The Rape of Ganymede at Beachy Head In Greek mythology, Ganymede ( Greek: Γανυμήδης, Ganymēdēs) is a divine hero whose homeland was Troy. He was the son of Tros of Dardania, from whose name "Troy" was supposedly derived, and of Callirrhoe, the daughter of the river god Scamander. His brothers were Ilus and Assaracus. In one version of the myth, he is abducted by Zeus, in the form of an eagle, to serve as cup-bearer in Olympus. Homer describes Ganymede as the most beautiful of mortals.
RAPE OF GANYMEDE AT BEACHY HEAD-oil on linen-Ganymede was abducted by Zeus from Mount Ida, near Troy in Phrygia. Ganymede had been tending sheep, a rustic or humble pursuit characteristic of a hero's boyhood before his privileged status is revealed. Zeus either summoned an eagle or turned into an eagle himself to transport the youth to Mount Olympus. Roman-era relief depicting the eagle, Ganymede wearing his Phrygian cap, and a third figure, possibly his grieving father In the Iliad, Zeus is said to have compensated Ganymede's father Tros by the gift of fine horses, "the same that carry the immortals", delivered by the messenger god Hermes. Tros was consoled that his son was now immortal and would be the cupbearer for the gods, a position of much distinction. Walter Burkert found a precedent for the Ganymede myth on an Akkadian seal that depicts the hero-king Etana riding heavenwards on an eagle. In Olympus, Zeus granted him eternal youth and immortality and the office of cupbearer to the gods, supplanting Hebe. All the gods were filled with joy to see the youth, except for Hera, Zeus's consort, who regarded Ganymede as a rival for her husband's affection. Zeus later put Ganymede in the sky as the constellation Aquarius, which is associated with that of the Eagle (Aquila). A moon of Jupiter, the planet named for Zeus's Roman counterpart, was named Ganymede by the German astronomer Simon Marius. Plato accounts for the pederastic aspect of the myth by attributing its origin to Crete, where the social custom of paiderastía was supposed to have originated (see "Cretan pederasty"). Xenophon portrays Socrates as denying that Ganymede was the catamite of Zeus, and instead asserting that the god loved him for his psychē, "mind" or "soul," .
Size: 2364px × 3500px
Location: Beachy Head, United Kingdom
Photo credit: © André Durand / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: abducted, beachy, beautiful, callirrhoe, catamitus, crete, divine, ganymede, head, hero, hunter, mortals, mount, olympus, pederasti, phrygian, plato, rape, troy, zeus
