In Greek mythology, Apemosyne (Ancient Greek: Ἀπημοσύνη) was a Cretan princess as the daughter of King Catreus of Crete, the son of Minos.[1] She had a brother Althaemenes, and two sisters, Aerope and Clymene.
Mythology
Apemosyne was mentioned in the account of Apollodorus.[2] According to Apollodorus, Catreus received an oracle saying that he would be killed by one of his children, and although Catreus hid the oracles, his son Althaemenes found out. Fearing that he would be the one to kill Catreus, Althaemenes took Apemosyne and fled with her to Rhodes.
There, Hermes fell in love with Apemosyne, but Apemosyne fled from him. Hermes could not catch her, because she ran faster than him. On her way back from a spring, Apemosyne slipped on freshly skinned hides that Hermes had laid across her path. Hermes then caught and raped her. Later, when Apemosyne told her brother what had happened, he became angry, thinking that she was lying about being molested by the god. In his anger, he kicked her to death.
Interpretation
Arthur Bernard Cook,[3] saw in the myth of Apemosyne an historical element reflecting the relationship between Minoan Crete and Rhodes, as well as a possible etiological aspect explaining an ancient Rhodian custom involving human sacrifice.
See also
Notes
References
- Apollodorus, Apollodorus, The Library, with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes. Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
- Cook, Arthur Bernard, Zeus: A Study in Ancient Religion, Volume II: Zeus God of the Dark Sky (Thunder and Lightning), Part II: Appendixes and Index, Cambridge University Press 1925. Internet Archive
- Diodorus Siculus, Diodorus Siculus: The Library of History. Translated by C. H. Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Online version by Bill Thayer
- Pausanias, Pausanias Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
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