We all know that Hercules is some ancient Greek hero who accomplished 12 labors. However, few people remember and know how difficult and contradictory his path really was.

How did Hercules, aka Alkid, aka Hercules, come into the world (in Italy)

Surely, many will now remember that the father of our hero was Zeus (the supreme god from Mount Olympus in Greek mythology), and his mother was a simple mortal woman, Alcmene.

The Greek gods have always been distinguished by their human and sometimes impartial essence.

Once Zeus imprisoned the titans in the underworld - the children of Uranus (the god of heaven) and Gaia (the goddess of the earth), who were deities personifying the natural destructive elements.

The offended Gaia persuaded the children to rebel against Zeus again and destroy not only Olympus, but all of humanity.

The giants began to throw stones and burning trees at the sky, they were so angry. Then the wife of Zeus Hera and the goddess of fate told the rest of the gods that the titans can only be defeated with the help of a mortal hero.

Then Zeus realized that he needed a demigod son who would help defeat the giants and win the war. The choice falls on Alcmene. The insidious Zeus stops time, takes the form of Alcmene's husband, and for three days the world is in a state of timelessness. Thus Hercules was conceived.

Time passed, and on the night of the birth of our hero, embittered by the betrayal of her husband, Hera makes Zeus swear an oath that the baby from the Perseus family born that night will become the supreme king.

Zeus is sure that Hercules will become him, but Hera turns out to be more cunning - she slows down the birth of Alcmene. That night, the first cousin of our hero, Eurystheus, is born. Then Zeus has to conclude a new agreement with the Hero.

Hercules will obey Eurystheus until he completes 10 (!) labors. After the demigod fulfills the terms of the contract, he will become both free and immortal. On this they agreed.

You can often find a myth about how, as a baby, Hercules killed two snakes. According to one version, they were sent by Hera to kill him. According to another, Alcmene's husband planted them in order to understand which of the children was still a demigod.

Hercules grew up, matured, married, but Hera still did not forgive her husband's betrayal. She sends madness to the hated son of her husband, in which he has all his family and brother's children. Waking up and realizing what he had done, Hercules goes to the oracle, who sends him to his brother - to redeem his deeds with feats.

In fact, our hero had only 10 feats, but the king did not accept 2 of them, so Hercules was forced to do 2 more, thus, 12 came out.

The sequence of his exploits varies in different sources, but among them was a completely unarmed battle with the Nemean lion, and a deft victory over the Lernaean hydra, and the expulsion of Stymphalian birds with terrifying metal plumage.

The labors of Hercules also included:

1. Catching the Kerinean fallow deer.
2. baptism of the fierce Erymanthian boar.
3. Cleaning of manure from the stables of King Avgei.
4. Opposition to the Cretan bull, who was the father of the famous Minotaur.

And Hercules could:

• to subdue the cannibal mares of King Diodemus;
• steal the belt from the head Amazon Hippolyta;
• steal and bring to Mycenae the cows that he took from the three-headed giant Geryon;
• get golden apples from the garden of the Hesperides;
• to bring the chief guardian of the god Hades, the three-headed dog Cerberus, out of the kingdom of the dead and deliver him to Tiryns.

In fact, Hercules was famous not only for these feats, behind him there are many valiant deeds with which the legends and myths of Ancient Greece are full.

How did Hercules get to Olympus?

Once he, protecting his wife Dejanira from a centaur named Ness, killed him with a poisoned arrow. Nessus, dying, inspired the wife of Hercules that his blood had the properties of a love potion.

Dejanira, terribly jealous of her husband for another girl, saves herself some of the blood of the deceased, and later soaks her shirt and gives it to her husband.

The blood of the centaur causes Hercules unbearable torment, and he literally steps into the fire, from where Zeus takes him. So Hercules became a god.

Hercules is a forced hero, a demigod who was able to get to Olympus, a victim of politics, intrigues and Zeus's thirst to maintain power.

Ancient Greek mythology is filled with stories of great conquerors, brave warriors and romantic heroes. In a series of divine daredevils, the son, Hercules, stands out. The exploits of a man are retold from generation to generation for many centuries, and the masculinity of a brave man is admired even by modern emancipated girls.

History of creation

It is impossible to know the author of the myths about the ancient Greek demigod. Like any folk art, the legend of Hercules was formed and grew with the help of a large number of people. It is known for certain that Pausanias also made a significant contribution to the spread of legends.

Literary analysis and processing of the works of ancient philosophers allowed Nikolai Kun to publish a collection of stories "Myths of Ancient Greece", which describes in detail the life of the great hero.

The appearance of the future god attracts attention. The young man grew a head taller than those around him (according to other sources, he is not tall). Hercules is a brunette with a curly beard. The eyes of a brave man glow with a special divine light. A physically developed daredevil is endowed with incredible strength and power.

The character of Hercules is distinguished by waywardness and irascibility. Already during his studies, the young man, in a fit of anger, killed the teacher with a hated cithara. A feature of the son of Zeus is hidden madness. Under the pressure of this feeling, Hercules will kill his own children and wife in the future.

The ancient Greeks justified the behavior of their beloved hero by the act of Hera. The wife of Zeus, tormented by jealousy, sent a mental illness to the demigod. However, Hera often put spokes in the wheels of a young hero.

The beginning of the legend of the great warrior and brave man is counted from the moment of his birth. The head of Olympus was captivated by the beauty of the princess Alcmene and, reincarnated as her husband, visited the woman. The son of the god Zeus and Alcmene is one of the twins. The younger brother of the future hero is conceived from the legitimate husband of the princess. The boys received sonorous names - Alkid and Iphiklon. Later, at the insistence of the great seer, the eldest son will be renamed Hercules.

Inspired by the birth of a descendant, Zeus promises that the firstborn from the Perseus clan will rule over all relatives:

“Hear, gods and goddesses, what I will tell you: it is my heart that tells me to say! Today a great hero will be born; he will rule over all his relatives who descend from my son, the great Perseus.

Hera, the jealous wife of Zeus, uses a spell to hasten the birth of another child. Now Hercules, who was born the second in the family of Perseus, must serve the prince Eurystheus. To make amends for his arrogance and long tongue, Zeus agrees with the gods on a small concession for his son. Hercules must perform 12 labors for the ruler, and then Eurystheus will free his relative from captivity.

Many years later, the matured hero succumbs to another attack of madness and kills his beloved wife, children and younger brother. To atone for guilt, the son of Zeus went to Eurystheus to serve.

The Twelve Labors of Hercules

The wanderings of Hercules begin with the destruction of the Nemean lion. A huge monster destroyed all life around the city of Nemea. The hero tried to kill the lion with an arrow, but the weapon bounced off the skin of the beast. The son of Zeus had to strangle the lion with his bare hands. In honor of the first feat, Hercules established the Nemean Games. Eurystheus was horrified when he realized all the strength and power of a relative. Now Hercules is forbidden to approach the ruler's house.

The second feat of the daredevil was the murder of the Lernean Hydra. The monster had several heads, in place of the log house of each of which two new ones grew. The long confrontation ended with the victory of Hercules. The poison oozing from the rad hydra was used by the warrior for his arrows. From now on, every shot of a demigod is fatal.

The third task was the Stymphalian Birds. The half-sister of the hero, Athena, helped to cope with the birds, whose feathers and claws were made of bronze. The goddess provided her brother with a special tool that made a fuss. The birds soared into the sky, and the brave man shot down the monsters. Those who survived left Greece forever and never returned.

The fourth feat is the Kerinean doe, which devastated the fields. The furious brave man drove the animal around the world for a year, but could not catch up with the beast. Then Hercules wounded the doe in the leg. Such an act angered the owner of the fallow deer, the goddess Artemis. The hero had to humiliately ask for forgiveness from his sister:

“Oh, great daughter of Latona, do not blame me! I did not pursue your doe of my own free will, but at the command of Eurystheus.

The fifth order of the ruler of Mycenae was the murder of the Erymanthian boar. Having found his prey in the middle of the forest, the daredevil screamed and drove the boar into the mountains. We managed to tie up a huge monster stuck in the snow. Hercules delivered the trophy to the castle to the ruler alive, which caused a great commotion.

The next task was to clear the Augean stables. Avgiy, the son of the god Helios, owned a huge herd. To clear the rubble, Hercules broke the walls of the stable and directed the riverbeds there. The waters washed out all the manure from the premises and the yard of Avgii.

The seventh commission for the son of Zeus was the Cretan bull. Eurystheus wanted to take possession of the bull, which Poseidon sent to Crete for a bad offering. The ancient Greek hero caught and tamed the monster. But the ruler was afraid to leave the bull in his herd. The monster of Poseidon gained freedom and fled to other lands.

The next whim of the cowardly king was the horses of Diomedes. Magnificent animals lived in Thrace. For many years, horses were fed only human meat. Diomedes did not want to part with his wealth, a great fight took place. Hercules emerged victorious from the battle. Eurystheus did not want to leave the horses to himself and released them into the wild. Animals were torn to pieces in the forests by wild animals.

The ninth commission is the girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. The girl happily gave the jewelry to Hercules, but Hera inspired the warlike women that the hero was planning evil:

“Hercules is not telling the truth,” Hera told the Amazons, “he came to you with insidious intent: the hero wants to kidnap your queen Hippolyta and take her as a slave to his house.”

Women rushed to the attack, but the great warrior and his friends won. The demigod captured Hippolyta's best fighter. The Amazon gave the belt in exchange for the life of her beloved maid.

The tenth task for the hero was the cows of Gerion. The brave man traveled for a long time to the secret pasture of the animals. To steal the herd, Hercules killed the two-headed dog Orfo and the giant Eurytion. On the way back, Hera sent rabies to the herd. The hero had to chase the cows for a long time, which did not want to leave their native places.

The penultimate feat of the courageous brave man was the abduction of Cerberus. Having descended into the realm of the dead, Hercules begged for permission to fight the monster. If the hero wins, he will take the creepy dog ​​with him. Hades, the lord of Cerberus, did not believe that the demigod would overcome his dog and gave permission. But the son of Zeus coped with the task.

The final task for Hercules is the golden fruits of the Hesperides. The one who touches the magic apples will be equal to the gods. But only the titan Atlas can pluck the magical fruits. By cunning, Hercules persuaded a powerful creature to pick apples and give them to him. The son of Zeus brought fruit to his master. Only Eurystheus did not need gifts. The king suffered that for 12 years he could not destroy the famous hero.

Screen adaptations

The myths of ancient Greece are fertile ground for film adaptation. The film about the adventures of a demigod was first released in 1957. The main role went to actor and bodybuilder Steve Reeves. The Italian film tells about the search for the Golden Fleece and does not affect the main mythology. The audience liked the film, so it received a sequel - "The Labors of Hercules: Hercules and Queen Lydia."

In 1970, the role of the hero went to another bodybuilder -. The tape "Hercules in New York" tells about the adventures of the character in modern America. The film was the debut of the future governor in the cinema.

The athletically built character attracts many bodybuilders. In the film, directed by Luigi Cozzi in 1983, Lou Ferrigno played the same role. The character of a bodybuilder enters into a confrontation with King Minos. Two years later, the film crew filmed a continuation of the picture.

The next appearance of the Greek hero was the television musical film "Merry Chronicle of a Dangerous Journey", which was filmed in the USSR. , the director of the picture, showed the audience his view on the adventures of the Argonauts. The part of the son of Zeus was performed by Roman Rtskhiladze.

In 1995, the first full-fledged series about Hercules appeared. The image of the main character brought to life. The actors and the roles they played glorified the work of the ancient Greeks. The multi-part film is a free interpretation of myths that affect many deities and heroes.

In parallel, Hercules performed by Kevin Sorbo appeared in another epic. "Xena - Warrior Princess", released simultaneously with the adventures of the demigod, was in great demand. The producers had to close the picture, which tells about the confrontation between Hercules and the forces of evil.

The year 2005 was marked by a new film adaptation of the difficult heroic life of a Greek. This time the main role went to Paul Telfer. Fantasy, which tells about the 12 deeds of the heroic demigod, passed in the world box office unnoticed by most.

A different result was achieved by the picture "Hercules: The Beginning of the Legend" in 2014. Actors, including (the lead actor) received nominations for the Golden Raspberry, an award that glorifies the worst films of our time.

In the same year, another tape, which tells about an ancient Greek character, saw the light. The film "Hercules" is an adaptation of the comic book "Hercules: The Thracian Wars" by Steve Moore. The main role went to a hereditary wrestler.

In addition to full-length films and serials, the brave man from myths appears in computer games, musical works and cartoons.

• In the stables of King Avgii, horses were not kept at all. Bulls and goats lived in a neglected building.
• The name of the hero in Greece is Hercules, the Romans called the same character Hercules.
• The demigod died through the fault of his wife, who was jealous of her husband for a slave.
• The city seal of Florence is decorated with the image of the famous Hercules.
• The Greek hero died at the age of 52.
• The main attributes of a demigod are the skin of a lion and a wooden club.

Quotes

“I don’t remember such love on their faces since Narcissus looked in the mirror.”

“If the waves are carrying us in the same direction, then maybe we shouldn’t resist them.”

“Good is fraught with great power!”

"History is a chronicle of wars, and wars are chronicles of suffering, written by mothers' tears."

"The gods are generous with events, but stingy with details."

Message about Hercules for children can be used in preparation for the lesson. The story about Hercules for children can be supplemented with interesting facts.

Report on Hercules

Hercules is a mythological hero whose father was the great Zeus, the main among the main ones. His mother was a mere mortal. Zeus had to deceive Alcmene, and in the guise of a husband, he appeared to the beauty in the middle of the night. Nine months later, Zeus had an illegitimate son - Hercules.

When Hera, who was the legal wife of the God of Olympus, found out about her husband's betrayal, she decided to destroy that child. The goddess was the patroness of marriage bonds, and tried to protect the legal marriage with Zeus, so she had to fight with the illegitimate children of her husband.
Two monstrous snakes were sent by her to the lullabies of Hercules and his brother. But the baby, who had the power, managed to get rid of them. He strangled them. Then everything was like everyone else - Hercules studied, performed several feats, got married and had offspring. But Hera could not calm down. She sent a fit of madness to Hercules, as a result of which his own children and beloved brother were killed.

In atonement for this, according to the Delphic Pythia, he must perform ten labors. But he made them 12 - and the whole world heard about them.

Labors of Hercules

1. Strangulation of the Nemean Lion
2. Killing the Lernaean Hydra (not counted due to Iolaus' help)
3. Extermination of Stymphalian birds
4. Capture of the Kerinean fallow deer
5. Taming the Erymanthian Boar
6. Cleaning the Augean Stables (not counted due to fee requirement)
7. Taming the Cretan Bull
8. The abduction of the Horses of Diomedes, the victory over King Diomedes (who threw strangers to be eaten by his horses)
9. The Abduction of the Girdle of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons
10. The abduction of the cows of the three-headed giant Gerion
11. The theft of golden apples from the garden of the Hesperides
12. Taming of the guardian Hades - the dog Cerberus

The life of Hercules was eventful. But the path was not so long, he died at the age of fifty. And there are different versions of his death. The most likely next option: Hercules realized that his strength was leaving him, and he could not pull the string of his own bow. And then he decides to end his journey at the stake. It's a fitting end to a hero's life.

Hercules, in Greek mythology, the greatest of the heroes, the son of Zeus and the mortal woman Alcmene. Zeus needed a mortal hero to defeat the giants, and he decided to give birth to Hercules. The best mentors taught Hercules various arts, wrestling, archery. Zeus wanted Hercules to become the ruler of Mycenae or Tiryns, the key fortresses on the approaches to Argos, but the jealous Hera upset his plans. She struck Hercules with madness, in a fit of which he killed his wife and three of his sons. To atone for a heavy guilt, the hero had to serve Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns and Mycenae, for twelve years, after which he was granted immortality.

Hercules at the crossroads
Virtue and Vice,
Pompeo Batoni, 1765

Francois Lemoine,
1725

The most famous is the cycle of legends about the twelve labors of Hercules. The first feat was to obtain the skin of a Nemean lion, which Hercules had to strangle with his bare hands. Having defeated the lion, the hero dressed his skin and wore it as a trophy. The next feat was the victory over the hydra, the sacred nine-headed snake of Hera. The monster lived in a swamp near Lerna, not far from Argos. The difficulty was that instead of the head cut off by the hero, the hydra immediately grew two new ones. With the help of his nephew Iolaus, Hercules mastered the fierce Lernean hydra - the young man burned the neck of each head cut off by the hero. True, the feat was not counted by Eurystheus, since Hercules was helped by his nephew.

Gustave Moreau, 1876

Boris Vallejo, 1988

The next feat was not so bloody. Hercules should have caught the Kerinean doe, the sacred animal of Artemis. Then the hero caught the Erymanthian boar, which was devastating the fields of Arcadia. At the same time, the wise centaur Chiron accidentally died. The fifth feat was the cleaning of the Augean stables from manure, which the hero did in one day, directing the waters of the nearest river into them.

The last of the feats performed by Hercules in the Peloponnese was the expulsion of Stymphalian birds with pointed iron feathers. The ominous birds were frightened by the copper rattles made by Hephaestus and given to Hercules by the goddess Athena, who was favorable to him.

The seventh feat was the capture of a ferocious bull, which Minos, king of Crete, refused to sacrifice to the god of the sea, Poseidon. The bull copulated with Minos' wife Pasiphae. who gave birth from him to the Minotaur, a man with a bull's head.

Hercules performed the eighth feat in Thrace, where he subjugated the cannibal mares of King Diomedes to his power. The remaining four feats were of a different kind. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to get the girdle of Hippolyta, queen of the warlike Amazons. Then the hero kidnapped and delivered to Mycenae the cows of the three-headed giant Geryon. After that, Hercules brought Eurystheus the golden apples of the Hesperides, for which he had to strangle the giant Antaeus and deceive Atlas, holding the sky on his shoulders. The last feat of Hercules - a journey to the kingdom of the dead - was the most difficult. With the assistance of the queen of the underworld, Persephone, the hero was able to bring out and deliver to Tiryns the three-headed dog Kerberos (Cerberus), the guardian of the underworld.

The end of Hercules was terrible. The hero died in terrible agony, wearing a shirt that his wife Dejanira, on the advice of the centaur Nessus, who was dying at the hands of Hercules, soaked with the poisonous blood of this half-man-half-horse. When the hero with his last strength ascended the funeral pyre, a crimson lightning struck from heaven and Zeus accepted his son into the host of immortals.

Some of the exploits of Hercules are immortalized in the names of the constellations. For example, the constellation Leo - in memory of the Nemean lion, the constellation Cancer recalls the huge cancer Karkina, sent by Hera to help the Lernean hydra. In Roman mythology, Hercules corresponds to Hercules.

Once, when this hero was at war with teleboys, Zeus took on his appearance and came to Alcmene. At the same time, the sources emphasize: God was not driven by lust, as with all other mortal women; the goal of Zeus was to conceive the greatest hero, who would become for people "disaster aversion". Therefore, he took the form of Alcmene's husband, so as not to resort to violence, and in the future he no longer made earthly women his mistresses. According to late antique authors, the god extended the night of love twice or nine times, and according to the most common version - three times: he needed a lot of time to conceive a hero who would surpass everyone else with his power. Amphitrion, who returned home a day or two later, realized what had happened. According to Pseudo Hyginus, he no longer shared a bed with his wife, so as not to cause jealousy in Zeus, but most sources say that Alcmene became pregnant from two at once - from god and from a mortal man.

On the day when Alcmene was to be relieved of her burden, Zeus announced to the other Olympians that the Perseid born today would become the supreme king. Jealous Hera took advantage of this to start intrigues against the future son of God. She delayed the birth of Alcmene and accelerated the birth of Nikippa, the wife of another Perseid Sthenel, king of Mycenae (he was an uncle to Alcmene and Amphitryon). Eurystheus, born prematurely, was now to receive the promised power. Alcmene then gave birth to two twin boys, one from her husband, the other from Zeus. The first was named Iphicles; second - Alkid, in honor of the nominal grandfather in the male line. According to Ferekid, Amphitrion, in order to understand which of the newborns was from him, let two huge snakes into their bed; Iphicles was frightened, and Alkid raised himself on the bed, grabbed the snakes with both hands and strangled them. Thus it became clear that Alkid is the son of Zeus. According to another, later version of this myth, the snake was sent by Hera to kill the children, who were then already eight months old. Soothsayer Tiresias, seeing what happened, announced that Alkid, when he grows up, will accomplish great feats.

early years

The childhood and early youth of Hercules are reported mainly by sources relating to late antiquity. According to some sources, Amphitryon died early, and the twins were brought up by their mother's second husband Radamanf, according to others, Alkid lived on Mount Pelion under the supervision of the wise centaur Chiron. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus, Amphitrion managed to give Alkid and Iphicles an upbringing: he taught the boys to drive a chariot, Castor - to fight in full armor, Autolycus (according to Theocritus, Harpalik) - to fight, Eurytus (according to Kallimachus, Scythian Tevtar) - to shoot from a bow, Lin - play the lyre. Lin once beat Alcides, and he killed him on the spot with a blow of a lyre. The court acquitted the boy because he "answered an unfair blow with a blow," but Amphitryon, frightened by Alkid's strength and temper, sent him to the wooded Mount Cithaeron. There, in the company of shepherds, the hero spent his early youth. Even then, he stood out among others in growth, strength and courage. The episode known as "Hercules' Choice" belongs to this period in the hero's life. Vice and virtue appeared before the young man, taking the form of two young and beautiful women, and offered him to choose his future - either the easy path of pleasures, or the thorny path of labor and exploits. He chose the second.

When Alcides was 18 years old, he went to the city of Thespia to fight a lion that was attacking the herds. The local king, named Thespius, received the hero with great cordiality for 50 days; every night he sent one of his 50 daughters to the guest, and each of them subsequently gave birth to a son. According to an alternative version, Alcides shared a bed with all the Thespiades in one night. After that, he killed the Cithaeron lion. The skin of the animal became a permanent part of Alcides' clothing, and the lion's head became a helmet.

Returning from the hunt, the hero met the ambassadors of Ergin, the king of the Minies, who were going to Thebes for tribute. Alcides brutally dealt with them: cut off their hands, ears and noses, hung it all around their necks and announced that this was the only tribute that Ergin would receive. The latter immediately moved to Thebes by war. Alcides, at the head of the army, defeated the enemy and killed Ergin (in the battle, according to Pseudo-Apollodorus, Amphitrion also died). This victory glorified the hero throughout Hellas; The king of Thebes Creon, in order to thank Alcides, gave him his daughter Megara as a wife. The hero had children (in different sources from three to eight). He lived happily, but Hera, still hostile, once sent him into a fit of madness. Not understanding what he was doing, Alkid threw all his children and two sons of Iphicles into the fire. He wanted to kill his wife, the third nephew of Iolaus and his brother, but they managed to keep him.

12 Labors of Hercules

The canonical scheme of 12 feats (other Greek. ἔργα "deeds" or πόνοι "works", "hardships") was first established by Pisander of Rhodes in the poem "Hercules". The order of exploits is not the same for all authors. In total, the Pythia ordered Hercules to perform 10 labors, but Eurystheus did not count 2 of them. I had to complete two more and it turned out 12. In 8 years and one month, Hercules completed the first 10 labors, in 12 years - everything.

nemean lion

Hercules walked for a long time in search of a lion. One evening he noticed an animal that was returning to its lair. Hercules took cover in a nearby bush and shot him with his bow. The arrow hit the paw, but did no harm. With the second arrow, he hit the lion in the chest. The skin of the lion was impenetrable and the second shot from the bow was also unsuccessful. When the lion rushed at Hercules, he uprooted a nearby tree, used it as a club, and hit the animal on the head. The club stunned the lion. According to one version of the myth set forth by Theocritus, Heracles immediately after that strangled the animal. According to another version, the lion, after being hit on the head, ran into his cave. Hercules, convinced that the weapon against the lion was powerless, followed him. He blocked one of the entrances with stones. Entering the lion's lair, he managed to strangle the animal with his bare hands.

On the way back, Hercules went to Molorch and together with him made sacrifices to Zeus the Savior. In Mycenae, King Eurystheus was so frightened by the sight of a dead lion that he henceforth forbade Hercules to enter the city, and commanded to show the booty in front of the city gates. Moreover, he ordered to dig a hole in the ground, in which they put a copper barrel. Subsequently, when Hercules was nearby, Eurystheus hid in it and transmitted his words through Kopreya.

When removing the skin as a working tool, Hercules had to use the sharp claws of the lion himself. Subsequently, during the performance of the following feats, Hercules wore the skin of a lion, invulnerable to weapons, which became an integral attribute of the hero.

lernaean hydra

To help the hydra, a huge crab Karkin crawled out and grabbed Hercules by the leg. The hero crushed the cancer in anger.

Seeing that he alone could not cope with the hydra, Hercules called Iolaus. He began to burn the bases of the cut heads with burning brands, preventing them from growing again. In this way, Hercules cut down all the heads of the hydra, including the immortal. Then he soaked the arrowheads in the lethal hydra bile. Arrows became deadly, even a minor wound became fatal. After that, Hercules buried the body and heads of the hydra, piling this place with a huge stone.

kerinean fallow deer

The next task of Eurystheus to Hercules was to deliver the sacred Kerinean doe alive to Mycenae. The task turned out to be difficult. Hercules pursued a deer for a year and even in his pursuit reached Hyperborea and the Danube, from where he brought an olive sprout. It subsequently grew into an olive tree at Olympia. The hero tried to catch the animal, but it eluded him and rushed back south.

There are several versions of how Hercules managed to catch the Kerinean doe. According to one version, the animal was caught in a net, according to another, it was captured during sleep, according to the third, Hercules killed him with a continuous chase. According to Apollodorus, the doe reached the mountain Artemisius and from there went down to the river Ladon. When the doe was ready to cross the river, Hercules wounded her in the leg with a well-aimed shot, after which he was able to grab and tie.

On the way to Mycenae, Hercules met Apollo with Artemis. The gods reproached the hero for such an attitude towards the sacred animal. Hercules explained to them that this was the order of Eurystheus, which he must fulfill. The gods accepted this justification of Hercules. According to archaeological data, namely the presence of a number of images of the fighting Hercules and Apollo next to the bound doe, there was a version of the myth that has not survived to this day in the presentations of mythographers, according to which the ancient hero still had to protect the animal caught with such difficulty