Caroline Lawrence

A good question. We have a first mention of him in a poet called Callimachus, who's of the 3rd century BC. He just has a little line. He talks about Theseus escaping from the cruel, bellowing of the wild son of Pacify and the twisted dwelling place of the crooked labyrinth. So right there, although it doesn't call him Minotaur in that third century BC bit of poetry, you've got all the elements.

A good question. We have a first mention of him in a poet called Callimachus, who's of the 3rd century BC. He just has a little line. He talks about Theseus escaping from the cruel, bellowing of the wild son of Pacify and the twisted dwelling place of the crooked labyrinth. So right there, although it doesn't call him Minotaur in that third century BC bit of poetry, you've got all the elements.

You've got thesis, you've got the mother, and you've got the maze. Then we first see it written down on vases, and there's a famous skiphos, which is a kind of deep bowl with two little horizontal handles at the top. called the Reetskifas, and that's from, appropriately enough, Boeotia, cow land. And it shows Theseus stepping forward to stab the Minotaur.

You've got thesis, you've got the mother, and you've got the maze. Then we first see it written down on vases, and there's a famous skiphos, which is a kind of deep bowl with two little horizontal handles at the top. called the Reetskifas, and that's from, appropriately enough, Boeotia, cow land. And it shows Theseus stepping forward to stab the Minotaur.

You've got thesis, you've got the mother, and you've got the maze. Then we first see it written down on vases, and there's a famous skiphos, which is a kind of deep bowl with two little horizontal handles at the top. called the Reetskifas, and that's from, appropriately enough, Boeotia, cow land. And it shows Theseus stepping forward to stab the Minotaur.

And in that one, the Minotaur looks a bit like, his head looks almost like a unicorn. It could be a horse with one horn. But then, in a vase of about 400, we call it, someone's written Minoio Tauros, which means the Bull of Minos. So that's the kind of first time it's written down, but...

And in that one, the Minotaur looks a bit like, his head looks almost like a unicorn. It could be a horse with one horn. But then, in a vase of about 400, we call it, someone's written Minoio Tauros, which means the Bull of Minos. So that's the kind of first time it's written down, but...

And in that one, the Minotaur looks a bit like, his head looks almost like a unicorn. It could be a horse with one horn. But then, in a vase of about 400, we call it, someone's written Minoio Tauros, which means the Bull of Minos. So that's the kind of first time it's written down, but...

Obviously, there's this deep association starting from about the 6th century BC in Greece with this bullheaded person in a maze.

Obviously, there's this deep association starting from about the 6th century BC in Greece with this bullheaded person in a maze.

Obviously, there's this deep association starting from about the 6th century BC in Greece with this bullheaded person in a maze.

Absolutely. And I forgot to say the two main sources, or I'd say one is Apollodorus, or Pseudo-Apollodorus, as he's sometimes called, who is writing in Greek in the first century CE. And also Ovid writes about the Minotaur, not just in the Metamorphoses, but in the Ars Amatoriae.

Absolutely. And I forgot to say the two main sources, or I'd say one is Apollodorus, or Pseudo-Apollodorus, as he's sometimes called, who is writing in Greek in the first century CE. And also Ovid writes about the Minotaur, not just in the Metamorphoses, but in the Ars Amatoriae.

Absolutely. And I forgot to say the two main sources, or I'd say one is Apollodorus, or Pseudo-Apollodorus, as he's sometimes called, who is writing in Greek in the first century CE. And also Ovid writes about the Minotaur, not just in the Metamorphoses, but in the Ars Amatoriae.

He's a Roman writing, yeah, in Latin, right before the birth of Christ, just before the birth of Christ. And he has a wonderful phrase. He describes the minotaur as semi bovemque virum, semi virumque bovem, which means a half-bull man and a half-man bull. So it's a kind of Latin tongue twister, a hybrid line for a hybrid creature. Yeah. That's good fun.

He's a Roman writing, yeah, in Latin, right before the birth of Christ, just before the birth of Christ. And he has a wonderful phrase. He describes the minotaur as semi bovemque virum, semi virumque bovem, which means a half-bull man and a half-man bull. So it's a kind of Latin tongue twister, a hybrid line for a hybrid creature. Yeah. That's good fun.

He's a Roman writing, yeah, in Latin, right before the birth of Christ, just before the birth of Christ. And he has a wonderful phrase. He describes the minotaur as semi bovemque virum, semi virumque bovem, which means a half-bull man and a half-man bull. So it's a kind of Latin tongue twister, a hybrid line for a hybrid creature. Yeah. That's good fun.

He talks about the unholy womb and stuff like that that gave birth to the Minotaur.

He talks about the unholy womb and stuff like that that gave birth to the Minotaur.

He talks about the unholy womb and stuff like that that gave birth to the Minotaur.