![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() If only he and his son could just fl y away … and then he had an idea which was both brilliant and ambitious. Daedalus stared up at the sky and the seagulls that circled overhead. They could not leave by ship all vessels were controlled by King Minos. But who would want to live like that – hiding away hoping they would not be captured? They needed to fi nd a way to leave the island, but how? They could not swim, the nearest land was too far away, and they would never make it. They could possibly survive for months or years without being seen. The trees and bushes surrounding the beach would provide an ideal sanctuary for the time being. After all, Daedalus had built the labyrinth and knew his way around! Once out of the labyrinth Deadulus and Icarus carefully made their way to the shore of the island and pondered on what to do next. Instead, unknown to the king, they escaped. The King expected that the inventor and his son would be found by the Minotaur and eaten. Now he had the perfect punishment for his enemies! Deciding he had no further use for Daedalus, the King threw him into the labyrinth along with his son Icarus. Anyone who was sent to the labyrinth would be trapped and eventually they would be found by the Minotaur who would eat them alive. Once the Minotaur was in the labyrinth the creature was unable to escape. Daedalus did as King Minos requested and then, following the King’s instructions, he enticed the Minotaur into the labyrinth by leaving a huge pile of fresh meat in its centre. He enlisted the help of Daedalus, a talented architect, inventor and craftsman, and asked him to build a labyrinth – a maze of passages that would be so complex that it would be virtually impossible for anyone (or anything) to ever fi nd a way out. To die at the hands of the Minotaur would be one of the most terrible deaths imaginable, and King Minos believed that his enemies deserved to meet such a fate. Instead, he constructed a plan to imprison the Minotaur. They begged their ruler, King Minos, to order that the creature be killed, but the King decided against this. The people of the island of Crete were terri fi ed of the Minotaur it loved nothing more than to feast on human fl esh. Daedalus and Icarus On the island of Crete there lived a Minotaur, a ferocious creature that was half man and half bull. It would appear that, even 2000 years ago, teenagers thought they were invincible.Understanding Myths and Legends 17 © Karen Moncrieffe and Brilliant Publications 2012 This page may be photocopied for use by the purchasing institution only. The drowned man was carried ashore by the current to the islandĪnd Apollodorus refers to him as infatuated, and draws attention to his disregard for his father's instructions:īut the infatuated Icarus, disregarding his father's injunctions, soared ever higher, till, the glue melting, he fell into the sea called after him Icarian, and perished. The ship of Icarus is said to have overturned, as he was a clumsy helmsman. Similarly, Pausanias speaks of his clumsy navigation: Icarus's fall is a warning about youthful carelessness, and shows the terrible consequences that can bring.ĭiadorus Siculus tells two versions of the story, both of which emphasize the recklessness of Icarus causing his downfall:īut when Icarus was disembarking onto the island in a reckless manner, he fell into the sea and perishedĪs for Icarus, because of the ignorance of youth he made his flight to far aloft and fell into the sea when the wax which held the wings together was melted by the sunĭiodorus Siculus, Library of History, 4.77.6 and 4.77.9 I think we can probably rule out the story being warning against flight, being that no one was building aircraft at the time, or for quite some time thereafter. ![]()
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