In ancientGreek andRoman mythology,Chione (/kaɪˈoʊniː/;[1]Ancient Greek:Χιόνη,romanized: Khiónē,lit. 'snowy'), also known in some authors asPhilonis (Ancient Greek:Φιλωνίς,romanized: Philōnís), is the pretty daughter ofDaedalion, who was desired by many, among them the Olympian godsApollo andHermes both. She bore each god a son,Philammon andAutolycus respectively. The beautiful Chione died when she gravely insultedArtemis, goddess of the hunt, who slew her with her arrows.
The girl's nameΧιόνη is derived from the ancient Greek word for snow,χιών (chiṓn).[2] This noun in turn in inherited from the Indo-European root*ǵʰéyōm, translating to 'snow,' and is cognate with other ancient Greek words such asχεῖμα (kheîma, also meaning snow) andχειμών (kheimṓn, meaning winter).[3]
In classical antiquity Chione was a generic name used for prostitutes, which might reflect her role in myth.[4] In other versions she is also called Philonis, Leuconoe and Telauge.[5]
Chione was the daughter ofDaedalion by an unnamed mother.[4] In other accounts, this girl's name isPhilonis, and her parents are variously given asEosphoros andCleoboea orDeion.[6][7]
Chione was an excessively beautiful maiden who began attracting the attention of many mortal and divine males once she turned fourteen.[8][9] Among her most ardent suitors were the godsApollo andHermes, who took a glimpse of her at the same time when they were coming down fromDelphi andMount Cyllene respectively. They fell in love with her in an instant on account of her great beauty.[10]
Hermes, who was impatient, immediately sent Chione into a deep sleep and raped her while she was unconscious.[11] Apollo on the other hand waited until dusk and consorted with her after he gained access to her chambers by transforming himself into an old woman.[12] Having lain with them on the same day, Chione bore them twin sons;[13]Autolycus, who was crafty and deceitful, to Hermes, andPhilammon, a talented singer and musician, to Apollo.[8]
Chione's unrestrained arrogance and hubris proved to be her undoing, for eventually she spoke in a haughty manner againstArtemis[14] and dared compare her beauty to that of the goddess.[15][16] Artemis would have none of that, so she pierced the maiden's tongue with her arrows, and Chione perished in agony and blood.[8] Her father Daedalion was extremely distraught by Chione's death, and attempted to join her in her funeral pyre, but was restrained. In the end he threw himself off a cliff, but Apollo felt pity for him and turned him into a hawk.[14]
Older authors such asHesiod andPherecydes make Philonis the mother of Autolycus and Philammon, with 'Chione' first appearing inOvid, while inHomer'sOdyssey Autolycus is decisivelynot the son of Hermes.[17] Although the story of Autolycus and Philammon's birth has precedent, the name and metamorphosis of the maiden's father does not, and it is not clear why Ovid introduced him, although he might have drawn influence fromNicander.[18] It is also likely that Daedalion and Chione's story originated fromBoios, an earlier Greek writer and author of theOrnithogonia ("birth of the birds"), from whom Ovid inherited many elements and narratives he evoked multiple times in his writing.[19]
Chione/Philonis is a rare example of a mortal girl who has more than one divine lover.[20] AtThorikos, Philonis received offerings during the month of Mounichion, and due to the meteorological or astronomical meanings of the various names assigned to the girl and her father, it is possible that those stories were connected one way or another to weather and seasonal cults at Thorikos.[21]
Scholar Graham Anderson suggested that the German fairytale ofSnow White has ancient roots in the myth of Chione; Chione means 'snowy', she is described as the most beautiful woman of the land, she is put to sleep through supernatural means by Hermes, whereas Apollo manages to approach her by taking the form of an old crone.[22]
Other tales of hubris in Greek mythology:
Media related toChione at Wikimedia Commons
