Ethon
Giant eagle sent by Zeus to devour the liver of Prometheus daily as punishment for stealing fire
The Myth of Ethon
Ethon was the great eagle dispatched by Zeus to torment the Titan Prometheus as eternal punishment for stealing fire from the gods and giving it to humanity. Each day, Ethon descended upon Prometheus, who was chained to a rock in the Caucasus Mountains, and tore open his abdomen to feast upon his liver. Each night the liver regenerated, and each morning the eagle returned to repeat the torture. This cycle continued for generations, or in some accounts for thirty thousand years. Ethon was variously described as the offspring of Typhon and Echidna, or as a creation of the smith god Hephaestus. The eagle was finally killed by Heracles during one of his later adventures, who shot it with an arrow as part of his liberation of Prometheus. In some traditions, Ethon was called the Caucasian Eagle, and its destruction was one of Heracles' greatest acts of compassion.
Parents
Typhon and Echidna (or Hephaestus)
Symbols
Fun Fact
The liver was chosen as Ethon's target because the Greeks believed it was the seat of human emotions and vitality
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.
Aethon
🐉 creaturesky,punishment
A divine eagle, whose name means "blazing" or "burning", sent by Zeus to torment Prometheus by devouring his liver each day.
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.
Caucasus Mountains
🏛 placegeography
The mountain range at the edge of the known world where Prometheus was chained as punishment for stealing fire.
Prometheus
🏔 titanpunishment
Titan who stole fire from the gods for humanity and was chained to a mountain where an eagle ate his liver daily.
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.
Calydonian Boar
🐉 creatureMonstrous boar sent by Artemis
The Calydonian Boar was a massive, destructive beast sent by Artemis to ravage Calydon after King Oeneus forgot to honour her in sacrifice.
Tityos
🗡 heropunishment
Giant who attempted to rape Leto and was condemned to have two vultures eat his regenerating liver in Tartarus forever.
Ladon
🐉 creatureguardian, treasure
The hundred-headed serpent-dragon that guarded the golden apples in the Garden of the Hesperides, slain or tricked by Heracles during his eleventh labour.
Tityos
🗡 heroGiant punished for assaulting Leto
Tityos was a giant whose attempt to assault Leto earned him one of the underworld's most graphic eternal punishments — two vultures feeding on his liver.
Ophiotaurus
🐉 creaturehybrid creatures
A creature half bull and half serpent whose entrails, if burned, could grant power to overthrow the gods
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.