- Polyeidos
In
Greek mythology , Polyeidos or Polyidus ("all-wise") was the wisest man inLycia . He toldBellerophon how to find and tamePegasus , in order to kill the Chimera.The myths concerning Polyeidos were collected in Pseudo-Apollodorus, "
Bibliotheke " (3.3.1-.2). One day,Glaucus , son of KingMinos and QueenPasiphaë ofCrete , was playing with amouse and suddenly disappeared. TheKuretes told Minos "A marvelous creature has been born amongst you: whoever finds the true likeness for this creature will also find the child."They interpreted this to refer to a newborn calf in Minos' herd. Three times a day, the calf changed color from white to red to black. Polyeidos observed the similarity to the ripening of the fruit of the
mulberry or theblackberry , [See also Hyginus, "Fabula" 136.] and Minos sent him to find Glaucus.Searching for the boy, Polyeidos saw an
owl drivingbee s away from a wine-cellar in Minos' palace. Inside the wine-cellar was a cask of honey, with Glaucus dead inside. Minos demanded Glaucus be brought back to life and shut Polyeidos up in the wine-cellar with a sword. When asnake appeared nearby, Polyeidos killed it with the sword. Another snake came for the first, and after seeing its mate dead, the second serpent left and returned with anherb which then brought the first snake back to life. With the herb Polyeidos resurrected the child.Minos refused to let Polyeidos leave
Crete until he taught Glaucus the art ofdivination . Polyeidos did so, but then, at the last second before leaving, he asked Glaucus to spit in his mouth. Glaucus did so and forgot everything he had been taught.The story of Polyeidos and Glaucus was the subject of a lost play of
Euripides , his "Bellerophon", and of one byAeschylus , and Sophocles' lost "The Mantises".Notes
External links
* [http://www.theoi.com/Text/Apollodorus3.html#3 Theoi Project: "Bibliotheke" 3.3.1]
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