EURYPYLUS |
Son of Euaemon, king of Ormenion in Thessaly, one of the suitors of Helen. He was among the bravest of the Greek heroes who fought before Troy, and of his own accord offered to engage Hector in single combat. In the later story he appears in connexion with the worship of Dionysus. At the division of the Trojan spoil he received an image of Dionysus, made by Hephaestus, and presented to Dardanus. This bad been kept in a chest as a Palladium. When Eurypylus opened the chest and beheld the image he fell into a madness. The Delphic oracle promised that he should be healed if he dedicated the image in a spot where men offered barbaric sacrifices. Accordingly he dedicated it at Aroe in Achaia, where an offering of the fairest youth and fairest virgin was made annually to Artemis. The bloody act was abolished, and the gentle service of Dionysus introduced in its place. |
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