Melantho
Disloyal maidservant in Odysseus' palace who mocked the disguised king
The Legend of Melantho
Melantho was a maid in Odysseus' household, the sister of the goatherd Melanthius. Despite having been raised kindly by Penelope herself, who treated her almost as a daughter, Melantho betrayed the household by becoming the lover of Eurymachus and siding openly with the suitors. She twice insulted the disguised Odysseus, mocking him as a drunken vagrant and ordering him to leave. Penelope rebuked her sharply, reminding her of her ingratitude. After Odysseus revealed himself and slaughtered the suitors, Melantho was among the twelve disloyal maids who were forced to clean the blood from the hall and then executed by Telemachus.
Parents
Dolius
Symbols
Fun Fact
Penelope had raised her like a daughter, making her betrayal one of the most personal in the Odyssey
Explore Further
Melanthius
🗡 heroNone recorded
Treacherous goatherd of Ithaca who sided with the suitors against Odysseus
Antinous
🗡 heroNone recorded
The most arrogant of the suitors who occupied Odysseus' palace in Ithaca
Eurymachus
🗡 heroNone recorded
Prominent suitor of Penelope who used charm and deception to dominate Odysseus' hall
Anteia
🗡 heroDesire, false accusation
Queen of Tiryns who falsely accused Bellerophon of assault, setting in motion his legendary trials
Eumaeus
🗡 heroFaithful swineherd of Odysseus
Eumaeus was the loyal swineherd who sheltered the disguised Odysseus on Ithaca — proof that nobility lies in character, not birth.
Anaxibia
🗡 heroMarriage, royalty
Mycenaean princess who married Strophius of Phocis and raised the young Orestes in secret
Amphitryon
🗡 heroThe mortal husband impersonated by Zeus
The Theban general whose identity Zeus stole to sleep with Alcmene — producing the hero Heracles from divine deception.
Amphinomus
🗡 heroNone recorded
The most decent of Penelope's suitors, killed despite Odysseus' veiled warning to flee
Ctesippus
🗡 heroNone recorded
Violent suitor from Same who threw an ox hoof at the disguised Odysseus
Aerope
🗡 heroAdultery, royalty
Queen of Mycenae whose adultery with Thyestes caused the devastating curse upon the House of Atreus
Icarius
🗡 heroNone recorded
A legendary king of Sparta and father of Penelope who tried to prevent his daughter from leaving with Odysseus after her marriage
Omphale
🗡 heroNone recorded
Lydian queen who owned Heracles as a slave and made him wear women's clothing