Aeetes

hero

Αἰήτης

sorcery

King of Colchis, son of Helios, father of Medea, and guardian of the Golden Fleece who set impossible tasks for Jason.

The Myth

His own daughter betrayed him for a stranger — and he never saw it coming. Aeetes was the son of Helios and brother of Circe and Pasiphae, making sorcery a family trait. When Jason arrived demanding the Golden Fleece, Aeetes set three impossible tasks: yoke fire-breathing bulls, sow dragon teeth, and fight the warriors that sprang from them. He assumed Jason would die. But Medea, Aeetes's own daughter, fell in love with Jason (aided by Aphrodite and Hera) and gave him magical ointments and strategies. She then helped steal the Fleece and murdered her own brother Absyrtus during the escape. Aeetes pursued them but failed.

Parents

Helios, Perseis

Children

Medea, Absyrtus, Chalciope

Symbols

golden fleecefire-breathing bulls

Fun Fact

Aeetes was brother to both Circe and Pasiphae — sorcery ran in the family of the Sun.

Explore Further

Absyrtus

hero

Son of King Aeetes of Colchis, murdered and dismembered by his sister Medea to slow their father's...

Medea

hero

A powerful sorceress and princess of Colchis who betrayed her family to help Jason win the Golden...

Golden Fleece

concept

The fleece of a golden-wooled ram, hung in a sacred grove in Colchis and guarded by a sleepless...

Circe (Sorceress)

god

Daughter of Helios and powerful sorceress who transformed Odysseus's men into pigs on the island of...

Golden Fleece (Origin)

concept

The fleece of the golden ram Chrysomallus that carried Phrixus to Colchis, becoming the object of...

Helios

god

The Titan who drove the sun chariot across the sky each day, providing light to the world. Helios...

Jason

hero

The hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis in quest of the Golden Fleece. Jason's...

Medea (Sorceress)

hero

Medea was a granddaughter of Helios and priestess of Hecate whose sorcery saved Jason — and whose...

Phrixus

hero

Son of Athamas who rode the golden ram to Colchis, sacrificed it, and gave its fleece to King...

Aphrodite

god

Goddess of love and beauty, born from the sea foam. Aphrodite's power to inspire desire was so...

Circe

god

A powerful sorceress who lived on the island of Aeaea. Circe transformed Odysseus's men into swine...

Colchis

place

Colchis was a kingdom at the eastern edge of the Greek world, on the shore of the Black Sea in...