Castor and Pollux, also called the Dioscuri , meaning youths of Zeus , were semi-divine twins and patrons of the Roman knights. They also protected humans in danger during war times and at sea. Castor and Pollux were closely linked to sports and horses. Castor was a brilliant horse tamer and Pollux, a skilled boxer. In reference to their father or stepfather, the twins were also known as the Tyndaridae. The twins were supposedly born from an egg after Zeus, disguised as a swan seduced Leda. The one twin, Pollux, was immortal, but his brother Castor was mortal, since he had another father.
Tyndareus had slept with Leda on the same night as Zeus. According to Pindar, an ancient Greek poet, the twins could swap their immortality when they switched between Hades and Mount Olympus.
The twins had a cult following too, dating back to the mid-6th century BC. The twins were excellent huntsmen and formed part of the party that killed the vicious monster, the Calydonian boar. The animal had been sent as punishment by the goddess Artemis , because the king had not honored her. The boar was, however, struck first by an arrow from a powerful woman, Atalanta , which caused a ruckus amongst the men.
The twins also took part in the Argonaut expedition. Pollux had to make use of his superior boxing skills in the adventure with Jason, to beat King Amycus of Bebryces, their prize boxer. Castor and Pollux nonetheless kidnapped the two women and took them to Sparta, where each bore their husband a son.
This caused great strife in the family and resulted in the start of a feud. Their two cousins, Idas and Lynceus, later went to Sparta to visit their uncle. Helen was left to manage the household, as their uncle was away. The cousins left shortly after them, leaving Paris, prince of Troy, alone with Helen. The cousins came across Castor and Pollux, attempting to free their cattle and a battle ensued. Idas killed Castor with his spear and Lynceus was killed by Pollux.
Idas was stopped at the last second from killing Pollux by Zeus. Zeus sent a deadly thunderbolt which killed Idas and saved his son. Zeus gave Pollux the choice to save his brother, by giving away half of his most prized possession, his immortality, and Pollux accepted. He then spent half his time in Hades and half on Mount Olympus, as his twin did conversely.
Theseus, the king of Athens, was in search of a suitable wife. He tried unsuccessfully to pursue an amazon queen, Antiope, and granddaughters of Zeus, Phaedra, and Ariadne. He abducted her and took her to Attica. The twins were conceived on the same night but by different fathers. Their mother was Leda, a queen of Sparta. Their sisters were Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra. In paintings, or sculpture, the twins can frequently be recognized by the skull caps they wear, fragments of the egg they hatched out of.
When they appeared at sea, to rescue those in danger, they were said to appear as St. When sailors saw the phenomenon, they believed the twins had come to their aid. In art, the twins were frequently depicted on their horses, carrying spears. Castor is the twin brother of Polydeuces Pollux in Latin , a pair of demigods.
The two in collective are known as the Dioscuri. The twins feature in a number of myths, crossing paths with other notable figures in Greek Mythology like Jason. A major theme in stories featuring Castor and Polydeuces is the idea that Castor is a mortal, while Polydeuces is immortal. The origin story of Castor and Polydeuces starts with their mother, Leda. Leda, the daughter of an Aetolian king, was married to a Spartan king, Tyndareus.
However, Leda attracted the attentions of Zeus, who appeared in the form of a swan to mate with her. According to the myth, Castor and Polydeuces were hatched from an egg, along with their twin siblings Helen and Clytemnestra. As a result, Polydeuces was immortal while Castor was mortal and able to die.
There are some stories in which both Castor and Pollux are mortal. For instance, in the Illiad Helen of Troy wonders why her brothers Castor and Polydeuces are not among the sieging forces.
The answer is that they had both died previously. When Castor and Polydeuces grew up, they lived lives full of adventure and battle, catalogued in a number of myths.
The Calydonian Boar was a ferocious creature summoned by the Huntress goddess Artemis to plague the Calydonian region after its king showed her disrespect in his offerings. A group of some of the greatest heroes of the land assembled to hunt the boar, among them Castor and Polydeuces.
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