All about history book of myths and legends. ( PDFDrive )

THE ARGONAUTS

THE GOLDEN FLEECE

Athamas, king of Thebes, had a legitimate son, Phrixus,

as well as children by Ino, his mistress. Ino tried to

cause the death of Phrixus, so that one of her own

children could inherit the throne. Nephele, the mother

of Phrixus, arranged for him to fly out of danger to

Colchis on the back of a golden ram. Aeëtes,

ruler of Colchis, welcomed him, hoping that

Phrixus would give him the ram, but he

sacrificed the beast to Ares and the priests of Ares

displayed the fleece in a garden. It was guarded by a

serpent that never slept. Pelias, who sent Jason on his

quest, was the cousin of Phrixus.

KEY CHARACTERS
Ancient writings contain several diferent lists of the
Argonauts, but they all agree in including many of
the most prominent ancient Greek heroes, such as
Heracles, Patroclus, and Peleus, as well as the twins
Castor and Polydeuces. Some accounts list the
huntress Atalanta as the only woman warrior among
the crew. Most of these characters embodied great
strength and skill in arms, but such
qualities would have been
useless without others such
as the sorcery of Medea or
the music of Orpheus.

DANGERS AT SEA

Jason and the Argonauts had to pass several

of the perilous obstacles that had also been

faced by Odysseus on his journey home from

Troy – both heroes faced the Sirens, with

their alluring music, and Scylla and

Charybdis. In addition, Jason had to pass

between the Clashing Rocks. The challenges

of weather, navigation, and the perils of the

sea took the Argonauts on a much longer

route than Odysseus’s, however. Their journey

encompassed the Black Sea, the Danube, the

Adriatic, and the Mediterranean.

THE ARGO

Made by the shipbuilder Argus,

the Argo had a prow with the gift

of prophecy given by Athena. The

vessel was thus able to take Jason

and his companions through a

series of deadly perils. The craft

had more than one bank of oars

so it could be rowed at speed.

The ship with the magical prow

Scylla

The sea nymph Thetis helped the Argo to

sail past Scylla, the monster who devoured

sailors passing through the Strait of Messina.

Jason

After his successful quest,

some accounts state that

Jason ruled happily in Iolcus.

Others allege that his life was

ruined by Medea’s scheming.

Medea

As she was a priestess of

Hecate, the Underworld

goddess, Medea could use

her sorcery to help Jason.

Orpheus

Orpheus’s entrancing music

helped the Argonauts on

many occasions throughout

their arduous journey.

The flying ram

The ram was such a tireless

flyer that it carried Phrixus all

the way from Thebes to Colchis,

which was said to be at the

very edge of the world.

The Clashing Rocks

This pair of living rocks, said to be at the

entrance to the Black Sea, slammed together

when a ship tried to pass between them.

The Sirens

The Sirens lured sailors with their seductive song. When

the Argonauts sailed by them, Orpheus played his lyre

continuously to drown out their voices.

THE HEROES

SHONE LIKE

GLEAMING

STARS AMONG

THE CLOUDS.

Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica I^55