Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and

Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans, and is a form of Roman folklore. "Roman mythology" may also refer to the modern study of these representations, and to th ...

, Iphis ( or ; , gen. Ἴφιδος ''Íphidos'') was a child of Telethusa and Ligdus in

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

, born female and raised as male, who was later transformed by the goddess

Isis Isis was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingdom () as one of the main characters of the Osiris myth, in which she resurrects her sla ...

into a man.

Mythology

According to

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' (, , ) is a Latin Narrative poetry, narrative poem from 8 Common Era, CE by the Ancient Rome, Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''Masterpiece, magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the world from its Cre ...

'', in the city of

Phaistos Phaistos (, ; Ancient Greek: , , Linear B: ''Pa-i-to''; Linear A: ''Pa-i-to''), also Transliteration, transliterated as Phaestos, Festos and Latin Phaestus, is a Bronze Age archaeological site at modern Faistos, a municipality in south centr ...

, there lived an honorable man named Ligdus and his pregnant wife, Telethusa. As Telethusa's due date drew near, Ligdus informed her of his desire for a son, since the couple could not afford a dowry for a daughter. He also warned her, that if the child was female, she would have to be put to death. Telethusa tried in vain to change her husband's mind, but Ligdus, despite his own despair, held firm. However, Telethusa was soon visited in the middle of the night by the Egyptian goddess Isis, along with a train of other gods:

Anubis Anubis (; ), also known as Inpu, Inpw, Jnpw, or Anpu in Ancient Egyptian (), is the god of funerary rites, protector of graves, and guide to the underworld in ancient Egyptian religion, usually depicted as a canine or a man with a canine hea ...

Bastet Bastet or Bast (), also known as Ubasti or Bubastis, is a goddess of ancient Egyptian religion, possibly of Nubian origin, worshipped as early as the Second Dynasty (2890 BC). In ancient Greek religion, she was known as Ailuros (). Bastet was ...

, Apis,

Harpocrates Harpocrates (, Phoenician language, Phoenician: 𐤇𐤓𐤐𐤊𐤓𐤈, romanized: ḥrpkrṭ, ''harpokratēs'') is the god of silence, secrets and confidentiality in the Hellenistic religion developed in History of Alexandria#Ptolemaic era ...

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wikt:wsjr, wsjr'') was the ancient Egyptian deities, god of fertility, agriculture, the Ancient Egyptian religion#Afterlife, afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...

, and the Egyptian serpent. Isis advised her despondent follower to disobey her husband's orders and keep the child, regardless of its sex. Isis also promised to aid Telethusa and her child in any future troubles. When Telethusa gave birth to a girl, she concealed the infant's sex from her husband and conspired with her nursemaid to raise her child as a son. The child was named Iphis, a name Telethusa secretly rejoiced in, as it was gender neutral. When Iphis turned 13, Ligdus, still ignorant of Iphis's true sex, arranged for her to marry Ianthe, daughter of Telestes, who was "praised by all the women of Phaistos for the dower of her unequalled beauty." The two youths, who had been instructed alongside each other and shared the same teachers, fell deeply in love with the other.Ovid
''Metamorphoses'', Section 9, Line 80-82.
/ref> As described by Ovid, Ianthe waited in confidence for their promised union, believing she would wed a man. In contrast, Iphis loved Ianthe without hope, burdened by the knowledge of her womanhood. As Iphis lamented to the goddess Juno and the god Hymenaios:Ovid
''Metamorphoses'', Section 9, Line 93-105.
/ref>

"O what will be the awful dreaded end, with such a monstrous love compelling me? If the Gods should wish to save me, certainly they should have saved me; but, if their desire was for my ruin, still they should have given some natural suffering of humanity. The passion for a cow does not inflame a cow, no mare has ever sought another mare. The ram inflames the ewe, and every doe follows a chosen stag; so also birds are mated, and in all the animal world no female ever feels love passion for another female—why is it in me?"

Telethusa attempted to delay the wedding, knowing that it would lead to the discovery of her ruse, but soon exhausted every avenue of excuse. The day before the wedding, Telethusa, now desperate, brought her daughter with her to the temple of Isis. Together, the two offered their jewelry and prayed for any type of aid. In response to their prayers, the altar moved and the temple doors shook. Pleased by the omen, Telethusa left the temple with Iphis, only to find her daughter transformed. As described by Ovid:

Her face seemed of a darker hue, her strength seemed greater, and her features were more stern. Her hair once long, was unadorned and short. There is more vigor in her than she showed in her girl ways. For in the name of truth, Iphis, who was a girl, is now a man!

After being transformed into a man, Telethusa and Iphis erected a tablet at the temple to commemorate the miracle. The next day, Iphis happily married Ianthe in a ceremony presided over by Juno, Hymenaios, and

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

Interpretations

The story of Iphis and Ianthe is the only mythological account of female same-sex desire, not only in Ovid, but in all of Graeco-Roman mythology.Kamen
''Naturalized Desires and the Metamorphosis of Iphis''. 39(1), 21.
/ref> Whether Ovid disapproves of or is sympathetic toward female homoerotic desire has been a point of contention for scholars. The main social inscription in this myth is the need for a male heir in a patriarchal society and the inevitable misogyny this creates. The story of Iphis is similar to that of

Leucippus Leucippus (; , ''Leúkippos''; ) was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher. He is traditionally credited as the founder of atomism, which he developed with his student Democritus. Leucippus divided the world into two entities: atoms, indivisible ...

from Phaistos, Crete, and could be a variant thereof.

Antoninus Liberalis Antoninus Liberalis () was an Ancient Greek grammarian who probably flourished between the second and third centuries AD. He is known as the author of ''The Metamorphoses'', a collection of tales that offers new variants of already familiar myths ...

17
/ref>

In popular culture

* The 17th-century publisher

Humphrey Moseley Humphrey Moseley (died 31 January 1661) was a prominent London publisher and bookseller in the middle seventeenth century. Life Possibly a son of publisher Samuel Moseley, Humphrey Moseley became a "freeman" (a full member) of the Stationers C ...

once claimed to possess a manuscript of a play based on the Iphis and Ianthe story, by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

. Scholars have treated the claim with intense skepticism; the play has not survived. *

Ali Smith Ali Smith CBE FRSL (born 24 August 1962) is a Scottish author, playwright, academic and journalist. Sebastian Barry described her in 2016 as "Scotland's Nobel laureate-in-waiting". Early life and education Smith was born in Inverness on 24 A ...

's 2007 novel '' Girl Meets Boy'' is based on Ovid's story of Iphis and Ianthe, and is part of the Canongate Myth Series. * The Mechanisms' 2013 album Tales To Be Told features a song called "Iphis" based on the story of Iphis and Ianthe. * Liberty of London has fabric and leatherwork patterns named after both Iphis and Ianthe.

Note

References

* Publius Ovidius Naso, ''Metamorphoses'' translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
* Publius Ovidius Naso, ''Metamorphoses.'' Hugo Magnus. Gotha (Germany). Friedr. Andr. Perthes. 1892
Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library
{{Authority control Metamorphoses into the opposite sex in Greek mythology Metamorphoses characters Mythological Cretans Characters in Roman mythology Isis

Mythology

Interpretations

In popular culture

See also

Note

References