Laelaps (mythology)
A mythical dog that never failed to catch its prey.
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Laelaps was a dog in Greek mythology that always caught its prey.[1] Its name means "hurricane" or "furious storm" in Greek.[1]
Quick Facts
- Known for
- A dog that always caught its prey
- Associated myth
- Chase of the Teumessian fox
- Constellation
- Canis Major
- Alternative origin
- Gift from Artemis to Procris
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
According to one account, Zeus gave Laelaps as a gift to Europa.[2] The chase continued until Zeus turned both animals to stone and placed them in the sky as constellations.[3] Laelaps became the constellation Canis Major, and the fox became Canis Minor.[3] King Minos received the hound after it was given to Europa by Zeus, and he later presented it to Procris, an Athenian princess, as a reward.[2]
Cephalus, Procris's spouse, employed Laelaps to pursue the Teumessian fox, an animal that was impossible to capture.[3] A logical contradiction arose: a hound that always captured its quarry was pitted against a fox that was uncatchable.[3]
References
- Wikipedia, "Laelaps (mythology)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Laelaps in the Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary"; "Λαῖλαψ, n.", Clarendon Press, 1940 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Laelaps (mythology)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Apollodorus, "The library of Greek mythology", Oxford University Press, 1997, p. 134, 241 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Laelaps (mythology)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Apollodorus, 2.4.7; DK Publishing, "Nature Guide Stars and Planets", Penguin, 2012, p. 275 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Laelaps (mythology) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Mythological hunters
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Laelaps (mythology) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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