July 28: Travel Month

Haimos and Rhodope were the king and queen of Thrakia. They had a happy marriage, founded a cute little family and were well loved rulers. Far too much bliss and harmony for Greek mythology, so as could be expected, hubris set in. The couple started bragging. Not only to their subjects or peers, but to the gods as well. “Look at us, Zeus and Hera, how we make it all work. Look at our engaged parenting, combined with full time work, a satisfactory social life and meaningful charity work. While under your ruling, the Olympos sinks into chaos and the human world is lacking firm leadership.” The gods of course, weren’t ready for such harsh truths, and turned them into cold mountain peaks. Haimos gave his name to Cape Emine at the Black Sea, while Rhodope transformed into the Rhodope Mountains, for the most part in modern Bulgaria. Centuries later, when the goddess Athena was challenged to a weaving competition, she wove this cautionary tale into her patterns. The message didn’t come across.

Cinerary chest, Marcus Domitius Primigenius, Metropolitan Museum of Art,

New York, USA

Woman and Youth, skyphos, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Did you know?

• About Athena’s weaving contest: cfr. “Annoying Arrogance”.