Aerope

⭐ In the context of Greek mythology, Aerope’s involvement with the royal family of Mycenae is most notably characterized by…




⭐ Core Definition: Aerope

In Greek mythology, Aerope (Ancient Greek: Ἀερόπη) was a Cretan princess as the daughter of Catreus, king of Crete. She was the sister of Clymene, Apemosyne and Althaemenes. After an oracle said he would be killed by one of his children, Catreus gave Aerope to Nauplius to be sold abroad. Nauplius spared her, and she became the wife of Atreus or Pleisthenes (or both). By most accounts, she is the mother of Agamemnon and Menelaus. While the wife of Atreus, she became the lover of his brother Thyestes, and gave Thyestes the golden lamb that allowed him to become king of Mycenae.

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In this Dossier

Aerope in the context of Agamemnon

In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (/æɡəˈmɛmnɒn/ ; Ancient Greek: Ἀγαμέμνων Agamémnōn) was a king of Mycenae who commanded the Achaeans during the Trojan War. He was the son (or grandson) of King Atreus and Queen Aerope, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra, and the father of Iphigenia, Iphianassa, Electra, Laodike, Orestes and Chrysothemis. Legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, thought to be different names for the same area. Agamemnon was killed upon his return from Troy by Clytemnestra, or in an older version of the story, by Clytemnestra's lover Aegisthus.

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Aerope in the context of Catreus

In Greek mythology, Catreus, also spelled Katreus (/ˈktri.əs/, /ˈktrs/;Ancient Greek: Κατρεύς), was the eldest son of Minos and Pasiphaë, and Minos's successor as king of Crete. Catreus had one son, Althaemenes, and three daughters, Apemosyne, Aerope and Clymene. Catreus was mistakenly killed by his son Althaemenes thereby fulfilling an oracle's prophecy.

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Aerope in the context of Apemosyne

In Greek mythology, Apemosyne (Ancient Greek: Ἀπημοσύνη, romanizedApēmosúnē) was a Cretan princess as the daughter of King Catreus of Crete, the son of Minos. She had a brother Althaemenes, and two sisters, Aerope and Clymene.

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Aerope in the context of Althaemenes

In Greek mythology, Althaemenes or Althemenes (Ancient Greek: Ἀλθαιμένης) was a Cretan prince as the only son of King Catreus of Crete. He was the brother of Apemosyne, Aerope and Clymene. Althaemenes mistakenly killed his father thereby fulfilling an oracle.

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Aerope in the context of Nauplius (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Nauplius /ˈnɔːpliəs/ (Ancient Greek: Ναύπλιος, "Seafarer") is the name of one (or more) mariner heroes. Whether these should be considered to be the same person, or two or possibly three distinct persons, is not entirely clear. The most famous Nauplius, was the father of Palamedes, called Nauplius the Wrecker, because he caused the Greek fleet, sailing home from the Trojan War, to shipwreck, in revenge for the unjust killing of Palamedes. This Nauplius was also involved in the stories of Aerope, the mother of Agamemnon and Menelaus, and Auge, the mother of Telephus. The mythographer Apollodorus says he was the same as the Nauplius who was the son of Poseidon and Amymone. Nauplius was also the name of one of the Argonauts, and although Apollonius of Rhodes made the Argonaut a direct descendant of the son of Poseidon, the Roman mythographer Hyginus makes them the same person. However, no surviving ancient source identifies the Argonaut with the father of Palamedes.

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Aerope in the context of Anaxibia

Anaxibia (/ænəkˈsɪbiə/; Ancient Greek: Ἀναξίβια) is the name of six characters in Greek mythology.

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Aerope in the context of Dias (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Dias (Ancient Greek: Δίας) is a name shared by two individuals:

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