Kekrops I.
Kekrops I. ( Greek Κέκροψ , the tailed one , Latin Cecrops ) is a figure in Greek mythology and is considered the second mythical king of Attica and founder of the Kekropiden dynasty . According to the legend, he was an autochthonous man , that is, born of the earth without any biological parents. His figure was thought to be half man, half dragon. A vase picture in the National Museum in Palermo shows him .
family
Pausanias mentions as the first king of Attica Aktaios . Kekrops married Aglauros (also an epithet of Athena , with reference to the blessing of agriculture), the daughter of Actaios, and thus gained the royal throne; they had four children, the Erysichthon , the Aglauros , Herse and Pandrosos (beings of a divine nature associated with the service of Athena). Since Erysichthon died while Kekrops was still alive, Kranaos was his successor.
Deeds and Myth
Kekrops united the original inhabitants of Attica and divided them into twelve demes (communities): Kekropia, Tetrapolis, Epakria, Dekelea, Eleusis , Aphidna , Thorikos , Brauron , Kytheros, Sphettos, Kephisia and Phaleron. He conducted a census in which each resident brought a stone. Kekrops built the Kekropia castle ( Κεκροπία ) on the Acropolis , which is why he is considered the founder of Athens . He introduced marriage, the first state institutions, and the right to property. Kekrops is also credited with the introduction of bloodless victims and the burial of the dead.
As an arbitrator in the dispute between Poseidon and Athene over the possession of Attica, he determined the usefulness of a gift as decisive. Poseidon created the horse or, according to other ancient authors, a salty spring on the Acropolis; Athena planted the very important olive tree on the Pandroseion and received the land on it, which she named Attica.
Kekrops was the hero of an old Pelasgian tribe spread over Attica, Boeotia and the surrounding area; the Egyptian origin, which one wanted to attribute to him, has long been refuted. Another legendary king of Attica, Kekrops II , also bore this name.
His tomb is on the Acropolis of Athens under the Korenhalle of the Erechtheion . In Haliartus , a city in Boeotia , there was a Heroon of Kekrops in antiquity .
Individual evidence
- ^ Pausanias, Journeys in Greece , 1, 2, 6.
- ^ Strabon , Geographica , 9, 1, 20.
- ^ Pausanias, Journeys in Greece , 9, 33, 1.
literature
- Irmgard Kasper-Butz, Ingrid Krauskopf , Brigitte Knittlmayer: Kekrops . In: Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae (LIMC). Volume VI, Zurich / Munich 1992, pp. 1084-1091.
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Actaeus | King of Attica | Kranaos |