Augeas

This article is about the figure in Greek mythology. For the configuration management library, see Augeas (software).

In Greek mythology, Augeas (or Augeias, /ɔːˈdʒiːəs/, ‹See Tfd›Greek: Αὐγείας), whose name means "bright", was king of Elis and father of Epicaste. Some ancient authors say that Augeas was one of the Argonauts.^[1] He is known for his stables, which housed the single greatest number of cattle in the country and had never been cleaned, until the time of the great hero Heracles. The derivative adjective augean came to signify a challenging task, typically improving or fixing something that is currently in a bad condition.^[2][3]

Family

Augeas's lineage varies in the sources: he was said to be either the son of Helios^[4] either by Nausidame^[5] or Iphiboe,^[6] or of Eleios,^[7] or of Poseidon, or of Phorbas and Hyrmine.^[8] In the latter account, Augeas was probably the brother of Actor,^[9] Tiphys^[10] and Diogeneia.^[11] His children were Epicaste, Phyleus, Agamede,^[12] Agasthenes,^[13] and Eurytus.^[14]

Comparative table of Augeas' family

Relation	Names	Sources
		Homer	Theocritus	Apollonius	Diodorus	Strabo	Apollodorus	Orphic Argo	Pausanias	Hyginus	Tzetzes
Parents	Helios		✓	✓			✓	✓	✓
	Phorbas and Hyrmine						✓
	Poseidon						✓				✓
	Eleios								✓
	Helios and Nausidame									✓
	Phorbas				✓						✓
	Helios and Iphiboe										✓
Sibling	Actor				✓		✓
Children	Agasthenes	✓							✓
	Agamede	✓								✓
	Phyleus		✓			✓	✓		✓		✓
	Eurytus				✓
	Epicaste						✓

Mythology

Heracles rerouting the rivers Alpheus and Peneus, to clean out the Augean stables. Roman mosaic, 3rd century AD.

The fifth Labour of Heracles (Hercules in Latin) was to clean the Augean (/ɔːˈdʒiːən/) stables. Eurystheus intended this assignment both as humiliating (rather than impressive, like the previous labours) and as impossible, since the livestock were divinely healthy (immortal) and therefore produced an enormous quantity of dung (ἡ ὄνθος). Those stables had not been cleaned in over thirty years,^[15] and 3,000 cattle lived there. However, Heracles succeeded by rerouting the rivers Alpheus and Peneus to wash out the filth.

Augeas reacted angrily because he had promised Heracles one tenth of his cattle if the job was finished in one day. He refused to honour the agreement, and Heracles killed him after completing the tasks. Heracles gave his kingdom to Phyleus, Augeas' son, who had been exiled for supporting Heracles against his father.

According to the odes of the poet Pindar, Heracles then founded the Olympic Games:

the games which by the ancient tomb of Pelops the mighty Heracles founded, after that he slew Kleatos, Poseidon's godly son, and slew also Eurytos, that he might wrest from tyrannous Augeas against his will reward for service done.^[16]

Eurystheus discounted the success of this labour because the rushing waters had done the work of cleaning the stables and because Heracles was paid. Stating that Heracles still had seven labours to do, Eurystheus then sent Heracles to defeat the Stymphalian Birds.

Classical literature sources

Augeas

Chronological listing of classical literature sources for Augeas:

• Homer, Iliad 2. 615 ff (trans. Murray) (Greek epic poetry C8th BC)
• Homer, Iliad 2. 625 ff
• Homer, Iliad 11. 696 ff
• Homer, Iliad 11. 737 ff
• Telegony Fragment 1 (Hesiod the Homeric Hymns and Homerica trans. Evelyn-White 1920) (Greek epic poetry C8th or 6th BC)
• Pindar, Olympian Ode 10. 28 ff (trans. Sandys) (Greek lyric poetry C5th BC)
• Pindar, Olympian Ode 10. 33ff
• Theocritus, Idylls 25. 1 ff (trans. Banks) (Greek bucolic poetry C3rd BC)
• Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 3. 367 ff (trans. Coleridge) (Greek epic poetry C3rd BC)
• Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 3. 432 ff
• Callimachus, Uncertain Location Fragment 69 (216) (trans. Mair) (Greek poetry C3rd BC)
• Scholiast on Callimachus, Uncertain Location Fragment 69 (216) (Callimachus and Lycophron Aratus trans. Mair 1921 p. 261)
• Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 69. 2 (trans. Oldfather) (Greek history C1st BC)
• Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 13. 3
• Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 33. 1-4
• Ovid, Metamorphoses 9. 187 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman epic poetry C1st BC to C1st AD)
• Strabo, Geography 8. 3. 9 (trans. Jones) (Greek geography C1st BC to C1st AD)
• Strabo, Geography 10. 2. 19
• Philippus of Thessalonica, The Twelve Labors of Hercules (The Greek Classics ed. Miller Vol 3 1909 p. 397) (Greek epigram C1st AD)
• Seneca, Hercules Furens 247 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st AD)
• Seneca Hercules Oetaeus 1889 ff (trans. Miller)
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 1. 9. 16 (trans. Frazer) (Greek mythography C2nd AD)
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 5. 5
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 5. 11
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 7. 2-3
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 7. 8
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 2. 15. 1 (trans. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd AD)
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 5. 1. 8-3. 4
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 5. 4. 2
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 5. 8. 1-3
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 6. 20. 15-16
• Pausanias, Description of Greece 8. 14. 9
• Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 14 (trans. Grant) (Roman mythography C2nd AD)
• Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 30
• Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 157
• Aelian, Historical Miscellany 1. 24 (trans. Wilson) (Greek rhetoric C2nd to 3rd AD)
• Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 6. 258 ff (trans. Way) (Greek epic poetry C4th AD)
• Servius, In Vergilii Carmina Commentarii 8. 300 ff (trans. Thilo) (Greek commentary C4th AD to 5th AD)
• Nonnos, Dionysiaca 25. 242 ff (trans. Rouse) (Greek epic poetry C5th AD)
• Tzetzes, Chiliades or Book of Histories 278-290 (trans. Untia) (Greco-Byzantine history C12 AD)

Stables of Augeas

Chronological listing of classical literature sources for the Stables of Augeas:

• Callimachus, Uncertain Location Fragment 69 (216) (trans. Mair) (Greek poetry C3rd BC)
• Scholiast on Callimachus, Uncertain Location Fragment 69 (216) (Callimachus and Lycophron Aratus trans. Mair 1921 p. 261)
• Lycophron, Alexandra 648 ff (trans. Mair) (Greek poetry C3rd BC)
• Scholiast on Lycophron, Alexandra 648 ff (Callimachus and Lycophron Aratus trans. Mair 1921 p. 548
• Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 13. 3 (trans. Oldfather) (Greek history C1st BC)
• Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 33. 1-4
• Ovid, Metamorphoses 9. 187 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman epic poetry C1st BC to C1st AD)
• Seneca, Hercules Furens 247 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st AD):
• Seneca Hercules Oetaeus 1889 ff
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 5. 5 (trans. Frazer) (Greek mythography C2nd AD)
• Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 2. 5. 11
• Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 30 (trans. Grant) (Roman mythography C2nd AD)
• Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 6. 258 ff (trans. Way) (Greek epic poetry C4th AD)
• Servius, In Vergilii Carmina Commentarii 8. 300 ff (trans. Thilo) (Greek commentary C4th AD to 5th AD)
• Tzetzes, Chiliades or Book of Histories 2. 278-290 (trans. Untila) (Greco-Byzantine history C12 AD)
• Tzetzes, Chiliades or Book of Histories 2. 497 ff
• Tzetzes, Chiliades or Book of Histories 8. 268 ff
• Tzetzes, Chiliades or Book of Histories 12. 248

See also

• 13184 Augeias, Jovian asteroid

Notes

1. Apollodorus, 1.9.16; Hyginus, Fabulae 14
2. Augean, Cambridge Dictionary, Retrieved November 7 2024
3. Augean, Merriam-Webster, Retrieved November 7 2024
4. Eustathius ad Homer, p. 303; Scholia ad Apollonius Rhodius, 1.172; Apollodorus, 1.9.16
5. Hyginus, Fabulae 14
6. Tzetzes, Chiliades 4.361
7. Pausanias, 5.1.9
8. Apollodorus, 2.88
9. Pausanias, 5.1.11.
10. Hyginus, Fabulae 14
11. Eustathius on Homer, pp. 303 & 1598
12. Homer, Iliad 11.740; Hyginus, Fabulae 157
13. Homer, Iliad 2.624
14. Diodorus Siculus, 4.33.3
15. Strouf, Judie L. H. (2005). The literature teacher's book of lists. Jossey-Bass. p. 13. ISBN 0787975508.
16. Pindar, The Extant Odes of Pindar, Project Gutenberg.

References

• Apollodorus, The Library with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. ISBN 0-674-99135-4. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library. Greek text available from the same website.
• Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History translated by Charles Henry Oldfather. Twelve volumes. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd. 1989. Vol. 3. Books 4.59–8. Online version at Bill Thayer's Web Site
• Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica. Vol 1-2. Immanel Bekker. Ludwig Dindorf. Friedrich Vogel. in aedibus B. G. Teubneri. Leipzig. 1888-1890. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Gaius Julius Hyginus, Fabulae from The Myths of Hyginus translated and edited by Mary Grant. University of Kansas Publications in Humanistic Studies. Online version at the Topos Text Project.
• Pausanias, Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.H.S. Jones, Litt.D., and H.A. Ormerod, M.A., in 4 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1918. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library
• Pausanias, Graeciae Descriptio. 3 vols. Leipzig, Teubner. 1903. Greek text available at the Perseus Digital Library.
• Scholia to Lycophron's Alexandra, marginal notes by Isaak and Ioannis Tzetzes and others from the Greek edition of Eduard Scheer (Weidmann 1881). Online version at the Topos Text Project.. Greek text available on Archive.org