Minotaur 牛头怪

Minotaur 牛头怪

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reek mythology, the Minotaur was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man, which is “part man and part bull”. The term Minotaur derives from the Ancient Greek Μῑνώταυρος, a compound of the name Μίνως (Minos) and the noun ταύρος "bull", translated as "Bull of Minos". In Crete, the Minotaur was known by its proper name, Asterion (the starry one), a name shared with Minos' foster-father. He lived at the center of the Cretan Labyrinth, which was elaborate maze-like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, on the command of King Minos of Crete.

Cretan Labyrinth

The function of this labyrinth was to hold the Minotaur. Daedalus had made the Labyrinth so cunningly that he himself could barely escape it after he built it.

*Famous character

Daedalus- the greatest inventor in Ancient Greece

Daedalus was one of the most known and accredited architects in the ancient years. He was actually the impersonator of scientific evolution – the first architect and sculptor, master craftsman and inventor in Ancient Greece. He was the one who invented many devices used today, such as the axe, the saw, the ceramic wheel and the masts of the boats.

According to the myth, Daedalus was the son of Palamaonas and Alkippe. He was infamous in his time due to his craftsmanship, creating sculptures that looked alive, generating great interest because of their beauty. It is said that Hercules himself was confused and capsized a sculpture, considering it to be a living enemy.

After the death of his son, Daedalus lamented Icarus and flew to Sicily, where he built a Temple dedicated to Apollo, giving the God the wings that helped him to escape from Crete. The Governor of Sicily ordered Daedalus to build the aqueduct of the city called Camicus. In the meantime King Minos of Crete went in pursuit of the architect; he knew that Daedalus would not reveal himself, therefore he decided to trick him into revealing his whereabouts. Minos visited many cities, asking people to thread a spiral seashell – giving a huge reward.

Nobody managed to do it, until Minos arrived to Camicus. The governor gave the shell to Daedalus, who tied the string to an ant and placed it at one side of the shell. The ant entered the shell and found its way out through the spiral chambers. Minos knew right away that Daedalus was the one who solved the mystery and ordered the Governor to give him Daedalus.

The Governor accepted, asking Minos to have a bath in his courthouse. The Governor ordered his daughters to murder Minos in order to keep Daedalus safe in Sicily.

History

 

The King of Crete

The old king of Crete died and the people were not sure who should be king next. His adopted son Minos wanted to be king, but the people were not happy about this. Actually, Minos was the son of Zeus and a nymph (美丽的少女，女神) called Europa. Zeus had disguised himself as a bull to attract Europa, before carrying her away. Because of this, Minos had a special feeling towards bulls. Now Minos claimed he would perform a miracle to prove he was rightful king. He prayed to Poseidon, trying to make a bargain with the sea god. Minos asked Poseidon to make a bull appear from the waves in front of all the people. Then he would sacrifice the bull to Poseidon.

Poseidon was a god of a sea and brother of Zeus.

There in front of all the people, a beautiful while bull appeared walking over the waves. The people were terrified and called Minos their king.

 

Compete

Minos had a son called Androgeus who liked to compete in athletics competitions. Once when Androgeus had won a big competition, king Aegeus of Athens grew jealous and arranged to have him murdered. This murder angered the gods, and they helped Minos raise a huge fleet of ships to declare war on Athens. The Athenians had to surrender to Minos and do whatever he commanded. Minos now had control of both Crete and Athens.

Agreement with Poseidon

Minos was to kill the bull to show honor to Poseidon as agree to the Poseidon. However, he decided to keep it as a pet because the bull was too beautiful to sacrifice. He thought Poseidon would not care if he kept the white bull and sacrificed one of his own. This made Poseidon angry.

Spell of love

To punish Minos, Poseidon got help from Aphrodite, the goddess of love, cast a spell over Minos’s wife, Pasiphae. The spell made Pasiphae fall madly in love with the white bull. She ordered the craftsman Daedalus to make a hollow wooden cow costume. She climbed inside it in order to mate with the white bull. The costume worked, and she got so close to the bull that she had a baby. The picture of Aphrodite, the goddesss of love showed on the right.

 

Birth of Minotaur

The baby was a monster with a bull's head; the Minotaur. When Minos discovered what had happened, he was very ashamed and blamed Daedalus. He ordered Daedalus to build a huge maze where the Minotaur could be imprisoned. Daedalus built the Labyrinth, a complex system of winding tunnels from which no one would be able to find their way out. The Minotaur was thrown in, but queen Pasiphae still loved her strange offspring, and arranged for food to be sent in. So the Minotaur grew into a very scary monster indeed.

Young man and maidens

In revenge against the Athenians for killing his son, Minos ordered king Ageus to send him seven young men and seven young maidens every nine years, to be thrown into the Labyrinth and given to the Minotaur. The Athenians held a lottery to find out who would be sent.

Kill the Minotaur

Theseus got on the boat to Crete pretending to be one of the sacrifices. Along with him went two soldiers disguised as young women. When they arrived in Crete, King Minos's daughter, Ariadne, fell madly in love with Theseus. She promised to help Theseus, and went to Deadalus to ask his advice. Deadalus had no map to give her, but he did give Ariadne a large ball of thread. Ariadne gave the thread to Theseus as he entered the Labyrinth. As he went through the maze, he could unwind the thread to help him find his way out again. Theseus made his way through the Labyrinth and came face to face with the Minotaur. The Minotaur's victims were usually easy prey, but Theseus was armed with  a sword and unnatural strength. Theseus beheaded the Minotaur and escaped from the Labyrinth. Meanwhile the two soldiers disguised as young women overpowered their guards and released all the other Athenian prisoners.