Scylla

Scylla and Glaucus......

                                                                   In Greek mythology, Scylla  was described as the beautiful daughter of the river god Crataeis.  Glaucus, sea god,born mortal and turned immortal upon eating a magical herb. He became half man and half fish, with long strands of seaweed for hair. Glaucus fell in love with the beautiful Scylla and wanted her for his wife, but but she was frightened of his appearance and rejected him.  Glaucus went to sorceress Circe and asked for a spell to make Scylla love him, but Circe fell in love with him instead.
                                       

Circe poisoning the pool where Scylla bath....

       Circe tried to win Glaucus heart with her most passionate and loving words, telling him to scorn Scylla and stay with her. But he replied that trees would grow on the ocean floor and seaweed would grow on the highest mountain before he would stop loving Scylla. In her anger, Circe poisoned the pool where Scylla bathed, transforming her into a terrible monster with twelve feet and six heads. Scylla fled to a cave on top of a dangerous cliff and attacked any sailors that came within her reach.

Scylla....attacking the sailors....

                          In some versions, Scylla was described as the daughter of Triton and Lamia. According to other version,  Scylla was described as one of the monstrous children of Phorcys and Ceto. In one version, Scylla  was described as a beautiful naiad who was claimed by Poseidon, but the jealous Amphitrite turned her into a monster by poisoning the water of the spring where Scylla would bathe.

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Glaucus

     Glaucus1 (sea god)  
                            In Greek mythology, Glaucus was described as a mortal fisherman living in the Boeotian city of Anthedon, accidentally he discovered a magical herb which could bring the fish he caught back to life, and decided to try eating it. The herb made him immortal, but also caused him to grow fins instead of arms and a fish's tail instead of legs, forcing him to dwell forever in the sea.  Glaucus was initially upset by this side-effect, but Oceanus and Tethys received him well and he was quickly accepted among the deities of the sea, learning from them the art of prophecy.  In some versions, Glaucus was described as a marine born son of Nereus or Poseidon.  

Glaucus and Scylla

                         In one version(perhaps in error), Glaucus was described as the builder of the ship Argo and its clever diver, accompanied the Argonauts. In the sea-fight against the Doliones, Glaucus fall in the sea and sank to the bottom of the sea, where he was visible to none. He became a marine deity, and was of service to the Argonauts. 

Related Posts
  Circe : Scylla




       Glaucus2 (son of Minos)     
                                        In Greek mythology, Glaucus was described as the son of the Cretan king Minos and his wife Pasiphae. One day Glaucus while playing with a ball or chasing a mouse fell into a jar of honey and thus he died. Unable to find their son, Minos and Pasiphae went to the Oracle at Delphi, who told them, "A marvelous creature has been born amongst you, whoever finds the true likeness for this creature will also find the child." There was a newborn calf in Minos herd, which changed color three times a day, from white to red to black. The seer Polyeidus observed the similarity to the ripening of the fruit of the blackberry plant, and Minos sent him to find Glaucus. Polyeidus was the same seer who had advised Bellerophon on how to tame the flying horse Pegasus.

Glaucus...son of Minos

                                                      Searching for the boy, Polyidus saw an owl driving bees 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, though Polyidus objected. Minos was justified in his insistence, as the Delphic Oracle had said that the seer would restore the child alive. Minos shut Polyidus up in the wine-cellar with a sword. Polyeidus did not know what to do, until a snake crawled into the room and died or Polyidus killed it with the sword.  Another snake came for the first, and after seeing its mate dead, the second serpent left and brought back a herb which then brought the first snake back to life. Polyidus used the same herb to resurrect Glaucus. 
                                  Minos refused to let Polyidus leave Crete until he taught Glaucus the art of divination. Polyidus 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. Glaucus later led an army that attacked Italy, introducing to them the military girdle and shield.

         

       Glaucus3 (son of Sisyphus)                          
                                  In Greek mythology, Glaucus was described as the the Corinthian king, son of  Merope, the daughter of Atlas and one of the Pleiades. By marrying Sisyphus, Merope became the only one of her sister Pleiades to mate with a mortal.  Sisyphus had tried to arrange a marriage for Glaucus with the shape-shifting Mestra, a daughter of Erysichthon, but despite the payment of valuable bride-gifts, she eluded the marriage. 
                                         Glaucus then married a daughter of Nisus named Eurymede (or Eurynome). With Eurymede, he became the father the hero Bellerophon. In other version,  Zeus had declared that Glaucus would sire no children even by his own wife,  as he  offended  goddess Aphrodite. Sea god Poseidon  secretly had sex with Eurymede (wife of Glaucus), who bore the hero Bellerophon. Bellerophon was raised by Glaucus, who thought Bellerophon was his own son.
                                          According to some versions, Glaucus offended the goddess Aphrodite, by  not allow his mares to mate, that they might be the stronger for the horse race or by scorning her in general. According to others version, he fed his mare with human flesh, for the purpose of making them spirited and warlike. 

Glaucus..................

      In any case, it made Aphrodite or the gods in general, angry at Glaucus.  At the funeral games of Pelias in Iolcus,  Glaucus took part in them with a chariot and four horses, but the animals were frightened and upset the chariot. Glaucus was thrown and torn to pieces by his own horses. 
                    In some versions, Glaucus ghost was said to appear to the horses racing at the Isthmian games and terrify them. He was accordingly worshipped on the Isthmus, under the name of Taraxippos, or Terrifier of Horses.

   Glaucus4(grandson of Bellerophon)
                         In Greek mythology, Glaucus was was described as the son of Hippolochus and a grandson of Bellerophon. He was a captain in the Lycian army under the command of his close friend and cousin Sarpedon. The Lycians in the Trojan War were allies of Troy. During the war Glaucus fought valiantly, killing four Greeks.

Glaucus........

                                                 According to Greek legend, Glaucua met Diomedes in the field of battle in face to face combat. In response to Diomedes' challenge to him, Glaucus said that as a grandson of Bellerophon he would fight anybody. On learning of Glaucus' ancestry Diomedes planted his spear in the ground and told of how his grandfather Oeneus was a close friend of Bellerophon, and declared that the two of them despite being on opposing sides should continue the friendship. As a sign of friendship Diomedes took off his bronze armor worth 9 oxen and gave it to Glaucus. Glaucus then had his wits taken by Zeus and gave Diomedes his gold armor said to be worth 100 oxen.

                                            Glaucus was in the division of Sarpedon and Asteropaios when the Trojans assaulted the Greek wall. Their division fought valiantly, allowing Hector to break through the wall. During this assault Teucer shot Glaucus with an arrow, wounding him and forcing him to withdraw from combat. Later, upon seeing Sarpedon mortally wounded, Glaucus prayed to Apollo, asking him to help him to rescue the body of his dying friend. Apollo cured his wound, allowing Glaucus to rally the Trojans around the body of Sarpedon until the gods carried the body away. Later in the war, when the fighting over Achilles' corpse took place, Glaucus was killed by Ajax. His body, however, was rescued by Aeneas and was then taken by Apollo to Lycia for funeral rites.

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Phorcys

Phorcys and Ceto

In Greek mythology, Phorcys was described as the son of Pontus and Gaea, and a brother of Thaumas, Nereus, Eurybia, and Ceto. Phorcys was an ancient sea-god who presided over the hidden dangers of the deep.

Phorcys and Ceto.....

                With his sister and consort (wife) Ceto he became the father of the monstrous children collectively known as the Phorcydes.: Skylla (the crab) a monster who devoured passing sailors, Thoosa (the swift) mother of the rock-tossing cyclops Polyphemos, Ladon (strong flowing) a hundred-headed sea-serpent, Ekhidna (viper) a she-dragon, the Graiai (grey ones) spirits of the sea-foam, and the Gorgones (terrifying ones) whose petrifying gaze probably created the dangerous rocks and reefs of the sea.

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Thaumas

                                     In Greek mythology, Thaumas was described as the old marine god who personified the wonders of the sea. Thaumas was the son of Pontus and Gaea. He married an Oceanid, Electra1 (or Ozomene).

                                    The children of Thaumas and Electra were the Harpies and Iris, the goddess of rainbows and a messenger of the gods. In some versions, Thaumas was also the father of Arke

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Harpies

                        In Greek mythology, Harpies (singular-Harpy) were described as the beautiful winged maidens, the daughters of of Thaumas by the Electra1, Oceanid nymph of clouds. Harpies were the spirits of sudden, sharp gusts of wind.

Harpies

 In some versions Harpies were described as ugly creatures with wings. Later in some versions Harpies were described as the female monster in the form of a bird with a human face.

Harpy

            The Harpies consisted of three sisters Aello ("storm swift"), Ocypete ("the swift wing"),  and Celaeno ("the dark"). However in some versions Harpy named Podarge ("fleet-foot") was described.  Podarge due to her union with Zephyrus, the god of the West Wind, was the mother of Balius and Xanthus, the horses of Achilles.
                                                  When a person suddenly disappeared from the earth, it was said that he had been carried off by the Harpies and gave them as servants to the Erinnyes. In some versions, Harpies were the agents of punishment who abducted people and tortured them on their way to Tartarus. They were vicious, cruel and violent and described as the personifications of the destructive nature of wind.

According to Greek legend, King Phineus of Thrace, was given the gift of prophecy by Zeus. Angry that Phineus gave away the god's secret plan, Zeus punished him by blinding him. Harpies were sent by Zeus as a punishment to harass the blind Phineus, and whenever a meal was placed before him, they darted down from the air and carried it off; In some versions Harpies either devoured the food themselves, or that they dirtied it by dropping upon it some stinking substance, so as to render it unfit to be eaten.

Boreades (Zetes and Calais) and Harpies

                                                                                This continued until the arrival of  the Argonauts. Phineus promised to instruct them respecting the course they had to take, if they would deliver him from the Harpies. When the food for Phineus was laid out on a table, the Harpies immediately came, and were attacked by the Boreades, ( Zetes and Calais) sons of Boreas, the god of north wind, who were among the Argonauts, and provided with wings. The Boreades succeeded in driving off the harpies, but without killing any of them, following a request from Iris, who promised that Phineus would not be bothered by the Harpies again.

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Lethe

In Greek mythology, Lethe was described as the goddess or the personification of forgiveness and oblivion. Lethe was described as the daughter of Aether (god of air) and Gaea (goddess of earth) or Eris (goddess of strife) without any male partner.

Lethe.......river goddess of forgiveness.....

                           Lethe was often associated with the underworld river. Lethe, the river of forgetfulness, was one of the five rivers of the Greek underworld, the other four being Styx (the river of hate), Acheron (the river of sorrow), Cocytus (the river of lamentation) and Phlegethon (the river of fire). 

River Lethe.......

The shades of the dead were required to drink the waters of the Lethe in order to forget their earthly life. In some versions, it was believed that souls were made to drink from the river before being reincarnated, so they would not remember their past lives.

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Notus

In Greek mythology, Notus was described as one of the Anemoi, the winged-god of the south wind and the bringer of storms of early autumn and late summer. 

Notus  was the  son of Astraeus , the god of stars and planets and Eos, the goddess of dawn. Notus was the god who people feared as the crop destroyer.

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Eurus

In Greek mythology, Eurus was described as one of the Anemoi, the winged-god of the east wind and the bringer of autumn. 

Eurus

                              Eurus was the  son of Astraeus , the god of stars and planets and Eos, the goddess of dawn.  Eurus was described to dwelt near the palace of Helios (sun) in the far east.
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Zephyrus

Zephyrus and Chloris

In Greek mythology, Zephyrus was described as one of the Anemoi, the winged-god of west wind. The gentlest of the winds, Zephyrus is known as the fructifying wind, the messenger of spring. Zephyrus was the son of Astraeus , the god of stars and planets and Eos, the goddess of dawn.

Zephyrus kidnapping Chloris

                                In some versions, Zephyrus was described as the husband of Iris, the goddess of the rainbow. A nymph, Chloris associated with spring, flowers and new growth, who dwelt in the Elysian Fields was abducted by (and later married) Zephyrus.With Chloris, he fathered Carpus. Zephyrus had sexual relation with  Podarge, one of the Harpies, and became father of Balius and Xanthus, the horses of Achilles.

Zephyus and nymph

                                      Zephyrus fell in love with Hyacinth, - a very handsome and athletic Spartan prince - and courted him, and so did Apollo. The two competed for the boy's love, but he chose Apollo, driving Zephyrus mad with jealousy. Later, catching Apollo and Hyacinth throwing a discus, Zephyrus blew a gust of wind at them, striking the boy in the head with the falling discus.

Zephyrus, Apollo and Hyacinth

When Hyacinth died, Apollo created the hyacinth flower from his blood. Apollo was furious, but Eros protected Zephyrus, as the act was committed in the name of love, on the condition that the wind god served Eros forever.

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Boreas

                               In Greek mythology, Boreas was described as one of the Anemoi, the winged-god of the north wind and the bringer of winter. Boreas was the  son of Astraeus , the god of stars and planets and Eos, the goddess of dawn. Boreas was described to dwelt in a cave of mount Haemus in Thrace. Boreas had a violent temper and in some versions, Boreas was described to had snakes instead of feet, though in art he was usually depicted with winged human feet.

Boreas and Oreithyia

                               Boreas fell in love with Oreithyia, an Athenian princess. At first he attempted to woo her, but after failing at that he reverted to his usual temper and abducted her as she danced on the banks of the Ilissus. Boreas wrapped Oreithyia up in a cloud and had sex with her.With Oreithyia, Boreas fathered two sons- Calais and Zetes, both known as the Boreads and two daughters- Chione1, goddess of snow, and Cleopatra..

Boreas kidnapping Oreithyia

                        In some versions, Boreas was described as  the lover of the nymph Pitys and  of nymph Chione2. The nymph Chione2 gave birth to hyperborean Boreades, the three gaint sons of Boreas
 Boreas was closely associated with horses. He was said to have fathered twelve colts after taking the form of a stallion, to the mares of Erichthonius, King of Troy. These were said to be able to run across a field of grain without trampling the plants.
                                            According to Greek legend, Boreas and Helios (sun god), once competed to see who could strip a man's clothes off faster. Boreas tried his best to forcefully blow the young man's clothes away, but he simply gripped them tight and continued on his way. After giving up, Helios then released scorching rays of heat down upon him. The man took one garment off, then another, until he was completely undressed.


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Bellerophon

                                              In Greek mythology, Bellerophon or Bellerophontes was the son of the Corinthian king Glaucus3 and Eurymede. According to some versions, Bellerophon was described as the son of Poseidon and Eurymede (wife of Glaucus). Bellerophon was raised by Glaucus, who thought Bellerophon was his own son.

Bellerophon and Pegasus

                              In some versions, his real name was Hipponous, and received the name Bellerophon or Bellerophontes from having slain the noble Corinthian, Bellerus.  In other version, Bellerophon had slain his own brother, Deliades, Peiren, or Alcimenes.
  
                               In any case, in order to be purified from the murder, Bellerophon  fled to Proetus, the king of Argos and Tiryns. The wife of the king, Anteia (or Stheneboea),  fell in love with Bellerophon,but her offers being rejected by him. She accused Bellerophon to her husband of having made improper proposals to her, or of attempting to rape her.

                Greatly upset, Proetus wanted to be rid of Bellerophon without having to accuse him publicly. He was also concerned about harming a house guest, as this was an offence to the gods or he feared the wrath of the Erinyes if he murdered a guest. So, he sent Bellerophon to deliver a sealed letter to his father-in-law, Iobates, king in Lycia. 

Proetus and Bellerophon

                            Before opening the sealed letter, Iobates feasted with Bellerophon for nine days. When Iobates unsealed and read the letter- "Pray remove the bearer from this world, he attempted to violate my wife, your daughter." On reading the letter, Iobates feared the wrath of the Erinyes if he murdered a guest.  So Iobates sent Bellerophon  to kill the monster Chimaera, living in neighboring Caria, thinking that he was sure to perish in the contest. The Chimera was a fire-breathing monster whose make-up comprised the body of a goat, the head of a lion and the tail being a serpent. This monster had terrorized the nearby countryside. 

  To kill the monster Chimaera, the Lycian seer Polyeidus told Bellerophon that he would have need of Pegasus, the magic winged horse,immortal offspring of the god Poseidon and the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus was born when the hero Perseus cut off Medusa's head. Bellerophon had been unable to tame Pegasus, after many failures, Polyeidus suggested that Bellerophon spend the night in Athena's temple. There, he had a dream that the goddess offered him a magical, golden bridle. He awoke and found the bridle he dreamt about in his hands. He sensibly made a sacrifice to both Athena and Poseidon. Afterwards, he went to the meadow, Pegasus was grazing at, and was able to bridle and tame the horse without difficulty.  In one version, it was described that Athena or Poseidon brought Pegasus already tamed and bridled to Bellerophon. 

Athena and Bellerophon

                             {According to other version, Bellerophon had tamed Pegasus earlier and he went to King Pittheus and received permission to marry his daughter Aethra. However, before the marriage, he accidentally killed a man, possibly one of his brothers, and was banished or he had been unjustly accused of trying to seduce the queen of Arogos. }

Ballerophon and Chimera

                          The Chimera was truly ferocious, and Bellerophon could not harm the monster even while riding on Pegasus. He felt the heat of the breath the Chimera expelled, and was struck with an idea. He got a large block of lead and mounted it on his spear. Then he flew head-on towards the Chimera, holding out the spear as far as he could. Before he broke off his attack, he managed to lodge the block of lead inside the Chimera's throat. The beast's fire-breath melted the lead, and blocked its air passage. The Chimera suffocated, and Bellerophon returned victorious to King Iobates.

Iobates and Bellerophon

                      Iobates, being thus disappointed, sent Bellerophon out again, first against the barbarous Solymi tribe and next against the Amazons. In these contests too he was victorious and when, on his return to Lycia, he was attacked by the bravest Lycians, whom Iobates had placed in ambush for the purpose, Bellerophon slew them all. Iobates realized that the gods favored Bellerophon and that this favor would not have been given to a dishonorable house guest. Iobates succeed in making amends by giving Bellerophon half his kingdom, including the best farmlands and his daughter Philonoe in marriage.
Bellerophon was happily married. Philonoe bore him two sons, Isander and Hippolochus, and two daughters, Laodameia and Deidameia. As a king his subjects loved and honored him.


 However, this was not enough for Bellerophon. In his arrogance, he decided that he could ride Pegasus to Mount Olympus and visit the gods. Zeus quickly put an end to his trip by sending the gadfly to sting Pegasus and dismount Bellerophon. He survived his fall, but was crippled. He spent the rest of his life wandering the earth. No man would help him because of his offense to the gods. He died alone with no one to record his fate.


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Amazons

                                         In Greek mythology, Amazons were described as a nation of all-female warriors. According to some versions the Amazons were described as the  daughters of Ares, the god of war. The cities of Cyme, Myrine, Ephesus and Smyrna were founded by the Amazons.

Amazons warriors 

                                   The word "Amazon" means  "without breast", so in some versions it was described that Amazons had their right breast cut off or burnt out because that they might not be hindered by them in throwing the javelin.
                                        No men were permitted to have sexual encounters or reside in Amazon country. Once a year, in order to prevent their race from dying out, they visited the Gargareans, a neighboring tribe. The male children who were the result of these visits were killed or sent back to their fathers or exposed in the wilderness to fend for themselves. The girls were kept and brought up by their mothers, and trained in agricultural pursuits, hunting, and the art of war.

Amazons battle

                      In other versions, when the Amazons went to war they would not kill all the men. Some they would take as slaves, and once or twice a year they would have sex with their slave, in order to prevent their race from dying out.

Related Posts
 Theseus  : Hercules 9th Labor - Obtain the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons : (Update soon))

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The Quest for the Golden Fleece

               According to Greek legend, Aeson was the rightful king of Iolcos, but his half-brother Pelias usurped the throne. It was Pelias who sent Aeson's son Jason to look for the Golden Fleece. 

The Argonauts

Jason for quest for the Golden Fleece, assembled for his crew, a number of heroes, known as the Argonauts after their ship, the Argo, and set sail from Iolcos. Their mission was to reach Colchis in Aea at the eastern seaboard of the Black Sea and reclaim and bring back the Golden Fleece.
          

The island of Lemnos
                                                         The Argonauts first arrived to the island of Lemnos, situated off the Western coast of Asia Minor. The island was inhabited by a race of women who had killed their husbands. The women had neglected their worship of goddess Aphrodite, and as a punishment the goddess made the women so foul in stench that their husbands could not bear to be near them. The men then took concubines from the Thracian mainland opposite, and the spurned women, angry at Aphrodite, killed all the male inhabitants while they slept. The women of Lemnos lived for a while without men, with Hypsipyle as their queen.

The Argonauts and the women of Lemnos

When the Argonauts set their foot on the island, the women saw them as their potential lovers and lured them into their bed chambers.The Argonauts remained on Lemnos for several months and, during that time, had extensive relations with the women of Lemnos. Jason himself mated with their queen, Hypsipyle and swore eternal fidelity to her.
                               The Argonauts were finally convinced to leave the island and continue their journey, only when Hercules, who remained on board Argo, sent a message questioning them whether this was the way they wanted to gain glory for themselves.Jason sailed away and quickly forgot his vows made to Hypsipyle. For his bad actions Jason was placed in the 8th circle of Dante's Inferno.

Cyzicus
                               After Lemnos the Argonauts landed southern shore of the Propontis, where the Doliones tribe inhabited, and ruled over by king Cyzicus. King Cyzicus treated Argonauts graciously, told them about the land beyond Bear Mountain, but forgot to mention what lived there. What lived in the land beyond Bear Mountain were the Gegeines which are a tribe of Earthborn giants with six arms and wore leather loincloths. While most of the crew went into the forest to search for supplies, the Gegeines saw that few Argonauts were guarding the ship and raided it. Heracles was among those guarding the ship at the time and managed to kill most them before Jason and the others returned. Once some of the other Gegeines were killed, Jason and the Argonauts set sail.
                          Sometime after their fight with the Gegeines, Argonauts sent some men to find food and water. Among these men was Hercules' servant Hylas who was gathering water while Heracles was out finding some wood to carve a new oar to replace the one that broke. 

Hylas and nymphs

The nymphs of the stream where Hylas was collecting were attracted to his good looks, and pulled him into the stream. Heracles returned to his Labors (Twelve labors of Hercules), but Hylas was lost forever. According to one version,  Hercules went to Colchis with the Argonauts, got the Golden Girdle of the Amazons and slew the Stymphalian Birds at that time.
                     The Argonauts  departed, a storm drove them back to the same spot that night. In the darkness, the Doliones took them for enemies and they started fighting each other. The Argonauts killed many of the Doliones, among them the king Cyzicus. Cyzicus' wife, Cleite, killed herself. The Argonauts realized their horrible mistake when dawn came and held a funeral for him.

Salmydessus

                                   The  Argonauts  landed at Salmydessus in Thrace, ruled by  blind king Phineus. Phineus blinded by the gods for foretelling men the future or by Poseidon, for having revealed to the children of Phrixus, how they could sail from Colchis to Hellas.

The Argonauts and Harpies

 Zeus had sent the Harpies, winged female creatures, to steal the food put out for Phineas each day. Phineas was left withered and weak from the lack of food. 

Phineas and the Argonauts-Calais and Zetes

The Argonauts, Calais and Zetes succeeded in driving the Harpies away but did not kill them, at a request from the goddess of the rainbow, Iris, who promised that Phineas would not be bothered by the harpies again. As thanks, Phineas told the Argonauts how to pass the Symplegades  or The Clashing Rocks, and then they parted.

The Symplegades
                                 The only way to reach Colchis was to sail through the Symplegades (Clashing Rocks), huge rock cliffs that came together and crushed anything that traveled between them. Phineas told Jason to release a dove when they approached these islands, and if the dove made it through, to row with all their might. If the dove was crushed, he was doomed to fail. Jason released the dove as advised, which made it through, losing only a few tail feathers. 

The Argonauts sailing through Symplegades

Seeing this, they rowed strongly and made it through with minor damage at the extreme stern of the ship. From that time on, the clashing rocks were forever joined leaving free passage for others to pass.


The arrival in Colchis


The  Argonauts arrived in Colchis and Jason claimed the Gloden fleece as his own. It was owned by King Aeetes of Colchis. The fleece was given to him by Phrixus. Aeetes promised to give it to Jason only if he could perform three certain tasks. Presented with the tasks, Jason became discouraged and fell into depression. However, goddess Hera had persuaded goddess of love, Aphrodite to convince Eros to make Aeetes's daughter, the sorceress Medea, fall in love with Jason. Medea fell in love with Jason and promised to help him, but only on the condition that if he succeeded, he would take her with him and marry her, Jason agreed. 

Jason and the fire-breathing oxen

First, Jason had to plough a field with fire-breathing oxen that he had to yoke himself. Medea provided an ointment that protected him from the oxen's flames. Then, Jason had to sow the teeth of a dragon in the ploughed field. The teeth sprouted into an army of warriors. Medea had previously warned Jason of this and told him how to defeat this foe. Before they attacked him, he threw a rock into the crowd. Unable to discover where the rock had come from, the soldiers attacked and defeated one another. 

Jason kill the sleepless dragon with help of Medea

Finally, Aeetes made Jason fight and kill the sleepless dragon that guarded the fleece. Medea put the beast to sleep with her narcotic herbs. Jason then took the fleece and sailed away with Medea, as he had promised.


 The return journey back to Iolcus
                                            Medea distracted her father, who chased them as they fled, by killing her brother Apsyrtus and throwing pieces of his body into the sea. 

Medea with the Argonauts....killing Apsyrtus

Aeetes stopped to gather them. In another version, Medea lured Apsyrtus into a trap. Jason killed him, chopped off his fingers and toes, and buried the corpse. In any case, Jason and Medea escaped. During the fight, Atalanta, the only female member of the Argonauts, helping Jason in his quest for the fleece, was seriously wounded, but Medea healed her.

The Circe's island
                       Zeus, as punishment for the slaughter of Medea's own brother, sent a series of storms at the Argo and blew it off course. 

Circe, Medea aunt

So Medea and Jason stopped on her aunt Circe's island so that she could be cleansed after the murder of her brother, relieving her of blame for the deed. In some version Jason and Medea got married in the Circe island.

Sirens
                 The Sirens lived on three small, rocky islands called Sirenum scopuli and sang beautiful songs that enticed sailors to come to them, which resulted in the crashing of their ship into the islands. Centaur Chiron had told Jason that without the aid of Orpheus, the Argonauts would never be able to pass the Sirens.

Orpheus playing misic

                         When Orpheus heard their voices, he drew his lyre and played music that was more beautiful and louder, drowning out the Sirens' bewitching songs.

Butes and Sirens

 Butes, one of the Argonauts, was the only one to not resist the charm of Sirens singing and swim off to them. But goddess Aphrodite saved Butes by transferring him to Lilybaeum in Sicily, where he became goddess lover.

Talos
                        When the Argonauts arrived at the island of Crete, guarded by the bronze man, Talos. According to some versions, Talos had been made by Hephaestus at the request of Zeus, to protect Europa from persons who would want to kidnap her. As the ship approached, Talos hurled huge stones at the ship, keeping it at bay. 

Talos

Talos had one vein, which went from his neck to his ankle, bound shut by only one bronze nail.  Medea by her magic powers threw him into a state of madness, or, in other version, under the pretense of making him immortal, she took the nail out of his vein and thus caused him to bleed to death. 

 Return with the Golden Fleece
                                                         At last, the Argonauts reach back to Icolcus.  Jason, celebrating his return with the Golden Fleece, noted that his father was too aged and infirm to participate in the celebrations. He had seen and been served by Medea's magical powers. He asked Medea to take some years from his life and add them to the life of his father. She did so, but at no such cost to Jason's life. Medea withdrew the blood from Aesons body and infused it with certain herbs; putting it back into his veins, returning vigor to him.  Pelias still refused to gave up his throne to Jason. 

Medea conspired Pelias daughters to kill him

So Medea conspired to have Pelias' own daughters kill him. She told them she could turn an old ram into a young ram by cutting up the old ram and boiling it in magic herbs. During her demonstration, a live, young ram jumped out of the pot. Excited, the girls cut their father into pieces and threw him into a pot. Having killed Pelias, Jason and Medea fled to Corinth.

Index