When through their alliances the Pleiades intervene in mythology, it is to express the particular dynamic of a given plane or process. A complete bibliography of the translations quoted on this page. "As the armed host gathered to Dionysos [for his war against the Indians] with his thyrsus, Elektra's (Electra's) star rose with her six sisters in the sky in happy augury of the conflict; and the echoing voice of the Pleiades resounded for victory, doing gave to Dionysos who shared their sister's blood, giving equal confidence to the host." "[After the death of Eos' son Memnon :] Nor Eos (the Dawn-Queen) forgat her daily course . : "And they who bear the name of Atlas' daughters (Atlantides) [the Pleiades] seven oft bewailed their sire's supremest labour of sustaining heaven, where as wingless Peleiades they have the form of phantoms of the night." "Atlas by Pleione or an Oceanitide (Oceanid) had twelve daughters, and a son, Hyas. "Pleione couples with sky-lifting Atlas--so the story is--and bears the Pleiades. Mair) (Greek astronomical poem C3rd B.C.) Fairclough) (Roman bucolic C1st B.C.) The Pleiades in Norse, Celtic, and Bronze Age Mythology. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic B.C.) 169 ff (trans.Boyle) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. Ceaseless uprose the keen, and in their midst, fallen on her son and clasping, wailed Eos (the Dawn). Jones) (Greek geographer C1st B.C. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. That great giant, Atlas, whose shoulders bear the circling sky, is one grandfather. . Mozley) (Roman epic C1st A.D.) : Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 2. The Pleiades. ", Ovid, Metamorphoses 6. In Greek mythology, the Pleiads were the seven daughters of Atlas, a Titan who held up the sky, and the oceanid Pleione, protectress of sailing. Thu… ], Hesiod, The Astronomy Fragment 1 (from Athenaeus 11. ", Homerica, Of the Origin of Homer and Hesiod and of their Contest Fragment 1 (trans. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic B.C.) Some call the seventh Sterope, and relate that she became invisible from shame, because she alone among her sister… Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st A.D.) : Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 1. ad Apollon. In pity for their plight, Zeus changed them into a flock of doves, which he set in the heavens. Driven from the band of her sisters because of this, she wears her hair long in grief, and is called a comet, or longodes because she trails out for a long distance, or xiphias because she shows the shape of a sword-point. When he was killed in a lion hunt, the five we have mentioned, given over to continual lamentation, are said to have perished. p. 1155), or Erechtheus (Serv. Astr. v. 272; Ov. Astr. Those seven are called by name Halkyone (Alcyone), Merope, Kelaino (Celaeno), Elektre (Electra), Sterope, Taygete, and queenly Maia. [1.3] ATLAS & AITHRA (Musaeus Frag, Hyginus Astronomica 2.21, Ovid Fasti 5.164), [1.1] TAYGETE, ELEKTRA, ALKYONE, STEROPE, KELAINO, MAIA, MEROPE (Hesiod Astronomy, Apollodorus 3.110, Aratus Phaenomena 254, Hyginus Fabulae 192, Hyginus Astronomica 2.21, Ovid Fasti 4.169, Nonnus Dionysiaca 3.330), PLEIADES (Pleiades or Peleiades), the Pleiads, are called daughters of Atlas by Pleione (or by the Oceanid Aethra, Eustath. . Their names were Maia, Electra, Taygete, Celaeno, Alcyone, Sterope, and Merope.The Pleiades are best known as a constellation in the sky consisting of seven stars. The Pleiades will start relieving their sire's [Atlas'] shoulders. Arat. "I believe you want to hear about the stars in detail, for the differences between them provide a reason for your inquiry. p. 22), or of the queen of the Amazons. 187 ff (trans. . Hesiod, Astronomy Fragment 1 (from Scholiast on Pindar's Nemean Odea 2.16) (trans. Amongst the most beautiful of nymphs, Maia would be chased by Zeus, and would become mother to Hermes by the supreme Greek god. How does this confirm what the ancients knew about the Pleiades? Their parents were Atlas, a Titan who held up the sky, and the oceanid Pleione, the protectress of sailing. Greek Lyric IV) (C5th B.C.) Pleiades… 658 ff : Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 13. The Pleiades were seven sisters: Maia, Alcyone, Asterope, Celaeno, Taygete, Electra, and Merope. Pleiades plē´ədēz, plī´– , in astronomy, famous open star cluster in the constellation Taurus; cataloged as M45. 80. Showerman) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. One day while traveling, the Pleiades and their mother met the giant hunter Orion.. The faintest star of the Pleiades was thought to be either Merope, who was ashamed of loving a mortal, or Electra, grieving for Troy, the city of Dardanus, her son with Zeus. [N.B. "], Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 3. The name of the Pleiades comes from Ancient Greek. Of these, they say Electra does not appear, because of the death of Dardanus and the loss of Troy. 149; Apollod. ", Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 2. 19 (trans. : This reason has been advanced, that of the seven, six mated with immortals--three with Jove [Zeus], two with Neptunus [Poseidon], and one with Mars [Ares]); the seventh was said to have been the wife of Sisyphus. Called seven, they are usually six, wither because six of them entered a god's embrace--for they say that Sterope lay with Mars [Ares], Alcyone and you, fair Celaeno, with Neptunus [Poseidon], Maia, Electra, Taygete with Jove [Zeus]--the seventh, Merope, wed you, mortal Sisyphus, she regrets it, and hides alone in shame, or because Electra could not bear the spectacle of Troy's fall and blocked her eyes with her hands. They have still greater honour than the others, too, because their rising is a sign of summer, their setting of winter--a thing is not true of the other constellations. 21 (trans. Others say Electra does not appear because the Pleiades are thought to lead the circling dance for the stars, but after Troy was captured and her descendants through Dardanus overthrown, moved by grief she left them and took her place in the circle called Arctic. "The Pleiades (Many) were so named, according to Musaeus [a legendary Greek poet], because fifteen daughters were born to Atlas and Aethra, daughter of Oceanus. ", Seneca, Troades 438 ff : . The stars called PLEIADES in the constellation of Taurus commemorate the PLEIADES, daughters of Atlas and Pleione, daughter of Oceanus. Their names are Electra, Maia, Taygete, Alcyone, Celaeno, Sterope, and Merope (Tzetz. 25.) . One is the cave of the Nymphai (Nymphs) called Anigriades; the other is the scene of the stories of the daughters of Atlas [the Pleiades] and of the birth of Dardanos [i.e. ", Seneca, Medea 95 ff (trans. The Pleiades eventually formed a constellation. Echoed round far-stretching mountains, and Aisepos' stream. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pleiades-Greek-mythology, National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center - Pleiades Mythology. 3. 646 ff (trans. xiii. Some think they were so named because they are joined together, that is, plesion, for they are so close together that they can scarcely be counted, nor can anyone be sure whether they are six or seven in number. at the end of October], then remember to plough in season. 1 : Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st A.D.) : Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. ad Hom. ad Lyc. Greek Mythology. "Lamprokles, said expressly that the Pleiades have the same name as the doves (peleiades) in these lines : ‘you who are set in the sky, bearing the same name as the winged doves (peleiades).’", Aeschylus, Fragment 172 (from Athenaeus, Deipnosophists 11. "[At the fall of Troy :] [The Pleiad] Elektra's (Electra's) self withal, the star-queen lovely-robed, shrouded her form in mist and cloud, and left the Pleiad-band, her sisters, as the olden legend tells. She was the sister of Iphigenia and Chrysothemis, as well as Orestes, with whom they planned the murder of their mother and her lover Aegisthus, seeking revenge for the murder of their father.. ", Virgil, Georgics 4. [I.e. the pleiades in greek mythology Today, the name of the Pleiades is perhaps best known as a cluster of stars in the night’s sky, making up part of the Taurus constellation; these seven stars though, are named after seven sisters, the Pleiades of Greek mythology. 25) gives the following different set of names : Coccymo, Plaucia, Protis, Parthemia, Maia, Stonychia, Lampatho. in spring], and spurned with scornful foot the streams of Oceanus, and when that same star, fleeing before the sign of the water Fish, sinks sadly from heaven into the wintry waves [i.e. . . In Greek mythology, the Pleiades were seven sisters who were the daughters of the Titan Atlas and the nymph Pleione. "[The Pleiad Elektra (Electra) addresses Kadmos (Cadmus) :] ‘I was ever born myself one of those Pleiades, seven girls whom our mother once carried under her heart in labour, seven times having called Eileithyia at her lying-in to lighten the pangs of birth after birth--I am witness! 330 ff (trans. Orion became a constellation, too, and continued to pursue the sisters across the sky. ], Pseudo-Hyginus, Astronomica 2. . It lies near the shoulder of Taurus (The Bull) constellation, past the Aldebaran, which depicts the Bull’s Eye to the right of Orion’s Belt. : ", Valerius Flaccus, Argonautica 1. This star, too, portends grief." § 1). ", Seneca, Hercules Furens 4 ff (trans. 10 ff (trans. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : to C1st A.D.) : Greek Lyric IV) (C5th B.C.) 169 ff (trans.Boyle) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. Mars [Ares] by Sterope begat Oenomaus, but others call her the wife of Oenomaus. The Seven Pleiades in Greek Mythology and Legends: Names of the Seven Pleiades in Greek Mythology: The Pleiades - Star cluster in the Constellation of Taurus The high visibility of the open star cluster Pleiades in the night sky has guaranteed it a special place in many cultures. : Simonides, Fragment 555 (trans. The Pleiades were seven mountain nymph daughters of the Titan Atlas and Pleione. : Atlas fathered her, outstanding in beauty among his seven dear violet-haired daughters who are called the heavenly Peleiades (Doves). Godchecker guide to Pleiades (also known as Atlantides), the Greek Spirits of Many Things from Greek mythology. Merope, wed to Sisyphus, bore Glaucus, who, as many say, was the father of Bellerophon. in honour of his mother and her sisters]. The Pleiades are said to have made away with themselves from grief at the death of their sisters, the Hyades, or at the fate of their father, Atlas, and were afterwards placed as stars at the back of Taurus, where they form a cluster resembling a bunch of grapes, whence they were sometimes called botrus (Eustath. Their parents were Pleione and Atlas who was condemned by Zeus to support the Heavens on his shoulders. Campbell, Vol. Nem. : to C1st A.D.) : Seven Starry Sisters "April 2. Hesiod, Astronomy Fragment 1 (from Scholiast on Pindar's Nemean Odea 2.16) (trans. ], Virgil, Georgics 1. T… "But when they spied vessels, the billows swelled with rage, and the hurricane arose against man. Still riseth up in sight of toil-worn men their bright troop in the skies; but she alone hides viewless ever, since the hallowed town [Troy] of her son Dardanos in ruin fell. Campbell, Vol. ], Simonides, Fragment 555 (trans. In Greek mythology the Seven Sisters (Alcyone, Maia, Electra, Merope, Taygete, Celaeno, and Sterope, names now assigned to individual stars), daughters of Atlas and Pleione, were changed into the stars. The setting of the Pleiades in November marked the beginning of the stormy season. The Pleiades were the seven daughters of the Titan Atlas and the nymph Pleione. "When the Pleiades Atlagenes (Born of Atlas) begin to rise begin the harvest, and begin ploughing ere they set. In the movement of the constellations Orion follows the Pleiades across the sky. On account of her other sisters she was placed among the constellations, but because she married a mortal, her star is dim. They all had children by gods (except Merope, who married Sisyphus). The Titan Atlas and Pleione, daughter of Oceanus Roman equivalent of the Greek word for doves..., Celtic, and many Greek temples were oriented to the ancient Greeks, the were... As we have said, apart from the earth by over 434 and 446 years. 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