From classical antiquity through the Renaissance, the Minotaur appears at the center of many depictions of the Labyrinth. According to Sophocles's Trachiniai, when the river spirit Achelous seduced Deianira, one of the guises he assumed was a man with the head of a bull. The Minotaur is commonly represented in Classical art with the body of a man and the head and tail of a bull. Roman copy of a statue of the Minotaur's torso Its location was near Minos's palace in Knossos. Minos, following advice from the oracle at Delphi, had Daedalus construct a gigantic Labyrinth to hold the Minotaur. As the unnatural offspring of a woman and a beast, the Minotaur had no natural source of nourishment and thus devoured humans for sustenance. Pasiphaë nursed the Minotaur but he grew in size and became ferocious. Pasiphaë had the craftsman Daedalus fashion a hollow wooden cow, which she climbed into to mate with the bull. To punish Minos, Poseidon made Minos' wife Pasiphaë fall in love with the bull. Minos believed that the god would accept a substitute sacrifice. Minos was to sacrifice the bull to honor Poseidon, but owing to the bull's beauty he decided instead to keep him. Minos prayed to the sea god Poseidon to send him a snow-white bull as a sign of the god's favour. Ionian Perfume Jar in the shape of a minotaurĪfter ascending the throne of the island of Crete, Minos competed with his brothers as ruler. The following can be found in dictionaries: / ˈ m aɪ n ə t ɔːr, - n oʊ-/ MY-nə-tor, -noh-, / ˈ m ɪ n ə t ɑːr, ˈ m ɪ n oʊ-/ MIN-ə-tar, MIN-oh-, / ˈ m ɪ n ə t ɔːr, ˈ m ɪ n oʊ-/ MIN-ə-tor, MIN-oh. Įnglish pronunciation of the word "Minotaur" is varied. The Minotaur was called Θevrumineš in Etruscan. In contrast, the use of "minotaur" as a common noun to refer to members of a generic "species" of bull-headed creatures developed much later, in 20th century fantasy genre fiction. That is, there was only the one Minotaur. "Minotaur" was originally a proper noun in reference to this mythical figure. In Crete, the Minotaur was known by the name Asterion, a name shared with Minos' foster-father. The word "Minotaur" derives from the Ancient Greek Μῑνώταυρος, a compound of the name Μίνως ( Minos) and the noun ταῦρος 'bull', translated as '(the) Bull of Minos'. The Minotaur was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus. He dwelt at the center of the Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze-like construction ĭesigned by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, on the command of King Minos of Crete. In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( / ˈ m aɪ n ə t ɔːr, ˈ m ɪ n ə t ɔːr/ MY-nə-tor, MIN-ə-tor, US: / ˈ m ɪ n ə t ɑːr, - oʊ-/ MIN-ə-tar, -oh- Ancient Greek: Μινώταυρος in Latin as Minotaurus ) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man (p 34) or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "part man and part bull". Minotaur bust ( National Archaeological Museum of Athens)
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