Jason
(Museum of Orsay).
Jason (in ancient Greek, Ἰάσων) is a hero of Greek mythology.
According to different versions, his mother was Alcimede, daughter of Philachus, or Polymede, aunt of Odysseus, although Polymela, Eteoclymene, Polifeme or Theogneta are also mentioned. His father was Aeson, son of Creteus and king of Iolco until his half brother, Pelias, dethroned him. According to another account, Aeson entrusted the kingdom to his half-brother Pelias, until Jason reached his majority.
Jason claims the throne of Iolcos
Pelias, Jason's uncle, after consulting about his future, was warned by the oracle to beware of a man shod with only one sandal, because he would endanger his throne.
Jason was raised by the centaur Chiron until he became an adult. When he was twenty years old, he went to Yolco willing to recover the throne that belonged to him by inheritance. He was dressed in a strange way, covered with a panther skin, with a spear in each hand and with his left foot bare, according to some because he had lost a sandal crossing a river and had helped Hera to cross it, represented as an old woman, and this later he thanked her. With this clothing he appeared in the public square of Yolco at the moment when his uncle Pelias was preparing to celebrate a sacrifice. Pelias did not recognize him, but he was afraid for the barefoot stranger. Jason stayed with his father Aeson for five days and on the sixth he presented himself to Pelias and claimed the throne that rightfully belonged to him. Pelias decided to take him away from his land by sending him on a difficult mission: to travel to Colchis (at the foot of the Caucasus), and bring from there the golden fleece, the skin of a fabulous ram that had saved the life of Frixo, Pelias's nephew, and had transferred it to Colchis. There Frixus offered this ram as a sacrifice to Zeus and then gave the skin of the animal, which was made of gold, to King Aeetes. He consecrated it to Ares and deposited it in a tree guarded by a snake that never slept. According to another version, Jason himself, inspired by Hera, would have imposed the test. And it is that, when he appeared before Pelias, he noticed his bare foot and, understanding the danger that the oracle announced, asked him what punishment he would impose on an individual who conspired against his king. Jason replied that he would send him to find the Golden Fleece, a response that turned against him.
Voyage of the Argonauts
One-way trip to Colchis
Jason then requested the help of Argos, son of Arestor, and, on the advice of Athena, built the ship Argo, which was to take Jason accompanied by a group of Greek heroes to Colchis whose number oscillates between 45 and 69 according to the various sources, who took the name of Argonauts (navigators of the Argo). So the Argonauts were assembled, and they put to sea in the direction of Colchis.
Not long after, they reached the island of Lemnos, where only women lived. The queen, Hipsipile, who fell in love with Jason, told him that the women of the island had been punished by the goddess Aphrodite, for not paying her worship, impregnating them with such an unpleasant odor that the men had rejected them, uniting with women from the neighboring islands. In revenge, the Lemnians killed the men on the island. The Argonauts stayed on the island for a while, lovingly bonded with them, and then left. Jason had two sons by Hypsipyle as a result named Euneo and Nebrophone.
After passing through some countries, they arrived at Salmideso, where they found Phineus, blind and soothsayer, whom the Argonauts helped to get rid of the Harpies, flying monsters with the face of a woman, claws and wings, who, serving a punishment Imposed by the gods, they prevented Phineus from being able to eat.
Phineus, in gratitude, informed the Argonauts about the way to follow to Colchis and also told them how they could overcome the danger that awaited them when they reached the Blue Rocks, two enormous floating rocks in continuous movement that collided with each other crushing all those who tried to pass between them.
Obtaining the Golden Fleece
Overcoming this obstacle, they reached Colchis. Jason announced to his king, Aeetes, his purpose. He told him that he would let him take the golden fleece if he first managed to unite the two bulls that guarded it, plow a field with them, sow some teeth that Athena had given to the king in the furrows, and then defeat the serpent that never slept. and that he remained at the foot of the tree where the fleece was. Medea, the daughter of King Aeetes, who was a sorceress, fell passionately in love with Jason and helped him to bring her feat to fruition (Jason's prior commitment to take her with him to Iolco), putting her witchcraft into practice.
She gave Jason a magic potion so that the monstrous bulls wouldn't hurt him. Having managed to unite the bulls, he threw his teeth into the furrows made in the earth. From them sprouted hundreds of armed men, called Espartos, who rushed against the hero, but he, following Medea's instructions, threw a stone between them and the armies faced each other. Then Medea caused a terrible dream to the serpent, Jason seized the precious skin and fled with her men, with Medea and her brother, Apsirtos, in her boat.
Occion of Apsirto
Aeetes's men pursued the ship and Medea killed her brother, who was a child, tore him to pieces and threw him into the sea. King Aeetes collected the remains of his son and lost sight of the Argonauts.In another version, Aepsirtus was not a child, but a grown man who was sent by Aeetes to command a group of armed Colchians in pursuit of the Argonauts.. He overtook them in the Adriatic Sea, at the court of Alcinous in Istria. There Alcinoo offered himself as judge and secretly told her wife Arete that he would decide to give Medea back to the colchos if she was a virgin but otherwise she would give her to Jason. Arete informed Jason of this and the night before the trial she deflowered Medea, so that the next day she was handed over to her husband. Apsirtus was not content and continued to pursue the Argonauts to an island where Jason was sacrificing and Jason killed Apsirtus. Apsirtus's death is sometimes considered to have been the result of a conspiracy involving Medea as well.
Return to Yolco
During the return trip, the Argonauts had to overcome various dangers in addition to the pursuit of the Colchians; storms, the siege of the Sirens, the attack of the monsters Scylla and Charybdis or the attack of the giant Talos. They finally reached Yolco. There Jason gave the fleece to Pelias and plotted his death with the help of Medea. She convinced the daughters of Pelias that she could restore her father's youth if they cut him into pieces and boiled him. They did so and caused the death of the king. Acastus, son of Pelias, drove Jason and Medea out of Yolcos.
Jason and Medea in Corinth
Then Jason and Medea fled to Corinth, where they lived happily for ten years. They had two children. But later, Jason disowned Medea to marry Creusa, daughter of Creon, the king of Corinth. Medea, to take revenge on her, ended Creusa's life and that of the children she had had with Jason, Mermero and Feres.
Expedition against Yolco and death
After this, Jason returned to Iolcos in a punitive expedition together with Peleus and the Dioscuri against King Acastus and his wife. They plundered the city, and Jason or his son Thessalus took the throne. There are different versions about his death: it was said that he had committed suicide because of the tragedy caused by Medea but there was also a tradition that he had died when a piece of rotten wood from the ship Argo .
Jason and the movies
Several movies and television have been made that deal with the journey of the Argonauts in search of the Fleece:
- 1958: Hercules (Le fatiche di Ercole): film feature produced by Italy and directed by Pietro Francisci, with Steve Reeves on the role of Hercules and Sylva Koscina in that of Princess Iole.
- 1960: The giants of Tesalia (I giganti della Tessaglia): film scene co-produced by Italy and France and directed by Riccardo Freda.
- 1963: Jason and the Argonauts (Jason and the Argonauts): film feature produced by the United Kingdom and directed by Don Chaffey, with Todd Armstrong (1937 - 1992) on the role of Jason and Nancy Kovack in Medea. The special effects of Ray Harryhausen stand out in this film.
- 1969: Medea: film feature produced by Italy and directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, with Maria Callas on the role of Medea.
- 1971: Argonauts (Аргонавты): short film of cartoons produced by Soyuzmultfilm and directed by Aleksandra Snezhko-Blotskaya (Aлександра Снежко-л Boцкая, 1909-1980).
- 1988: Medea; telefilm directed by Lars von Trier.
- 2000: Jason and the Argonauts: TV miniserie produced by Hallmark, with Jason London (n. 1972) on the role of Jason and Frank Langella in Eetes.