Echion in the context of "Trojan horse"

In Greek mythology, Menoeceus (/məˈniːsiəs, -sjuːs/; Ancient Greek: Μενοικεύς Menoikeús "strength of the house" derived from menos "strength" and oikos "house") was the name of two Theban characters. They are related by genealogy, the first being the grandfather of the second.

• Menoeceus, father of Creon, Jocasta and Hipponome and both grandfather and father-in-law of Oedipus. He was the Theban son of Pentheus and a descendant of the Spartoi through his grandfather Echion.
• Menoeceus, son of Creon and possibly Eurydice, named after his grandfather. According to Hyginus and Statius, during the reign of Eteocles when the Seven against Thebes laid siege to the city, Creon's son committed suicide by throwing himself from the walls. This was in concordance with Tiresias foretelling that if anyone of the Spartoi should perish freely as sacrifice to Ares, Thebes would be freed from disaster. The Thebans were ultimately victorious. The battle is memorialized in Seven Against Thebes, the play by Aeschylus. Some records say that that Menoeceus was the grandfather of Creon and Jocasta and his son (Creon and Jocasta's father) was named Oscalus. The Greek writer Pausanias visited the site of Menoeceus tomb in the 2nd century AD and recorded that Menoeceus committed suicide "in obedience to the oracle from Delphi, at the time when Polyneices and the host with him arrived from Argos. On the tomb of Menoeceus grows a pomegranate-tree. If you break through the outer part of the ripe fruit, you will then find the inside like blood. This pomegranate-tree is still flourishing."

A later Menoeceus was a contemporary of Epicurus, to whom the philosopher wrote a letter summarizing his ethical doctrines.

In Greek mythology, the name Chthonius /ˈθoʊniəs/ or Chthonios (Ancient Greek: Χθόνιος, [kʰtʰó.ni.os], "of the earth or underworld") may refer to:

• Chthonius, an Egyptian prince as one of the sons of King Aegyptus. His mother was the naiad Caliadne and thus full brother of Eurylochus, Phantes, Peristhenes, Hermus, Potamon, Dryas, Lixus, Imbrus, Bromius, Cisseus and Polyctor. In some accounts, he could be a son of Aegyptus either by Eurryroe, daughter of the river-god Nilus, or Isaie, daughter of King Agenor of Tyre. Chthonius suffered the same fate as his other brothers, save Lynceus, when they were slain on their wedding night by their wives who obeyed the command of their father King Danaus of Libya. He married the Danaid Bryce, daughter of Danaus and the naiad Polyxo.
• Chthonius, one of the five surviving Spartoi or men that grew forth from the dragon's teeth which Cadmus sowed at Thebes. The other four Spartoi were Hyperenor, Pelorus, Udaeus and Echion. Chthonius was the father of Lycus and Nycteus (but see Hyrieus).
• Chthonius, son of Poseidon and Syme, who founded the first colony on the island of Syme, which was named after his mother.
• Chthonius, a Centaur who was killed by Nestor at the wedding of Pirithous and Hippodamia.
• Chthonius, one of the Gigantes.
• Chthonius, an epithet of several major gods, including Hades, Hermes, Dionysus. and Zeus. See Chthonia for goddesses bearing the feminine version of the epithet.

Chthonius is also a genus of pseudoscorpions:

In Greek mythology, Portheus (Ancient Greek: Πορθέα) may refer to various figures:

• Portheus, an Arcadian prince as one of the 50 sons of the impious King Lycaon either by the naiad Cyllene, Nonacris or by unknown woman. He and his brothers were the most nefarious and carefree of all people. To test them, Zeus visited them in the form of a peasant. These brothers mixed the entrails of a child into the god's meal, whereupon the enraged king of the gods threw the meal over the table. Portheus was killed, along with his brothers and their father, by a lightning bolt of the god.
• Portheus, also known as Porthaon, a Calydonian king and father of Oeneus.
• Portheus, father of Echion, one of the Achaeans who fought at the Trojan War.

In Greek mythology, Pentheus (/ˈpɛnθjuːs/; Ancient Greek: Πενθεύς, romanized: Pentheús) was a king of Thebes. His father was Echion, the wisest of the Spartoi. His mother was Agave, the daughter of Cadmus, the founder of Thebes, and grandson of the goddess Harmonia. His sister was Epeiros and his son was Menoeceus.

Much of what is known about the character comes from the interpretation of the myth in Euripides' tragic play, The Bacchae.

In Greek mythology, the name Hyperenor (/ˌhɪpəˈriːnɔːr/; Ancient Greek: Ὺπερήνωρ, lit. 'overbearing, over-weening, violent') may refer to:

• Hyperenor, one of the five surviving Spartoi or men that grew forth from the dragon's teeth which Cadmus sowed at Thebes. The other four surviving Spartoi were Chthonius, Udaeus, Pelorus, and Echion. He was worshipped as a hero at Thebes.
• Hyperenor, son of Poseidon and Alcyone, brother of Hyrieus and Aethusa. See also Hyperes.
• Hyperenor, a warrior in the army of the Seven against Thebes and was killed by Haemon.
• Hyperenor, a Trojan, son of Panthous and Phrontis, thus brother of Euphorbus; said to have been married, without mention of his wife's name. Was killed by Menelaus. His death is a subject of a subsequent conversation between Menelaus and Euphorbus.
• Hyperenor, one of the Suitors of Penelope who came from Same along with other 22 wooers. He, with the other suitors, was shot dead by Odysseus with the aid of Eumaeus, Philoetius, and Telemachus.

In Greek mythology, Pelorus (Ancient Greek: Πέλορος) may refer to several distinct characters:

• Pelorus, also called Peloreus, one of the Giants.
• Pelorus, also Pelor (Πέλωρ), one of the Spartoi or men that grew forth from the dragon's teeth which Cadmus sowed at Thebes. The other four surviving Spartoi were Chthonius, Hyperenor, Udaeus, and Echion.
• Pelorus, the man whom the festival of Peloria was named after. He brought news of the violent earthquakes in Haemonia where the former country covered by the lake became visible plains as the waters drained off. Pelasgus delighted with his statement, held a bountiful banquet for him worthy of an honourable guest and Pelorus was similarly served cordially by the other nobles. Afterwards, the Pelasgians occupied the newly revealed district and they instituted a festival (Peloria) as a sort of imitation of the feast which took place on that occasion and sacrificing to Zeus Pelor.

In Greek mythology, Udaeus (Ancient Greek: Οὐδαῖος) was one of the Spartoi or men that grew forth from the dragon's teeth which Cadmus sowed at Thebes. The other four surviving Spartoi were Chthonius, Hyperenor, Pelorus, and Echion. Udaeus was the ancestor of the seer Tiresias.

38°53′45″N 22°43′31″E / 38.89575°N 22.72539°E / 38.89575; 22.72539

Echinus or Echinos (Ancient Greek: Ἐχῖνος) was a town and polis of Phthiotis or of Malis in ancient Thessaly, situated upon the Malian Gulf, between Lamia and Larissa Cremaste, in a fertile district. It was said to derive its name from Echion, who sprang from the dragon's teeth. Demosthenes says that Echinus was taken by Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great, from the Thebans. Philip II granted the town to the Malians in 342 BCE. From c. 235 BCE, it was part of the Aetolian League until 210 BCE, when it was captured by Philip V of Macedon, after a siege of some length. The Romans captured the city in 193 BCE and gave it back to the Malians in 189 BCE. Strabo mentions it as one of the Grecian cities which had been destroyed by an earthquake.