Dexamenus, son of Oeceus, and a king of Olenus. The Centaur Eurytion forced him to betroth his daughter, Mne ...
## Leucites
##
Manto may refer to:
People
* Mando (singer), Greek singer
* Manto Mavrogenous, Greek national heroine
* Saadat Hasan Manto, Urdu short story writer known by his pen name Manto
* Manto Tshabalala-Msimang (1940–2009), South African politician
* Manto ...
In Rome, Heracles was honored as ''Hercules'', and had a number of distinctively Roman myths and practices associated with him under that name.
Egypt
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
connected Heracles to the
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
Khonsu
Khonsu ( egy, ḫnsw; also transliterated Chonsu, Khensu, Khons, Chons or Khonshu; cop, Ϣⲟⲛⲥ, Shons) is the ancient Egyptian god of the Moon. His name means "traveller", and this may relate to the perceived nightly travel of the Moon a ...
, another Egyptian god who was in some ways similar to Shu. As Khonsu, Heracles was worshipped at the now sunken city of
Heracleion
Heracleion (Ancient Greek: ), also known by its Egyptian name Thonis ( Ancient Egyptian: ; cop, Ⲧϩⲱⲛⲓ , ; Ancient Greek: ) and sometimes called Thonis-Heracleion, was an ancient Egyptian port city located near the Canopic Mouth of ...
, where a large temple was constructed.
Most often the Egyptians identified Heracles with
Heryshaf
In Egyptian mythology, Heryshaf, or Hershef ( egy, ḥrj š f "He who is on His Lake"),Forty, Jo. ''Mythology: A Visual Encyclopedia'', Sterling Publishing Co., 2001, p. 84. transcribed in Greek as Harsaphes or Arsaphes ( grc-koi, Ἁρσαφ ...
, transcribed in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
as ''Arsaphes'' or ''Harsaphes'' (Ἁρσαφής). He was an ancient
ram
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* ...
-
god
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
whose cult was centered in
Herakleopolis Magna
Heracleopolis Magna ( grc-gre, Μεγάλη Ἡρακλέους πόλις, ''Megálē Herakléous pólis'') and Heracleopolis (, ''Herakleópolis'') and Herakleoupolis (), is the Roman name of the capital of the 20th nome of ancient Upper Eg ...
.
Other cultures
Bistoon Kermanshah.jpg, Hellenistic-era depiction of the
Zoroastrian
Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic on ...
Kermanshah
Kermanshah ( fa, کرمانشاه, Kermânšâh ), also known as Kermashan (; romanized: Kirmaşan), is the capital of Kermanshah Province, located from Tehran in the western part of Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population is 946,68 ...
,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
Museum für Indische Kunst Dahlem Berlin Mai 2006 015.jpg, The protector
Vajrapani
(Sanskrit; Pali: Vajirapāṇi, meaning, "Vajra in ishand") is one of the earliest-appearing bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the protector and guide of Gautama Buddha and rose to symbolize the Buddha's power.
Vajrapāni is also c ...
of the
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
is another incarnation of Heracles (
Gandhara
Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
, 1st century CE).
Buddha-Vajrapani-Herakles.JPG, Heracles as protector of Buddha,
Vajrapani
(Sanskrit; Pali: Vajirapāṇi, meaning, "Vajra in ishand") is one of the earliest-appearing bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the protector and guide of Gautama Buddha and rose to symbolize the Buddha's power.
Vajrapāni is also c ...
, 2nd-century
Gandhara
Gandhāra is the name of an ancient region located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely in present-day north-west Pakistan and parts of south-east Afghanistan. The region centered around the Peshawar Vall ...
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
Indian Museum
The Indian Museum in Central Kolkata, West Bengal, India, also referred to as the Imperial Museum at Calcutta in colonial-era texts, is the ninth oldest museum in the world, the oldest and largest museum in India as well as in Asia. It has rare ...
).
File:Gandhara Herakles, Asia, G33 South Asia.jpg, Herakles under his lion skin and holding thunder (
vajra
The Vajra () is a legendary and ritual weapon, symbolising the properties of a diamond (indestructibility) and a thunderbolt (irresistible force).
The vajra is a type of club with a ribbed spherical head. The ribs may meet in a ball-shape ...
), with Buddhist monks,
art of Gandhara
The Greco-Buddhist art or Gandhara art of the north Indian subcontinent is the artistic manifestation of Greco-Buddhism, a cultural syncretism between Ancient Greek art and Buddhism. It had mainly evolved in the ancient region of Gandhara.
The s ...
,
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
Via the
Greco-Buddhist
Greco-Buddhism, or Graeco-Buddhism, is the cultural syncretism between Hellenistic culture and Buddhism, which developed between the fourth century BC and the fifth century AD in Gandhara, in present-day north-western Pakistan and parts of nort ...
culture, Heraclean symbolism was transmitted to the Far East. An example remains to this day in the
Nio
are two wrathful and muscular guardians of the Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in East Asian Buddhism in the form of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bodhisattva Vajra ...
guardian deities in front of Japanese Buddhist temples.
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
also connected Heracles to
Phoenicia
Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...
n god
Melqart
Melqart (also Melkarth or Melicarthus) was the tutelary god of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre and a major deity in the Phoenician and Punic pantheons. Often titled the "Lord of Tyre" (''Ba‘al Ṣūr''), he was also known as the Son of ...
.
Sallust
Gaius Sallustius Crispus, usually anglicised as Sallust (; 86 – ), was a Roman historian and politician from an Italian plebeian family. Probably born at Amiternum in the country of the Sabines, Sallust became during the 50s BC a partisan o ...
mentions in his work on the
Jugurthine War
The Jugurthine War ( la, Bellum Iugurthinum; 112–106 BC) was an armed conflict between the Roman Republic and king Jugurtha of Numidia, a kingdom on the north African coast approximating to modern Algeria. Jugurtha was the nephew and adopted ...
that the Africans believe Heracles to have died in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
where, his multicultural army being left without a leader, the
Medes
The Medes (Old Persian: ; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were an ancient Iranian people who spoke the Median language and who inhabited an area known as Media between western and northern Iran. Around the 11th century BC, the ...
,
Persians
The Persians are an Iranian ethnic group who comprise over half of the population of Iran. They share a common cultural system and are native speakers of the Persian language as well as of the languages that are closely related to Persian.
...
, and
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
who were once under his command split off and populated the Mediterranean coast of Africa.
Temples dedicated to Heracles abounded all along the Mediterranean coastal countries. For example, the temple of ''Heracles Monoikos'' (i.e. the lone dweller), built far from any nearby town upon a promontory in what is now the
Côte d'Azur
The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...
, gave its name to the area's more recent name, Monaco.
The gateway to the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean, where the southernmost tip of Spain and the northernmost of Morocco face each other is, classically speaking, referred to as the Pillars of Hercules, Pillars of Hercules/Heracles, owing to the story that he set up two massive spires of stone to stabilise the area and ensure the safety of ships sailing between the two landmasses.
Uses of Heracles as a name
In various languages, variants of Hercules' name are used as a male given name, such as Hercule (disambiguation), Hercule in French, Hércules in Spanish, Iraklis ( el, Ηρακλής) in Modern Greek and Irakli ( ka, ირაკლი, tr) in Georgian.
There are many teams around the world that have this name or have Heracles as their symbol. The most popular in Greece is G.S. Iraklis Thessaloniki.
''Heracleum (plant), Heracleum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the carrot family Apiaceae. Some of the species in this genus are quite large. In particular, the giant hogweed (''Heracleum mantegazzianum'') is exceptionally large, growing up to 5 m tall.
Ancestry
; Source:Morford, M. P. O.; Lenardon R. J. (2007). ''Classical Mythology''. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 865.
See also
;Other figures in Greek mythology punished by the gods include
*
Atlas
An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth.
Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geographic ...
* Ixion
* Medusa
*
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...
* Sisyphus
* Tantalus
* The Danaides
;Figures resembling Heracles in other mythological traditions
* Agilaz
* Beowulf
* Cú Chulainn
* Gilgamesh
* Lugalbanda
*
Melqart
Melqart (also Melkarth or Melicarthus) was the tutelary god of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre and a major deity in the Phoenician and Punic pantheons. Often titled the "Lord of Tyre" (''Ba‘al Ṣūr''), he was also known as the Son of ...
* Samson
* Thor
Notes
References
Heracles at Theoi.com Classical literature and art
The life and adventure of Heracles, including his twelve labours.
* Brockliss, William. 2017. "The Hesiodic ''Shield of Heracles'': The Text as Nightmarish Vision." ''Illinois Classical Studies'' 42.1: 1–19. . .
* Burkert, Walter. 1982. "Heracles and the Master of Animals." In ''Structure and History in Greek Mythology and Ritual'', 78–98. Sather Classical Lectures 47. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press.
* Haubold, Johannes. 2005. "Heracles in the Hesiodic Catalogue of Women." In ''The Hesiodic Catalogue of Women: Constructions and Reconstructions.'' Edited by Richard Hunter, 85–98. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
*Karanika, Andromache. 2011. "The End of the Nekyia: Odysseus, Heracles, and the Gorgon in the Underworld." ''Arethusa'' 44.1: 1–27.
* Padilla, Mark W. 1998. "Herakles and Animals in the Origins of Comedy and Satyr Drama". In ''Le Bestiaire d'Héraclès: IIIe Rencontre héracléenne'', edited by Corinne Bonnet, Colette Jourdain-Annequin, and Vinciane Pirenne-Delforge, 217–30. Kernos Suppl. 7. Liège: Centre International d'Etude de la Religion Grecque Antique.
* Padilla, Mark W. 1998. "The Myths of Herakles in Ancient Greece: Survey and Profile". Lanham, Maryland: University Press of America.
* Papadimitropoulos, Loukas. 2008. "Heracles as Tragic Hero." Classical World 101.2: 131–38.
* Papadopoulou, Thalia. 2005. ''Heracles and Euripidean Tragedy.'' Cambridge Classical Studies. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press.
* Segal, Charles Paul. 1961. "The Character and Cults of Dionysus and the Unity of the ''Frogs''." ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'' 65:207–42. . .
* Stafford, Emma. 2012. ''Herakles. Gods and Heroes of the Ancient World.'' New York: Routledge.
* Strid, Ove. 2013. "The Homeric Prefiguration of Sophocles' Heracles." ''Hermes'' 141.4: 381–400. .
* Woodford, Susan. 1971. "Cults of Herakles in Attica." In ''Studies Presented to George M. A. Hanfmann.'' Edited by David Gordon Mitten, John Griffiths Pedley, and Jane Ayer Scott, 211–25. Monographs in Art and Archaeology 2. Mainz, Germany: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
* Euripides. The Children of Herakles. New York: Oxford University Press, 1981.
* Euripides. Heracles. England: Shirley Barlow, Shirley A. Barlow, 1996. Greek Version: Oxford University Press, 1981.
Primary sources
*
Homer
Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
, ''Odyssey'', 12.072 (7th century BCE)
*
Sophocles
Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...
, ''Women of Trachis'' (c. 450 BCE)
*
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
, ''
Herakles
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 ...
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 ...
'' (8 CE)
*
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 ...
, ''Ibis'', 488 (8–18 CE)
*Gaius Valerius Flaccus, ''Argonautica'', I.110, III.535, 560, IV.1–57 (1st century)
*Gaius Julius Hyginus, Hyginus, ''Fables'', 14. Argonauts Assembled (1st century)
*Philostratus the Elder, ''Images'', ii.24 Thiodamas (170–245)
*First Vatican Mythographer, 49. Hercules et Hylas
External links
*
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