#lynceus

[sarafangirlart]

Apollodorus, The Library

“When they had got their brides by lot, Danaus made a feast and gave his daughters daggers; and they slew their bridegrooms as they slept, all but Hypermnestra; for she saved Lynceus because he had respected her virginity wherefore Danaus shut her up and kept her under ward. But the rest of the daugters of Danaus buried the heads of their bridegrooms in Lerna and paid funeral honors to their bodies in front of the city; and Athena and Hermes purified them at the command of Zeus. Danaus afterwards united Hypermnestra to Lynceus; and bestowed his other daughters on the victors in an athletic contest.”

So… lots to unpack lol so Lynceus is a fascinating character in the we know very little about him but he seems to be the only one of his brothers to show some human decency, so one has to wonder if he tried to persuade his brothers and father to stop chasing after the danaids and forcing them to marry them only for them to ignore him and get their comeuppance. In a lot sources Lynceus gets his revenge and kills Danaus -tho it’s unknown what he does to the Danaids- but in this source and many others they make peace. As you can see lots of interesting family drama with the Danaids and their cousins so it’s unsurprising they had multiple plays based on them including Aeschylus Danaides tetralogy of which only the Suppliants survives, however we do know that in the last play, Aphrodite appears as a Deus ex machina, perhaps to save Hypermnestra from her father’s wrath and blessing her marriage with Lynceus, tho that’s all speculation.

[dilutedh2so4]

In the Epic Cycle, Paris received hospitality at Sparta both from the Dioskouroi, and from Menelaos separately and later. [...] Lykophron does not distinguish clearly between the two visits, and implies that the quarrel with the Apharetidai and attempted abduction of the Leukippidai took place at an unspecified banquet. Tzetzes assumes that the Tyndaridai and Apharetidai were all present at the banquet given by Menelaos

Simon Hornblower, commentary to Lykophron's Alexandra

God, that banquet would have been so messy – the Dioscuri about to kidnap their cousins' betrothed (they all end up killing each other), Paris ready to steal away with Helen, meanwhile Menelaus will soon find out about Catreus' death

[floravaenus]

I wish there was more story to Lynceus, because having excellent sigh, being able to see through walls, trees, skin, and the ground, and even to see through the dark, would be an interesting concept to explore in greek myth.

[orgroarts]

Gods y'all really seem to enjoy the Argonauts drawing so I expanded on it a little with my own personal flavour. Group picture! I couldn't fit them all in and those I couldn't find Hades-inspired references for I just winged it. Can you recognise all the Blorbonauts?

[drhoz]

#3058 - Lynceus sp.

One of the mornings for the Great Southern BioBlitz was spent out on Dingo Rock, one of the granite inselbergs in the area. It took me quite a long time to find the gnamma hole I'd seen on a previous trip, but once I did I mostly neglected the rest of the rock, since it was crawling with fascinating species. Gnamma holes are quite important to the local wildlife (and previously, the people), since they're the only freshwater available in the entire district, once the hot weather starts. Groundwater around the Wongan Hills is highly saline, which has become a huge problem after the massive landclearing for wheat farming.

Anyway - one of the species in the pool were these almost grape-sized Clam Shrimp, frantically mating before the shallow parts of the pool dried out completely. The eggs will survived, encysted, in the dry mud at the bottom of the pond until the winter rains come around again. In some species the eggs can wait seven years.

Clam Shrimp have been around since at least the Devonian. Most genera swim using their antennae, but Lynceus can open their bivalved carapace enough to swim with the legs as well.

Great Southern BioBlitz 2024, Wongan Hills - Dingo Rock

[verdantlyviolet]

Lynkeia.

There is another road, that leads to Lyrcea from the gate at the Ridge. The story is that to this place came Lynceus, being the only one of the fifty brothers to escape death, and that on his escape he raised a beacon here. Now to raise the beacon was the signal he had agreed with Hypermnestra to give if he should escape Danaus and reach a place of safety. She also, they say, lighted a beacon on Larisa as a sign that she too was now out of danger. For this reason the Argives hold every year a beacon festival. (Pausanias 2.25.4)

[death-before-ilion]

A few dates I've determined as final so far:

1214 - marriage of Helen & Menelaus 1212 - birth of Hermione 1204 - death of Catreus, king of Crete; deaths of Idas, Lynceus, Castor & Pollux 1203 - marriage of Helen & Paris 1201 - birth of Neoptolemus 1200 - death of Thersander, king of Thebes 1193 - deaths of Tenes & Protesilaus

[mostcuriousmythicist]

The Deaths of the Dioscuri by Hyginus

Idas and Lynceus, sons of Aphareus from Messene, had as promised brides Phoebe and Hilaira, daughters of Leucippus. Since these were most beautiful maidens — Phoebe being a priestess of Minerva, and Hilaira of Diana — Castor and Pollux, inflamed with love, carried them off. But they, since their brides-to-be were lost, took to arms to see if they could recover them. Castor killed Lynceus in battle; Idas, at his brother's death, forgot both strife and bride, and started to bury his brother. When he was placing the bones in a funeral monument, Castor intervened, and tired to prevent his raising the monument, because he had won over him as if he were a woman. In anger, Idas pierced the thigh of Castor with the sword he wore. Others say that as he was building the monument he pushed it on Castor and thus killed him. When they reported this to Pollux, he rushed up and overcame Idas in a single fight, recovered the body of his brother, and buried it. Since, however, he himself had received a star from Jove [Zeus], and one was not given to his brother, because Jove said that Castor and Clytemnestra were of the seed of Tyndareus, while he and Helen were children of Jove, Pollux begged that he be allowed to share his honor with his brother. This was granted him.

Hyginus Fabulae, 80