Manto (daughter of Tiresias)
Theban seer who founded oracles and wept a spring.
Manto was a seer from Thebes, daughter of the prophet Tiresias and mother of Mopsus. She is notable for her role in founding oracles and for her appearance in several myths involving prophecy and divine punishment.
Quick Facts
- Father
- Tiresias
- Mother of
- Mopsus
- Children (by alcmaeon)
- Amphilochus and Tisiphone
- Son (by tiberinus)
- Ocnus
Facts from the source article.
Mythology
During the War of the Epigoni, Manto was taken to Delphi as a war prize. Apollo made her his priestess and sent her to Colophon to found an oracle. She had a son named Mopsus by Apollo, though some accounts name Rhacius as the father. According to the Bibliotheca, she bore Amphilochus and Tisiphone to Alcmaeon. In an early version, Apollo instructed her to marry the first man she saw outside Delphi, who was Rhacius. He took her to Claros, where she founded the oracle of Apollo Clarios. Upon arrival, Manto wept for her ravaged city, and her tears transformed into a spring. In Roman myth, she went to Italy and gave birth to Ocnus, whose father was Tiberinus; Ocnus founded Mantua and named it after her. Manto's prophetic abilities were said to surpass her father's. She also appears in the myth of Niobe, warning her not to anger the gods; Niobe refused and was punished. Lampus, who tried to violate Manto, was killed by Apollo. Dante places her among fortune-tellers in the Inferno.
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