Greek Mythology, page 20
Athenian mythology abounds with stories of wise kings, whose daughters met ugly or violent ends. Another was the kindly Pandion, who ruled after Erichthonius. He had two daughters, the elder of whom, Procne, he gave in marriage to King Tereus of Thrace. But when Procne’s sister, Philomela, went to visit her, the savage Tereus raped her and cut out her tongue. Unable to speak, poor Philomela wove a tapestry which revealed her bitter story. Procne understood, and in revenge she and Philomela killed, dismembered and cooked Tereus’ son, Itys, then served him to the king. The banquet finished, they brought in a covered platter, and revealed Itys’ head. Wielding an axe, Tereus pursued the sisters through the corridors until the gods intervened and turned all three protagonists into birds. Procne became a swallow, Philomela a sweet-voiced nightingale and Tereus a sharp-beaked hawk (or a hoopoe).
In Athens Pandion was succeeded by Erechtheus (semi-serpentine like Erichthonius), who was credited with founding many of the great Athenian civic festivals. In his reign a magical, protective olive-wood statue of Athene fell miraculously from the heavens. But, during a war with nearby Eleusis, Erechtheus received an oracle that Athens would win only if he sacrificed one of his three daughters. When he obeyed, the other two committed suicide. True to the prediction Erechtheus slew the Eleusinian king, but his glory was short-lived. His victim was Poseidon’s son, and the vengeful sea-god skewered Erechtheus with his trident. Despite its grisly nature, the tale was popular in Classical Athens, as a model of self-sacrifice for its citizens.
A similar message appears in the myth of Codrus, one of Athens’ last mythical kings. He discovered that invading Spartans believed that Athens would fall only if its king suffered no harm. So Codrus sacrificed himself:
He dressed as a beggar to deceive the enemy and, letting himself out of the city gates, began to collect firewood in front of the city. When two men approached from the enemy camp asking about conditions inside Athens, he killed one with his sickle. The other, thinking Codrus was a beggar, is said furiously to have drawn his sword and cut him down – at which the Athenians sent a negotiator to reveal the truth to the enemy and ask that their king be returned for burial. The Peloponnesians gave back the body and left Attica, realizing that they no longer had any hope of taking it.
Aegeus, Father of Theseus
The greatest Athenian hero was Theseus. For many years childless, his father, Aegeus, son of Pandion, had tried everything, even introducing into Athens the worship of Aphrodite, the mistress of procreation – but to no effect. Perhaps, he mused, thanks to the murderous behaviour of his sisters, Procne and Philomela, he was accursed, so he consulted the Delphic oracle. Its reply was enigmatic: ‘Do not unstop the swollen wineskin until you return to Athens.’
Perplexed, Aegeus resolved to take counsel from his friend, the king of Troezen, Pittheus son of Pelops. On his way (tells Euripides) he stopped at Corinth, where Medea had recently discovered that Jason had abandoned her. Utilizing her charms to the full, Medea persuaded Aegeus (ignorant of Medea’s planned revenge) to grant her asylum in Athens.
In Troezen, Pittheus readily understood the oracle: Aegeus should refrain from sex until returning home. But rather than reveal the explanation, he sent Aegeus to bed drunk, then instructed his daughter Aethra to join him. It was an eventful night. No sooner had Aethra slept with Aegeus than she waded over to make offerings on the nearby island of Hiera, where (at the unmaidenly suggestion of Athene) Poseidon ravished her. Next morning Aegeus hid his sword and sandals under a massive rock, instructing Aethra that if, as a result of their dalliance, she bore a son strong enough to shift it, she should send him to claim his patrimony. Back in Athens Aegeus found Medea already in residence. Bewitched by her beauty, he married her and fathered a son called Medus, whom they raised as Aegeus’ heir.
The Adventures of Theseus
Aethra too bore a son, and named him Theseus. Pittheus encouraged rumours that the boy’s father was Poseidon, leaving Theseus ignorant of Aegeus’ role in his conception. But when he reached adulthood, Aethra showed him the rock where Aegeus had hidden the tokens of his identity. Theseus easily lifted it, so she revealed the truth and bade him go to Athens; but rather than cross by sea Theseus tested his manliness by travelling overland, where (in feats of civilizing heroism mirroring the exploits of Heracles) he rid the countryside of notorious brigands.
Theseus turns Procrustes’ axe on its owner, who squirms on his infamous bed. (Attic red figure vase, c. 425 BC.)
At Epidaurus a lame one-eyed beggar, Hephaestus’ son, Periphetes, attacked passing travellers with a bronze-bound club. Theseus tricked him by asking if – before Periphetes killed him – he could examine the club to ensure that the binding really was bronze. When Periphetes swaggeringly handed over the weapon, Theseus smashed it over the beggar’s head. Then, keeping the club, he continued on his way.
At the Isthmus of Corinth lived Sinis, a ruffian who killed passers-by with the aid of pine trees. He had two techniques. One was to ask the traveller to take hold of a tree’s top branches and help him bend the trunk down to the ground – at the last moment Sinis would release his grip, catapulting his victim to his death. His other speciality was to overpower the traveller, tie him to two pines, which he had first secured in place, then cut the ropes – as the trees whipped upright, they tore the victim apart. This was the method Theseus used to despatch Sinis (after first defeating him at wrestling), thereby rendering the Isthmus safe.
Near the summit of high sea-cliffs, Theseus’ path was blocked by Sciron, a towering figure seated on a rock, who forced everyone who passed to wash his feet. As they crouched before him, he kicked them over the cliff edge on to the jagged rocks below, where a turtle feasted on their raw remains. Theseus paid the bully in his own currency. The last bones the turtle chewed were Sciron’s own.
At nightfall Theseus arrived in Attica and, breasting the final hills, he came to a roadside inn. Its landlord, Procrustes, possessed an iron bed, which he insisted should prove a perfect fit for every guest: if a visitor were too short he stretched him, while if he were too tall he sawed off those extremities which overhung the bed’s iron frame. (Alternatively he used two beds: a long one for short people, a short one for tall.) Turning the tables on his vicious host, Theseus rid Greece of another deadly scourge.
Once in Athens, Theseus did not immediately reveal his true identity. But, as soon as she met him, Medea knew who he was. Determined that this interloper should not usurp her son, she persuaded Aegeus that Theseus was an enemy and prepared a poisoned drink. As Theseus took it, Aegeus recognized the sword he was wearing in his belt. Instantly he dashed the cup from Theseus’ lips, and both watched in shocked fascination as the spilt wine caused the paving stones to melt and bubble.
While Aegeus introduced Theseus to Athens as his heir with sacrifices and a sumptuous banquet, Medea fled, travelling with her son far to the east. Here (in modern Iran) Medus gave his name to the Medes, a people whom Herodotus records were until then called Aryans. In historical times, many Greeks used the name Medes to signify the Persians.
Theseus found Athens riven with dispute. Another branch of Erechtheus’ family, the fifty sons of Pallas, were challenging Aegeus’ rule. Attica was on the brink of civil war. Skilfully Theseus negotiated a temporary peace, though he was later forced to go to war and kill all Pallas’ sons. Before that, however, Theseus turned his attentions to an external threat. He had already slain the Cretan bull, which Heracles had brought to Tiryns and let loose to roam the mainland; now, to rid Athens of the tribute it was forced to pay King Minos of Knossos, Theseus set out on a voyage to Crete with thirteen companions. His mission: to kill the Minotaur.
Theseus, King of Athens
Returning in triumph after dispatching the monster, Theseus discovered Athens plunged in mourning. Aegeus, convinced that his son had died, had leapt to his death either from Athens’ Acropolis or from Cape Sunium. Now king, Theseus made Athens the capital of Attica and introduced many constitutional innovations that would result in Athens’ greatness – or so historical Athenians, keen to give their constitution an ancient pedigree, believed, and many fifth-century BC tragedies are nonchalantly anachronistic in their portrayal of Theseus as an enthusiastic proto-democrat.
Two episodes from Theseus’ career were considered so significant that they were carved on the Parthenon’s metopes. One was his battle with the Amazons. Accompanying Heracles on his voyage to Thermodon to steal the battle-belt of Queen Hippolyta, Theseus fell in love with the princess Antiope, brought her back home to Athens and had a son by her, Hippolytus. But the Amazons, believing that Antiope had been kidnapped, invaded Attica and occupied a rocky outcrop, subsequently called the Hill of Ares (Areopagus), just west of the Acropolis. After months of fighting and heavy losses the invaders were repulsed. Among the dead was Antiope.
Hippolytus, a Brief Digression
After Antiope’s death, Theseus married the Cretan princess Phaedra. When he was temporarily exiled for killing his cousins, the sons of Pallas, Theseus took her for a year to Troezen. This was now home to his son, Hippolytus, who, an ardent devotee of Artemis, had dedicated his life to chastity, renounced carnal joys and so earned the wrath of Aphrodite. But Phaedra had already met Hippolytus at the Eleusinian Mysteries and there she had fallen in love with him. Living now in such close proximity, her infatuation grew – the daughter of Pasiphaë (who lusted after Minos’ bull) and the sister of Ariadne (who had betrayed Crete for love of Theseus), she was of passionate stock. Then Theseus left to consult the oracle at Delphi. Phaedra’s passion for Hippolytus became unbearable. Unable to eat or drink she propositioned him, but he rebuffed her. So when Theseus returned she told him that Hippolytus had raped her. In Euripides’ innovative version, Phaedra’s nurse tricks her mistress into revealing her love and tells Hippolytus. Aghast, he threatens to inform Theseus. Phaedra hangs herself, leaving a letter accusing Hippolytus of rape. When he reads it, Theseus curses his son and begs Poseidon to kill him. As Hippolytus drives off in his chariot, Poseidon sends a bull from the sea, which spooks the horses, dragging Hippolytus to his death. Too late Artemis tells Theseus the truth, and swears to take revenge by ensuring the death of Aphrodite’s favourite mortal, Adonis.
But for Hippolytus death was not the end. Artemis persuaded the greatest of all healers, Asclepius, to restore him to life (flouting nature’s rules so dramatically that Zeus had no option but to kill Asclepius). Resurrected, Hippolytus lived in Italy, where, worshipped in Latium as Virbius, he protected fugitive slaves. Clearly he had learned the error of his chaste ways – the location of his sanctuary, Aricia, was named after his wife.
Theseus & Peirithous
Theseus’ closest friend, Peirithous, who fought with him against the Amazons, played a prominent role in another incident, which seared itself into Athens’ psyche and was depicted on the Parthenon: the battle between the Lapiths and Centaurs at Iolcus. As king of the Lapiths, whose territory bordered northern Attica, Peirithous had once been Theseus’ enemy – they first met when Peirithous raided Theseus’ cattle herds at Marathon. But each was so impressed with the other that they swore an oath of undying friendship. Thus Theseus attended Peirithous’ wedding, and when the drunken Centaurs tried to rape the Lapith women, they fought side-by-side against them.
They shared in less savoury adventures, too, which led to their undoing. Both lusted after Helen, princess of Sparta, when she was still a child. Finding her by the River Eurotas making offerings at the shrine of Artemis Orthia, they snatched her up and galloped back to Attica, where they cast lots to see which should have her. Theseus won, hid her in the village of Aphidnae in northeast Attica, and set his mother Aethra to guard her.
But Peirithous demanded that he too should have one of Zeus’ daughters. So the two friends undertook a perilous adventure: to abduct Persephone from Hades. Descending from Cape Taenarum they arrived in front of Haides’ throne, where they demanded that the god give up his wife. In response, Haides invited them to rest on a stone bench while he went off to fetch her. But the bench was the Seat of Forgetfulness, and it caused their bodies to fuse to the rock, where they were held so fast they could not move. For four years they sat, paralysed, until Heracles came to Hades to fetch Cerberus. He wrenched Theseus from the rock, tearing his flesh in the process. When he tried to free Peirithous, however, the ground shook, thunder rattled and, understanding that the gods forbade his liberation, Heracles left the Lapith to endure his fate forever.
The Death & Discovery of Theseus
In Theseus’ absence, Helen’s brothers, Castor and Polydeuces (the Dioscuri), had invaded Attica, and when they discovered her (thanks to the advice of the hero Academus, whose sacred grove became the site of Plato’s Academy) they turned their wrath on Athens. Only the diplomacy of Menestheus, a great-grandson of Erechtheus, averted disaster. He welcomed the Dioscuri, made them honorary citizens, initiated them into the Eleusinian Mysteries and sent them back to Sparta with Helen. She took as her servant Theseus’ mother Aethra.
Back from Hades, Theseus had few allies and little power to challenge Menestheus’ authority. Instead, bowing to the inevitable, he left Athens for ever. At Scyros, the most southerly of the Sporades, King Lycomedes received him kindly. But he had murder in his heart. An ally of Menestheus, Lycomedes pushed Theseus to his death from a high cliff.
Throughout the Archaic period, Theseus languished, a minor hero, but at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC Athenian hoplites claimed to have seen him fighting on their side. Fourteen years later the Delphic oracle ordered Athens to find and repatriate Theseus’ remains. Their general Cimon conquered Scyros and scoured the island for the hero’s grave. Where he saw an eagle tearing at the earth, he discovered a huge skeleton, buried with a bronze spearhead and sword. Amid pomp and ceremony Cimon accompanied the remains back to Athens, where he erected a temple in Theseus’ honour.
Athens in History & Today
Athens was inhabited from the fifth millennium BC onwards, with evidence of settlements around the Agora and Acropolis dating to the fourth millennium BC. It began to flower in the late Bronze Age. Around 1600 BC a palace was constructed on the Acropolis, whose steep sides were fortified with ‘Cyclopean’ walls. The building apparently remained intact until the tenth century, when it was destroyed by earthquake or fire. Its location became the focus for rituals honouring kings, including Erechtheus and Cecrops, who were believed to have lived there.
By the seventh century BC the Acropolis was Athens’ religious heart: in 632 BC, after a failed coup, political activists sought asylum in its temple of Athene Polias. While early sixth-century BC reforms (attributed to Solon) sought to unite the coastal, rural and urban peoples, the second half of the century was dominated by Peisistratus, a benign tyrannos, who increased Athens’ kudos through building works, by enhancing the Panathenaic Festival and Eleusinian Mysteries, and by creating a new drama festival. After Peisistratus’ son Hippias was expelled in 510 BC, Cleisthenes introduced isonomia (equality under the law), which gradually developed into demokratia (rule by the people).
In the early fifth century BC, Athens faced an existential threat from the Persians. Victory at Marathon (490 BC) provided temporary relief, but in 480 BC Athens was overrun and its temples burned. Days later its navy (built from revenue from silver mines at Laurium near Sunium) helped win a resounding victory at Salamis. In 479 BC, after routing the Persians at Plataea, Athens led an alliance of Greek states, the Delian League, aimed at neutralizing the Persian threat. It soon became an Athenian empire. Athens’ fleet patrolled the Aegean and in 454 BC the League’s treasury moved from Delos to Athens.
Under Pericles (a tyrannos in all but name) Athens pursued an aggressively expansionist policy. This led to the Peloponnesian War between Athens’ empire and a confederacy of states led by Sparta; the eventual outcome was Athens’ defeat (404 BC). It was an ignominious end to a century in which, home to many outstanding philosophers, writers and artists, Athens had shone – more than living up to Pericles’ boast that it was ‘an education to all Greece’.
Athens soon recovered. In the fourth century BC it resounded to philosophical debate: Plato founded his Academy, Aristotle his Lyceum and Epicurus his ‘Garden’ school, while Zeno taught in one of Athens’ stoas, which gave his followers their name: Stoics. Like its allies, Athens was defeated by Philip II of Macedon at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, but it was relatively well treated by Alexander the Great and remained largely unscathed in the upheavals following his death.
When Athens supported Rome’s enemy Mithridates VI of Pontus, it was sacked by Sulla in 86 BC. Rebuilt and restored to grace, it became a ‘university’ town, respected for its history and architecture, and patronized in the second century AD by wealthy donors such as Herodes Atticus and the emperor Hadrian. Athens was plundered in the third century AD by the Heruli and in AD 396 by Alaric the Goth, after which its importance diminished. From the ninth to the fifteenth century trade with Italy saw its fortunes rise once more, and in 1205 after the Fourth Crusade it became a Duchy. But in 1458 Athens fell to the Ottoman Empire, heralding a long period of decline, during which the Parthenon was variously used as an ammunition dump (suffering a direct hit during Venetian bombardment in 1687) and a mosque, before being stripped of its sculptures by Lord Elgin in 1801 under circumstances which are still debated today.
In 1834 after Greek independence, the nation’s capital was moved from Nafplio to Athens, then little more than a village, and in 1896 the graceful neoclassical city hosted the newly revived Olympic Games. However, after the population exchange with Turkey in 1922, the Second World War and the Greek Civil War, Athens mushroomed, especially after the late 1950s. It hosted the Olympic Games of 2002, encouraging new building work and enhancing the city centre.
