Meleager (Brand)
heroThe leader of the Calydonian Boar Hunt whose fate was tied to a charred brand — when it burned out, he died.
The Myth
When Meleager was born, the Moirai appeared and declared he would live only as long as a log burning on the hearth remained unconsumed. His mother Althaea snatched the brand from the fire and locked it in a chest. Meleager grew into a formidable hero and led the hunt against the Calydonian Boar, which Artemis had sent to ravage the land because King Oeneus forgot to honour her in his harvest sacrifice. The hunt gathered the greatest heroes of Greece: Atalanta, Castor and Pollux, Theseus, Peleus, and many more. Atalanta drew first blood, and Meleager killed the boar. When he awarded the hide to Atalanta, his mother's brothers — the sons of Thestius — objected that a woman should not receive the prize. Meleager killed them in the resulting quarrel. When Althaea learned her brothers were dead, she pulled the charred brand from its chest and threw it into the fire. As the wood burned, Meleager felt an invisible fire consume his body. When the brand became ash, the hero died.
Fun Fact
Meleager's fate-brand is one of the earliest examples of an external soul — a life force stored outside the body.
Explore Further
Atalanta
heroA heroine raised by bears who could outrun any mortal man. Atalanta joined the Argonauts, slew the...
Atalanta (Argonaut)
heroThe only woman among the Argonauts in some traditions, a virgin huntress raised by bears who could...
Atalanta (Huntress)
heroThe swift-footed huntress who drew first blood against the Calydonian Boar and was only beaten in a...
Meleager
heroMeleager's life was bound to a burning log.
Calydonian Boar
creatureThe Calydonian Boar was a massive, destructive beast sent by Artemis to ravage Calydon after King...
Meleager and the Brand
conceptThe hero whose life was tied to a burning log by the Fates, extinguished by his mother Althaea and...
Castor and Pollux (Twins)
heroThe twin brothers of Helen — one mortal, one divine — who shared immortality by alternating between...
Peleus
heroKing of Phthia, Argonaut, and father of Achilles who wrestled the shape-shifting sea goddess Thetis...
Peleus (Father of Achilles)
heroThe king of Phthia who wrestled and won the sea-nymph Thetis, fathering Achilles — the greatest...
Theseus
heroThe hero who navigated the Labyrinth, slew the Minotaur, and became the legendary king of Athens....
Theseus (Athenian)
heroTheseus was the great hero of Athens who slew the Minotaur, united Attica, and established Athenian...
Theseus (King of Athens)
heroThe hero who killed the Minotaur and later united Attica under Athens, becoming the mythological...