Summary
Lacedaemon (/læsɪˈdiːmən/; Ancient Greek: Λακεδαίμων Lakedaímōn) or Lacedemon was the eponymous king of Lacedaemon (i.e. Sparta) in classical Greek mythology.[1]
| Lacedaemon | |
|---|---|
Eponymous king of Lacedaemon | |
| Member of the Sparta Royal Family | |
| Other names | Lacedemon |
| Predecessor | Eurotas |
| Successor | Amyclas |
| Abode | Laconia |
| Personal information | |
| Parents | Zeus and Taygete |
| Siblings | unknown |
| Consort | (1) Sparta (2) Taygete |
| Children | (1) Amyclas and Eurydice (2) Himerus and Cleodice |
Family edit
Lacedaemon was the son of Zeus and the Pleiad Taygete. By Princess Sparta, the daughter of former King Eurotas, he was the father of his heir Amyclas and Eurydice, wife of King Acrisius of Argos.[2]
In a rare version of the myth, Taygete was the wife of Lacedaemon and their children were Himerus and Cleodice.[3]
Mythology edit
Unable to produce a male heir, King Eurotas bequeathed the kingdom to Lacedaemon who then renamed the state after his wife,[1] Sparta, who was also his (Eurotas's )niece[citation needed]. Lacedemon was credited to be the founder of the sanctuary of the Graces, Cleta and Phaenna, near the river Tiasa.[4]
Notes edit
- ^ a b Pausanias (1918). "III.1.2". Description of Greece. with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) At the Perseus Project. - ^ Grimal, Pierre (1996). "s.v. "Eurydice" (2)". The Dictionary of Classical Mythology. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 157. ISBN 978-0-631-20102-1.
- ^ Pseudo-Plutarch, De fluviis 17
- ^ Pausanias, 3.18.6 & 9.35.1 with Alcman as the authority for the names of the Charites
References edit
- Grimal, Pierre, The Dictionary of Classical Mythology, Wiley-Blackwell, 1996. ISBN 978-0-631-20102-1
- Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus, Morals translated from the Greek by several hands. Corrected and revised by. William W. Goodwin, PH. D. Boston. Little, Brown, and Company. Cambridge. Press Of John Wilson and son. 1874. 5. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
- Pausanias, Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. ISBN 0-674-99328-4. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
- Pausanias, Graeciae Descriptio. 3 vols. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.