Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

, Lycurgus (;

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

: Λυκοῦργος ''Lykoûrgos'', Ancient Greek: ), also spelled Lykurgos or Lykourgos, was the son of

Pheres In Greek mythology, Pheres (, ''Phéres'', modern pronunciation ''Féris''; ) is the son of Cretheus and Tyro, and the brother of Aeson and Amythaon. In the '' Bibliotheca'' of Apollodorus, he is said to be the founder of Pherae in Thessaly. I ...

, and the husband of

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice', classical pronunciation: ) was a character in Greek mythology and the wife of Orpheus, whom Orpheus tried to bring back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several ...

(or Amphithea) by whom he was the father of

Opheltes In Greek mythology, Opheltes (Ancient Greek: Ὀφέλτης), also called Archemorus (Αρχέμορος, Beginning of Doom), was a son of Lycurgus (of Nemea), Lycurgus of Nemea. His mother is variously given as Eurydice (Greek myth), Eurydice, ...

. In the earliest account, Lycurgus was a priest of Nemean

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

, while in later accounts he was a king of

Nemea Nemea (; ; ) is an ancient site in the northeastern part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. Formerly part of the territory of Cleonae (Argolis), Cleonae in ancient Argolis, it is today situated in the regional units of Greece, regional unit of Corin ...

. When the army of the

Seven against Thebes ''Seven Against Thebes'' (, ''Hepta epi Thēbas''; ) is the third play in an Oedipus-themed trilogy produced by Aeschylus in 467 BC. The trilogy is sometimes referred to as the ''Oedipodea''. It concerns the battle between an Argive army, led by ...

was passing through Nemea on its way to Thebes, Lycurgus' infant son

was killed by a serpent, through the negligence of his nursemaid

Hypsipyle In Greek mythology, Hypsipyle () was a queen of Lemnos, and the daughter of King Thoas of Lemnos, and the granddaughter of Dionysus and Ariadne. When the women of Lemnos killed all the males on the island, Hypsipyle saved her father Thoas. She r ...

. The child's funeral games were said to have been the origin of the

Nemean Games The Nemean Games ( or Νέμεια) were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were held at Nemea every two years (or every third). With the Isthmian Games, the Nemean Games were held both the year before and the year after th ...

and Lycurgus' tomb was said to be in the grove of Nemean

Family

According to

Euripides Euripides () was a Greek tragedy, tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to ...

, Lycurgus was from the

Asopus Asopus (; ''Āsōpos'') is the name of four different rivers in Greece and one in Turkey. In Greek mythology, it was also the name of the God (male deity), gods of those rivers. Zeus carried off Aegina (mythology), Aegina, Asopus' daughter, and ...

river valley to west of Nemea, and he and his wife Euridice, were the parents of Opheltes.

Hyginus Hyginus may refer to: People *Hyginus, the author of the '' Fabulae'', an important ancient Latin source for Greek mythology. *Hyginus, the author of the ''Astronomia'', a popular ancient Latin guide on astronomy, probably the same as the author ...

also has Eurydice as the mother of Opheltes, however Hyginus' Latin text has Opheltes' father being a king of Nemea named "Lycus", rather than Lycurgus—probably an error. The Latin poet

Statius Publius Papinius Statius (Greek language, Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; , ; ) was a Latin poetry, Latin poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid (Latin poem), Theb ...

, following Euripides, has Lycurgus and Euridice as the parents of Opheltes, however for Statius, Lycurgus is from Argos, and is both the king of Nemea, and the priest of Zeus. According to

Apollodorus Apollodorus ( Greek: Ἀπολλόδωρος ''Apollodoros'') was a popular name in ancient Greece. It is the masculine gender of a noun compounded from Apollo, the deity, and doron, "gift"; that is, "Gift of Apollo." It may refer to: :''Note: A ...

, Opheltes' father Lycurgus was the son of

, who was the son of

Cretheus In Greek mythology, Cretheus (; Ancient Greek: Κρηθεύς ''Krētheus'') was the king and founder of Iolcus. Family Cretheus was the son of King Aeolus of Aeolia (son of Hellen) by either EnareteHesiod, '' Ehoiai'' fr. 10(a); Apollodorus1. ...

and the founder of

Pherae Pherae (Greek: Φεραί) was a city and polis (city-state) in southeastern Ancient Thessaly. One of the oldest Thessalian cities, it was located in the southeast corner of Pelasgiotis. According to Strabo, it was near Lake Boebeïs 90 stadi ...

Thessaly Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Aeolic Greek#Thessalian, Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic regions of Greece, geographic and modern administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient Thessaly, a ...

. Pheres had another son

Admetus In Greek mythology, Admetus (; Ancient Greek: ''Admētos'' means 'untamed, untameable') was a king of Pherae in Thessaly. Biography Admetus succeeded his father Pheres after whom the city was named. His mother was identified as Periclymene o ...

. Lycurgus migrated to

and married

("or as some say Amphithea"), by whom he fathered

. Pausanias describes an image on the

Amyclae Amyclae or Amyklai () was a city of ancient Laconia, situated on the right or western bank of the Eurotas, 20 stadia south of Sparta, in a district remarkable for the abundance of its trees and its fertility. Amyclae was one of the most celebr ...

throne of

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

, which depicted

Adrastus In Greek mythology, Adrastus or Adrestus (Ancient Greek: Ἄδραστος or Ἄδρηστος), (perhaps meaning "the inescapable"), was a king of Argos, and leader of the Seven against Thebes. He was the son of the Argive king Talaus, but w ...

and

Tydeus Tydeus (; Ancient Greek: Τυδεύς ''Tūdeus'') was an Aetolian hero in Greek mythology, belonging to the generation before the Trojan War. He was one of the Seven against Thebes, and the father of Diomedes, who is frequently known by the patr ...

, two of the

, stopping a fight between

Amphiaraus Amphiaraus or Amphiaraos (; Ancient Greek: Ἀμφιάραος, Ἀμφιάρεως, "very sacred") was in Greek mythology the son of Oicles, a seer, and one of the leaders of the Seven against Thebes. Amphiaraus at first refused to go with Adr ...

, another of the Seven, and "Lycurgus the son of Pronax". If this refers to an event during the Seven's stop at Nemea, then this would presumably mean that in some version of the story, Opheltes' father Lycurgus, was the son of

Pronax In Greek mythology, Pronax (; Ancient Greek: Πρῶναξ) was one of the sons of Talaus and Lysimache, a brother of Adrastus and Eriphyle, and the father of Lycurgus and Amphithea. According to some accounts, he died before the war of the Seve ...

, rather than the son of Pheres, as in Apollodorus' account. However it is more likely that the Lycurgus in the scene described by Pausanias was different from the Lycurgus who was the father of Opheltes.

Mythology

Euripides

The earliest mention of Lycurgus occurs in

' partially preserved play ''

''. Hypsipyle, the former queen of

Lemnos Lemnos ( ) or Limnos ( ) is a Greek island in the northern Aegean Sea. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Lemnos (regional unit), Lemnos regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean modern regions of Greece ...

and lover of

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

, has in Euripides' play, come to be a slave of Lycurgus, and nursemaid of Lycurgus and his wife Eurydice's infant son Opheltes. The surviving fragments of the play contain only a few brief references to Lycurgus. In an early scene,

, one of the

, having just arrived at Lycurgus' house in Nemean Zeus' sacred grove, asks Hypsipyle, whose house it is, and she answers: :These are known as the wealthy halls of Lycurgus, who was chosen from all of Asopia to be the temple-keeper of our local Zeus. That is, Lycurgus is a priest of Nemean Zeus, from Asopia, a region of the Asopus river valley containing

Phlius Phlius (; ) or Phleius () was an independent polis (city-state) in the northeastern part of Peloponnesus. Phlius' territory, called Phliasia (), was bounded on the north by Sicyonia, on the west by Arcadia, on the east by Cleonae, and on the ...

and located to the west of Nemea. Although he is a king in later accounts, there is no indication of that in the surviving fragments of Euripides' play. In a later scene we learn that Lycurgus is away, and a fragmentary hypothesis of the play refers to guests of his household being "lodged with Lycurgus' wife", further suggesting Lycurgus' absence.

Hyginus

refers to Opheltes' story, in ''

Fabulae The ''Fabulae'' is a Latin handbook of mythology, attributed to an author named Hyginus, who is generally believed to have been separate from Gaius Julius Hyginus. The work consists of some three hundred very brief and plainly, even crudely, told ...

'' 15, 74, and 273. In all three, our received Latin text has "Lycus" as the name of Opheltes' father—however, this is probably a confusion of "Lycurgus", either originally by Hyginus, or perhaps more likely, in the transmission of the Latin text. And, unlike Euripides' account, in Hyginus' version of the story, he is a king, not a priest. Hyginus also tells of an oracle—perhaps given to Lycurgus, although Hyginus does not say—that had warned that Opheltes should not be put on the ground until he had learned to walk. In contrast with Euripides' play, where it is the enraged mother Eurydice, to whom the Seven appeal on Hypsipyle's behalf, and who needs to be appeased, in Hyginus' account it is Lycurgus.

Statius

The Latin poet

' epic poem, the ''

Thebaid The Thebaid or Thebais (, ''Thēbaïs'') was a region in ancient Egypt, comprising the 13 southernmost nome (Egypt), nomes of Upper Egypt, from Abydos, Egypt, Abydos to Aswan. Pharaonic history The Thebaid acquired its name from its proximit ...

''—which tells the story of the Seven against Thebes— also gives an account of Lycurgus' infant son Opheltes' death. While only passing references to Lycurgus are found in earlier sources, he has a substantial role in

' version of the story. Here Lycurgus is the priest of Zeus (as in Euripides), and the king of Nemea (as in Hyginus). While Euripides has Lycurgus coming from "Asopia", a region west of Nemea, for Statius Lycurgus is from Argos. He refers to Lycurgus as "Inachian", i.e related to

Inachus In Greek mythology, Inachus, Inachos or Inakhos (Ancient Greek: Ἴναχος) was the first king of Argos, Peloponnese, Argos. He was one of River gods (Greek mythology), the three thousand sons of Oceanus and Tethys (mythology), Tethys. The In ...

, the legendary first king of Argos, while

, the current king of Argos, and leader of the Seven, says of Lycurgus, "our ancestry is one". This raises the question why Lycurgus has not joined his fellow Argives in their war against Thebes, and in fact the hero

, one of the Seven, calls Lycurgus a "coward", saying "when your countrymen from every quarter have flocked to arms, you only amid the hurrying columns are at peace". However, Statius provides an explanation saying that Lycurgus' absence from the Seven's war with Thebes is due to priestly duties, and oracular warnings: :... taking no part in the Argive war; not that he lacked courage, but temple and altars held him back. Nor yet had the gods’ oracle and warnings of old dropped from his mind, the word received from the depth of the shrine: 'Lycurgus, you shall give first death to the Dircaean .e. Thebanwar.' Of that he is aware; the dust of Mars close by saddens him, he winces at the trumpets, and wishes the doomed army ill. Here the "first death" will turn out to be Lycurgus' son Opheltes. Passing through Nemea, on their way to Thebes, the Seven, in urgent need of water, encounter Hypsipyle with her nursling, the infant Opheltes. In her haste to provide water for the Seven, Hypsipyle leaves Opheltes lying on the ground, while she takes the Seven to a nearby spring. Meanwhile, left unattended, Opheltes is killed by the serpent who guards Zeus' sacred grove. Unlike in Euripides' play, where it is Eurydice who must be restrained, here, as in Hyginus, it is Lycurgus. When he hears of his son's death, Lycurgus flies into a rage, intending to kill Hypsipyle with his sword, but the Seven intervene to defend Hysipyle. A pitched battle between the Argives, and Lycurgus and his followers nearly breaks out, but finally Adrastus is able to calm both sides, and the seer

, another one of the Seven, is able to appease Lycurgus, by telling him that Ophelts's death was preordained by the gods, and that his son is now a god, and will be "accorded lasting honors".

Apollodorus

According to the mythographer

, Lycurgus, the son of

, migrated to Nemea, married Eurydice (or as he adds "some say, Amphithea") and fathered Opheltes. Apollodorus also gives a brief account of Opheltes' story, in which Lycurgus is only mentioned as being the king of Nemea and the owner of Opheltes' nurse Hypsipyle.

Tomb

The 2nd-century geographer, Pausanias, while describing the site of the

, mentions seeing there the "tomb of Lycurgus, the father of Opheltes".Hard
p. 426
Pausanias
2.15.3

Notes

References

, ''Apollodorus, The Library, with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes.'' Cambridge, Massachusetts,

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Bravo, Jorge J., III, ''Excavations at Nemea IV: The Shrine of Opheltes'', Univ of California Press, 2018. . * Collard, Christopher and Martin Cropp (2008b), ''Euripides Fragments: Oedipus-Chrysippus: Other Fragments'',

Loeb Classical Library The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a monographic series of books originally published by Heinemann and since 1934 by Harvard University Press. It has bilingual editions of ancient Greek and Latin literature, ...

No. 506. Cambridge, Massachusetts,

, 2008.
Online version at Harvard University Press
* Gantz, Timothy, ''Early Greek Myth: A Guide to Literary and Artistic Sources'', Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, Two volumes: (Vol. 1), (Vol. 2). * Grimal, Pierre, ''The Dictionary of Classical Mythology'', Wiley-Blackwell, 1996. . * Hard, Robin, ''The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology: Based on H.J. Rose's "Handbook of Greek Mythology"'', Psychology Press, 2004,
Google Books
* Hyginus, Gaius Julius, ''

'' in ''Apollodorus' ''Library'' and Hyginus' ''Fabulae'': Two Handbooks of Greek Mythology, Translated, with Introductions by R. Scott Smith and Stephen M. Trzaskoma'', Hackett Publishing Company, 2007. . * Parada, Carlos, ''Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology'', Jonsered, Paul Åströms Förlag, 1993. . * Pausanias, ''Pausanias Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes.'' Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
* Smith, William, ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' is a biographical dictionary of classical antiquity, edited by William Smith (lexicographer), William Smith and originally published in London by John Taylor (English publisher), Tayl ...

'', London (1873)
Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
*

, ''

, Volume I: Thebaid: Books 1-7'', edited and translated by D. R. Shackleton Bailey,

No. 207, Cambridge, Massachusetts,

, 2004.
Online version at Harvard University Press
* Tripp, Edward, ''Crowell's Handbook of Classical Mythology'', Thomas Y. Crowell Co; First edition (June 1970). {{ISBN, 069022608X. Kings in Greek mythology Mythological Corinthians Mythological Thessalians Nemea