Greek PantheonHero
Orpheus
Legendary musician whose playing could charm animals, trees, and stones. His descent into the underworld to reclaim his wife Eurydice is one of the most retold myths in Western literature.
About Orpheus
The Power of Song
Orpheus's lyre, a gift said to be from Apollo, played music so beautiful that wild beasts grew calm, trees bent to listen, and rivers paused in their courses. He sailed with Jason and the Argonauts, using his music to drown out the deadly song of the Sirens when the crew passed their island, saving the expedition where ordinary willpower would have failed.
The Descent for Eurydice
When his wife Eurydice died from a snakebite, Orpheus followed her down into the underworld, charming Charon the ferryman, Cerberus the guard-hound, and finally Hades and Persephone themselves with his grief-stricken music. The rulers of the dead agreed to release Eurydice on one condition: Orpheus had to walk ahead of her back to the world of the living without looking back to confirm she was following. Just short of the surface, his nerve broke, and he looked back; Eurydice vanished a second time, this time for good.
Death and Legacy
Orpheus's later life, in most versions, ends in violence: grieving and withdrawn from women after losing Eurydice twice, he is torn apart by a group of Thracian maenads, followers of Dionysus, who resent his rejection or his devotion to another god. His severed head is said to have continued singing as it floated down the river Hebrus, and his lyre became the constellation Lyra.
On parentage: His mother is usually named as Calliope, one of the Muses; some sources make Apollo his father instead, matching his gift for music.
Key deeds
- Sailed with the Argonauts and drowned out the Sirens' song with his own
- Descended into the underworld to plead for Eurydice's return
- Charmed Hades and Persephone into releasing Eurydice under one condition
- Lost Eurydice a second time by looking back too soon
Fate
Torn apart by maenads of Dionysus after retreating from human company in his grief; his severed head is said to have kept singing as it drifted downriver.
Sources and further reading
Source notes
These references are recorded in the catalog. Their passage wording and translation have not been checked, so quotations are not displayed here.
- Virgil, Georgics
- Ovid, Metamorphoses
Appears in
Ancient and classical works featuring this figure.
descends to the underworld for Eurydice (Books 10-11)
About this entry
By Elizabeth Stein for Mythos Atlas. About the author. Editorial notes are grounded in the site's cited sources and can be challenged through the contact page.
Hero legends were retold for centuries, and the sources often disagree on parentage, deeds and death. This entry follows the best-known versions and notes the main alternatives.
Keep exploring
One myth a week, with its sources in a short email. The sign-up form is just below.