Eriphyle
Eriphyle/ɛrɪˈfaɪliː/(Ancient Greek:ἘριφύληEriphȳlē) was a figure inGreek mythologywho, in exchange for thenecklace of Harmonia(also called the necklace of Eriphyle) given to her byPolynices,persuaded her husbandAmphiarausto join the expedition of theSeven against Thebes.She was then slain by her sonAlcmaeon.InJean Racine's1674 retellingofIphigenia at Aulis,she is anorphanwhose real name turns out to be Iphigenia as well; despite her many misdeeds, she rescuesIphigeniathe daughter ofAgamemnon.
Myths
[edit]Eriphyle, daughter ofTalaus,was the mother ofAlcmaeonand the wife ofAmphiaraus.Eriphyle persuaded Amphiaraus to take part in the expedition of theSeven against Thebes,though she knew he would die. She had been persuaded byPolynices,who offered her thenecklace of Harmoniafor her assistance.
Dying Amphiaraus charged his sons Alcmaeon andAmphilochuswith avenging his death and, after Amphiaraus died, fulfilling the prophecy, Alcmaeon killed his mother. He was pursued by theErinyesas he fled across Greece, eventually reaching the court of KingPhegeus,who gave him his daughter in marriage. Exhausted, Alcmaeon asked anoraclehow to assuage the Erinyes and was told that he needed to stop where the sun was not shining when he killed his mother. That was at the mouth of the riverAchelous,which had become silted up. Achelous, the god of that river, offered him his daughterCallirrhoein marriage if Alcmaeon would retrieve the necklace and clothes that Eriphyle had worn when she persuaded Amphiaraus to take part in the battle. Alcmaeon had given these jewels to Phegeus, who had his sons kill Alcmaeon when he discovered Alcmaeon's plan: thus lest the curse be transmitted to a next generation it was dedicated to Aphrodite atAmathusin Cyprus.[1]
Eriphyle is seen in Hades inVergil'sAeneid,still bearing wounds inflicted by her son. She also plays a role inStatius'sThebaid,[2]in which her desire to attain the necklace of Harmonia is one of the catalysts for the war between Argos and Thebes. In this version of the myth, however,Argia,Polynices's wife, persuades her husband to give the necklace to Eriphyle so that Amphiaraus will join the war effort.
Necklace
[edit]TheNecklace of Harmoniawas a gift toCadmuswhen
- Zeus gave him to wife Harmonia, daughter of Aphrodite and Ares. And all the gods quitted the sky, and feasting in theCadmeacelebrated the marriage with hymns. Cadmus gave her a robe and the necklace wrought by Hephaestus, which some say was given to Cadmus by Hephaestus, butPherecydessays that it was given by Europa, who had received it from Zeus.[3]
A relic was being shown inAmathusin Cyprus, in the time ofPausanias(2nd century CE):
- In Cyprus is a city Amathus, in which is an old sanctuary ofAdonisandAphrodite.Here they say is dedicated a necklace given originally to Harmonia, but called the necklace of Eriphyle, because it was the bribe she took to betray her husband. It was dedicated atDelphiby the sons of Phegeus (how they got it I have already related in my history of Arcadia), but it was carried off by the tyrants of Phocis.[4]
The necklace that Pausanias was shown was of green stones with gold, which made him skeptical of its being the one mentioned byHomer(Odysseyxi.327), for he noted other occasions in theOdysseywhere necklaces made of gold and stones mention the stones.