In Greek mythology, the Argo was the ship on which Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcus to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The Argo was built by the shipwright Argus, and its crew were specially protected by the goddess Hera. The best source for the myth is the Argonautica by Apollonius Rhodius. According to a variety of sources of the legend, the Argo was said to have been planned or constructed with the help of Athena. According to other legends it contained in its prow a magical piece of timber from the sacred forest of Dodona, which could speak and render prophecies. After the successful journey, the Argo was consecrated to Poseidon in the Isthmus of Corinth. It was then translated into the sky and turned into the constellation of Argo Navis.[1] Several authors of antiquity (Apollonius Rhodius, Pliny,[2] Philostephanus) discussed the hypothetical shape of the ship. Generally it was imagined like a Greek warship, a galley, and authors hypothesized that it was the first ship of this type that had gone out on a high-sea voyage.[1]
Etymology
Ancient authors were divided about the origin of the name of the ship. Some ascribed it to the name of the person who built it, Argus, son of Phrixus; others to the Greek word αργός, "swift", as being a light sailer; others to the city of Argos, where they suppose it was built; yet others to the Argives, who went on board it, according to the distich quoted from ancient Roman statesman Cicero, in his first Tusculan.
Notes
- ^ a b This article incorporates content from the 1728 Cyclopaedia, a publication in the public domain. [1]
- ^ Hist. Nat. 1.c.56
