PASIPHAË (queen of Crete)
Figure of myth · daughter of Perse and Helios, the Sun in Greek mythology, queen of Crete
- Parents
- Helios, Perse, Crete
- Siblings
- Aeëtes, Circe, Perses
- Consorts
- Minos
- Children
- Phaedra, Ariadne, Deucalion of Crete, Minotaur, Catreus, Glaucus, Androgeus, Acacallis, Xenodice, Astraea, Hecale
- In the sources
- 17 ancient passages
Pasiphaë, daughter of Helios and Perseis, was the wife of Minos, the king of Crete.1,2,3,4,5,6 She was the sister of Circe and Aeetes, and some accounts identify her name as a title for the Moon rather than a local deity.7,3
Poseidon caused Pasiphaë to develop a romantic passion for a specific bull.1,8,9 To act on this desire, she was enclosed in a wooden structure to mate with the animal.1,2,8 Daedalus helped her by creating a wooden cow for her to use in this encounter.8
From that union, Pasiphaë gave birth to Asterius, also known as the Minotaur.1,2,10 The offspring was dissimilar to her own shape, and she bore a wild son who bellowed cruelly within the coiled habitation of the crooked labyrinth.11,12
Pasiphaë also bore Minos the sons Deucalion, Catreus, and Androgeos, as well as the daughter Ariadne.5,13,14 She had additional natural children with Minos beyond these named ones.14 In a later dispute, she used magic to curse Minos so he would harm other women he slept with.15
Pasiphaë helped Daedalus escape Crete by providing him with a vessel, and some accounts say she hid him from Minos for a time.2 In the end, she resides in the Fields of Sorrow among the dead, wandering in the gloom of dark myrtle groves.16 She is grouped with other figures who were wasted away by ruthless love.16
The codex facts behind this entry
Pasiphae is identified as the daughter of Helios and Perseis. Apollodorus 1.9.1 +1
In the myths
Pasiphaë was enclosed in a wooden structure to mate with a bull. Apollodorus 3.1.4 +3 Poseidon caused Pasiphae to develop a romantic passion for a specific bull. Apollodorus 3.1.4 +2
