Icarus
heroThe son of Daedalus who flew on wings of wax and feathers but ignored his father's warning not to fly too close to the sun. The wax melted and he fell to his death.
The Myth
Icarus was the son of Daedalus, the master craftsman who built the Labyrinth for King Minos. When Minos imprisoned Daedalus and Icarus to prevent them from revealing the Labyrinth's secrets, Daedalus devised a daring escape: wings made from feathers held together with wax.
Before they flew, Daedalus warned his son: fly too low and the sea's moisture would soak the feathers; fly too high and the sun's heat would melt the wax. Keep to the middle course. Icarus promised to obey.
But the exhilaration of flight overwhelmed the boy. Higher and higher he soared, drunk on freedom and the joy of defying gravity. The sun softened the wax, feathers began to fall away, and Icarus plummeted into the sea that now bears his name — the Icarian Sea. Daedalus, watching helplessly, flew on to Sicily alone. The myth of Icarus became the eternal warning against reckless ambition and ignoring wise counsel.
Parents
Daedalus
Symbols
Fun Fact
The Icarian Sea, between the Greek islands of Ikaria and Samos, is named after the spot where Icarus was believed to have fallen.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth: