A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

ARGONAUTAE. 'ARGONAUTAE. e81
eastern ocean, and then round Asia to the southern gations, and whose works were used by Apollocoast of Libya. Here the Argonauts landed, and nius Rhodius, is given by the Scholiast on this
carried their ship through Libya on their shoulders poet. Besides the Argonautics of the Pseudountil they came to the lake of Triton, through Orpheus, we now possess only those of Apollonius
which they sailed northward into the Mediterra- Rhodius, and his Roman imitator, Valerius Flaccus.
nean, and steered towards Lemnos and Iolcus. The account which is preserved in Apollodorus'
The Erythraean sea in this account is the eastern Bibliotheca (i. 9. ~~ 16-27) is derived from the
ocean. There is scarcely any other adventure in best sources that were extant in his time, and
the ancient stories of Greece the detail of which chiefly'from Pherecydes. We shall give his achas been so differently related by poets of all kinds, count here, partly because it is the plainest, and
The most striking differences are those relative to partly because it may fill up those parts which
the countries or seas through which the Argonauts Pindar in his description has touched upon but
returned home. As it was in most cases the object slightly.
of the poets to make them return through some un- When Jason was commissioned by his uncle
known country, it was necessary, in later times, to Pelias of lolcus to fetch the golden fleece, which
shift their road, accordingly as geographical know- was suspended on an oak-tree in the grove of Ares
ledge became more and more extended. While in Colchis, and was guarded day and night by a
thus Pindar makes tLem return through the eastern dragon, he commanded Argus, the son of Phrixus,
ocean, others, such as Apollonius Rhodius and to build a ship with fifty oars, in the prow of
Apollodorus, make them sail from the Euxine into which Athena inserted a piece of wood from the
the rivers Ister and Eridanus into the western speaking oaks in the grove at Dodona, and he inocean, or the Adriatic; and others, again, such as vited all the heroes of his time to take part in the
the Pseudo-Orpheus, Timaeus, and Scymnus of expedition. Their first landing-place after leaving
Chios, represent them as sailing through the river lolcus was the island of Lemnos, where all the
Tanais into the northern ocean, and round the womien had just before murdered their fathers and
northern countries of Europe. A fourth set of husbands, in consequence of the anger of Aphrotraditions, which was adopted by Herodotus, Cal- dite. Thoas alone had been saved by his daughters
limachus, and Diodorus Siculus, made them return and his wife Hypsipyle. The Argonauts united
by the same way as they had sailed to Colchis. themselves with the women of Lemnos, and HypAll traditions, however, agree in stating, that sipyle bore to Jason two sons, Euneus and Nebrothe object of the Argonauts was to fetch the golden pho'nus. From Lemnos the Argonauts sailed to
fleece which was kept in the country of Aeetes. the country of the Doliones, where king Cizycus
This fleece was regarded as golden as early as the received them hospitably. They left the country
time of Hesiod and Pherecydes (Eratosth. Catast. during the night, and being thrown back on the
19), but in the extant works of Hesiod there is coast by a contrary wind, they were taken for
no trace of this tradition, and Mimnermus only Pelasgians, the enemies of the Doliones, and a
calls it "a large fleece in the town of Aeetes, struggle ensued, in which Cizycus was slain; but
where the rays of Helios rest in a golden chamber." being recognised by the Argonauts, they buried
Simonides and Acusilaus described it as of purple him and mourned over his fate. They next landed
colour. (Schol. adEitrip. Med. 5, ad Apollon. Rhod. in Mysia, where they left behind Heracles aind
iv. 1147.) If, therefore, the tradition in this form Polyphemus, who had gone into the country in
had any historical foundation at all, it would seem search of Hylas, whom a nymph had carried off
to suggest, that a trade in furs with the countries while he was fetching water for his companions.
north and east of the Euxine was carried on by In the country of the Bebryces, king Amycus
the Minyans in and about Iolcus at a very early challenged the Argonauts to fight with him; and
time, and that some bold mercantile enterprise to when Polydeuces was killed by him, the Argothose countries gave rise to the story about the nauts in revenge slew many of the Bebryces, and
Argonauts. In later traditions, the fleece is uni- sailed to Salmydessus in Thrace, where the seer
versally called the golden fleece; and the won- Phineus was tormented by the Harpyes. When
drous ram who wore it is designated by the name the Argonauts consulted him about their voyage,
of Chrysomallus, and called a son of Poseidon and he promised his advice on condition of their deliTheophane, the daughter of Brisaltes in the island vering him from the Harpyes. This was done by
of Crumissa. (Hygin. Fab. 188.) Strabo (xi. Zetes and Calais, two sons of Boreas;'and Phineus
p. 499; comp. Appian, de Bell. Mithrid. 103) en- now advised them, before sailing through the Symdeavours to explain the story about the golden plegades, to mark the flight of a dove, and to judge
fleece from the Colchians' collecting by means of from its fate of what they themselves would have
skins the gold sand which was carried down in to do. When they approached the Symplegades,
their rivers from the mountains, they sent out a dove, which in its rapid flight
The ship Argo is described as a pentecontoros, between the rocks lost only the end of its tail.
that is, a ship with fifty oars, and is said to have The Argonauts now, with the assistance of Hera,
conveyed the same number of heroes. The Scho- followed the example of the dove, sailed quickly
liast on Lycophron (175) is the only writer who between the rocks, and succeeded in passing through
states the number of the heroes to have been one without injuring their ship, with the exception of
hundred. But the names of the fifty heroes are not some ornaments at the stern. Henceforth the
the same in all the lists of the Argonauts, and it is Symplegades stood immoveable in the sea. On
a useless task to attempt to reconcile them. (Apol- their arrival in the country of the Mariandyni, the
lod. i. 9. ~ 16; Hygin. Fab. 14, with the commen- Argonauts were kindly received by their k1i'g,
tators; compare the catalogue of the Argonauts in Lycus. The seer Idmon and the helmsman Tipij-s
Burmann's edition of Val. Flaccus.) An account died here, and the place of the latter was suppli'ed.
of the writers who had made the expedition of the by Ancaeus. They now sailed along the TihernoArgonauts the subject of poems or critical investi- don and the Caucasus, until they arrived at the