Minotaur Facts & Trivia for kids
- The Minotaur is a creature from Greek mythology.
- The Minotaur is said to have the head of a bull and the body of a man.
What is the message of Theseus and the Minotaur?
What is the message of Theseus and the Minotaur? The theme of Theseus and the Minotaur is don’t let happiness and celebration make you forget about thoughtfulness and good judgement. Theseus and the people who went to defeat the minotaur did not necessarily choose to keep their sail black instead of switching it to white.
What is the summary of Theseus and the Minotaur?
What is the summary of Theseus and the Minotaur? A Brief Summary: Because of a past wrong, Athens is forced to ship off young people to Crete every few years. There, boys and girls are devoured by the man-eating Minotaur, a monster with the head of a bull and the body of a man. Theseus, Prince of Athens, decides to put a stop to this and sails off to slay the beast.
Did King Minos have a Minotaur?
The Minotaur (literally, the 'bull of Minos') was a half-man, half-bull monster born to Pasiphae, wife of King Minos of Crete. The name Minotaur is actually a bit misleading—because he wasn't Minos' son at all. His father was a pure white bull, sacred to the god Poseidon.
What is the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur?
Theseus and the Minotaur. According to legend, king Minos ruled Athens and forced the Athenians to deliver seven youths and seven maidens every nine years. They became prey of the Minotaur in the labyrinth, and Athens escaped further sanctions through their obedience. The Minotaur was a terrible monster with the body of a man, and the head of a bull, born from the union of Pasiphae and the bull offered as a gift to Minos by Poseidon.
What is the Minotaur?
Minotaur, Greek Minotauros (“Minos's Bull”), in Greek mythology, a fabulous monster of Crete that had the body of a man and the head of a bull. It was the offspring of Pasiphae, the wife of Minos, and a snow-white bull sent to Minos by the god Poseidon for sacrifice.
Can you describe the Minotaur?
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur was a monster with the body of a man and the head and tail of a bull. The Minotaur was the offspring of the Cretan Queen Pasiphae and a majestic bull.
Where does a Minotaur live for kids?
The king of Athens offered King Minos a deal. If he would not attack Athens for 9 years, Athens would send 7 boys and 7 girls to the island of Crete to be eaten by the awful monster that King Minos kept as a pet, the dreaded minotaur. The minotaur lived in the heart of a maze on the island of Crete.
What is the story about the Minotaur?
In traditional Greek mythology, when King Minos of Crete failed to sacrifice a bull to Poseidon, the god caused his wife to lust after the animal. By it, she conceived the Minotaur, a monster with a bull's head and a man's body, which was confined in a labyrinth.
What did the Minotaur eat?
human fleshThe monstrous Minotaur riveted ancient Greece and Rome Deep inside the Labyrinth on the island of Crete lived a Minotaur, a monster half man, half bull. Imprisoned there by his stepfather, King Minos of Crete, he dined on human flesh supplied by the city of Athens.
Is Minotaur good or evil?
The Minotaur Was Not Naturally Evil Although the Minotaur lived on human flesh, according to Greek mythology he was not born evil. His mother raised him with watchful and tender care, and it was only as he grew older that he became a threat to Greek society.
Do minotaurs eat meat?
Minotaur Lore... Minotaurs breed with human females to produce offspring, which are male minotaurs. (...) They can live without food for years at a time, but are always hungry unless they are fed regularly. They are meat-eaters, but their curse causes them to prefer a diet of human flesh.
How tall is a Minotaur?
Size: Minotaurs average over 6 feet in height, and they have stocky builds. Your size is Medium.
What was the Minotaur protecting?
This creature was the adopted son of King Minos of Crete, a product of a curse placed on his wife by the gods for Minos' hubris. To protect both Asterion and the people of Crete, Minos had the creature placed in an inescapable maze called the Labyrinth.
What is a minotaurs weakness?
Weaknesses. Being a monster, and therefore without a soul (despite being half-human), the Minotaur cannot be truly physically destroyed, but they can be killed with their own horn, especially when stabbed in the chest, side, or neck region.
Who fights the Minotaur?
TheseusTheseus came to the heart of the Labyrinth and upon the sleeping Minotaur. The beast awoke and a tremendous fight occurred. Theseus overpowered the Minotaur with his strength and stabbed the beast in the throat with his sword (according to one scholium on Pindar's Fifth Nemean Ode, Theseus strangled it).
Did the Minotaur have a name?
Unlike centaurs, who were a race themselves, the Minotaur was the only one of his kind. And though we know him simply as the Minotaur, the creature had a given name too: “Asterion,” which literally means “the starry one,” perhaps signifying a link to the constellation Taurus.
What does Minotaur look like?
Appearance and Reputation. Depending on what source you use, the Minotaur was a monster with a human body and a bull's head or a bull's body with a human head. The classical form, human body and bull's head, is most often found illustrated on Greek vases and later works of art.
What is the Minotaurs personality?
Personality. Minotaurs were always ravenously hungry, a trait that only fueled their aggression. The youth showed little affection towards their mothers and fathers.
What does the Minotaur smell like?
Before you see the Minotaur you can smell him. The stench of rotten flesh wafts from his pores and makes his victims weak from nausea. Alarmingly, he stands at a staggering two metres tall, in addition his entire body is covered in short, shaggy fur.
Why is the Minotaur shaped like he is?
To punish Minos, Poseidon made Minos' wife Pasiphaë fall in love with the bull. Pasiphaë had the craftsman Daedalus fashion a hollow wooden cow, which she climbed into in order to mate with the bull. The monstrous Minotaur was the result. Pasiphaë nursed the Minotaur but he grew in size and became ferocious.
What is the Minotaur?
Minotaur, Greek Minotauros (“Minos’s Bull”), in Greek mythology, a fabulous monster of Crete that had the body of a man and the head of a bull. It was the offspring of Pasiphae, the wife of Minos, and a snow-white bull sent to Minos by the god Poseidon for sacrifice. Minos, instead of sacrificing it, kept it alive;
What is an encyclopedia editor?
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. ...
Who killed the Minotaur?
Theseus killing the Minotaur. Theseus killing the Minotaur, detail of a vase painting by the Kleophrades Painter, 6th century bce; in the British Museum, London. Courtesy of the trustees of the British Museum. A son of Minos, Androgeos, was later killed by the Athenians; to avenge his death, Minos demanded that seven Athenian youths ...
What is the Minotaur?
The Minotaur is an ancient Greek monster, half-man and half-bull. The beast is most famous for dwelling inside a labyrinth, where he devoured 14 human sacrifices each year.
What did Poseidon do when Minos broke his vow?
When Poseidon learned that Minos had broken his vow and kept the bull alive, he was furious. He decided to curse Minos, and he spent days brooding over a curse worthy of this offense. At last, he decided that he would make Minos’s wife, Paciphae, fall madly in love with the bull.
What was the bull's coat like?
Coming from a god, the bull was incredibly powerful and beautiful. Its coat was dazzling white, and its muscles were like granite. The people of Minoa, including Minos, were enchanted by the bull, and Minos decided to spare the great beast and slaughter another in its place.
What did the bull find in the pasture?
Eventually, the bull came into the pasture, searching for sweet green grass —but an even sweeter sight met his eyes. He was instantly enamored by the beautiful cow and decided to mate with her. Little did he know, he was actually mating with Paciphae, who was hidden inside the cow.
Why did the Athenians hate the Minotaur?
However, this description is given by the Athenians, who had a reason to hate the Minotaur: they were forced to supply victims for him to eat. It’s possible that the Minotaur was not so monstrous; he might even have been viewed as a hero by the people in his native kingdom, Minoa.
What was the Minotaur's body?
The ancient Greeks depicted the Minotaur as a creature with a man’s body and a bull’s head. His body was fully human, although his legs and arms were bulging with almost superhuman muscles. Beginning at his shoulders, he transformed into a bull with blue-black fur and sharp horns that could easily gore any human challenger. Sometimes, he was drawn with a bull’s tail as well.
Where was the Minotaur placed in the puzzle?
When it was finished, the Minotaur was placed in the center of the puzzle, where he had no chance of finding his way out. Later, King Minos waged war against Athens and won. As a punishment, he demanded that Athens send seven young men and seven young women, each year, to be sacrificed.
How many Athenian youths were sent to the Labyrinth?
Minos required that seven Athenian youths and seven maidens, drawn by lots, be sent every seventh or ninth year (some accounts say every year) into the Labyrinth to be devoured by the Minotaur. When the third sacrifice approached, Theseus volunteered to slay the monster.
What is the name of the creature with the head and tail of a bull?
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( / ˈmaɪnəˌtɔːr, ˈmɪnəˌtɔːr / MY-nə-TOR, MIN-ə-TOR, US: / ˈmɪnəˌtɑːr, - oʊ -/ MIN-ə-TAR, -oh-; Ancient Greek: Μινώταυρος [miːnɔ̌ːtau̯ros]; in Latin as Minotaurus [miːnoːˈtau̯rʊs]) is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "part man and part bull". He dwelt at the center of the Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze -like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, on the command of King Minos of Crete. The Minotaur was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus .
Why does Virgil taunt the Minotaur?
In these lines, Virgil taunts the Minotaur in order to distract him, and reminds the Minotaur that he was killed by Theseus the Duke of Athens with the help of the monster's half-sister Ariadne. The Minotaur is the first infernal guardian whom Virgil and Dante encounter within the walls of Dis.
What did Minos believe?
Minos believed that the god would accept a substitute sacrifice. To punish Minos, Poseidon made Minos' wife Pasiphaë fall in love with the bull. Pasiphaë had the craftsman Daedalus fashion a hollow wooden cow, which she climbed into in order to mate with the bull. The monstrous Minotaur was the result.
What was the contest between Theseus and the Minotaur?
The contest between Theseus and the Minotaur was frequently represented in Greek art. A Knossian didrachm exhibits on one side the labyrinth, on the other the Minotaur surrounded by a semicircle of small balls, probably intended for stars; one of the monster's names was Asterion ("star").
Why did the myth of the Minotaur work?
Once continental Greece was free from Crete's dominance, the myth of the Minotaur worked to distance the forming religious consciousness of the Hellene poleis from Minoan beliefs.
What is the Minotaur's body?
The Minotaur is commonly represented in Classical art with the body of a man and the head and tail of a bull. According to Sophocles ' Trachiniai, when the river spirit Achelous seduced Deianira, one of the guises he assumed was a man with the head of a bull.
What did Theseus do to the Minotaur?
The son of a human woman and Poseidon, Theseus was a demigod and hero. Theseus was also a citizen of Athens and he vowed to end the reign of terror concerning the Athenian sacrifices. In the myth, it states that Theseus hid himself amongst the third group of human sacrifices headed to Crete and the labyrinth with the intent of killing the Minotaur. Once he arrived in Crete, it is said that Minos' daughter, Aethra, fell for the young hero. Determined not to let him die, Aethra spoke to the architect Daedalus and asked about the order of the labyrinth. As a result, Theseus was able to sneak into the maze and find the Minotaur at its center. The two wrestled and, in the end, the Minotaur was left dead. In some versions of the story, Theseus was stabbed in the neck; and while in others, he bludgeoned him with a club. Theseus then left the labyrinth and returned to Athens with Aethra as his bride.
What is the Greek word for a beast?
The Greek word for this mythical beast is Minotauros (Μινωταυρος), which can be translated to "Minos' Bull". According to Greek mythology, the Minotaur was a creature with the head of a bull and the body of a man. The half man/half bull creature imprisoned on the island of Crete in a complex maze called a labyrinth, and the mythical creature was rumored to have an incurable desire to eat human flesh. As a result, according to mythology, people from the city-state of Athens were sent to the labyrinth every year as a sacrifice to satiate the Minotaur.
Why is the myth of the Minotaur important?
Myths like the story of the Minotaur seemed to caution the humans of ancient Greece to always honor the gods to which they owed so much. The story of the Minotaur is a powerful story of selfishness and punishment, with the Minotaur acting as a symbol for the arrogant nature of man.
What is the myth of the Minotaur?
The legend of the Minotaur is an ancient Greek myth about a beast that was half man and half bull.
What is Greek mythology?
The stories of Greek mythology are an intricate tapestry of Greek legend and culture. Like many other ancient religions, not only did mythology act as a guide to the unexplained mysteries of the world, but it also acted as a moral compass for the ancient Greeks. Greek mythology, which was a polytheistic religion where many different gods are worshipped, is compiled of many different stories.
What does it mean to enroll in a course?
Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams.
Who killed the Minotaur?
The Minotaur was killed by Theseus after he snuck into the labyrinth with the help of princess Ariadne, who would later become his wife.
What did Theseus tell the boys and girls to do?
Theseus told the boys and girls to stay by the door with the string while he went into the labyrinth alone. Theseus unraveled the ball of string as he walked through the labyrinth. Theseus found the Minotaur and used the sword that Princess Ariadne had given him to kill the minotaur.
Why didn't Theseus want his son to go to the Labyrinth of the Minotaur?
He did not want his son to go to the labyrinth of the Minotaur because he knew his son would be eaten. Theseus promised his father that he would make it out alive, and then Theseus got on the boat and sailed to Crete. When Theseus got to Crete, he saw the evil King Minos.
What did Princess Ariadne tell Theseus to do?
Princess Ariadne told Theseus to tie the string to the entrance door of the labyrinth. She told Theseus to unravel the ball of string as he went through the labyrinth. This way, he would be able to find his way out of the labyrinth after he killed the Minotaur with the sword.
Why did Theseus tell his father to send him to the island of Crete?
Theseus told his father to send him to the island of Crete so that he could be sent into the labyrinth. Theseus told his father that he would kill the Minotaur to end the yearly sacrifices. The King of Athens told his son no. He did not want his son to go to the labyrinth of the Minotaur because he knew his son would be eaten.
What is the Minotaur story?
Theseus and the Minotaur: Story for Kids! Posted on November 26, 2019 by Madeleine. Once upon a time, there was a man named King Minos. King Minos was an evil king who lived on an island called Crete. On this island, King Minos had a pet called a Minotaur. A Minotaur is half man, half bull.
Why did King Minos want revenge?
King Minos was upset that his son had died in Athens, and he wanted revenge. King Minos told the King of Athens that if he would send 7 boys and 7 girls to his island of Crete for him to feed to the Minotaur, then he would not attack the city of Athens.
How many girls and boys were in the Labyrinth of Athens?
For three years, the King of Athens sent 7 boys and 7 girls to the island of Crete to be placed in the labyrinth with the Minotaur. Since the labyrinth was a maze, the boys and girls could not escape, so they would be eaten by the Minotaur. In the third year, the son of the King of Athens told his father that he wanted to be one ...
What is the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur?
The myth of Theseus and the Minotaur is a myth about keeping promises, told through a strange arrangement between two warring kings. If King Minos would stop his attacks, the king of Athens would offer children to feed the Minotaur. However, the king of Athens' son - Prince Theseus - steps in and saves the day by entering the labyrinth and killing the Minotaur.
What did Theseus want to do to defeat the Minotaur?
The prince and the princess met to discuss their plan, and Princess Ariadne gave Theseus a large sword and a ball of string. Her instructions were to bring both to the labyrinth - which is a maze - where the Minotaur lives. The sword was to kill the Minotaur, and the string was to clasp onto the entrance door of the maze, so Theseus could find his way out.
What did the king of Athens offer to King Minos?
The king of Athens offered up something quite unique in order to get safety for his city. The deal offered to King Minos went like this: If King Minos left Athens alone for nine years, the king of Athens would send fourteen tasty snacks - in the form of children - to King Minos and his pet monster, the Minotaur, which had the head of a bull and the body of a man. King Minos agreed to the deal and surprisingly stuck to it.
Where did Prince Theseus and his children arrive?
Prince Theseus and the children arrived on the island of Crete to the reception of King Minos and his beautiful daughter, Princess Ariadne. Later, Prince Theseus received a letter from Princess Ariadne in which she asks the prince to take her with him in exchange for help in killing the monster.
How many children did Minos lose?
Once the nine years were up, the citizens of Athens became incredibly sad that they would lose fourteen of their children - seven boys and seven girls - to the hungry Minotaur.
Where did the Minotaur live?
The Minotaur lived in a labyrinth - or a maze - like this one.
What does it mean to enroll in a course?
Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams.
What Is The Minotaur?
Characteristics
- Physical Description
The ancient Greeks depicted the Minotaur as a creature with a man’s body and a bull’s head. His body was fully human, although his legs and arms were bulging with almost superhuman muscles. Beginning at his shoulders, he transformed into a bull with blue-black fur and sharp hor… - Personality
The Minotaur has gone down in history as a bloodthirsty, mindless monster. He killed innocent, unarmed victims and feasted on their bodies. However, this description is given by the Athenians, who had a reason to hate the Minotaur: they were forced to supply victims for him to eat. It’s pos…
Stories About The Minotaur
- Birth
King Minoswas a son of the glorious god Zeus. Despite his pedigree, when Minos inherited the Minoan throne, his authority was disputed. He responded by sacrificing a bull to the gods, then asking the gods to send him another bull, which he vowed to sacrifice as well. Deep in his ocea… - Imprisonment
When King Minos saw the Minotaur and discovered his wife’s infidelity, he was infuriated. He ordered Daedalus to build a cage to imprison the child. Daedalus studied the child, and again, he came up with a solution. The child was already strong, and Daedalus predicted that he would gr…
Cultural Representation
- Origin
The Minotaur comes from ancient Greek mythology. He was first discussed by Ovid in the 1st century BC. Virgil, Seneca, and Plutarch also contributed to the making of his legend. Paintings and mosaics of the battle between the Minotaur and Theseus have also been found dating back … - Modern Appearances
As one of ancient Greece’s most famous chimeras, the Minotaur has remained famous throughout the centuries. He can be seen in numerous Renaissance paintings and found in one of the levels of Dante’s Inferno. Later, the likes of Salvador Dali and Pablo Picasso created images …
Overview
In Greek mythology, the Minotaur is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "part man and part bull". He dwelt at the center of the Labyrinth, which was an elaborate maze-like construction designed by the architect Daedalus and his son Icarus, on the command of King Minos of Crete. The Minotaur was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.
Etymology
The word minotaur derives from the Ancient Greek Μῑνώταυρος, a compound of the name Μίνως (Minos) and the noun ταῦρος "bull", translated as "(the) Bull of Minos". In Crete, the Minotaur was known by the name Asterion, a name shared with Minos' foster-father.
"Minotaur" was originally a proper noun in reference to this mythical figure. That is, there was only the one Minotaur. In contrast, the use of "minotaur" as a common noun to refer to members of a …
Creation and appearance
After ascending the throne of the island of Crete, Minos competed with his brothers as ruler. Minos prayed to the sea god Poseidon to send him a snow-white bull as a sign of the god's favour. Minos was to sacrifice the bull to honor Poseidon, but owing to the bull's beauty he decided instead to keep him. Minos believed that the god would accept a substitute sacrifice. To punish Minos, Poseidon made Minos' wife Pasiphaë fall in love with the bull. Pasiphaë had the craftsman Daedal…
Theseus myth
All the stories agree that prince Androgeus, son of King Minos, died and that the fault lay with the Athenians. The sacrifice of young Athenian men and women was a penalty for his death.
In some versions he was killed by the Athenians because of their jealousy of the victories he had won at the Panathenaic Games; in others he was killed at Marathon by the Cretan Bull, his mother's former taurine lover, because Aegeus, king of Athens, had commanded Androgeus to slay it. Th…
Interpretations
The contest between Theseus and the Minotaur was frequently represented in Greek art. A Knossian didrachm exhibits on one side the Labyrinth, on the other the Minotaur surrounded by a semicircle of small balls, probably intended for stars; one of the monster's names was Asterion or Asterius ("star").
Pasiphaë gave birth to Asterius, who was called the Minotaur. He had the face of a bull, but the r…
Cultural references
The Minotaur (infamia di Creti, Italian for "infamy of Crete"), appears briefly in Dante's Inferno, in Canto 12 (l. 12–13, 16–21), where Dante and his guide Virgil find themselves picking their way among boulders dislodged on the slope and preparing to enter into the seventh circle of hell. Dante and Virgil encounter the beast first among the "men of blood": those damned for their violent natures. Some commentators believe that Dante, in a reversal of classical tradition, best…
See also
• Ox-Head and Horse-Face – two guardians or types of guardians of the underworld in Chinese mythology.
• Satyr – a legendary human-horse (later human-goat) hybrid(s)
• Shedu – a figure in Mesopotamian mythology with the body of a bull and a human head
External links
• Minotaur in Greek Myth source Greek texts and art.