Polyphonte (Ancient Greek:Πολυφόντη,romanized: Poluphóntē,lit. 'slayer of many') is a character in Greek mythology, transformed into astrix.
Polyphonte was the daughter ofHipponous andThrassa; her grandparents on her mother's side were the war godAres andTereine, a daughter of the river godStrymon.[1]
The story of her life is contained in only one source, namelyAntoninus Liberalis's Metamorphoses. Antonius citesBoeus’ second book, ‘The Origin of Birds’ as the source of the story; however, Boeus’ work has been lost.[2]
Wishing to remain a virgin, Polyphonte fled to the mountains to become a companion ofArtemis, and scorning the honours ofAphrodite, the goddess of love and procreation. This provoked the ire of the goddess, who viewed Polyphonte's decision and dismissive attitude as a personal affront. To punish Polyphonte for failing to honor her womanly duty, Aphrodite drove her mad and caused her to lust after abear.
Artemis was disgusted with Polyphonte and so turned a large horde of twild animals against her. Fearing for her life, Polyphonte was forced to return back to her father's home.[1]
Once at home, Polyphonte gave birth to two humanoid bear-like sons,Agrius and Oreius (the result of her union with the bear). Agrius and Oreius grew into huge men of immense strength. As perhaps befits their feral patronage, the Bear Twins honored neither men nor gods. Indeed, they were cannibals who attacked strangers on the road.
Zeus despised Agrius and Oreius and so sentHermes to punish them as he saw fit. The brothers almost had their hands and feet severed by the vengeful god were it not for the intervention of their great-grandfather Ares. Despite their monstrous nature, Ares persuaded Hermes to commute the sentence. Together, Hermes and Ares transformed Agrius, Oreius, Polyphonte, and the family's female servant into birds. Polyphonte was transformed into theowl-likestrix, which neither ate nor drank and cried during that night, which portended war and sedition for mankind.[a] As for her sons, Oreius was turned into a "bird calledlagōs" (hypothetically translated as an "eagle owl")[4][8] regarded as ill omen, and Agrius was turned into avulture, a despised carrion-eating bird. In a small act of mercy, Ares and Hermes heeded the female servant's prayer where she had no involvement in the Bear Twins' actions and decided not to transform her into a bird heralding evil for mankind. Instead, she was transformed into awoodpecker (supposedly a sign of good luck if seen before a hunt).[1]
The story bears strong similarities with the tales ofHippolytus,Atalanta andCallisto. It has been suggested that all these tales deal with the function of Artemis within the rituals ofAncient Greece and shed light on how they saw a woman's first sexual encounter.[9] In so far as the tale details bestiality as a punishment for offending the gods, the myth is also similar to that ofPasiphaë who mated with theCretan Bull resulting in theMinotaur's birth.
French folkloristPaul Delarue listed this story as an ancient parallel to the European tale ofJean de l'Ours, a strong hero born of a human woman and a bear.[10]
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