Aegeas

Aegeas

Everyone knows the infinite charm, beautiful islands and endless blue of the Aegean Sea, but the legend of how it got its name is just as enticing. Are you ready?

Aegeas was the king of Athens. He married two women, but his spouses didn’t give him any sons, so after a particularly cryptic prophecy in the oracle of Delphi, he married the daughter of King Pittheus of Troezen, Aethra. Aethra became pregnant and gave birth to Aegeas’ son, the hero Theseus.

When Theseus grew up, Athens was defeated in the war with Crete, and the price Athens had to pay was that every nine years seven male and seven female youths were sent to Crete to be devoured by the monster Minotaur in the labyrinth of King Minos’ palace. Theseus volunteered to go with the youths in Crete and slay the Minotaur.

Because Aegeas was too scared about his son’s life, he gave a ship with black sails to the company and agreed with Theseus that in case he managed to slay the Minotaur and stay alive, he would change the sails of his ship with white ones upon his return to pre-announce his good fate to his father. Otherwise, the sails would remain black.

Aegeas longed for his son’s return in Cape Sounion, where the famous temple is located today. Theseus managed, with the help of Ariadne, the daughter of King Minos, to slay the Minotaur and was alive. Intoxicated from his victory, however, Theseus forgot to change the sails from black to white. When Aegeus saw the black sails, he was so devastated that he threw himself off the cliff and into the sea, losing his life.

The sea where the beloved king committed suicide took his name and the ancient Athenians built there a temple to honor the king of Athens.