Scylla (Origin Story)
creatureBeautiful nymph transformed into a six-headed sea monster by Circe's poison, eternally lurking in a strait opposite Charybdis.
The Myth
She was beautiful once — Circe poisoned her bath water out of jealousy and turned her into a monster with twelve feet and six dog heads. Glaucus, a sea god, fell in love with Scylla and asked Circe for a love potion. But Circe wanted Glaucus for herself. When he refused her, she poured poison into the pool where Scylla bathed. Scylla's lower body erupted into snarling dogs fused to her waist. She fled to the Strait of Messina and turned to stone, becoming the rock formation sailors dreaded. When Odysseus sailed past, she snatched six of his men. Ovid's telling emphasizes that Scylla was an innocent victim — transformed by a jealousy not her own.
Parents
Phorcys, Ceto
Symbols
Explore Further
Scylla
creatureA terrifying sea monster with six heads on long necks, each with three rows of teeth. She lived in...
Charybdis
creatureA massive whirlpool monster that swallowed and regurgitated the sea three times daily, destroying...
Circe
godA powerful sorceress who lived on the island of Aeaea. Circe transformed Odysseus's men into swine...
Glaucus (Sea God)
godA mortal fisherman who became an immortal sea god after eating a magical herb.
Glaucus the Sea God
godMortal fisherman who ate a magical herb, became immortal, and transformed into a blue-green sea...
Scylla (Origin)
nymphScylla was originally a beautiful sea nymph who was transformed into a six-headed monster by the...
Siren Songs
creatureThe Sirens were creatures — part bird, part woman — whose irresistible song lured sailors to crash...
Circe (Sorceress)
godDaughter of Helios and powerful sorceress who transformed Odysseus's men into pigs on the island of...
Odysseus
heroThe cleverest of the Greek heroes, whose ten-year journey home from Troy is one of the greatest...
Odysseus (Trickster)
heroOdysseus was the most cunning of all Greek heroes — the man of polytropos (many turns), whose...
Aeaea (Isle of Circe)
placeThe mythical island home of the enchantress Circe, where Odysseus's men were transformed into swine...
Amphitrite
nymphAmphitrite was the Nereid who became queen of the sea as Poseidon's wife.