View source for Phorcys

{{Short description|Ancient Greek god of the sea}}
{{About|the sea god|other uses|Phorcys (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox deity
| type             = Greek
| name             = Phorcys
| image            = Phorkys Mosaic Bardo.jpg
| alt              = 
| caption          = Late Roman mosaic from the Trajan Baths of Acholla showing three aquatic deities: Phorcys (middle), Ceto (right), and Triton or Thaumas (left). Bardo National Museum, Tunis
| god_of           =[[Greek sea gods|Sea god]] 
| abode            = [[Sea]]
| symbol           = 
| consort          = [[Ceto]]
| parents          = [[Pontus (mythology)|Pontus]] and [[Gaia]]
| siblings         = [[Nereus]], [[Thaumas]], [[Ceto]] and [[Eurybia (mythology)|Eurybia]]
| children         = [[The Hesperides]], [[the Gorgons]], [[Graeae|the Graeae]], [[Thoosa]], [[Scylla]], [[Echidna (mythology)|Echidna]], [[Siren (mythology)|the Sirens]], and [[Ladon (mythology)|Ladon]]
| mount            = 
| Roman_equivalent = 
}}
{{Greek deities (water)}}
In [[Greek mythology]], '''Phorcys''' or '''Phorcus''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|ɔːr|s|ᵻ|s}}; {{langx|grc|[[wikt:Φόρκυς|Φόρκυς]]}}) is a [[Primordial Greek gods|primordial]] [[Greek sea gods|sea god]], generally cited (first in [[Hesiod]]) as the son of [[Pontus (mythology)|Pontus]] and [[Gaia]] (Earth). Classical scholar [[Karl Kerenyi]] conflated Phorcys with the similar sea gods [[Nereus]] and [[Proteus]].<ref>Kerenyi pp. 42–43.</ref> His wife was [[Ceto]], and he is most notable in myth for fathering by Ceto a host of monstrous children. In extant Hellenistic-Roman mosaics, Phorcys was depicted as a fish-tailed [[merman]] with crab-claw legs and red, spiky skin.

According to [[Servius the Grammarian|Servius]], commentator on the [[Aeneid]], who reports a very ancient version already reflected in [[Marcus Terentius Varro|Varro]], distinct from the Greek vulgate:<ref>«Rex fuit Forcus Corsicae et Sardiniae qui cum ab Atlante rege navali certamine cum magna exercitus parte fuisset victus et obrutus finxerunt soci eius eum in deum marinum esse conversum»</ref> Phorcos was once king of [[Sardinia]] and [[Corsica]]; annihilated in a naval battle in the [[Tyrrhenian Sea]], and then shot down by King Atlas with a large part of his army, his companions imagined him transformed into a marine deity, perhaps a monster, half man and half sea ram.<ref>Attilio Mastino, ''Eracle nel Giardino delle Esperidi e le Ninfe della Sardegna nell'Occidente Mediterraneo mitico'', "Archivio Storico Sardo", 2020</ref>

== Parents ==
According to [[Hesiod]]'s ''[[Theogony]]'', Phorcys is the son of [[Pontus (mythology)|Pontus]] and [[Gaia (mythology)|Gaia]], and the brother of [[Nereus]], [[Thaumus]], [[Ceto]], and [[Eurybia (mythology)|Eurybia]].<ref>Gantz, p. 16; [[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'' 233&ndash;9 (Most, [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/hesiod-theogony/2018/pb_LCL057.23.xml?result=2&rskey=nhhNcx pp. 20&ndash;3]).</ref> In a genealogy from [[Plato]]'s dialogue ''[[Timaeus (dialogue)|Timaeus]]'', Phorcys, [[Cronus]] and [[Rhea (mythology)|Rhea]] are the eldest offspring of [[Oceanus]] and [[Tethys (mythology)|Tethys]].<ref>Gantz, p. 11; Kerenyi, [https://archive.org/details/godsofgreeks00kerrich/page/42/mode/2up?view=theater p. 42]; [[Plato]], ''[[Timaeus (dialogue)|Timaeus]]'' [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/plato-philosopher_timaeus/1929/pb_LCL234.87.xml 40d&ndash;e (pp. 86, 87)].</ref>

== Offspring ==
[[Hesiod]]'s ''[[Theogony]]'' lists the children of Phorcys and Ceto as the [[Graeae]] (naming only two: [[Pemphredo]], and [[Enyo]]), the [[Gorgons]] ([[Stheno]], [[Euryale (Gorgon)|Euryale]] and [[Medusa]]),<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0130%3Acard%3D270 270–276].</ref> probably [[Echidna (mythology)|Echidna]] (though the text is unclear on this point)<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0130%3Acard%3D270 295–297]. Though [[Herbert Jennings Rose]] says simply that it is "not clear which parents are meant", [[Apostolos Athanassakis|Athanassakis]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=cvSiWE0KQsYC&pg=PA44 p. 44], says that Phorcys and Ceto are the "more likely candidates for parents of this hideous creature who proceeded to give birth to a series of monsters and scourges". The problem arises from the ambiguous referent of the pronoun "she" in line 295 of the ''Theogony''. While some have read this "she" as referring to Callirhoe (e.g. Smith [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0104%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DE%3Aentry+group%3D1%3Aentry%3Dechidna-bio-1 "Echidna"]; Morford, p. 162), according to Clay, [https://books.google.com/books?id=2etBN0w0NGUC&pg=PA159 p. 159 n. 32], "the modern scholarly consensus" reads Ceto, see for example Gantz, p. 22; Caldwell, pp. 7, 46 295–303; Grimal, [https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofclas0000grim/page/142/mode/2up?view=theater s.v. Echidna, p. 143].</ref> and Ceto's  "youngest, the awful snake who guards the apples all of gold in the secret places of the dark earth at its great bounds",<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0130%3Acard%3D304 333–335].</ref> also called the Drakon Hesperios ("Hesperian Dragon", or dragon of the Hesperides) or [[Ladon (mythology)|Ladon]]. These children tend to be consistent across sources, though Ladon is often cited as a child of Echidna by [[Typhon]] and therefore Phorcys and Ceto's grandson.<ref>[[Pherecydes of Athens|Pherecydes]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=j0nRE4C2WBgC&pg=PA286 fr. 16b Fowler]; [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], ''Library'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2.5.11 2.5.11]; [[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], ''[[Fabulae]]'' [http://www.theoi.com/Text/HyginusFabulae1.html Preface], [http://www.theoi.com/Text/HyginusFabulae4.html 151].</ref>

According to [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], [[Scylla]] was the daughter of [[Crataeis]], with the father being either Trienus ([[Triton (mythology)|Triton]]?) or Phorcus (a variant of [[Phorkys]]).<ref>[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg002.perseus-eng1:e.7.20 E7.20]. Similarly the Plato scholiast, perhaps following Apollodorus, gives the mother as Crataeis and the father as Tyrrhenus or Phorcus, while [[Eustathius of Thessalonica|Eustathius]] on Homer, ''Odyssey'' 12.85 gives the father as Triton. [[Homer]], ''[[Odyssey]]'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text;jsessionid=0C3862DF72BDE338E6D62A24A49FEF27?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0136%3Abook%3D12%3Acard%3D111 12.124–125]; [[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses]]'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0028%3Abook%3D13%3Acard%3D705 13.749], have Crataeis as mother with no father mentioned; see also [[Maurus Servius Honoratus|Servius]] on [[Virgil]] ''[[Aeneid]]'' 3.420; and schol. on [[Plato]], ''[[Republic (Plato)|Republic]]'' 588c. For discussions of the parentage of Scylla, see Fowler 2013, [https://books.google.com/books?id=scd8AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA32 p. 32], Ogden, [https://books.google.com/books?id=FQ2pAK9luwkC&pg=PA134 p. 134]; Gantz, pp. 731–732; and Frazer's note to Apollodorus, [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg002.perseus-eng1:e.7.20 E7.20].</ref> [[Apollonius of Rhodes]] has Scylla as the daughter of Phorcys and a conflated [[Hecate|Crataeis-Hecate]]. Once, when [[Heracles]] killed Scylla during his labours, Phorcys brought her back to life with fire.<ref>Scholia D on the ''[[Odyssey]]'' [https://topostext.org/work/921#12.85b 12.85b]</ref>

According to a fragment of [[Sophocles]], Phorcys is the father of the [[Siren (mythology)|Sirens]].<ref>Fowler 2013, [https://books.google.com/books?id=scd8AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA31 p. 31]; [[Sophocles]], [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/sophocles-fragments_not_assignable_any_play/1996/pb_LCL483.377.xml fr. 861 Lloyd-Jones, pp. 376, 377].</ref>

The scholiast on Apollonius of Rhodes cites Phorcys and Ceto as the parents of the [[Hesperides]], but this assertion is not repeated in other ancient sources.

Homer refers to [[Thoosa]], the mother of [[Polyphemus]], as a daughter of Phorcys, with no mother specified.<ref>Smith, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0104:entry=phorcus-phorcys-bio-1 s.v. Phorcus, Phorcys]; [[Homer]], ''[[Odyssey]]'' [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0012.tlg002.perseus-eng1:1.44-1.79 1.71&ndash;3].</ref>

== Notes ==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], ''Apollodorus, The Library, with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes.'' Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text;jsessionid=C431BA809CA4DEA22A15DA9C666F3400?doc=Perseus%3atext%3a1999.01.0022%3atext%3dLibrary  Online version at the Perseus Digital Library].
* [[Apostolos Athanassakis|Athanassakis, Apostolos N]], ''Hesiod: Theogony, Works and days, Shield'', JHU Press, 2004. {{ISBN|978-0-8018-7984-5}}.
* Caldwell, Richard, ''Hesiod's Theogony'', Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Company (June 1, 1987). {{ISBN|978-0-941051-00-2}}.
* [[Jenny Strauss Clay|Clay, Jenny Strauss]], ''Hesiod's Cosmos'', Cambridge University Press, 2003. {{ISBN|978-0-521-82392-0}}.
* Fowler, R. L. (2000), ''Early Greek Mythography: Volume 1: Text and Introduction'', Oxford University Press, 2000. {{ISBN|978-0198147404}}.
* Fowler, R. L. (2013), ''Early Greek Mythography: Volume 2: Commentary'', Oxford University Press, 2013. {{ISBN|978-0198147411}}.
* Freeman, Kathleen, ''Ancilla to the Pre-Socratic Philosophers: A Complete Translation of the Fragments in Diels, Fragmente Der Vorsokratiker'', Harvard University Press, 1983. {{ISBN|9780674035010}}.
* Gantz, Timothy, ''Early Greek Myth: A Guide to Literary and Artistic Sources'', Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, Two volumes: {{ISBN|978-0-8018-5360-9}} (Vol. 1), {{ISBN|978-0-8018-5362-3}} (Vol. 2).
* [[Pierre Grimal|Grimal, Pierre]], ''The Dictionary of Classical Mythology'', Wiley-Blackwell, 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-631-20102-1}}. [https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofclas0000grim/page/n3/mode/2up?view=theater Internet Archive].
* [[Hesiod]], ''[[Theogony]]'', in ''Hesiod, Theogony, Works and Days, Testimonia'', edited and translated by [[Glenn W. Most]], [[Loeb Classical Library]] No. 57, Cambridge, Massachusetts, [[Harvard University Press]], 2018. {{ISBN|978-0-674-99720-2}}. [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL057/2018/volume.xml Online version at Harvard University Press].
* [[Homer]], ''The Odyssey with an English Translation by A. T. Murray, Ph.D. in two volumes'', Cambridge, Massachusetts, [[Harvard University Press]]; London, William Heinemann, Ltd., 1919. [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0012.tlg002.perseus-eng1:1.1-1.43 Online version at the Perseus Digital Library].
* [[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus, Gaius Julius]], [http://www.theoi.com/Text/HyginusFabulae1.html ''The Myths of Hyginus'']. Edited and translated by Mary A. Grant, Lawrence: University of Kansas Press, 1960.
*[[Karl Kerenyi|Kerenyi, Karl]] 1951 (1980). ''The Gods of the Greeks''.
* Morford, Mark P. O., Robert J. Lenardon, ''Classical Mythology'', Eighth Edition, Oxford University Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-0-19-530805-1}}.
* Ogden, Daniel (2013), ''Drakōn: Dragon Myth and Serpent Cult in the Greek and Roman Worlds'', Oxford University Press, 2013. {{ISBN|978-0-19-955732-5}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=FQ2pAK9luwkC Google Books].
* [[Plato]], ''[[Timaeus (dialogue)|Timaeus]]. [[Critias (dialogue)|Critias]]. [[Clitophon (dialogue)|Cleitophon]]. [[Menexenus (dialogue)|Menexenus]]. [[Epistles (Plato)|Epistles]]'', translated by R. G. Bury, [[Loeb Classical Library]] No. 234, Cambridge, Massachusetts, [[Harvard University Press]], 1929. {{ISBN|978-0-674-99257-3}}. [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL234/1929/volume.xml Online version at Harvard University Press].
* Rose, Herbert Jennings, "Echidna" in  ''The Oxford Classical Dictionary'', Hammond and Scullard (editors), Second Edition, Oxford University Press, 1992. {{ISBN|0-19-869117-3}}
* [[William Smith (lexicographer)|Smith, William]]; ''[[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology]]'', London (1873).
* [[Sophocles]], ''Fragments'', edited and translated by [[Hugh Lloyd-Jones]], [[Loeb Classical Library]] No. 483, Cambridge, Massachusetts, [[Harvard University Press]], 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-674-99532-1}}. [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL483/1996/pb_LCL483.v.xml Online version at Harvard University Press].

==External links==
* [http://www.theoi.com/Pontios/Phorkys.html Theoi Project – Phorcys]
* {{in lang|fr}} [http://www.mythologica.fr Greek Mythology at Mythologica]

{{Greek religion}}
{{Greek mythology (deities)}}

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[[Category:Children of Gaia]]
[[Category:Greek sea gods]]
[[Category:Deities in the Iliad]]
[[Category:Children of Oceanus]]
[[Category:Mermen]]