Achelous (Greece)
- Jennifer Lince
- Nov 17, 2023
- 3 min read
source [6]
The name of both a river, and a God of that same river, Achelous was one of the longest rivers in Greece. The God, however, could be invoked when making reference to any river, or when talking of rivers in general and as such is often known as the god of all rivers.
In accordance with Hesiod (the greek poet), Achelous was a child of Oceanus and Tethys (elemental Titan Gods) - along with numerous other rivers - and sired a number of nymphs of Sirens including Castalia and Pirene.
If you have read about Hercules, then you will have heard of this god as it is Hercules who wrestled with Achelous for the hand of Deianeira (the daughter of Oenus) and gained the Horn of Plenty from the river god when he turned into a bull (according to the Roman poet Ovid anyway).
source [5]
In an alternative theory, the Horn was returned in exchange for the horn of Amaltheia which was a goat that provided milk for baby Zeus and it was this instead that became the Horn of Plenty. [1]
The story of Hercules and Achelous has been told since as early as the 7th century BC in a poem by Archilochus (a Greek poet), however in a lost early 5th centruy BC Greek poem by Pindar the second theory of the origin off the Horn of Plenty mentioned above is written.
In the play "Women of Trachis" (also known as "The Trachiniae") (c. 450-425BC), Deianeira gets to tell her story about how Achelous wooed her in various shapes (a bull, a snake and a minotaur).
source [7]
For my suitor was a river-god, Achelous, who in three shapes was always asking me from my father—coming now as a bull in visible form, now as a serpent, sheeny and coiled, now ox-faced with human trunk, while from his thick-shaded beard wellheads of fountain-water sprayed. In the expectation that such a suitor would get me, I was always praying in my misery that I might die, before I should ever approach that marriage-bed. But at last, to my joy, the glorious son of Zeus and Alcmena came and closed with him in combat and delivered me [2]
Achelous has also played a role in the story of the Alcmaeon, who killed his mother (Eriphyle) because of treachery against his father (Amphiaraus). As a result of this deed, he was persecuted and sent mad by his mothers Erinyes (also known as Furies) and so needed to be purified religiously. Alcmaeon travelled to Achelous where he received this purificiation from the God of the River. [3]
After receiving this purification, he married Callirrhoe (one of Achelous's daughters) and went onto discover a land made of river silt deposits at the mouth of the river, where he made his home free of his curse.
In Metamorphoses by Ovid, Achelous is involved in two transformation stories. According to Ovid, the Echinades Islands were once nymphs that one day angered Achelous by forgetting to include him in their sacrifices to the gos on the banks of the Achelous. In a rage, Achelous overflowed his banks, sweeping the nymphs into the sea and turned the land into 5 islands, one for each nymph.
I tore forests from forests, fields from fields; and with the place they stood on, I swept the nymphs away, who at last remembered me then, into the sea. There my flood and the sea, united, cleft the undivided ground into as many parts as now you see the Echinades yonder amid the waves. [4]
[1] Classical Mythology A to Z An Encylcopedia of Gods + Goddesses, Heroes + Heroines, Nymphs, Spirits, Monsters and Places vy Abbette Giesecke
[2]Sophocles, Women of Trachis
[3] The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology: Based on H.J.Rose's Handbook of Greek Mythology. Robin Hard. 2004. Chapter: The mythical history of Thebes, pg 327, The later history of Alkmaion.
[4] Ovid Metamorphoses Book VIII pg 447
[5] Master of the Martyrdom of St. Sebastian, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
[7] Wikimedia Commons
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