In
Greek mythology,
Menippe (;
Ancient Greek: Μενίππη ''Menippê'' means 'the courageous mare' or 'sipper'
) and Metioche (Μητιόχη) were daughters of
Orion.
Mythology
After Orion was killed they were brought up by their mother, and
Athena taught them the art of weaving and
Aphrodite gave them beauty. Once their homeland
Aonia
Aonia may have been a district of ancient Boeotia, a region of Greece containing the mountains Helicon and Cithaeron, and thus sacred to the Muses, whom Ovid calls the Aonides. Or Aonia may have been an early name for Boeotia as a whole. Pausania ...
at the base of
Mt. Helicon was struck by a plague, and the oracle of Apollo Gortynius, when consulted, ordered the inhabitants to propitiate the two Erinnyes by the sacrifice of two maidens, who were to offer themselves to death of their own accord. Menippe and Metioche offered themselves; they thrice invoked the infernal gods, and killed themselves with their shuttles.
Persephone and
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 ...
metamorphosed them into comets. The Aonians erected them a sanctuary near
Orchomenus, where a propitiatory sacrifice was offered to them every year by youths and maidens. The
Aeolians called these maidens Koronides. In
Ovid's recount of the tale, the daughters of Orion remain unnamed and sacrifice themselves for no distinctly given reason (although a withered tree and gaunt goats on a barren field are mentioned and indicate the presence of a plague): From their ashes, two youths arise and lead the funeral train for their "mothers" and instead of Menippe and Metioche, the youths are referred to as "Coroni".
[ Ovid, ''Metamorphoses'', 13. 685-704]
Notes
References
*
Antoninus Liberalis
Antoninus Liberalis ( el, Ἀντωνῖνος Λιβεράλις) was an Ancient Greek grammarian who probably flourished between AD 100 and 300.
His only surviving work is the ''Metamorphoses'' (Μεταμορφώσεων Συναγωγή, ''Me ...
, ''The Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis'' translated by Francis Celoria (Routledge 1992)
Online version at the Topos Text Project.*
Publius Ovidius Naso
Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...
, ''
Metamorphoses'' translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.* Publius Ovidius Naso, ''Metamorphoses.'' Hugo Magnus. Gotha (Germany). Friedr. Andr. Perthes. 1892
Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library
External links
Women in Greek mythology
Metamorphoses into terrain in Greek mythology
Characters in Greek mythology
Textiles in folklore
{{greek-myth-stub