Phorbas (Phlegyer)

Phorbas ( Greek  Φόρβας ) is a figure in Greek mythology .

He was a Phlegyer who lived in the Phocian city ​​of Panopeus , and from there he made the sacred road to Delphi unsafe by challenging and killing passers-by. With this he finally aroused the wrath of the Delphic Apollo ; the god appeared to Phorbas in the form of a boy and slew the challenger.

In a more detailed version of the legend, Δρυός κεφαλαί (δρῦς = oak, κεφαλή = head) is the scene of the action, as a location on the river Kephissos . Phorbas tried to defeat his opponents in fistfighting, running, wrestling, pankration and discus throwing. Then he beheaded them and hung their heads on an oak tree (see above).

literature

• Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher : Phorbas 2 . In: Wilhelm Heinrich Roscher (Hrsg.): Detailed lexicon of Greek and Roman mythology . Volume 3.2, Leipzig 1909, Col. 2427 f. ( Digitized version ).