Aeetes

Aeëtes (Greek. Aiētēs) was a character in Greek mythology. He was the son of the Sun god Helios and the Oceanid Perseis, brother of Circe, Perses, and Pasiphaë and the King of Colchis. He is one of the characters in the myth of the Argonauts.

According to some sources (Eumelos of Corinth), Helios had Aeëtes from Antiope. From his father, Aeëtes and Aloeus received Ephyra, which Aeëtes left to Bunus before someone from his side claimed it. Aeëtes himself went to Aia-Colchis. Mythological tradition is not clear about the wives and children of Aeëtes. According to Apollonius of Rhodes (3rd century, 242…), Asterodia, a Caucasian nymph, bore him a son, Absyrtus. With his second wife, Eidyia (Idyia), the daughter of Oceanus, he had daughters Chalciope and Medea. Some sources mention Eurylyte (The Naupactica) and Hecate (Diodorus Siculus IV, 45; he also mentions enchantress Circe as Aeëtes’ daughter) as Aeëtes’ wives. In the antique literature, he is a symbol of a cruel and unapproachable king. The name etymology is usually derived from Aeaea (Eëä) (resident, citizen of Aeaea). In this case, writing the name with -tes points to Greek origin. It is worth noting that according to the antique sources, the name of Aeëtes became popular among people of Colchis in classical and later periods.

R. Gordeziani