August 6: Farmworkers Appreciation Day

On their way to fight the Trojans, the Greek troups halted on the island of Delos, to ask king Anios, a famous prophet, about their chances. It came as a shock that the siege of Troy would take ten years. But king Anios had a practical solution: why not stay on the island and wait it out for nine years?  Provisions would be no problem, as Anios’ three daughters had been blessed by wine god Dionysos. They could change whatever they wanted into wine, weat and oil. Anios turned out not to be the world’s greatest seer, because general Agamemnon’s reaction shocked him. The general immediately understood the immense advantage of having constant and easy access to food and drink, and took the princesses captive. When Dionysos learned about their fate, he thought of a way to intervene. Being an allmighty god, he had lots of options, so obviously, he went with… changing the girls into doves. The princesses flew straight to the Olympos. Eventually, it was Aphrodite who took them in, and employed them as pullers of her chariot.

Chariot of Venus, Pietro da Cortona, Capitoline Museums, Rome, Italy

Women statues, House of Cleopatra, Delos, Greece

Did you know?

• According to Apollodorus, the Delos princesses were called Elais (“olive”), Spermo (“seed”) and Oeno (“wine”).

• King Anios/Anius got his gift from the god Apollo, who was his father. His mother would have been Rhoio/Rhoeo, a granddaughter of Dionysos and Ariadne (cfr. “A Mixed Marriage”).

• About Delos: cfr. “A Sister’s Shelter”