Argos (son of Phrixus)

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Argos ( Greek  Ἄργος ) was one of the heroes of the Argonaut saga in Greek mythology . He was the son of Phrixus and the Chalkiope and helped the Argonauts to obtain the Golden Fleece .

Lore

In the older epic and with the logographers

Argos' parents were Phrixus , who fled from Thessaly to Colchis with the golden ram , and Chalkiope , the daughter of the Colchian king Aietes . In lost writings of the epic poets Hesiod and Akusilaos , his mother is also called Iophossa ( Greek Ἰοφῶσσα ). His brothers were Melas , Phrontis and Kytissoros .  

For the logographer Pherecytes of Athens (6th century BC), Argos, son of Phrixus, was the builder of the Argo and thus a participant in the Argonautical voyage from the start. This version can also be found in the library of Apollodorus (1st century AD), where Argos, the son of Phrixus, is mentioned as the builder of the Argo and participant in the Argonaut procession.

At Apollonios of Rhodes

The Hellenistic epic poet Apollonios of Rhodes (3rd century BC) distinguishes between two people named Argos in his Argonautica : on the one hand Argos , the builder of Argo and son of Arestor, on the other hand Argos, son of Phrixus, who later lived with his brothers meets the Argonauts. As the elder he appears as a spokesman for Apollonios of Rhodes, while his younger brothers only appear as silent companions.

The sons of Phrixos received the order from their dying father to sail to the city of Orchomenus and there to inherit their grandfather Athamas in Thessaly. Although their mother Chalkiope and their grandfather advised against the plan, they sail across the Black Sea in a Colchian ship . As they approach the island of Aretias, Zeus lets up a sea storm that becomes so strong at night that the ship sinks and the Phrixos sons are stranded on the island of Aretias. The morning after the storm, the Argonauts land on Aretias and Argos asks their leader Jason for help, which is granted to him. When the heroes introduce each other, they realize that they are related: Argos' grandfather Athamas and Jason's grandfather Kretheus were brothers. Jason dresses the Phrixos sons anew, performs a sacrifice for Ares (to whom the island and its birds were dedicated) and offers the Phrixos sons to take them on his ocean-going ship at the sacrificial meal. When he told them about his plan to obtain the Golden Fleece from King Aietes , Argos advised them horrified against: Aietes was a cruel king of god-like power, his people were immeasurably large, the fleece was guarded by an immortal, sleepless snake. Jason doesn't let this warning dissuade him from his plan.

After being rescued, the Phrixos sons join the Argonauts. Argos takes on an important role in the further course of the epic as an adviser, local guide in Colchis and mediator before Aietes. When the Argonauts land in Colchis, on the advice of Argos they anchor in a bay near the mouth of the Phasis . The next morning Jason sets off with his companions Augeias and Telamon and with the sons of Phrixos to the palace of Aietes to ask him to hand over the Golden Fleece voluntarily. When they arrive at the palace, they first meet Chalkiope, who greets her sons warmly. Then the residents of the palace gather and organize a feast for the guests, at which Aietes first asks his grandchildren, the Phrixos sons, with what concerns they have returned from their trip to Greece. Argos answers him on behalf of his brothers and tells of the shipwreck, of their rescue by Jason and the Argonauts and, finally, of their plans to acquire the Golden Fleece on behalf of "some king". In doing so, he subtly reveals Jason's strength, testifies to his pure disposition and refers to the anger of Zeus, who is supposed to be appeased by the return of the golden fleece and the remains of Phrixos contained therein to Greece. He also praises the Argonauts' ship, which was built by Athena and is much more resilient than Colchian ships. He emphasizes that the Argonauts do not want to conquer the Golden Fleece by force, that they hope that Aietes will hand it over to them voluntarily. Only after these explanations does he name the heroes and their origins, emphasizing the relationship to Aietes: Jason and Argos have common ancestors, Augeias, like Aietes, is a son of Helios and Telamon, through his father Aiakos, is a grandson of Zeus.

Aietes gets angry at this speech, mostly against the Phrixos sons, whom he believes are responsible for Jason's arrival. He lets go of an angry, paranoid speech against the Phrixos sons and the strangers, to which Jason responds soothingly by offering Aietes military aid in return. Instead, Aietes demands that Jason perform a task: Jason is supposed to plow the Ares field in front of the city with two wild bulls, sow dragon teeth in the furrow and defeat the warriors that will grow from it in battle. Jason considers this task impossible, but with a heavy heart he agrees and returns to the ship with Augeias, Telamon and Argos. Argos orders his younger brothers to stay in the palace of Aietes. They go to their mother's house.

Since the task seems impossible to Jason, Argos suggests that he seek help from the sorceress Medea , his mother's sister. Even if he thinks his mother is unlikely to stand by him against her own father, he wants to try. He makes the same proposal to the Argonauts when they deliberate. After a favorable bird sign, the seer advises Mopsos to follow this suggestion. On the mutual decision, Argos goes to his mother's house and asks her to approach Medea for help.

Argos accompanies Jason (together with Mopsos) to a secret meeting with Medea at the temple of Hecate . In the further course of the epic, Medea helps the Argonauts to win the Golden Fleece by making Jason invulnerable so that he can cope with the task of Aietes; later she enchants the sleepless snake guarding the fleece. Together with the Phrixos sons, she joins the Argonauts and sails with them to Greece. On the way back, Argos reminds the Argonauts of the alternative route that the seer Phineus had already given them: across the Istros (lower course of the Danube ) to the Tyrrhenian Sea .

With later authors

In the Argonautica of the Flavian epic Valerius Flaccus (1st century AD) Argos and his brothers have a different role than in Apollonios of Rhodes. Valerius Flaccus postpones Jason's meeting with the Phrixos sons until the Argonauts arrive at the palace of Aietes. In this version, the Argonauts support Aietes in the fight against the Scythians . Like all Greek heroes, the Sons of Phrixos excel in battle. As a foot fighter, Argos pushes two Scythian horsemen (Zacorus and Phalces) from their horses and kills a third (Amastris) in a duel.

In the Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis (2nd century), Argos marries Perimele in Greece and with her becomes the father of Magnes , after whom the Magnesia peninsula in Thessaly is named.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Scholien zu Apollonios von Rhodes: Argonautika 2,1122. 2.1149.
  2. ↑ Pherecytes of Athens: FGrHist 3 F 106 (handed down in the Scholien to Apollonios of Rhodes: Argonautika 1,4).
  3. ↑ Bibliotheke of Apollodor 1,9,16.
  4. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 1,18f. 111f.
  5. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 2,1093-1096.
  6. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,260-267. 304-314.
  7. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 2,1097-1122.
  8. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 2,1123–1167.
  9. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 2,1168-1225.
  10. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 2,1281–1184.
  11. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,299-316.
  12. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,317–366.
  13. ^ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,367-450.
  14. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,473–485.
  15. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,521-539.
  16. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,540–556.
  17. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 3,609-615.
  18. ↑ Apollonios of Rhodes, Argonautika 4,254-293.
  19. ↑ Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 5, 460-462.
  20. ↑ Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 6,553f. Cf. Thomas Baier : Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica Book VI. Introduction and commentary . Munich 2001 ( Zetemata 112), p. 230.
  21. ^ Antoninus Liberalis, Metamorphoses 23.1.