Greek Myths XS: Golden Apples for Atalante

Atalante wasn’t your average Greek girl. Abandoned as a child, she had been brought up by a bearess. Later, she found shelter in the retinue of Artemis, and became a skilled huntress and archer. But she was especially renowned for her swiftness, which granted her an invitation to take part in the Argonaut-expedition to retrieve the Golden Fleece. When she came back, famous and respected, her father remembered her existence, and called her home, to be wed. She wasn’t keen, because according to the oracle, “a marriage would be her undoing”. She would only marry the man who could outrun her. No suitor passed the test, until Hippomenes came along, assisted by Aphrodite herself. Slightly out of character, but in line with the Greek view on women, Atalante got distracted by the shiny golden apples that Hippomenes dropped. She lost the race, and yes, happily agreed to marry him. And what about the “undoing” that the oracle predicted? Aphrodite turned them into lions, to hunt together in freedom forevermore. Doing great, I’d say.

Atalanta and Hippomenes, Willem van Herp, National Museum Warsaw, Poland

The Race of Atalante and Hippomenes, Nicolas Colombel, Gartenpalais Liechtenstein, Vienna, Austria