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Balius (/ˈbeɪliəs/;Ancient Greek: Βάλιος,Balios, possibly "dappled") andXanthus (/ˈzænθəs/;Ancient Greek: Ξάνθος,Xanthos, "blonde") were, according toGreek mythology, two immortal horses, the offspring of theharpyPodarge and the West wind,Zephyrus.[1] In other traditions,Poseidon is the father of Xanthus along with another horse namedCyllarus to an unnamed mother.[2] It is possible that Xanthus's ability to speak prophetically may be related toArion, another mythical horse reported to have savedAdrastus from the war of theSeven against Thebes with his prophetic abilities inStatius'sThebaid.[2]
Poseidon gave the two horses to KingPeleus of Phthia, as a wedding gift when Peleus married the Ocean goddess,Thetis. Peleus later gave the horses to his sonAchilles who took them to draw his chariot during theTrojan War.
Book 16 of theIliad tells us that Achilles had a third horse,Pedasos (maybe "Jumper", maybe "Captive"), which was yoked as a trace horse, along with Xanthus and Balios. Achilles had captured Pedasos when he took the city of Eetion. Pedasos was mortal, but he could keep up with the divine horses.Sarpedon, prince ofLycia and ally of Troy, killed Pedasos when his spear missedPatroclus. Achilles' comrade-in-arms Patroclus used to feed and groom these horses. In theIliad, it was told how, when Patroclus was killed in battle, Xanthus and Balius stood motionless on the field of battle and wept.
In lines 17.474–17.478 of theIliad,Automedon, Achilles' charioteer, implies that only Patroclus, now dead, was able to control these horses.[3] In lines 17.474–17.486, theMyrmidon chiefAlcimedon appears and takes the reins at Automedon's request.[4] In lines 19.400–19.418, when the horses were rebuked by the grieving Achilles for allowing Patroclus to lie fallen on the battlefield, instead of bringing him back to the Greeks,Hera granted Xanthus human speech, allowing the horse to say that a god, Apollo, had killed Patroclus, and that a god and a mortal would soon kill Achilles too.[5] After this, theErinyes struck the horse dumb.
Based on fragments fromAlcman andStesichorus, an alternative story of the horses can be derived.[2] The horses, named Xanthus and Cyllarus, are the sons of Poseidon, who gave them to Hera as a gift. The latter bestowed them onto theDioscuri to use as their horses in battle, and Xanthus retains his ability to speak with Castor.[2]
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