James Hampton Belton - Encyclopedia of Ancient Greek and Roman Mythology (2009).pdf - Rome - martiness

An Encylopedia of Ancient Greek

and Roman Mythology

Edited by James Hampton Belton

Created Using the Content of

The Project Gutenberg EBook of

MYTHS AND LEGENDS

ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME

E. M. BERENS

Produced by Alicia Williams, Keith Edkins and the Online

Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

PREFACE

E. M. Berens orginally wrote “Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome” to provide an interesting

work on Greek and Roman mythology, suitable for advanced schools. He (or she, I haven't been able to find

out) wanted to give the student a clear and succinct idea of the religious beliefs of the ancients, and to render

the subject at once interesting and instructive. He hoped to awaken in the minds of young students a desire to

become more intimately acquainted with the noble productions of classical antiquity. Quoting from the

author's original preface:

“It is hardly necessary to dwell upon the importance of the study of Mythology: our poems, our novels,

and even our daily journals teem with classical allusions; nor can a visit to our art galleries and

museums be fully enjoyed without something more than a mere superficial knowledge of a subject

which has in all ages inspired painters, sculptors, and poets. It therefore only remains for me to express

a hope that my little work may prove useful, not only to teachers and scholars, but also to a large class

of general readers, who, in whiling away a leisure hour, may derive some pleasure and profit from its

perusal.”

I decided to create this encyclopedia because I like the ease of use of a single browsable document in

alphabetical order, and did not find a free encyclopedia that I liked. Wikipedia is a fantastic resource, but it is

not an easy read. I liked the consistant, easy style of the E. M. Berens book, and because it was available

from Project Gutenberg for free and without restrictions, I could take it and turn it into this reference work at

only the cost of my time.

A very brief note on the conventions for the entry headings: the name of the entry is usually followed by the

pronounciation in parentheses. In the case of figures who have equivalents in Greek and Roman mythology,

the equivalent figure's name then follows in brackets.

Thanks to Project Gutenberg and the Distributed Proofreading team for taking the original public domain

work, turning it into an eBook and making it freely available. I am making this derived work available under

the same terms. The full text of the Project Gutenberg License can be found in the Appendix.

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with

almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or

re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included

with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org .

I hope you enjoy this book.

Regards,

James Hampton Belton

July 2009

LEXICON

Abderus (ab-dee´-rus)

Friend of Hercules, eaten by the mares of Diomedes.

Absyrtus (ab-sir´-tus)

Brother of Medea, slain by Jason.

Academus (ak-ă-dee´-mus)

An Athenian who told Castor and Pollux where to find Helen.

Achelous (ak-e-lo´-us)

River god, rival of Heracles for Dionaera. He also purified Alcmaeon of the crime of matricide. Father of

Calirrhoë.

Acheron (ak´-e-ron)

One of the rivers in the underworld. The name means “sorrow”. Heracles caught Cerberus at its mouth.

Achilles (ă-kil´-leez)

Achilles was the son of Peleus and the sea-goddess Thetis, who dipped her son, when a babe, in the river

Styx, and thereby rendered him invulnerable, except in the right heel, by which she held him. When the boy

was nine years old it was foretold to Thetis that he would either enjoy a long life of inglorious ease and

inactivity, or that after a brief career of victory he would die the death of a hero. Naturally desiring to

prolonging the life of her son, the fond mother devoutly hoped that the former fate might be allotted to him.

With this view she conveyed him to the island of Scyros, in the Ægean Sea, where, disguised as a girl, he was

brought up among the daughters of Lycomedes, king of the country.

The presence of Achilles was required by the Greeks, owing to an oracular prediction that Troy could not be

taken without him. Menelaus consulted Calchas the soothsayer, who revealed to him the place of his

concealment. Odysseus was accordingly despatched to Scyros, where, by means of a clever device, he soon

discovered which among the maidens was the object of his search. Disguising himself as a merchant,

Odysseus obtained an introduction to the royal palace, where he offered to the king's daughters various

trinkets for sale. The girls, with one exception, all examined his wares with unfeigned interest.

Observing this, Odysseus shrewdly concluded that the one who held aloof must be none other than the young

Achilles himself. In order further to test the correctness of his deduction, he now exhibited a beautiful set of

warlike accoutrements, while, at a given signal, stirring strains of martial music were heard outside. Achilles,

fired with warlike ardour, seized the weapons, and revealed his identity. He joined the cause of the Greeks,

accompanied at the request of his father by his kinsman Patroclus, and contributed to the expedition a large

force of Thessalian troops, or Myrmidons, as they were called, and also fifty ships.

When the fleet then set sail, they mistook the Mysian coast for that of Troy, landed troops and commenced to

ravage the country. Telephus, king of the Mysians, who was a son of the great hero Heracles, opposed them

with a large army, and succeeded in driving them back to their ships, but was himself wounded in the

engagement by the spear of Achilles. Patroclus, who fought valiantly by the side of his kinsman, was also

wounded in this battle. Achilles, who was a pupil of Chiron, carefully bound up the wound, which he

succeeded in healing. From this incident dates the celebrated friendship which ever after existed between the

two heroes, who even in death remained united.

The Greeks now returned to Aulis. Meanwhile, the wound of Telephus proving incurable, he consulted an

oracle, and the response was that he who had inflicted the wound alone possessed the power of curing it.

Telephus accordingly proceeded to the Greek camp, where he was healed by Achilles, and, at the solicitation

of Odysseus, consented to act as guide in the voyage to Troy.

The Greeks then succeeded in effecting a landing, and in the engagement which ensued the Trojans were

signally defeated, and driven to seek safety behind the walls of their city. With Achilles at their head the

Greeks made a desperate attempt to take the city by storm, but were repulsed with terrible losses. After this

defeat the invaders, foreseeing a long and wearisome campaign, drew up their ships on land, erected tents

and huts, and formed an entrenched camp on the coast.

During the first year of the campaign the Greeks ravaged the surrounding country, and pillaged the

neighbouring villages. Upon one of these foraging expeditions, the city of Pedasus was sacked. Agamemnon,

as commander-in-chief, received as his share of the spoil the beautiful Chrysëis, daughter of Chryses, the

priest of Apollo. Achilles was allotted another captive, the fair Brisëis. The following day Chryses, anxious to

ransom his daughter, repaired to the Greek camp. Agamemnon refused to accede to his proposal, and with

rude and insulting words drove the old man away. Full of grief at the loss of his child, Chryses called upon

Apollo for vengeance on her captor. His prayer was heard, and the god sent a dreadful pestilence which raged

for ten days in the camp of the Greeks. Achilles at length called together a council, and inquired of Calchas

the soothsayer how to arrest this terrible visitation of the gods. The seer replied that Apollo, incensed at the

insult offered to his priest, had sent the plague, and that only by the surrender of Chrysëis could his anger be

appeased.

On hearing this Agamemnon agreed to resign the maiden. Already embittered against Calchas for his

prediction regarding his own daughter Iphigenia, he now heaped insults upon the soothsayer and accused him

of plotting against his interests. Achilles espoused the cause of Calchas, and a violent dispute arose, in which

the son of Thetis would have killed his chief but for the timely interference of Athene, who suddenly

appeared beside him, unseen by the rest, and recalled him to a sense of the duty he owed to his commander.

Agamemnon took revenged on Achilles by depriving him of his beautiful captive, Brisëis, who had become

so attached to her kind and noble captor that she wept bitterly on being removed from his charge. Achilles,

now disgusted with the ungenerous conduct of his chief, withdrew to his tent, and obstinately declined to take

further part in the war.

Heart-sore and dejected he went to the sea-shore, and invoked the presence of his divine mother. In answer to

his prayer, Thetis emerged from beneath the waves, and comforted her gallant son with the assurance that she

would entreat the mighty Zeus to avenge his wrongs by giving victory to the Trojans, so that the Greeks

might realize the great loss which they had sustained by his withdrawal from the army. The Trojans were

informed by one of their spies of the defection of Achilles. They became emboldened by the absence of this

brave and intrepid leader, whom they feared above all the other Greek heroes. Sallying forth, they made a

bold and eminently successful attack upon the Greeks, who, although they most bravely and obstinately

defended their position, were completely routed, and driven back to their entrenchments. Agamemnon and

most of the other Greek leaders were wounded in the engagement.

Encouraged by this marked and signal success the Trojans now commenced to besiege the Greeks in their

own camp. Agamemnon, seeing the danger which threatened the army, forgot for the moment all personal

grievances, and dispatched an embassy to Achilles, consisting of many noble and distinguished chiefs,

urgently entreating him to come to the assistance of his countrymen in their hour of peril. He promised that

not only would Brisëis be restored to him, but also that the hand of his own daughter should be bestowed on

him in marriage, with seven towns as her dowry. But the obstinate determination of the proud hero was not to

be moved; though he listened courteously to the arguments and representations of the messengers of

Agamemnon, his resolution to take no further part in the war remained unshaken.

In one of the engagements which took place soon afterwards, the Trojans, under the command of Hector,

penetrated into the heart of the Greek camp, and had already commenced to burn their ships, when Patroclus,

seeing the distress of his countrymen, earnestly besought Achilles to send him to the rescue at the head of the

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