Lityerses
Encyclopedia
In Greek mythology
, Lityerses was a son of Midas
. He challenged people to harvesting contests and beheaded those he beat. Heracles
won the contest and killed him. He was also known as the reaper of men.
According to the Iliad
(v.860), Midas' son was indeed Lityerses. However, in some variations of the myth, Midas had a daughter, Zoë or "life" instead.
The Phrygia
n reapers used to celebrate his memory in a harvest-song which bore the name of Lityerses. The song for Lityerses was, according to one tradition, a comic version of the lament sung by the Black Sea people, the Mariandyni for Bormos
, a son of wealthy man.
Theocritus
in his tenth Idyll
gives a specimen of a Greek harvest-song addressed to Demeter, which is called 'the Song of the Divine Lityerses'. In this song, there is no mention of the legend; it is indeed only an ordinary reaping-song.
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, Lityerses was a son of Midas
Midas
For the legend of Gordias, a person who was taken by the people and made King, in obedience to the command of the oracle, see Gordias.Midas or King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek mythology for his ability to turn everything he touched into gold. This was called the Golden touch, or the...
. He challenged people to harvesting contests and beheaded those he beat. Heracles
Heracles
Heracles ,born Alcaeus or Alcides , was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus...
won the contest and killed him. He was also known as the reaper of men.
According to the Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
(v.860), Midas' son was indeed Lityerses. However, in some variations of the myth, Midas had a daughter, Zoë or "life" instead.
The Phrygia
Phrygia
In antiquity, Phrygia was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now modern-day Turkey. The Phrygians initially lived in the southern Balkans; according to Herodotus, under the name of Bryges , changing it to Phruges after their final migration to Anatolia, via the...
n reapers used to celebrate his memory in a harvest-song which bore the name of Lityerses. The song for Lityerses was, according to one tradition, a comic version of the lament sung by the Black Sea people, the Mariandyni for Bormos
Bormus
Bormus or Borimus in mythology of North Anatolia, was a Mariandynian, son of a rich and illustrious man named Upius or Titias or Tityos, distinguished for his extraordinary beauty. Once during the time of harvest, when he went to a well to fetch water for the reapers, he was drawn into the well by...
, a son of wealthy man.
Theocritus
Theocritus
Theocritus , the creator of ancient Greek bucolic poetry, flourished in the 3rd century BC.-Life:Little is known of Theocritus beyond what can be inferred from his writings. We must, however, handle these with some caution, since some of the poems commonly attributed to him have little claim to...
in his tenth Idyll
Idyll
An idyll or idyl is a short poem, descriptive of rustic life, written in the style of Theocritus' short pastoral poems, the Idylls....
gives a specimen of a Greek harvest-song addressed to Demeter, which is called 'the Song of the Divine Lityerses'. In this song, there is no mention of the legend; it is indeed only an ordinary reaping-song.