Lynceus of Messenia

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For other uses, see Lynceus (mythology).

In Greek mythology, Lynceus (/ˈlɪnsiːəs, -sjuːs/; Ancient Greek: Λυγκεύς "lynx-eyed") was a Messenian prince and one of the Argonauts[1][2][3] who served as a lookout on the Argo.[4] He also participated in the hunt for the Calydonian boar.[5]

Family[]

Lynceus was a son of Aphareus and Arene[1][2][6] or Polydora or ,[7] and thus brother to Idas and Peisus.

Mythology[]

Lynceus was the murderer of Castor, along with his brother, Idas. He helped Idas to spot and kill Castor, and was in turn killed by Pollux, but first managed to wound Pollux with a thrown rock.[8] Idas and Lynceus murdered Castor because he and his brother Pollux had kidnapped and married Phoebe and Hilaeira, the daughters of Leucippus, who were betrothed to Lynceus and Idas[4] or possibly their relatives.[6]

Lynceus was said to have excellent sight; enabling him to see through walls, trees, skin[9] and the ground.[1][6] This ability had been compared to the real technique of x-ray photography and to Superman's x-ray vision.[10][11] According to some versions he was also able to see in the dark; in others his reputation for being able to see through the ground was simply a rumor that resulted from his knowledge of geology and gold-mining.[4]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica 1.151-155
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Ovid, Metamorphoses VIII, 304
  3. ^ Bibliotheca I, ix, 16
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Hyginus, Fabulae XIV
  5. ^ Bibliotheca I, viii, 2
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c Bibliotheca III, x, 3
  7. ^ Scholia on Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica, 1. 152, with a reference to Peisander for Polydora and to Theocritus for Laocoosa, see Theocritus, Idyll 22. 206
  8. ^ Bibliotheca III, xi, 2.
  9. ^ Iamblichus, Exhortation to Philosophy
  10. ^ Piero Formica (12 August 2013). Stories of Innovation for the Millennial Generation: The Lynceus Long View. p. 8. ISBN 9781137347312.
  11. ^ James Diggle (17 March 1994). Cambridge Orations 1982-1993: A Selection. p. 85. ISBN 9780521466189.
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