The Argonauts
The Argonauts were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, Argo, named after its builder, Argus.
History[]
Women of Lemnos[]
The Argonauts first stopped at Lemnos where they learned that all the males had been murdered. The reason of which was as follows: for several years, the women did not honor and make offerings to Aphrodite and because of her anger, she visited them with a noisome smell. Therefore, their spouses took captive women from the neighboring country of Thrace and bedded with them. Dishonored, all the Lemnian women, except Hypsipyle, were instigated by the same goddess in conspiring to kill their fathers and husbands. They then deposed King Thoas, who should have died along with the whole tribe of men, but was secretly spared by his daughter Hypsipyle. She put Thoas on board a ship which a storm carried to the island of Taurica.
In the meantime, the Argonauts sailing along, the guardian of the harbor Iphinoe saw them and announced their coming to Hypsipyle, the new queen. Polyxo who by virtue of her middle age, gave advice that she should put them under obligation to the gods of hospitality and invite them to a friendly reception. Hypsipyle fell in love with their captain Jason and bedded with him. She bore him sons, Euneus and Nebrophonus or Deipylus. The other Argonauts consorted with the Lemnian women, and their descendants were called Minyans, since some among them had previously emigrated from Minyan Orchomenus to Iolcus. The Lemnian women gave the names of the Argonauts to the children they had conceived by them. Delayed many days there, they were chided by Hercules and departed.
Bear Mountain[]
After Lemnos, the Argonauts made their second stop at Bear Mountain, an island of the Propontis shaped like a bear. The locals, called the Doliones, were all descended from Poseidon. Their king Cyzicus, son of Eusorus, who had just got married received the Argonauts with generous hospitality and decided to have a huge party with them. During that event, the king tried to tell Jason not to go to the eastern side of the island, but he got distracted by Heracles, and forgot to tell Jason.
When they had left the king and sailed a whole day, a storm that arose in the night brought them unaware to the same island. Cyzicus, thinking they were Pelasgican army (for they were constantly harassed by these enemies) attacked them on the shore at night in mutual ignorance of each other. The Argonauts slew many and among the rest Cyzicus who was killed by Jason himself. On the next day, when they came near the shore and knew what they had done, the Argonauts mourned and cut off their hair. Meanwhile, Jason gave Cyzicus a costly burial and handed over the kingdom to his sons.
Losing One Another[]
After the burial, the Argonauts sailed away and touched at Mysia where they left Heracles and Polyphemus. For Hylas, son of Thiodamas, a minion of Heracles, had been sent to draw water and was ravished away by nymphs on account of his beauty. But Polyphemus heard him cry out, and drawing his sword gave chase in the belief that he was being carried off by robbers. Falling in with Heracles, he told him; and while the two were seeking for Hylas, the ship put to sea. So Polyphemus founded a city Cius in Mysia and reigned as king but Heracles returned to Argos. However, Herodorus says that Heracles did not sail at all at that time but served as a slave at the court of Omphale. But Pherecydes says that he was left behind at Aphetae in Thessaly, the Argo having declared with human voice that she could not bear his weight. Nevertheless Demaratus has recorded that Heracles sailed to Colchis; for Dionysius even affirms that he was the leader of the Argonauts.
Land of the Bebrrycians[]
From Mysia, they departed to the land of the Bebryces which was ruled by King Amycus, son of Poseidon and Melie, a Bithynian nymph. Being a doughty man, he compelled the strangers who came to his kingdom to contend with him in boxing and slew the vanquished. When he challenged the best man of the crew to a boxing match, Pollux fought against him and slew him with a blow on the elbow. When the Bebryces made a rush at him, the chiefs snatched up their arms and put them to flight with great slaughter.
Phineus and the Harpies[]
Thence, they put to sea and came to land at Salmydessus in Thrace, where Phineus dwelt. The latter was said to be the son of Agenor or of Poseidon, and a seer who was bestowed by Apollo with the gift of prophecy. Phineus had lost the sight of both eyes because of the following reasons, (1) blinded by Zeus because he revealed the deliberations of the gods and foretold the future to men, (2) by Boreas and the Argonauts because he blinded his own two sons by Cleopatra at the instigation of their stepmother; or by Poseidon, because he revealed to the children of Phrixus how they could sail from Colchis to Greece. Zeus then set over him the Harpies, who are called the hounds of Zeus. These were winged female creatures, and when a table was laid for Phineus, they flew down from the sky and snatched up most of the victuals from his lips, and what little they left stank so that nobody could touch it.
When the Argonauts would have consulted him about the voyage, he said that he would advise them about it if they would free him from the punishment. So the Argonauts laid a table of viands beside him, and the Harpies with a shriek suddenly pounced down and snatched away the food. When Zetes and Calais, the sons of Boreas, saw that, they drew their swords and, having wings on head and feet, pursued them through the air. Now it was fated that the Harpies should perish by the sons of Boreas, and that the sons of Boreas should die when they could not catch up a fugitive. So the Harpies were pursued and one of them fell into the river Tigres in Peloponnese, the river that is now called Harpys after her; some call her Nicothoe, but others Aellopus. But the other, named Ocypete or, according to others, Ocythoe fled by the Propontis till she came to the Echinadian Islands, which are now called Strophades after her; for when she came to them she turned (estraphe) and being at the shore fell for very weariness with her pursuer. But Apollonius in the Argonautica says that the Harpies were pursued to the Strophades Islands and suffered no harm, having sworn an oath that they would wrong Phineus no more. Eventually, the Argonauts freed Phineus from the punishment.
Clashing of the Earths[]
Being rid of the Harpies, Phineus revealed to the Argonauts the course of their voyage, and advised them about the Clashing Rocks in the sea. These were huge cliffs, which, dashed together by the force of the winds, closed the sea passage. Thick was the mist that swept over them, and loud the crash, and it was impossible for even the birds to pass between them. So he told them to let fly a dove between the rocks, and, if they saw it pass safe through, to thread the narrows with an easy mind, but if they saw it perish, then not to force a passage. When they heard that, they put to sea, and on nearing the rocks let fly a dove from the prow, and as she flew the clash of the rocks nipped off the tip of her tail. So, waiting till the rocks had recoiled, with hard rowing and the help of Hera, they passed through, the extremity of the ship's ornamented poop being shorn away right round. Henceforth the Clashing Rocks stood still; for it was fated that, so soon as a ship had made the passage, they should come to rest completely. Jason could feel his time among the crew was drawing to a close as the image of the Fleece gleamed in his mind but unaware that this final task would have the most horrible price of all.