Phrixus

Phrixus

In Greek mythology, Phrixus (also Phryxus) was the son of Athamus, king of Boiotia, and Nephele (a goddess of Clouds). His twin sister Helle and he were hated by their stepmother, Ino. Ino hatched a devious plot to get rid of the twins, roasting all of Boiotia's crop seeds so they would not grow. The local farmers, frightened of famine, asked a nearby oracle for assistance. Ino bribed the men sent to the oracle to lie and tell the others that the oracle required the sacrifice of Phrixus and Helle. Before they were killed, though, Phrixus and Helle were rescued by a flying ram with golden wool sent by Nephele, their natural mother. During their flight Helle swooned, fell off the ram and drowned in the Dardanelles, renamed the Hellespont (sea of Helle), but Phrixus survived all the way to Colchis, where King Aeëtes, the son of the sun god Helios, took him in and treated him kindly, giving Phrixus his daughter, Chalciope, in marriage. In gratitude, Phrixus sacrificed the ram to Zeus and gave the king the golden fleece of the ram, which Aeëtes hung in a tree in the holy grove of Ares in his kingdom, guarded by a dragon that never slept.

Phrixus and Chalciope had four sons, who later joined forces with the Argonauts. The oldest was Argos.

References

This story can be found in "The Anthology of Classical Mythology" as well as the following:
*Apollodorus G1-2
*Eratosthenes 14, 19
*Hyginus 1-3, 12, 21, 22, 188
*Ovid 12.8
*Palaephatus 30
*Earlier part referenced, later part told in Apollonius' "Argonautica"


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • PHRIXUS — portus Sarmatiae Asiaticae apud fauces Bosphori Cimmerii, Steph. Flumen Argiae, inter Temenium et Lernam in mare fluens, Pausan. l. 2. oppid. Lyciae, Stephano …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • Phrixus — Phrixos Phrixos et Hellé Dans la mythologie grecque, Phrixos, fils du roi Athamas et de Néphélé, est le frère d Hellé. Pour échapper à Ino, seconde femme d Athamas, Phrixos et Hellé s enfuirent sur un bélier ailé à la toison d or. Phrixos arriva… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Phrixus — /frik seuhs/, n. Class. Myth. a child who escaped on the back of a ram with his sister Helle from a plot against them. The fleece of the ram, which he sacrificed, was the Golden Fleece. * * * …   Universalium

  • Phrixus — /ˈfrɪksəs/ (say friksuhs) noun See Golden Fleece …  

  • Phrixus — /frik seuhs/, n. Class. Myth. a child who escaped on the back of a ram with his sister Helle from a plot against them. The fleece of the ram, which he sacrificed, was the Golden Fleece …   Useful english dictionary

  • ФРИКС —    • Phrixus,          см. Athamas, Афамант …   Реальный словарь классических древностей

  • Chrysomallvs — CHRYSOMALLVS, i, Gr. Χρυσόμαλλος, ου, (⇒ Tab. XI.) oder Chrysovellus, wie ihn einige fälschlich nennen, Schol. German. ap. Muncker. ad Hygin. Fab. 3. da man ihn doch lieber Chrysovillus nennen könnte. Iunii animadv. L. V. c. 12. Er war ein Widder …   Gründliches mythologisches Lexikon

  • Nephele — For other uses, see Nephele (disambiguation). Punishment of Ixion: Nephele sitting at Mercury s feet. Roman fresco in Pompeii. In Greek mythology, Nephele (Greek: Νεφέλη, from νέφος nephos cloud ; Latinized to Nubes) was a cloud nymph …   Wikipedia

  • Golden Fleece — This article is about the mythological creature. For other uses, see Golden Fleece (disambiguation). Jason returns with the Golden Fleece on an Apulian red figure calyx krater, ca. 340–330 BCE In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece (Greek:… …   Wikipedia

  • Athamas — is also a genus of jumping spiders.The king of Orchomenus in Greek mythology, Athamas (Greek: Ἀθάμας), was married first to the goddess Nephele with whom he had the twins Phrixus and Helle. He later divorced Nephele and married Ino, daughter of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”