Cattle of Helios
conceptSacred immortal cattle of the sun god on the island of Thrinacia, whose slaughter by Odysseus's men doomed the entire crew.
The Myth
Tiresias, Circe, and Odysseus all warned them — they ate the cattle anyway, and Zeus killed every last one. The sacred cattle of Helios on Thrinacia could not be killed or eaten. Tiresias warned Odysseus in the Underworld. Circe warned him on Aeaea. Odysseus warned his crew on arrival. They were trapped on the island by contrary winds for a month. When Odysseus fell asleep, Eurylochus convinced the starving crew to slaughter the finest cattle, promising to build Helios a temple later. The hides crawled and the meat lowed on the spit. Helios demanded Zeus punish them. Zeus struck the ship with lightning as it left — only Odysseus survived, clinging to the mast.
Symbols
Fun Fact
The mooing meat and crawling hides are among the most uncanny details in Homer.
Explore Further
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Thrinacia
placeThe mythical island where the sacred cattle of Helios grazed, whose slaughter by Odysseus's...
Aeaea
placeAeaea was the mythical island home of Circe, the divine sorceress who transformed Odysseus's men...
Aeaea (Isle of Circe)
placeThe mythical island home of the enchantress Circe, where Odysseus's men were transformed into swine...
Circe
godA powerful sorceress who lived on the island of Aeaea. Circe transformed Odysseus's men into swine...
Circe (Sorceress)
godDaughter of Helios and powerful sorceress who transformed Odysseus's men into pigs on the island of...
Eurylochus
heroSecond-in-command of Odysseus's crew who led the mutiny that killed the cattle of Helios and doomed...
Helios
godThe Titan who drove the sun chariot across the sky each day, providing light to the world. Helios...
Helios (Sun God)
godHelios was the Titan god who drove the chariot of the sun across the sky each day — seeing...
Odysseus
heroThe cleverest of the Greek heroes, whose ten-year journey home from Troy is one of the greatest...
Odysseus (Trickster)
heroOdysseus was the most cunning of all Greek heroes — the man of polytropos (many turns), whose...
Sacred Way (Delphi)
placeThe processional road ascending to Apollo's temple at Delphi, lined with treasuries and monuments...