Idomeneus of Crete
heroKing of Crete and grandson of Minos who led eighty ships to Troy and made a rash vow to Poseidon on the voyage home.
The Myth
He was forced to sacrifice his own son — and his people exiled him for it. Caught in a storm returning from Troy, Idomeneus vowed to Poseidon he would sacrifice the first living thing he saw on shore. It was his son. Unlike Agamemnon's sacrifice of Iphigenia before the war, Idomeneus fulfilled the vow after it. A plague struck Crete, and the Cretans, blaming the unnatural killing, drove their king into exile. He eventually settled in Calabria. Mozart's opera Idomeneo retells this story. At Troy itself, Idomeneus had been among the bravest fighters, but Homer marks him as aging — a warrior past his prime still doing his duty.
Parents
Deucalion, Cleopatra
Children
Idamante
Symbols
Fun Fact
Mozart's first mature opera, Idomeneo (1781), is based entirely on this myth.
Explore Further
Idomeneus
heroIdomeneus was the king of Crete who led eighty ships to Troy and was among the fiercest fighters —...
Minos
heroMinos was the legendary king of Crete who ruled the first great maritime empire, commissioned the...
Poseidon
godLord of the seas and brother of Zeus. Poseidon's moods shaped the oceans — calm seas for those who...
Agamemnon
heroAgamemnon led the Greek coalition against Troy but was murdered upon return by his wife...
Deucalion
heroDeucalion survived Zeus's flood and repopulated the earth by throwing stones.
Deucalion (Flood)
heroSon of Prometheus who survived Zeus's great flood by building an ark on his father's advice, then...
Iphigenia
heroIphigenia was Agamemnon's eldest daughter, sacrificed at Aulis to gain winds for Troy — or rescued...
Minos (Judge)
heroKing of Crete who after death became one of three judges of the dead in the Underworld, deciding...
Cretan Bull (Labour)
conceptThe seventh labour of Heracles: capturing the monstrous bull of Crete, either the one Poseidon sent...
Crete
placeCrete was the largest Greek island and the seat of the Minoan civilisation, home to King Minos, the...
Poseidon (Earth-Shaker)
godPoseidon was the god of the sea and earthquakes whose moods determined whether sailors lived or...
Poseidon Hippios
godAn epithet of Poseidon as lord of horses, reflecting his role as creator of the first horse and...