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Chapter Sixteen, Lecture One
Theseus, Myths of Athens
Theseus
• Latecomer • Myths are confused and pale• Theseus becomes their “hero” almost
artificially
Cerops, Erichthonius and the Daughters of Cecrops
Cerops, Erichthonius and the Daughters of Cecrops
• Three different versions of the origins of the Athenians:– Descended from Athena (?)– Autochthonous (from the earth itself)– Descended from Cecrops
• Great founding ancestor, who brought laws, civilization, proper worship of the gods
Cerops, Erichthonius and the Daughters of Cecrops
• Born when Hephaestus tried to have his way with Athena
• “The man of wool and earth”• Given in a concealed basket to the
daughters of Cecrops (Aglauros, Hersê, Pandrosus)
• Only Pandrosus refrains from looking – Aglaurus and Hersê driven mad and jump to their deaths from the Acropolis
Festival of the Dew Carriers
Festival of the Dew Carriers
• Yearly ritual of the Arrhephoria (“dew carriers”) in late March
• The two arrhephoroi lived on the Acropolis
• Wove a robe for a statue of Athena• Sent at night to Aphrodite’s grove (near
the Acropolis) with baskets, to return with a mysterious object
Procris and Cephalus
• In another myth, the daughters Aglaurus and Hersê survive the jump
• Hermes lusts after Hersê, and at first Aglaurus agrees to act as a go-between for gold
• But Athena afflicts Aglaurus with jealousy, and ties to deny Hermes passage
Procris and Cephalus
Procris and Cephalus
• Hermes turns her into a stone and continues on his way
• Hersê becomes pregnant with a son, Cephalus
• Cephalus, being a beautiful boy, is carried away for a while by Eos, nymph of the dawn
Early Legends of Athens
• Cephalus marries Procris, a daughter of Erechthonius, soon giving way to jealousy
• To test her, he approaches her in disguise
Early Legends of Athens
• When once she gives in, she is banished to Crete
• There Minos lusts after her, but his wife Pasiphaë had cursed his sexuality
• Procris gives him an herbal remedy, and in thanks Minos gives her Laelaps and a magic spear
Early Legends of Athens
• Procris starts to fear Pasiphaë and returns to Athens disguised as a boy, with the gifts
• Cephalus lusts after this “boy’s” gifts, and the “boy” offers them in exchange for sex
• He agrees, but the “boy” then reveals “him”self, and they live happily ever after – for a while
Early Legends of Athens
• But Procris fears that Cephalus is still seeing his former girlfriend, Eos (Lat. Aurora), a forest nymph of the fresh winds of the dawn
Early Legends of Athens
• She hears a report that he’s been calling out to “Dawn,” so one day she follows him on his morning hunt. She hears him calling “Dawn,” she thinks he’s having an affair and jumps out of the woods to confront him
• Thinking he’s being attacked by wild animal, he kills her with the magic spear she gave him
The Early Legends of Athens
• Cephalus forced into exile by the Areopagus and he flees to Thebes
• Thebes being plagued by a “fox that can never be caught.”
• Sends his dog against it• Zeus “resolves” the contradiction by
turning both to stone
Procnê and Tereus
Procnê and Tereus
• Pandion, a son of Erichthonius, has two daughters– Procnê– Philomela
• And two sons– Butes– Erechtheus
Procnê and Tereus
• Pandion (king in Athens) gives his daughter Procnê to Tereus, the king of the Thracians for his help in a war against Thebes
• Procnê and Tereus have a son, Itys• After a time, Procnê wants Tereus to go
to Athens and bring Philomela back for a visit
Procnê and Tereus
• But Tereus lusts after Philomela when he sees her
• On arrival in Thrace, he rapes her• To keep her from talking, he cuts out her
tongue, hides her and tells Procnê that her sister died
• Keeps her locked in a mountain house
Procnê and Tereus
• In her cell, Philomela weaves the story of what happened in a tapestry and sends it to Procnê
• Procnê understands the message• In revenge, they kill Itys and serve him to
Tereus• In the end, they all turn into birds
Procnê = Nightingale
Lecture Two
Theseus
