Sithon

A son of Poseidon and Assa, or of Ares and Achiroë, the daughter of Nilus, was married to the nymph Mendeis, by whom he became the father of Pallene and Rhoeteia. He was king of the Hadomantes in Macedonia, or king of Thrace.1

Pallene, on account of her beauty, had numerous suitors, and Sithon, who promised her to the one who should conquer him in single combat, slew many. At length he allowed Dryas and Cleitus to fight for her, promising to give her to the conqueror. Pallene, who loved Cleitus, caused her own instructor Persyntes to induce the charioteer of Dryas to draw out the nails from the wheels of his master's chariot, so that during the fight he broke down with his chariot, and was killed by Cleitus.

Sithon, who was informed of the trick, erected a funeral pile, on which he intended to burn the corpse of Dryas and his own daughter; but when the pile was ready, Aphrodite appeared, a shower of rain extinguished the fire, and Sithon altered his mind, and gave his daughter to Cleitus.

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References

Notes

  1. Tzetzes on Lycophron, 1356

Sources

  • Conon. Narratives, 10.
  • Parthenius of Nicaea. Of the Sorrows of Love, 5.
  • Smith, William. (1870). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. London: Taylor, Walton, and Maberly.
  • Tzetzes on Lycophron, 583, 1161.

This article incorporates text from Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) by William Smith, which is in the public domain.