CORINTH (city in Corinthia)
City-state in ancient Greece
- Kind of place
- City
- Region
- Corinthia
- Landmarks
- Temple of Aphrodite Strabo 8.6.20; Acrocorinthus Strabo 8.4.8
- People of myth here
- Arion, Bunus, Creon of Corinth, Glauce (Creusa of Corinth), Glaucus of Corinth, Helios, Jason, Medea, Merope, Nisos, Oedipus, Peirene, Polybus, Polyidus, Sisyphus, Thoas
- Where
- 37.91° N, 22.88° E
Corinth is described as a wealthy, large, opulent, and happy city worthy of praise. Pindar, Olympian 13 ¶1 The city is described as having two seas. Ovid Met. 5.385-461 The city is located near the lovely spring of Pirene. Athenaeus 13.54
Described in the sources
The city is located on the isthmus and controls two harbors near Asia and Italy. Ovid, Heroides 12.18 +4 Jason lived in Corinth for ten years with Medea before marrying the king's daughter. Apollodorus 1.9.28 +3 Creon, the ruler of Corinth, was entrusted with raising two infants brought there by Alcmaeon. Apollodorus 3.7.7 +3 Oedipus fled from Corinth after receiving a prophecy at Delphi to avoid fulfilling it. Apollodorus 3.5.7 +2 Medea and her family resided in the city after fleeing their homeland, where the citizens welcomed her during her exile. Euripides, Medea 1-48 +2 Polybus was the ruler of this city. Apollodorus 3.5.7 +1 The grave of Lais is located in the city. Athenaeus 13.55 +1 Cypselus was the tyrant who ruled this city-state. Herodotus 5.92E.2 +1 Oedipus was raised in Corinth during his childhood. Pausanias 10.5.3 +1 Periander held the position of tyrant in this city-state. Herodotus 1.23.1 +1
Gods and worship
The courtesans in the city celebrated a specific festival called the Aphrodisia. Athenaeus 13.33 Order, Justice, and Peace, who dwell in Corinth, are the sure foundation of states. Pindar, Olympian 13 ¶1 Its short distance between harbors facilitated the exchange of commodities from both sides. Strabo 8.6.20 Private citizens sometimes vowed to bring courtesans to Venus if their wishes were granted. Athenaeus 13.32
Stories and history
The city was destroyed, while the nearby settlement of Tenea continued to subsist. Aeneid 6.801 +4 The Romans destroyed the city of Corinth, dismantling its fortified walls and wiping out the original inhabitants, an event that helped them acquire significant wealth, and subsequently rebuilt it. Pausanias 2.1.2 +4 Demaratus fled the city with great wealth to become sovereign in Tyrrhenia. Pliny, Nat. Hist. 35.43 ¶1 +3 Creon, the ruler of Corinth, ordered Medea and her children to be exiled from the city. Euripides, Medea 49-95 +2 Aletes founded the city after marching against it, initially ordering Melas to withdraw due to divine disapproval but later accepting him as a settler after misinterpreting an oracle. Pausanias 2.4.3 +2 Mummius laid waste to the city. Pausanias 2.1.2 +1 Cypselus dedicated a golden statue to Zeus at Olympia. Pausanias 5.2.3 +1 Corinth remained a desolate place for a long period of time. Strabo 17.3.15 +1 A proverb states that not every man has the power to go to Corinth. Strabo 12.3.36 +1 Corinth sent four hundred soldiers to fight the Persians at Thermopylae. Herodotus 7.202.1 +1
Myths set at Corinth
In the age of the gods
Before the heroes. In Godsunder these are history: everyone in the world knows them.
- The Dispute over Corinth. Helius and Poseidon dispute ownership of the land, leading to arbitration by Briareos. Briareos assigns the mountain peak Acrocorinthus to Helius, settling the conflict. Pausanias 2.1.6 +1 Helios
In the age of heroes
- The Death of Glauce. hook: "Creon, king of Corinth, welcomes Jason and arranges for his daughter Glauce to marry him, breaking Medea's marriage to Jason. goal: "Medea vows to bring utter desolation to Creon's palace in retaliation for the betrayal. outcome: "Creon dies in fierce fire while trying to save his daughter Glauce, who was poisoned."} Apollodorus 1.9.28 +5 Creon
- The Exile and Flight. Medea is expelled from Corinth after killing her children to prevent Jason from mocking her and marrying another. She flees to Thebes to seek refuge with Heracles. Diodorus 4.54 +5 Medea
- The Exile of Medea. Creon orders Medea and her children to leave Corinth within one day, fearing her magic and vowing to protect his own family. Medea pleads for a small piece of land to hide her grief, but Creon insists she take her poisons and leave, threatening death if she remains. Diodorus 4.54 +5 Creon
- The Exposure of Oedipus. hook: A prophecy that Oedipus would kill his father leads his biological father to attempt to kill him shortly after birth. goal: The infant is cast out to die on Mount Cithaeron, but shepherds find him and bring him to be raised in Corinth. outcome: Oedipus survives the exposure, is adopted by Polybus and Periboea, and grows up believing Cithaeron is his native land. Apollodorus 3.5.7 +5 Oedipus
- The Marriage to Glauce and the Death of Medea's Children. Jason abandons Medea to marry Glauce, the daughter of King Creon, in Corinth. Medea retaliates by killing their two children and burning Glauce and Creon with a poisoned robe. Apollodorus 1.9.28 +5 Jason
- The Murder of Arion the Poet. Arion, a wealthy poet, is betrayed by his crew who throw him overboard to steal his money. He survives the ordeal by riding a dolphin to safety and returns to confront his betrayers. Herodotus 1.24.1 +3 Arion
- The Death of Neleus. Neleus travels to Corinth, where he dies from an illness and is buried near the Isthmus. In one version, he is killed during the capture of Pylus, while in another, Sisyphus refuses to reveal his tomb location to Nestor. Apollodorus 2.7.3 +2 Neleus
- The Settlement in Corinth. Jason settles in Corinth after receiving a welcome from King Creon. He dedicates the Argo to Poseidon and arranges marriages for his daughters before defending his past actions in an assembly. Diodorus 4.53 +1 Jason
- The Fate of Medea's Children. Medea poisons King Creon while he governs Corinth, leading to her flight to Athens. Her sons are subsequently killed by Creon's relatives, who falsely claim Medea murdered them. The Taking of Oechalia fr. 4 Creon
- The Raising of Amphilochus. Alcmaeon entrusts two infants to Creon, who raises them and later returns one to the visitor. The story ends with the reunion of Amphilochus and his father. Apollodorus 3.7.7 Creon