Medea
Medea was a granddaughter of Helios and priestess of Hecate whose sorcery saved Jason — and whose revenge destroyed him.
The Legend of Medea
A sorceress of immense power, Medea was granddaughter of Helios and niece of Circe. Aphrodite kindled her love for Jason to serve Hera's plan against Pelias. Medea subdued the dragon guarding the Golden Fleece, murdered her brother to delay pursuit, and rejuvenated Aeson in Iolcus through blood-magic. In Corinth she tricked Pelias's daughters into killing their father. When Jason abandoned her, she sent a poisoned robe to his new bride, killed her own sons, and escaped in Helios's chariot. She later plotted against Theseus in Athens. Her story connects Colchis, Iolcus, Corinth, and Athens across one unbroken trail of vengeance.
Parents
Aeëtes and Idyia
Children
Medus, two sons by Jason (killed)
Symbols
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Medea
🗡 heroSorceress who helped Jason, then destroyed him
A powerful sorceress and princess of Colchis who betrayed her family to help Jason win the Golden Fleece, only to be abandoned by him and take catastrophic revenge.
Electra
🗡 heroAvenger of Agamemnon
Daughter of Agamemnon who plotted with her brother Orestes to avenge their father's murder by killing their mother Clytemnestra.
Anaxibia
🗡 heroMarriage, royalty
Mycenaean princess who married Strophius of Phocis and raised the young Orestes in secret
Aeetes
🗡 herosorcery
King of Colchis, son of Helios, father of Medea, and guardian of the Golden Fleece who set impossible tasks for Jason.
Aeson
🗡 heroFather of Jason, rejuvenated by Medea
Aeson was Jason's aged father whom Medea rejuvenated through sorcery — cutting his throat, draining his blood, and filling him with a magical potion.
Aerope
🗡 heroAdultery, royalty
Queen of Mycenae whose adultery with Thyestes caused the devastating curse upon the House of Atreus
Jason
🗡 heroLeader of the Argonauts, seeker of the Golden Fleece
The hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis in quest of the Golden Fleece. Jason's story is one of ambition, adventure, and tragic betrayal.
Jason
🗡 heroLeader of the Argonauts
The hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece, aided by Medea's sorcery.
Arsinoe
🗡 heroNursing, protection
Nurse or foster-mother of Orestes who saved the prince from Clytemnestra's murderous designs
Clytemnestra
🗡 heroQueen who murdered Agamemnon
Clytemnestra murdered Agamemnon on his return from Troy, driven by rage over Iphigenia's sacrifice.
Anchises
🗡 heroLove, royalty, Troy
Trojan prince beloved by Aphrodite and father of Aeneas, the legendary founder of Rome
Myrrha
🗡 herotransgression, transformation
A princess cursed by Aphrodite to desire her own father, whose tears of shame became myrrh resin after the gods transformed her into a tree.