Aethon
A divine eagle, whose name means "blazing" or "burning", sent by Zeus to torment Prometheus by devouring his liver each day.
The Myth of Aethon
Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gifted it to humanity, an act Zeus could not forgive. Chained to a rock in the Caucasus Mountains, Prometheus was condemned to eternal suffering: each dawn, Aethon — a great eagle — descended to eat his liver. Because Prometheus was immortal, the organ regrew overnight, and the eagle returned at sunrise. This cycle continued for generations until Heracles shot the eagle with an arrow and freed the Titan. Aeschylus, Hesiod, and later authors all record the torment, though some name the bird an eagle sent by Zeus rather than giving it a personal name. Aethon represents divine punishment carried to its logical extreme — perpetual, mechanical, inescapable.
Parents
Zeus
Symbols
Fun Fact
The name Aethon was also given to one of the four horses of the sun — blazing and tireless creatures share the epithet across Greek myth.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Caucasian Eagle
🐉 creaturepunishment,sky
The eagle — offspring of Typhon and Echidna in some traditions — tasked by Zeus with devouring the liver of Prometheus each day upon his rocky prison.
Ethon
🐉 creaturePunishment, endurance
Giant eagle sent by Zeus to devour the liver of Prometheus daily as punishment for stealing fire
Prometheus Bound
💭 conceptpunishment, defiance
The punishment of Prometheus, chained to a rock in the Caucasus where an eagle devoured his regenerating liver daily for giving fire to humanity.
Prometheus
🏔 titanpunishment
Titan who stole fire from the gods for humanity and was chained to a mountain where an eagle ate his liver daily.
Caucasus Mountains
🏛 placegeography
The mountain range at the edge of the known world where Prometheus was chained as punishment for stealing fire.
Tityos
🗡 heropunishment
Giant who attempted to rape Leto and was condemned to have two vultures eat his regenerating liver in Tartarus forever.
Phoenix
🐉 creatureImmortal bird reborn from fire
A magnificent bird that lived for centuries before burning to death in a nest of spices and being reborn from its own ashes. The ultimate symbol of renewal.
Prometheus
🗡 heroBringer of fire and champion of humanity
Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity, for which Zeus chained him to a rock where an eagle devoured his liver daily — the archetypal rebel against divine authority.
Pegasus
🐉 creatureWinged divine horse
The immortal winged horse that sprang from the blood of Medusa when Perseus beheaded her. Pegasus was tamed by Bellerophon and later became a constellation.
Phineus
🗡 heroprophecy, punishment
A blind Thracian king and prophet punished by Zeus for revealing divine secrets, tormented by Harpies until rescued by the Argonauts.
Cadmean Vixen
🐉 creaturecurses,beasts
A supernatural vixen cursed to never be caught, sent to terrorise the people of Thebes as divine punishment — an uncatchable fox that had to be fed a child each month.
Pegasus
🐉 creatureFlight, heroism
Winged divine horse born from the blood of Medusa who carried Bellerophon against the Chimaera