Phrygia
An ancient kingdom in central Anatolia famous in Greek myth for King Midas and the cult of the Great Mother goddess Cybele.
The Story of Phrygia
Phrygia occupied the central highlands of what is now Turkey and loomed large in the Greek mythological imagination as a land of fabulous wealth and strange religion. King Midas, who turned everything he touched to gold, was its most famous ruler. The Phrygian cap — a soft conical hat with the peak bent forward — became a symbol of barbarian identity in Greek art and, millennia later, a symbol of liberty during the French Revolution. The Great Mother goddess Cybele, whose ecstatic worship involved drums, cymbals, and self-castrating priests called Galli, was Phrgia's most significant religious export to the Greek and Roman worlds. The mythological Phrygian prince Paris, who judged the beauty contest among three goddesses and abducted Helen, was said to have been raised as a shepherd on Mount Ida in Phrygian territory. Greek authors frequently used Phrygia as a byword for luxury, excess, and cultural otherness.
Parents
None recorded
Symbols
Fun Fact
The Phrygian musical mode was considered emotionally intense by the Greeks — Aristotle recommended it for education because it inspired enthusiasm and passion.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
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