Dictys
heroFisherman of Seriphos who rescued Danae and infant Perseus from the sea and raised the boy as his own.
The Myth
He pulled a wooden chest from the sea — inside were a mother and baby who would change the world. Dictys was casting his nets near Seriphos when he caught a sealed wooden chest. Inside were Danae and her infant son Perseus, set adrift by King Acrisius. Dictys took them home and raised Perseus. His brother Polydectes was king of Seriphos and eventually desired Danae, sending Perseus on the quest for Medusa's head to get him out of the way. When Perseus returned with the Gorgon's head and turned Polydectes to stone, he made Dictys king of Seriphos as reward for his kindness. Dictys is one of myth's quiet heroes — no divine blood, no great deeds, just a fisherman who saved two lives.
Parents
Magnes
Symbols
Fun Fact
Dictys is one of the few entirely good characters in Greek myth — he rescued, raised, and was rewarded without any moral complication.
Explore Further
Perseus (Hero)
heroPerseus was the demigod son of Zeus and Danaë who slew Medusa, rescued Andromeda, and founded the...
Polydectes
heroKing of Seriphos who desired Danae and sent Perseus to fetch Medusa's head, expecting the quest to...
Acrisius
heroKing of Argos who imprisoned his daughter Danae and was killed by his grandson Perseus with a...
Perseus
heroThe legendary hero who slew the Gorgon Medusa and rescued Andromeda from a sea monster. Perseus...
Danaë
heroDanaë was a princess locked in a bronze tower by her father to prevent a prophecy — but Zeus came...
Medusa
creatureA winged Gorgon with serpents for hair whose gaze could turn any living creature to stone. Once...
Medusa (Origin)
creatureOnce a beautiful priestess of Athena, raped by Poseidon in Athena's temple and punished by the...
Deucalion (Flood)
heroSon of Prometheus who survived Zeus's great flood by building an ark on his father's advice, then...
Absyrtus
heroSon of King Aeetes of Colchis, murdered and dismembered by his sister Medea to slow their father's...
Acastus
heroKing of Iolcus and Argonaut who later tried to murder Peleus by stranding him unarmed on Mount...
Achilles
heroThe greatest warrior in the Greek army at Troy, nearly invulnerable thanks to being dipped in the...
Actaeon
heroActaeon was a master hunter who accidentally saw Artemis bathing naked — she transformed him into a...