Bellerophon was the son of Glaucus and Eurymede, or was sometimes said to be the son of Poseidon. He lived in Ephyra (later Corinth) until he was forced to leave after accidentally killing a man named Bellerus. The name ‘Bellerophon’ means ‘Bellerus-killer.’
The Myth of Bellerophon
Bellerophon travelled to the palace of King Proetus of Tiryns, where the king’s wife soon fell in love with him. When he refused her advances she reacted with fury, accusing him of raping her and hoping her husband would have him killed. Proetus, hesitant to kill a guest, decided to send Bellerophon to Iobates, king of Lycia, with a sealed letter instructing him to kill the young man.
When Bellerophon reached Lycia, Iobates entertained him for nine days before finally reading the letter. Also fearing to kill a guest, he decided instead to set Bellerophon a series of impossible tasks that would be sure to kill him. The first of these tasks was to kill the monstrous Chimaera that had been terrorising Lycia.
The Winged Horse Pegasus
Homer, the first to tell the story of Bellerophon, does not mention the famous winged horse of Greek mythology. However, all later accounts describe Bellerophon’s capture and use of Pegasus to accomplish his tasks. Pegasus is an immortal, winged horse that sprung from the head of Medusa when Perseus killed her. Pegasus’ father is the god Poseidon.
Bellerophon first saw the beautiful horse by a spring and asked the seer Polyidus how he might tame him. Polyidus advised him to seek the gods’ help by sleeping at the altar of Athena. He did so, and the goddess came to him in a dream, bringing him a golden bridle and instructing him to sacrifice a white bull to Poseidon. When he woke he found the bridle and quickly made the sacrifice. After this he was easily able to approach and tame Pegasus, who willingly accepted the golden bridle.
The Chimaera
The Chimaera (sometimes spelt Chimera) is a mythical beast with the body of a lion and three heads: a lion at the front, a goat in the middle, and a snake’s head and body forming the creature’s tail. It was described by Hesiod in his Theogony, who claims that the beast was swift, strong and breathed fire. Homer gave a similar description. Chimaera means ‘she goat’, but has come to mean any imaginary monster made up of very different parts. The word chimera can also mean a far-fetched or foolish fantasy. In genetics, a chimera is an animal that has two genetically distinct types of cells.
Bellerophon managed to slay the fearsome beast by flying above it on Pegasus and attacking from a high vantage point. He then returned to King Iobates for his second task.
Second and Third Tasks – The Solymi and the Amazons
After defeating the Chimaera, Bellerophon was sent to fight the fearsome tribe of the Solymi, and the Amazons, a race of female warriors. He defeated both single-handed. Running out of options, King Iobates sent the very best of his fighting men to ambush the hero, but Bellerophon easily vanquished them all.
After these amazing victories, Iobates was convinced that Bellerophon must be of divine descent. He gave him half his kingdom and his daughter in marriage, who bore Bellerophon three children: Hippolochus, Isander and Laodameia. This could be a happy end to Bellerophon’s myth, but the hero was soon to learn that pride comes before a fall.
Bellerophon’s End
In Euripides’ lost play Stheneboea, Bellerophon takes revenge on the woman who tried to have him killed by flinging her from Pegasus’ back while flying high over the sea. Later, Bellerophon met a similar fate when he decided to fly Pegasus to Mount Olympus, the home of the gods. Angered by this hubris, they sent a gadfly to sting Pegasus, who reared up and flung Bellerophon back to earth. This is described in another of Euripides’ lost plays, Bellerophon, and parodied in Aristophanes’ comedy Peace. Bellerophon survived his fall, and according to Homer wandered the earth, crippled and in rags, keeping away from human society.
Bellerophon and Pegasus in Art
Bellerophon is often depicted in art attacking the Chimaera, sometimes head-on, and later from above with the help of Pegasus. In vase painting, Proetus is sometimes shown giving Bellerophon the sealed letter that contains instructions to kill him, or Iobates receiving it.
In some art Perseus is depicted riding Pegasus, even though he never captured or used the winged horse in Greek mythology. In both Clash of the Titans films, Perseus used Pegasus to fight the sea monster and save the princess Andromeda. Read more about Perseus’ myth and the Clash of the Titans films here.
Sources
March, Jenny (1998). Dictionary of Classical Mythology, London: Cassell
Homer, The Iliad.
Victoria Hooper - Victoria Hooper is the acquisitions editor and acting editor for Polluto, a Spectrum Fantastic Arts award winning magazine published by ...
