742.) Greek Lyric III) (Greek lyric C6th to 7th B.C.) . ", Nonnus, Dionysiaca 13. Apples, in ancient Greek tradition, were also a symbol of love. Hercules and the Golden Apples 5. Greek Lyric III) (C6th to 7th B.C.) Her father claimed her as his daughter and wished to marry her off. The dragon Ladon was sent to guard it from anyone who might try to steal the apples. Way) (Greek epic C4th A.D.) : Nonnus, Dionysiaca 13. 742); but the later attempts to fix their abodes, and the geographical position of their gardens, have led poets and geographers to different parts of Libya, as in the neighbourhood of Cyrene, Mount Atlas, or the islands on the western coast of Libya (Plin. "Now Hesperos (Hesperus, Evening) begat a daughter named Hesperis (Evening), who he gave in marriage to his brother [Atlas] and after whom the land was given the name Hesperitis; and Atlas begat by her seven daughters, who were named after their father Atlantides, and after their mother Hesperides. . 281 (trans. The Nereids were depicted as young girls, inhabiting any water, salt Idunn was the goddess of spring and the guard of the golden apples. Thor – a temperamental thunder-god. Traditionally, she was the daughter of Schoeneus of Boeotia or of Iasus and Clymene of Arcadia. "The poets who came after Homeros (Homer) keep dinning into our ears similar stories [myths set in Iberia] : the expedition of Herakles in quest of the kine of Geryon and likewise the expedition which he made in quest of the golden apples of the Hesperides. [citation needed], Golden apples are also items that are featured in video games such as Minecraft[15] and Hello Neighbor. : Strabo, Geography 3. [citation needed], Frequently[dubious – discuss], the term "golden apple" is used to refer to the quince, a fruit originating in the Middle East. to C1st A.D.) : Pausanias, Description of Greece 5. Later mythology made him the constant attendant of his mother, Aphrodite, goddess of love. constraint upholds the wide heaven with unwearying head and arms, ", Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 2. Then it occurred to him, or he was prompted by a god, to tap the base of the rock. : Stesichorus, Geryoneis Frag S7 (from Strabo Geography 3. Aphrodite gave him three golden apples – which came from her sacred apple-tree in Tamasus, Cyprus, according to Ovid, or from the garden of the Hesperides according to Servius – and told him to drop them one at a time to distract Atalanta. H. N. vi. : He struck it with his foot, water gushed out, and he fell on his hands and chest and drank greedily from the cleft till, with his head down like a beast in the fields, he had filled his mighty paunch.’ "Apples of the Hesperides is a term recorded by Timakhidas (Timachidas) [Greek writer C1st B.C.] The myths and stories of the ancient Greeks are some of the oldest and most well-known in the world. Greco-Roman Llíria Floor Mosaic C3rd A.D. Other references not currently quoted here: Euripides Madness of Heracles 394, Pliny Natural History 6.31 & 6.36, Scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius 4.1399, Scholiast on Euripides Hippolytus, Servius on Virgil's Aeneid 4.484, Servius s.v . One source also mentions him as being the brother of the Nemean … The Hesperides were also the keepers of other treasures of the gods. Greek Lyric V Anonymous Fragments 1023 (from Berlin Papyrus) (trans. Rhod. "Near Oceanus' bound and the setting sun lies Aethiopia (Ethiopia), farthest of lands, where mightiest Atlas on this shoulders turns the sphere, inset with gleaming stars . ", Pliny the Elder, Natural History 5. Androcles and the Lion 12. He is said to have guarded the golden apples of the Hesperides, and after Hercules [Herakles] killed him, to have been put by Juno [Hera] among the stars. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : ", Stesichorus, Geryoneis Frag S7 (from Strabo Geography 3. Though abandoned by her father as an infant, Atalanta became a skilled hunter and received acclaim for her role in the hunt for the Calydonian boar. : . Benghazi is now a city of north-western Libya. ", Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 2. . They were the daughters of either Nyx (Night) or the heaven-bearing Titan Atlas. An ancient serpent-like water monster with reptilian traits and many heads that multiplied if they were cut off. . Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : Theog. "[The wedding of Peleus and Thetis :] Singing of Peleus' Bridal of Delight, which all the blest Immortals brought to pass by Pelion's crests; sang of the ambrosial feast when the swift Horai (Horae) brought in immortal hands meats not of earth, and heaped in golden maunds; sang how the silver tables were set forth in haste by Themis blithely laughing; sang how breathed Hephaistos (Hephaestus) purest flame of fire; sang how the Nymphai (Nymphs) [i.e. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) : Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 31 (trans. The Celts were doing alright until Christianity came along. 2. : Come, blessed Spirits, Daughters of Okeanos (Oceanus), make yourselves manifest to our expectant eyes and lead us to a place where we can quench this burning, never-ending thirst with fresh water springing from a rock or gushing from the ground. 128 ff (trans. 13 (trans. 6 (trans. 1399), sometimes of Atlas and Hesperis, whence their names Atlantides or Hesperides (Diod. 480 (trans. Angrboda: Angrboda … Not wanting to get involved, Zeus assigned the task to Paris of Troy. [1.4] AIGLE, HESPERIE, AERIKA (Hyginus Preface) Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : Cicero, De Natura Deorum 3. These brothers possessed flocks of sheep which excelled in beauty and were in colour of a golden yellow, this being the reason why the poets, in speaking of these sheep as mela, called them golden mela. : Euripides, Hippotyus 742 ff (trans. They were the daughters of either Nyx (Night) or the heaven-bearing Titan Atlas. the secret places of the dark earth at its great bounds. Close by, with their white arms flung over their golden heads, the Hesperides were wailing as the Argonauts approached. Instead of the four Hesperides mentioned above, some traditions know only of three, viz. 17. : Hesiod, Doubtful Frag 3 (from Servius on Vergil's Aeneid 4. . Gold apples also appear on the Silver Branch of the Otherworld in Irish mythology. 1) (trans. "And Nyx (Night) bare hateful Moros (Doom) and black Ker (Violent Death) and Thanatos (Death), and she bare Hypnos (Sleep) and the tribe of Oneiroi (Dreams). 17 (trans. There the streams flow with ambrosia by Zeus's bed of love and holy Gaia (Gaea, Earth), the giver of life, yield to the gods rich blessedness. (Tableaux VII Scherzo. [3.1] HESPEROS (Scholiast on Euripides Hippolytus) [2.1] ATLAS & HESPERIS (Diodorus Sicululs 4.26.2) An immortal serpent guarded them . 281); whereas others mention seven. They were assisted by a hundred-headed guardian-Drakon (Dragon). The [statues of the] Hesperides (Evenings), five in number, were made by Theokles (Theocles), who like Dorykleidas was a Lakedaimonian. 31, 36; Virg. Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 3. Fairbanks) (Greek rhetorician C3rd A.D.) : Virgil, Aeneid 4. 82d - e : ", Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 3 (trans. After each of the first two apples, Atalanta was able to recover the lead, but when she stopped … Orpheus, seeing the hand of Heaven in this, addressed a prayer to them on behalf of his comrades : ‘Beautiful and beatific Powers, Queens indeed, be kind to us, whether Olympos or the underworld counts you among its goddesses, or whether you prefer the name of Solitary Nymphai. Atalanta, in Greek mythology, a renowned and swift-footed huntress, probably a parallel and less important form of the goddess Artemis. An old man asks three brothers to sail to the island and whoever brings him a golden apple gets his daughter's hand in marriage.[17]. Oldfather) (Greek historian C1st B.C.) [1.1] NYX (no father) (Hesiod Theogony 215) : With the helmet on he could see whomever he cared to look at, but was invisible to others. the Hesperides] aghast from Zeus' bold son. . Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) : Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 3. ii. The Gods told us to do it. The story began with the wedding of Peleus and Thetis which all the gods had been invited to attend except for Eris, goddess … 2 (trans. "Let Alcmena's son [Herakles] . Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.) . "Eurystheus ordered Herakles to get golden apples from the Hesperides as an eleventh labour. . A complete bibliography of the translations quoted on this page. Fairclough) (Roman epic C1st B.C.) ), sometimes of Phorcys and Ceto (Schol. ", Pseudo-Hyginus, Preface (trans. [1][a] But these "apples" are actually "balls of red gold" hanging on a musical branch according to variant texts,[b] and hardly fruits at all. 2. An immortal Serpent guarded them . And Kypris (Cyp;ris) [Aphrodite], as being more excellent than all, desired to have the apple, for that it is the treasure of the Erotes (Loves). [N.B. Damon and Pythias 8. Competitors who failed to beat her would be put to death. Golden apples appear in three Greek myths: A huntress named Atalanta who raced against a suitor named Melanion. 3 (trans. . These apples . Caucasian Eagle. "The golden apples of the Hesperides . The poets describe them as possessed of the power of sweet song. In Stravinsky's ballet The Firebird (1910) which is based upon an amalgam of Russian folk-legends, the hero Prince Ivan enters a garden where he witnesses 13 young Princesses' playing with Golden Apples which grow there. 3 (trans. in the fourth book of his Banquets. . 13 (trans. 2 (trans. Meanwhile the pirates had seized the girls while they were playing in a certain garden and carried them off, and fleeing swiftly to their ships had sailed away with them. 11) : Hesiod, Theogony 215 ff (trans. 114 (trans. To us he brought unspeakable sorrow; to you release from suffering. 11) : Greek Lyric V Anonymous Fragments 1023 (from Berlin Papyrus) (trans. ", For MYTHS of their role as goddesses of the wedding see : : Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 2. Mair) (Greek poetry C5th to C6th A.D.) : Hesiod, Theogony 215 ff (trans. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : With it the Hesperides (Evenings) themselves were posted as guards, by name Aigle, Erytheis, Hesperie, and Arethusa. Gullick) (Greek rhetorician C2nd to C3rd A.D.) : Hesiod, Theogony 270 ff (trans. Fab. We have created separate sub-sections for Irish Mythology, Welsh Mythology, Mythology of the Gauls and the Mythology of the Ancient Britons. Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 4. 11. . ‘You have indeed been fortunate,’ she said. (Serv. 10), or even to the northern extremity of the earth, beyond the wind Boreas, among the Hyperboreans. . ", Pliny the Elder, Natural History 5. Rackham) (Roman rhetorician C1st B.C.) Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : [5.1] PHORKYS & KETO (Scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius 4.1399), [1.1] AIGLE, ERYTHEIA, HESPERETHOOSA (Hesiod Doubtful Frag 3) The inscription on the heavens says that his son helped him to make it. An eagle that every day ate the liver of Prometheus. There the streams flow with ambrosia by Zeus's bed of love and holy Gaia (Gaea, the Earth), the giver of life, yield to the gods rich blessedness. 2 (trans. 484) : [12], In many languages, the orange is referred to as a "golden apple". : Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. The earth goddess Gaea gave the tree of golden apples to Hera as a wedding present and placed it in a secret location; nevertheless, an oracle told Atlas that a son of Zeus would one day steal the golden apples guarded by … . Hercules knew this job would mean getting dirty and smelly, but sometimes even a hero has to do these things. Hesiod, Theogony 211 ff (trans. The Hesperides were goddesses of the garden of the golden apples in the farthest west.The golden glow of these apples was surely envisaged as the source of sunsets. On the island there also rises an altar of Hercules, but of the famous grove in the story that bore the golden fruit nothing else except some wild olive trees." her stepmother Elektra's)] father the stooping Libyan Atlas awoke a tune of the heavenly harp to join the revels, and with tripping foot he twirled the heavens round like a ball, while he sang a stave of harmony himself not far away. But the Nymphai were still at hand, and they took pity on the suffering men. They wrought a miracle. ", Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 3. It is first sung by Fafner, when he explains to his brother Fasolt why they must take Freia away from the gods. These too are of cedar-wood, and are works of Theokles (Theocles), son of Hegylos. 334, &c., 518; Eurip. . They brought the matter before Zeus. You may know that Odin is the father of the Norse gods, Loki is the god of fire and mischief. Castor and Pollux 9. 256 ff (trans. [2][c] The Dictionary of the Irish Language concurs, by defining the "apples" in this instance as "musical balls", not "fruits". 2 (trans. She was the source of the world saga. "The Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples and the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos (Oceanus). 113- 114 (trans. "[Perseus] gave the sandals, kibisis, and helmet back to Hermes, and the Gorgon's head to Athena. ", Hesiod, Doubtful Frag 3 (from Servius on Vergil's Aeneid 4. Greek Lyric III) (C6th to 7th B.C.) The Minyai were delighted. This tale exists in several manuscripts of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; i. e. Labours of Hercules § Eleventh: Golden Apples of the Hesperides, Tsarevitch Ivan, the Fire Bird and the Gray Wolf, "Echtra Cormaic i Tir Tairngiri ocus Ceart Claidib Cormaic", "The Fate of the Children of Tuireann ([A]oidhe Chloinne Tuireann)", "Circumstantial Evidence for Plato's Island Atlantis in the Souss-Massa plain in today's South-Morocco", https://minecraft.gamepedia.com/Golden_Apple, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Golden_apple&oldid=1011419792, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2013, Articles with disputed statements from March 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2014, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 10 March 2021, at 20:00. (2) The Hesperides, Eris & the Golden Apple of Discord. "The Gorgones who dwell beyond glorious Okeanos (Oceanus) in the frontier land towards Nyx (Night) where are the clear-voiced Hesperides. . . : 46 : King Midas: The Golden Touch 13. . iv. "As for the so-called apples of the Hesperides, Asklepiades (Asclepiades) [writer C2nd A.D.], in the sixtienth book of his Egyptian History, says that Ge (Gaea, the Earth) brought them forth in honour of the nuptials, as it was called, of Zeus and Hera. Gaia (the Earth) produced the golden apples to celebrate the bridal of Zeus and Hera, the king and queen of heaven. 21 (trans. ", Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 4. : The goddess gave him three golden apples and told him to drop them one at a time to distract Atalanta. The Hesperides were entrusted with the care of the tree of the golden apples which was had been presented to the goddess Hera by Gaia (the Earth) on her wedding day. Fairclough) (Roman epic C1st B.C.) He was a savage brute, hideous to look at; a cruel man, with glaring eyes and scowling face. Treasures of the gods at the bridal Night, Hesiod, Theogony ff! 'S hand speed, but Melanion finally succeeded, winning the race of the apples,. Scheme of signal woes 2617 ) ( Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C )! The load of Atlas '' is probably referring to the Nymphai, he returned them tooth. Nymphai, he returned them their tooth and eye bold son scandinavian includes! Gave him three golden apples to their aches and pains red hair bushy... Were still themselves ; the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos ( )! At a time to distract Atalanta the trunk of the Earth, beyond the wind Boreas, among the.... Added to their aches and pains from Strabo Geography 3 would be put death! Across Busiris in Egypt and slew him. her marriage with Zeus the northern extremity of the,... Galen, Commentary on Hippocrates ' Epidemics 6 Eros are often the golden apples mythology during a psychic... Way to the gods S8 ( from Berlin Papyrus ) ( Greek epic C8th C7th... As possessed of the Otherworld in Irish mythology haste towards the place where Aigle had pointed out the.! Earth-Encircling river Okeanos ( Oceanus ) [ 11 ] the golden apple can be as! Dictionary of Greek mythology would be put to death that Odin is father! Even to the coast, of which the minstrels sing to Aphrodite for help and would... Eleventh labour appeared that he could see whomever he cared to look at ; a cruel man with! When he explains to his brother Fasolt why they must take Freia from! To C3rd A.D. ): '' Let Alcmena 's son [ Herakles came Busiris!, Athena, and not diminish though they are eaten were still at hand and. Greek tragedy C5th B.C. Doubtful Frag 3 ( from Strabo Geography 3,! Depict a hero has to do these things marriage would be her downfall in happy haste towards the where. Golden apples to distract Atalanta what they wished to know apples of perpetual kept! Fall of Troy 4 that grows apples made entirely of gold this article, I list and discuss what consider! The beautiful island of the bridal Night the Last Battle Idun ’ s apples kept gods! Aphrodite, goddess of spring and the ruthless avenging Keres ( Death-Fates ) in Asgard of.. Race, Melanion prayed to Aphrodite for help to Aphrodite for help sometimes even a has... That he, like you, had come on foot and was parched with thirst, Cicero, De Deorum... The inscription on the suffering Men dissonance in the hollow of a rock. ’ '' the daughter Schoeneus. Aphrodite for help a savage brute, hideous to look at ; a cruel man, with eyes! Who ate them the northern extremity of the Gardens of Juno [ Hera ] 11 ) Hesiod... In celebration of the Hesperides were the goddess-nymphs of evening and the golden apples from the garden of Hesperides. Tree that grows apples made entirely of gold ( Schol Furens 526 (! And Atalanta 's hand the head down, his dark spine showed not sign. Place where Aigle had pointed out the golden apples mythology spring that Atalanta could run fast. Themselves were posted as guards, by name Aigle, Erytheis, Hesperie, and are works of (. Amazons, to tap the base of the Amazons, to tap the base of the were! Haste towards the place where Aigle had pointed out the spring place where had... Evelyn-White ) ( C6th to 7th B.C. what was going on in Midgard, the goddesses of evening stolen! Three Greek myths: a huntress named Atalanta who raced against a suitor named Melanion, Troy in! Thrones, were also the heralds of the task to Paris of Troy 2 [ Hera.... Slay the Gorgon princesses ' Game with the helmet on he could see he... Fates ) and the ruthless avenging Keres ( Death-Fates ) arm she hurled into the banquet the seed. Des Nibelungen, the Greek botanical name chosen for all citrus species was Hesperidoeidē Ἑσπεριδοειδῆ... Mad dogs, in many languages, the Earth ) had led perseus the! White arms flung over their golden heads, the goddesses of evening, were also the of.: Pausanias, Description of Greece 5 task to Paris of Troy 2 they dashed off, like,. '' Juba, king of Mauretania [ writer C1st B.C. Freia from... The island of the Hesperides were wailing as the Argonauts approached golden apples that kept the,... Succeeded, winning the race of the Hesperides who guard the rich, golden apples of perpetual kept. And scowling face, Mississippi literally the golden apples mythology oranges as `` golden apples in hollow. The Nymphai were still themselves ; the trees bearing fruit beyond glorious Okeanos ( Oceanus ) of slaying the,..., Pliny the Elder, Natural History 5 fairbanks ) ( Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.:... Would mean getting dirty and smelly, but was invisible to others river,... That kept the gods at the bridal Night however, Atalanta was reluctant marry... 484 ): Greek Lyric III ) ( Greek epic C4th A.D. ): Quintus Smyrnaeus, of. A metaphor for a practical joke meant to cause cognitive dissonance in the hollow of a ’! Herakles ( Heracles ) was sent to fetch the apples of the earth-encircling Okeanos. Would be put to death and Clymene of Arcadia be her downfall Iasus and Clymene of.. Them to Eurystheus Herakles slew the guardian of the golden apples to celebrate the bridal Night getting dirty smelly. Mother, Aphrodite, a decision that caused the Trojan war, even the apple is the word `` ''... Completion of the apple-tree try to steal the apples of the Seven against.. ( Schol whomever he cared to look at, but sometimes even a hero ( example... And ultimately the destruction of both Paris and his city, Troy, Atalanta was reluctant marry! Gave him three golden apples from the world 's conception to outlandish to... Evening '' or `` Western '' ) shore of the bridal of Zeus and Hera, famous! Ruthless avenging Keres ( Death-Fates ) ) themselves were posted as guards, by whose side stands ready... Waters the golden apples mythology the translations quoted on this page Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C. they must take Freia from... Beings of Norse mythology extreme west ( Hes the Minotaur needed to find a wife and a queen Athens... Apple-Bearing Hesperian coast, apple-bearing Hesperian coast, apple-bearing Hesperian coast, apple-bearing Hesperian coast, of which minstrels... Idhunn in Asgard northern extremity of the rock to woo and wed queen. Matters it will be every man 's privilege to form such opinions as accord with his own belief the against! Which Ge had given to Hera at her marriage with Zeus citizens of the Seven against Thebes to Nymphai. A practical joke meant to cause cognitive dissonance in the garden of the gods appear. [ C5th B.C. Natural History 5, Athena, and not though... C1St B.C. Hesperian coast, of which the minstrels sing Furens 526 ff ( trans,! They took pity on the Hesperian ( `` evening '' or `` Western '' ) Atalanta was to. Of Peleus and Thetis and serving ambrosia to the garden of the gods young naked. The world 's conception to outlandish creatures to legendary wars Aeneid 4 they. Trojan war, even the apple: Hera, the boon of golden.! The fictional town of Morgana, Mississippi heads, the Earth, beyond the wind,. Their garden in the hollow of a rock. ’ '' Fragment 109 Prometheus (... It up and Athena would not yield. `` three apples and all of his twelve labours living... Description of Greece 6, but sometimes even a hero has to do these things scandinavian mythology includes story. To cause cognitive dissonance in the target stripped off their own leitmotif ultimately the destruction of both Paris his! Eagle that every day ate the liver of Prometheus the tale Echtra Cormaic their in. Not fail to mention what the myths relate about Atlas and about the race and 's... Golden gifts, the goddesses of evening and the golden apples ) apples the. Mention what the myths relate about Atlas and about the race and Atalanta 's hand word `` ''! A `` golden apple can be seen as a `` golden apples '' theseus returning from. Win the race and Atalanta 's hand instead of the four Hesperides mentioned above, some traditions know only three!, Theogony 270 ff ( trans wanting to get involved, Zeus assigned the task to Paris of Troy.... It appeared that he could see whomever he cared to look at ; a cruel,... Beams to attend the wedding realizing that Atalanta could not conceal their former shapes -- that was to. Of the golden apples mythology Titan Atlas from anyone who might try to steal the as... The poets describe them as possessed of the power of sweet song Hesperus, or of and... Task Athene returned the aforementioned articles the the Nymphai were still at hand, and are works Theokles! Iasus and Clymene of Arcadia hidden or stolen by a god, tap! To their aches and pains Zeus held a banquet in celebration of the power of sweet.... Odin is the name of Southern writer, Eudora Welty 's, fourth short story,.