Atalanta (Argonaut)
heroThe only woman among the Argonauts in some traditions, a virgin huntress raised by bears who could outrun any man and demanded a footrace as the price of marriage.
The Myth
Atalanta was exposed at birth by her father Iasus, who wanted a son. A she-bear sacred to Artemis nursed her, and hunters raised her in the wilderness. She became the fastest runner alive and a deadly archer. Some traditions place her among the Argonauts; she was certainly among the hunters who killed the Calydonian Boar, drawing first blood with her arrow — provoking a deadly quarrel when Meleager awarded her the boar's hide, angering his uncles whom he then killed. Artemis was her patron, and Atalanta swore to remain a virgin. Her father, now recognising her fame, insisted she marry. Atalanta agreed, provided the suitor could beat her in a footrace — losers would die. Hippomenes (or Melanion) won by dropping three golden apples given by Aphrodite, which Atalanta paused to collect. They later desecrated a temple of Zeus or Cybele and were transformed into lions.
Parents
Iasus (or Schoeneus)
Children
Parthenopaeus (in some accounts)
Symbols
Fun Fact
The golden apple trick used to defeat Atalanta is one of mythology's most debated gender moments. Was Atalanta genuinely distracted by shiny objects (a sexist reading), or did she deliberately choose to lose because she wanted Hippomenes (a romantic reading)? Feminist classicists have argued both sides for decades. The myth has become a Rorschach test for attitudes about women, autonomy, and desire in classical scholarship.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth:
Explore Further
Atalanta
heroA heroine raised by bears who could outrun any mortal man. Atalanta joined the Argonauts, slew the...
Meleager
heroMeleager's life was bound to a burning log.
Argonauts
conceptThe Argonauts were the band of heroes who sailed with Jason on the Argo to retrieve the Golden...
Meleager and the Brand
conceptThe hero whose life was tied to a burning log by the Fates, extinguished by his mother Althaea and...
Calydonian Boar
creatureThe Calydonian Boar was a massive, destructive beast sent by Artemis to ravage Calydon after King...
Artemis Brauronia
godAn epithet of Artemis worshipped at Brauron in Attica, where young girls performed bear dances as a...
Jason
heroThe hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis in quest of the Golden Fleece. Jason's...
Aphrodite
godGoddess of love and beauty, born from the sea foam. Aphrodite's power to inspire desire was so...
Argo (Ship)
placeThe Argo was the ship built by Argus for Jason's quest — the first long-voyage ship in Greek myth,...
Artemis
godTwin sister of Apollo and goddess of the hunt. Artemis roamed the wild forests with her band of...
Zeus
godSupreme ruler of the Olympian gods and lord of the sky. Zeus overthrew his father Kronos and...
Zeus (King)
godZeus was the king of the Olympian gods, ruler of the sky, wielder of the thunderbolt — the supreme...