ALEUS (king of Arcadia)
Figure of myth · in mythology, the king of Arcadia
- Parents
- Apheidas
- Consorts
- Neaera, Cleobule
- Children
- Auge, Amphidamas, Alcidice, Hippothous, Cepheus, King of Tegea, Lycurgus of Arcadia
- Haunts and cult places
- Tegea
- In the sources
- 25 ancient passages
Aleus, son of Apheidas, succeeded Aepytus as ruler and established Tegea as the capital of his kingdom.1,2 The citizens of Alea claim him as their founder, and he retained the share of territory that had belonged to his father.1,3 In his later years, while growing old, he resided in a house located in the city of Tegea.4,5 Among his other offspring were Alcidice, who later married Salmoneus, and Hippothous.6
Aleus constructed the original sanctuary of Athena Alea for the people of Tegea.2,7 His father had sent him to join his brothers on a journey.4 Tragedy struck when Aleus discovered his daughter Auge was pregnant, as the size of the child revealed the violation.8 Accounts differ on his response; some say he handed her over to Nauplius to be sold in a foreign land.9,8 Other sources claim he ordered Nauplius to drown her in the sea or sent her and her infant son out to sea in a chest.8,10,11,12 In one version, he exposed the newborn child on Mount Parthenius instead.9
Aleus died, leading to his son Lycurgus inheriting the kingdom.13 The Tegeans credit him with founding their modern city, and he is remembered as the king who built its most sacred shrine.14,8,2,7 His legacy endures among the citizens of Alea, who claim him as their founder, and in the sanctuary he constructed for the people of Tegea.1,2,7
The codex facts behind this entry
In the myths
Aleus constructed the original sanctuary of Athena Alea for the people of Tegea. Pausanias 8.4.8 +1 Aleus handed his daughter Auge over to Nauplius to be sold in a foreign land. Apollodorus 2.7.4 +1 Aleus ordered Nauplius to take his daughter and drown her in the sea. Diodorus 4.33 +1
