Greek mythology

The Adventures of Jason and Argonauts

For well over three millennia, the story of Jason and his fellow Argonauts has enthralled the world. Jason's quest to get the fabled Golden Fleece and bring it back to his homeland is a fabulous story of grit, compassion and revenge. Over the centuries many versions have been recorded, but the essence of the story remains the same; an adventure of epic proportions. Although it is believed that the story was firstly told in about 1,300 BC, the most authentic and comprehensive version comes much later in the 3rd century BC from Apollonius, head librarian at Alexandria. His account ends, however, before the return of Jason to Iolcu. Hereafter, much of the story is culled from common tales.

Let us embark on that fantastic and perilous voyage with Jason and his friends to faraway lands, chance upon fabulous beings and triumphant return.

The myth says that in the land of Iolcus, the modern city of Volos, there lived Pelius and his half-brother Aeson, born of the same mother Tyro, but of different fathers, Pelias of god Poseidon and Aeson of Cretheus, who was the King of Iolcus. After the death of Cretheus, Pelias usurped the throne from Aeson, the rightful heir and had him imprisoned. His plan was to murder all of the relatives of Aeson and even banish his twin brother Neleus. In despair over Aeson's situation, his wife Alcimede died, but before she had already secretly given birth to the son of Aeson, named Jason. Fearing Pelias would also kill the boy, Jason was sent away to Mount Pelion, to live with the Centaur Cheiron, a strange creature half-man half-horse. Centaur Cheiron became his tutor and Jason grew up to be a fine young man.

Meanwhile, in Iolcus, Pelias, still fearing he would lose his kingdom, approached the oracle at Delphi and was told to beware of a man with one sandal. Unknown to Pelias, this was going to be Goddess Hera's revenge. Many years ago he had angered Hera by committing the despicable act of killing his stepmother Sidero at the goddess's altar and by prohibiting the people from worshipping the Goddess. Hera had vowed to avenge herself such ignominy and she chose to do this through Jason.

When ha became twenty years old, Jason set out to reclaim the throne and kingdom of Iolcus from his uncle. While he was walking to Iolcus, across the river Anauros, Jason came across an old woman trying to cross over to the other side. Being a good-natured young man, Jason helped the woman across but the water drew away one of his sandals. The old woman thanked him and Jason continued on his journey unaware that he had helped Hera, Queen of the Gods, who had disguised herself into an old woman as part of her plan to punish Pelias, this arrogant mortal. Hera knew of his quest, but little did Jason know of the Gods participation in it.

At Iolcus, a celebration was being held to honor the sea god Poseidon, Pelias' father. Jason's arrival and his claim to the throne shocked Pelias who started seeing the old prophecy come true: here was the man with one sandal. To get rid of this dangerous stranger, Pelias agreed to abdicate the throne only if Jason brought him the Golden Fleece from the faraway land of Colchis, thought to be an impossible task. He was sure that Jason would never return and that he would remain king of Iolcus forever.

Jason understood that the journey to Colchis would be long and arduous. He knew that he would need a strong and swift vessel to make such a long trip. Only one man in the land could build him such a craft, Argos, who was famous for his skill as a shipwright. Argos readily complied with his request and, with the help of Goddess Athena, they built the largest and sturdiest ship the ancient Greeks had ever seen, a ship that could withstand the ravages of the open sea. Built of oak and pine and over 22 meters in length, the ship had fifty oars and a low draught that allowed her to approach shallow waters without floundering. The construction was such that the mast, the rudder, the anchor and the oars could be removed and the ship then hauled ashore on cylindrical logs. This was significant, since it would prevent the ship from being destroyed or stolen.

As a gift from Zeus, Jason received the Dodona, a piece of speaking timber from the God's enchanted forest which was affixed to the prow. The Dodona had important roles to play, as an oracle offering the seafarers guidance on the best course of action and as a compass. The Dodona was oriented north and the ship's rudder, south, to help in navigation. The imaginary line that extended from the Dodona to the rudder had coordinates aligned with the stars above, helping Jason plot the ship's course with precision. The ship was named Argo after its builder and the crew was the Argonauts.

The Crew
When the ship was ready, Jason asked the strongest Greek men to accompany him in his journey and in fact the prospect of a great adventure brought many to sail with him. Numbering fifty, the list of heroes was astounding. There were the most famous and brave men of all over Greece, all mighty fighters and some of them had also other skills. Among the Argonauts, we discern Hercules, who was renowned for his strength and agility; Castor and Polydeuces, brothers, boxers and horse tamers; Orpheus, skilled in playing excellent music with his lyre; Argos, the shipwright and lots of others legendary men. Without much further ado the heroes cast off and set sail for the inevitable, their death or glory.