Phineus the Seer
heroBlind Thracian king and prophet cursed by Zeus to have his food snatched by Harpies until the Argonauts freed him.
The Myth
Zeus blinded him and sent monsters to steal his food for eternity — because he was too good at prophecy. Phineus had been given the gift of foresight by Apollo, but he revealed too much of the gods' plans to mortals. Zeus blinded him and set the Harpies upon him: every time Phineus tried to eat, the winged creatures snatched the food or fouled it. He starved for years until the Argonauts arrived. Zetes and Calais, the winged sons of Boreas, chased the Harpies away. In gratitude, Phineus told Jason how to navigate the Clashing Rocks (Symplegades). His suffering purchased the Argonauts' survival.
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Fun Fact
Phineus told the Argonauts to release a dove through the Symplegades first — if it survived, they would too.
Explore Further
Phineus (Prophet)
heroA blind Thracian king and prophet punished by Zeus for revealing divine secrets, tormented by...
Zetes and Calais
heroWinged sons of Boreas who joined the Argonauts and chased the Harpies away from the blind prophet...
Symplegades
placeThe Clashing Rocks at the entrance to the Black Sea that crushed any ship attempting to pass...
Jason
heroThe hero who assembled the Argonauts and sailed to Colchis in quest of the Golden Fleece. Jason's...
Andromeda
heroAndromeda was an Ethiopian princess chained to a sea cliff as sacrifice to a monster — rescued by...
Andromeda (Myth)
heroEthiopian princess chained to a rock as sacrifice to a sea monster, rescued by Perseus, and placed...
Cepheus (King)
heroEthiopian king who chained his own daughter Andromeda to a rock to appease Poseidon's sea monster.
Oreithyia
heroAthenian princess abducted by the North Wind Boreas, mother of the winged Argonauts Zetes and...
Apollo
godGod of light, music, poetry, and prophecy. Apollo embodied the Greek ideal of youthful masculine...
Apollo (Light)
godApollo was the most complex Olympian — god of light, music, poetry, prophecy, healing, plague, and...
Apollo Loxias
godAn epithet of Apollo meaning "the Oblique One," referring to the deliberately ambiguous nature of...
Argo (Ship)
placeThe Argo was the ship built by Argus for Jason's quest — the first long-voyage ship in Greek myth,...