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Aeetes is the King of Colchis, the land at the
eastern end of the Black Sea, who received from
Phrixus 1, son of Athamas
1, the Golden Fleece. Later, when the
ARGONAUTS came to
Colchis, he was betrayed by his own daughter
Medea, and lost both
fleece and kingdom.
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Preliminary notes
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After the arrival of
Athamas 1's son Phrixus
1, they say, and oracle became known, which
declared that Aeetes's kingship would come to an
end, whenever strangers landed in Colchis and
carried off the Golden Fleece. And fearing this
fate, they say, Aeetes offered up in sacrifice all
foreigners that came to his country, hoping for the
Colchians' cruelty to spread famous throughout the
world, so that refugees and immigrants and all
other kinds of wanderers, would not dare to set a
foot in such a land. For performing this kind of
deeds Aeetes has been called both cruel and
treacherous.
Concerning some details, there are those who
think that, for example, the story of Aeetes'
fire-breathing bulls (tauri) is just a childish
invention. For nothing of the sort really existed,
they say, but instead Taurian guards were appointed
to guard the Golden Fleece inside a precinct.
Likewise they add that the dragon is yet another
invention originated in the name of one officer
called Dracon. This is the kind of thing, they
explain, that the poets usually do; for they
transform one thing into the other, and thereby
truth is nowhere to be found.
As for Phrixus 1, even a child understands, that
he did not come to Colchis borne by a flying Ram
with a Golden Fleece, but instead, they say, he
came with a ship, which bore the head of a ram upon
its bow.
And his sister Helle, they argue, did not fall
from a flying Ram, for that is absurd, but from the
ship; for she simply was troubled with sea-sickness
and, leaning far over the side of the ship, fell
into the sea which was called Hellespont after her.
But others, who also deny the Ram with the
Golden Fleece, say that Phrixus 1 was adopted by a
king of Scythia and
son-in-law of Aeetes, and that on that occasion
they sacrificed Phrixus 1's attendant, whose name
was Crius (Ram), flaying him and nailing his skin
up on the temple. Later a wall was built about the
shrine in order to protect the attendant's valuable
skin from the intruders' greed.
When these things were thus explained, those who
did it must have felt the kind of satisfaction they
had been looking for and justly deserved for having
reached such depths with their insight.
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Aeetes came from
Corinth
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It is said that the land of Ephyra or Ephyraea,
which later was called
Corinth, was given to
Aeetes by his father
Helius, whereas Asopia,
which is a district in the neighbouring region of
Sicyonia, was given by
Helius to his other son
Aloeus 2. Aeetes, however, did not remain in
Corinth or within the
territory which today is called "Greece" or
"Hellas", but instead emigrated to Colchis, the
land at the eastern end of the Black Sea, which
bears in our days (AD 2000) the name of "Georgia".
On leaving Aeetes entrusted the kingdom to Bunus,
the son of Hermes and
Alcidamea, and when Bunus died, Epopeus 1, who some
call son of Aloeus 2, brother of Aeetes, extended
his own kingdom to include
Corinth. These are the
reasons why, when later the Colchian princess
Medea came to Hellas, she
became Queen of Corinth,
though some have said that
Medea lived in this city
as an exile, and that
Corinth at that time was
ruled by King Creon 3, who died because of
Medea's plots, before she
left for Athens to live
there as the wife of King
Aegeus 1, father of
Theseus.
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The Golden Fleece comes flying to Colchis
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In any case, while Aeetes was king in Colchis,
Phrixus 1, son of Athamas
1 and Nephele 2, came flying through the sky
from Thessaly in northern Greece to that distant
land, borne by the Ram with the Golden Fleece,
which he did in order to save his life that was
endangered by the plots staged by his father's
second wife Ino. Some have said that this prowess
was useless, for, they say, on his arrival, or
later, he was killed by King Aeetes, who feared,
because of an oracle, the descendants of
Aeolus 1. But others
have said that in Colchis Phrixus 1 married
Chalciope 2, daughter of Aeetes and Idyia, and
that, after having fathered many children, he died
of Old Age. They also add
that it was at the moment of his death that there
suddenly appeared a flame in heaven, and the Ram
with the Golden Fleece was commemorated in a vast
constellation called Ram or Aries. For this reason
the Ram with the Golden Fleece may be said to have
gained immortality, but before this and for all
practical and ritual purposes, Phrixus 1, on
arriving to Colchis, sacrificed the Ram to
Zeus and gave the fleece to
his new lord King Aeetes, who nailed it to an oak
in a grove of Ares, guarded
by a sleepless Dragon, offspring of
Gaia.
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Jason in quest of the
Golden Fleece
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However, as a result of political instability in
Iolcus, the city in Thessaly on the coast of the
Gulf of Pagasae, King Pelias
1 bade Jason to go in
quest of the Golden Fleece, and he, gathering the
best fifty men of his time, sailed to Colchis in
order to fetch this interesting item; and as for
this purpose a ship was built that was called
"Argo", those who followed Captain
Jason, including himself,
were called ARGONAUTS.
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The City of Aea
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After several difficulties the
ARGONAUTS came to the
river Phasis in Colchis, which today is called
Rion; there they let down the sails and entered the
stream of the river with oars, rowing until they
reached, on the left shore of the river, the city
of Aea where Aeetes' palace was; and on the
opposite side of the river there was the grove of
Ares, where Aeetes kept the
Golden Fleece. Aea was at this time an
architectural wonder, with wide gates, lines of
columns round the walls, hanging vineyards, and
fountains that gushed milk,
wine, oil, and water that
could be warm or cold depending on the season. Most
of these things had been designed and fashioned by
Hephaestus, who also
wrought and gave King Aeetes a couple of
brazen-footed bulls, which breathed fire through
their mouths of bronze. And the king himself ruled
with a firm hand, for it has been said that in his
palace
"...there was
no one who relaxed his toil, serving the
king." [Apollonius Rhodius.
Argonautica 3.275]
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Aeetes warned in his dreams
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To this city the
ARGONAUTS came
determined to steal the Golden Fleece. However,
King Aeetes was not unaware of what some day could
happen to this cherished item. For Phrixus 1, some
say, who by this time had already passed away, came
to Aeetes in his dreams and warned him, saying
that:
"...dolour and
ruin of your realm shall abound for you what time
the fleece is stolen..." [Valerius Flaccus,
Argonautica
5.236]
And then the ghost of Phrixus 1 gave the man who
had once allowed him to settle in Colchis yet
another advice: to marry his daughter
Medea to any suitor and
let her leave the kingdom. That is why Aeetes,
following the dream, betrothed
Medea to King Styrus of
Albania, who happened to come to Colchis to marry
Medea at the time when
also the ARGONAUTS
arrived in the country and then drowned while
pursuing Jason and his
friends. It has been also said that a civil war had
broken up in Colchis at the time when the
ARGONAUTS came. For on
account of the Golden Fleece, which some wished to
give back and others to keep, there was no little
fighting and burning and killing, King Aeetes being
opposed by his own brother Perses 3. Some have said
that the ARGONAUTS
joined the army of Aeetes in this conflict, but
others have not heard of these facts or have chosen
to disregard them altogether, meaning that Colchis
was at peace when Jason
and his friends arrived to the city of Aea.
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Negotiations
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In any case Aeetes was not pleased when
Jason and his foreign
troop came with the hope that he would grant them
the Golden Fleece. For a king normally dislikes to
receive requests, not seldom thinking that what
those asking for things really wish is to seize his
sceptre and his royal power. And that is why Aeetes
would have liked instead to cut the
ARGONAUTS' tongues, so
to be excused from hearing their demands. However,
as the guests insisted and praised Aeetes all they
could, offering military aid to subdue other
neighbouring peoples, and promising to blow his
trumpet on his account throughout the world so that
each and everyone would know his name, Aeetes, who
was not immune to flattery or
Fame, decided to give
Captain Jason's courage a
chance.
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Jason's courage tested
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Aeetes invited him to yoke the brazen-footed
bulls that breathed fire from their jaws, and with
their help plough the field of
Ares; then
Jason was to sow from the
half of the Dragon's teeth which Aeetes had got
from Athena, after the
killing of that beast by
Cadmus in Boeotia. And,
explained Aeetes, in the same way as the
SPARTI were born in
Boeotia, they would here grow up from the earth
armed men; and these Jason
had to slay when they would rise against him on all
sides. This kind of exercise was just about nothing
for Aeetes himself, for, hearing him boasting, it
was plain that he performed this favourite
entertainment when he pleased, yoking the oxen in
the morning and performing the bloody harvesting in
the evening.
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Aeetes keeps an eye on his offspring
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Jason, who had to take
back home the Golden Fleece so that the descendants
of Aeolus 1 could escape
the curse of Zeus on
account of what had being done to Phrixus 1,
accepted these bizarre conditions, being under some
apprehensions about them; for fire-breathing bulls,
dragon's teeth, and armed men growing out of the
ground, are not phenomena belonging to the daily
routine of any man. Now, as
Hera declared, the king's
heart was treacherous, and that is why,
straightaway after his meeting with
Jason, he sat in council
with his ministers devising troubles against the
ARGONAUTS and planning
to burn the ship and her crew. He even regretted to
have received Phrixus 1 in his palace; for now his
descendant Argus 3, Aeetes' own grandson, returned
in consort with evil-doers, threatening his honour
and his throne. But this was, reasoned Aeetes, what
his father Helius had
prophesied, when he told him to avoid the secret
treacheries of his own offspring. This is why
Aeetes, believing that the prophecy referred to the
children of his daughter Chalciope 2, did not give
a thought to his daughter
Medea.
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Medea's dreams
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Yet Aeetes was not completely wrong; for Argus 3
visited his mother Chalciope 2 and bade her to
obtain Medea's help who,
having already fallen in love with the stranger
that led the
ARGONAUTS, decided to
betray her own father and help
Jason. And as not seldom
princesses long for some powerful and gentle
stranger who, performing extraordinary prowesses
for their sake, may assist them in leaving their
father's home, Medea came
even to imagine that Jason
had come to Colchis, not because of the Golden
Fleece or to shake Aeetes' throne, but on account
of her, wishing through love to lead her away, as
his wedded wife, to his own home in distant Hellas.
So Medea, nurturing such
dreams and being not only a princess but also a
witch, which is not so common a combination, met
Jason in secret and gave
him not just her heart but also instructions as how
to cope with the various dangers together with the
so-called charm of
Prometheus 1, which
makes invulnerable those who anoint their body with
it.
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Jason compares himself
with another great man
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Having come so far
Jason, some say, thought
that he could compare himself to great
Theseus, for also he had
received help from the king's daughter
Ariadne. And the thought
was not out of place; for much later
Jason deserted
Medea just as
Theseus deserted
Ariadne. But if it is
true, as others say, that when
Medea, years later, met
Theseus in
Athens, he had not yet
sailed to Crete, it is
difficult to imagine how
Jason could have thought
of Theseus, who at the
time was at best a little child living in
Troezen. Yet
Theseus, being loved and
admired by many at all times, has been said to be
both here and there, and some also count him among
the ARGONAUTS,
apparently thinking that such an extraordinary
expedition could not have been carried through
without his assistance.
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Promise and gift exchanged
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In any case (for the complete truth about that
matter is unknown) Jason
accepted with delight
Medea's gift; and so,
thanks to her invaluable help, he yoked the
fire-breathing bulls, ploughed the field, sowed the
dragon's teeth, and conquered the armed men that
sprang up from the ground. And when this was done
Medea helped
Jason to get the Golden
Fleece, once he had promised to take her to Hellas
and there, after making her his wedded wife, never
dishonour her for want of kinsmen. For this
princess took great risks for the sake of Captain
Jason, betraying father
and country and giving herself to a stranger, who
would or would not honour his own word.
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Jason and the Golden
Fleece
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Aeetes after them
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This is how the
ARGONAUTS, by
treachery and deceit, obtained what they wished;
and as one thing leads to the next, they did not
only steal Aeetes' property, but also carried off
his daughter, whom their captain had seduced. No
wonder then that Aeetes, having learned about
Medea's love and deeds,
determined to destroy the intruders and have the
Golden Fleece and the princess restored. And for
this purpose he sent the Colchian fleet, under the
command of his son Apsyrtus, after them. But as
when the evil heart perseveres, treachery must
follow treachery, Jason
and Medea conceived a trap
for Apsyrtus who came alone to meet his sister on a
certain island, and sent him from there to another
world, so to make a better space for themselves in
this one. Some have said that
Medea had taken her
brother Apsyruts on board, and that when Aeetes, in
his pursuit, came near them,
Medea murdered him and cut
him limb from limb, throwing the pieces into the
sea. It is while gathering Apsyrtus' limbs, they
say, that Aeetes fell behind in the pursuit.
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Aeetes deposed
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In this or other ways then
Jason and
Medea escaped the
Colchians, who pursued them as far as the land of
the Phaeacians, where
Jason and
Medea were married. When
Aeetes lost the Golden Fleece, he lost also his
kingship, for the oracle had said that he would
keep his kingdom as long as the fleece remained in
the shrine of Ares, and
that is why Perses 3, his brother, could depose him
and become king in his stead.
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Aeetes king again
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But years later Medea,
who had been deserted by
Jason and expelled from
both Corinth and
Athens, came incognito to
Colchis and, finding that Aeetes had been deposed
by his brother, slew Perses 3 and restored the
kingdom to her father.
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Medus king
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The death of King Aeetes has not been reported,
but he was probably succeeded in the throne by
Medus, the son of Medea,
either by Jason or by
Aegeus 1.
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