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Androgeos


Androgeos or Androgeus (Ancient Greek: Ἀνδρόγεως, Latin: Androgeōs derived from andros "of a man" and geos, genitive "earth, land") was the name of two individuals in Classical mythology.

Androgeos was a son of Minos and Pasiphaë. His own sons were Sthenelus and Alcaeus, who later became companions of Heracles. He was murdered in Athens. Sources vary as to the exact circumstances of his death.

Some stated that Androgeos participated in the Panathenaic Games and took all the prizes, whereupon he directed to Thebes to take part in another contest in honor of Laius, but was ambushed and killed by his envious would-be competitors.

Servius suggests that Androgeos was murdered upon his triumph by the Athenians themselves and the Megarians. Plutarch writes that Androgeos "was thought to have been treacherously killed", without clarifying whether this was supposed to be the truth or not.

In another version, Aegeus, King of Athens, sent him against the Marathonian Bull which resulted in Androgeos' death.

In Pausanias' interpretation, Androgeos being killed by the bull is presented as more of an accident, which, however, Minos is remarked to not have believed.

According to Diodorus Siculus, Aegeus killed Androgeos out of fear that the latter would support the sons of Pallas against him. In yet another version, Androgeos was killed in a battle between the Athenians and the Cretans.

The Athenians eventually established a hero cult of Androgeos: there was an altar dedicated to him at Phaleron.


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