Melicertes
godSon of Ino who was transformed into the marine god Palaemon after his mother leaped with him into the sea.
The Myth
A dead boy washed ashore on a dolphin's back — and the Greeks founded one of their greatest athletic festivals in his honor. After Ino jumped into the sea clutching Melicertes, a dolphin carried the child's body to the Isthmus of Corinth. Sisyphus (in some versions) found the body and established the Isthmian Games as funeral games. Melicertes became Palaemon, a protector of sailors and harbors. His cult at Corinth included a sacred pine tree and nocturnal rituals. The Romans identified him with Portunus, god of harbors. His transformation from murdered child to protective deity mirrors the pattern of heroic cult throughout Greece.
Parents
Athamas, Ino
Symbols
Fun Fact
The Isthmian Games at Corinth — one of the four Panhellenic festivals — were founded in Melicertes's honor.
Explore Further
Palaemon
godGod of harbours and patron of the Isthmian Games, originally the mortal child Melicertes.
Ino
heroTheban princess who raised the infant Dionysus, was driven mad by Hera, and leaped into the sea to...
Isthmian Games
conceptOne of the four Panhellenic Games held at Corinth every two years in honour of Poseidon, with...
Pan
godThe goat-legged god of wilderness, shepherds, and rustic music. Pan's sudden appearance caused...
Pan (God)
godPan was the goat-legged god of the wild, shepherds, and mountain meadows whose sudden appearance...
Leucothea
godSea goddess who rescued drowning sailors, formerly the mortal princess Ino.
Corinth
placeCorinth was a wealthy trading city on the narrow isthmus connecting mainland Greece to the...
Sisyphus
heroThe cunning king of Corinth who cheated death twice, only to be condemned to an eternity of futile...
Sisyphus (King)
heroSisyphus was the craftiest mortal who ever lived — he cheated Death twice before Zeus condemned him...
Sisyphus (Punishment)
heroCleverest of mortals who cheated death twice and was condemned to push a boulder uphill in Tartarus...
Poseidon
godLord of the seas and brother of Zeus. Poseidon's moods shaped the oceans — calm seas for those who...
Achelous
godAchelous was the god of the mightiest river in Greece and father of the Sirens — he wrestled...