The Lion of Cithaeron [lower-alpha 1] was a lion in Greek mythology which harassed the lands of king Amphitryon and king Thespius or of king Megareus. Some myths say that it was killed by Heracles, while others say it was slain by Alcathous of Elis.
According to the Suda , it was also called the Thespian lion and the Ravine lion (Ancient Greek : Χαραδραῖος λέων, Charadraios leōn) because it lived in a place called "Ravine" (Ancient Greek : χαράδρα, charadra). [1]
One account of the myth, recorded by Apollodorus in the Bibliotheca , states that the lion came from Cithaeron to hunt the cattle belonging to Amphitryon and to King Thespius of Thespiae. When Heracles was eighteen years old, Thespius asked him to kill the lion. The hunt took Heracles fifty days, during which Thespius hosted him (and each night of which Heracles slept with a different daughter of the king). After Heracles slew the lion, he dressed himself in its skin and wore its scalp as a helmet. [2] According to the Suda, it was killed near Thespiae, before Heracles killed the Nemean lion. [1]
According to Pausanias, writing in the second century BC, the Megarians believed that the Cithaeronian Lion killed many people, including Euippus, the son of their king Megareus. Consequently, Megareus promised that whoever killed the Lion would marry his daughter and inherit his throne. Alcathous killed the lion and when he became the king, he built the temple of Artemis Agrotera (Huntress) (Ancient Greek : Ἀγροτέραν Ἄρτεμιν) and Apollo Agraeus (Hunter) (Ancient Greek : Ἀπόλλωνα Ἀγραῖον). [3] [4]
Heracles, born Alcaeus or Alcides, was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon. He was a descendant and half-brother of Perseus. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, the ancestor of royal clans who claimed to be Heracleidae (Ἡρακλεῖδαι), and a champion of the Olympian order against chthonic monsters. In Rome and the modern West, he is known as Hercules, with whom the later Roman emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximian, often identified themselves. Details of his cult were adapted to Rome as well.
In Greek mythology, Antiphus or Ántiphos is a name attributed to multiple individuals:
In Greek mythology, Eurypylus was the name of several different people:
In Greek mythology, Thespius or Thestius was a legendary founder and king of Thespiae, Boeotia. His life account is considered part of Greek mythology.
Cleolaus was a name attributed to two men in Greek mythology.
Alcathous was in Greek mythology, a Pisatian prince who became a king of Megara. He was the son of King Pelops of Pisa and Hippodamia, and brother of Atreus and Thyestes. He first married Pyrgo and afterwards Euaechme, and was the father of Ischepolis (Ἰσχέπολις), Callipolis (Καλλίπολις), Iphinoe, Periboea, and Automedusa.
In Greek mythology, Pyrrha may refer to the following women:
In Greek mythology, Lycurgus, also Lykurgos or Lykourgos, may refer to the following individuals:
In Greek mythology, Procris was a Thespian princess as the eldest of the 50 daughters of King Thespius and Megamede, daughter of Arneus. She bore twin sons, Antileon and Hippeus, to the hero Heracles.
In Greek mythology, Meline was a Thespian princess as one of the 50 daughters of King Thespius and Megamede, daughter of Arneus. She bore Laomedon to the hero Heracles.
In Greek mythology, Xanthis was a Thespian princess as one of the 50 daughters of King Thespius and Megamede, daughter of Arneus. She bore Homolippus to the hero Heracles.
In Greek mythology, Hesychia was a Thespian princess as one of the 50 daughters of King Thespius and Megamede, daughter of Arneus. She bore Oestrobles to the hero Heracles.
In Greek mythology, Antiades was the Thespian son of Heracles and Aglaia, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Phalias was the Thespian son of Heracles and Heliconis, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Oestrobles was the Thespian son of Heracles and Hesychia, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Capylus was the Thespian son of Heracles and Hippo, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Halocrates was the Thespian son of Heracles and Olympusa, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Tigasis was the Thespian son of Heracles and Phyleis, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
In Greek mythology, Hippeus was the Thespian son of Heracles and Procris, eldest daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae. He was the twin brother of Antileon.
In Greek mythology, Atromus was the Thespian son of Heracles and Stratonice, daughter of King Thespius of Thespiae.
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