Niobe
n.
(Greek mythology) queen of Thebes, daughter of Tantalus and wife of Amphion
Niobe
Niobe (Νιόβη) is a mortal woman in
Greek mythology, daughter of
Tantalus and
Euryanassa,
Eurythemista,
Clytia,
Dione, or
Laodice, and the wife of
Amphion of
Thebes. She boasted of her superiority to
Leto because while the goddess had only two children, the twins Apollo and Artemis, Niobe had fourteen children (the
Niobids), seven male and seven female,
Apollo killed her sons as they practiced athletics, with the last begging for his life (Apollo would have spared his life, but had already released the arrow), and
Artemis killed her daughters. Apollo and Artemis used poisoned arrows to kill them, though according to some versions a number of the Niobids were spared (
Chloris, usually). Amphion, at the sight of his dead sons, either killed himself or was killed by Apollo after swearing revenge. A devastated Niobe fled to
Mount Sipylus of
Lydia in
Anatolia and turned into stone as she wept, or committed suicide. Spil Mount has a rock resembling a female face on it that the locals attributed to
Broteas and claimed was Niobe, though it was probably originally intended to be
Cybele. The stone is said to have wept tears during the summer. The rock appears to weep because it is porous
limestone and rainwater seeps through the s.
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Niobé
n.
Niobe, the daughter of Tantalus, and wife of Amphion, king of Thebes
Niobe
(n.)
The daughter of Tantalus, and wife of Amphion, king of Thebes. Her pride in her children provoked Apollo and Diana, who slew them all. Niobe herself was changed by the gods into stone.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), edited by Noah Porter.
About
Niobe
[Greek] Niobe is one of the more tragic figures in Greek myth. She was the daughter of Tantalus and either Euryanassa, Eurythemista, Clytia, or Dione (no one seems to know for sure) and had two brothers, Broteas and Pelops. Niobe was the queen of Thebes (the principle city in Boetia), married to Amphion, King of Thebes. Niobe and Amphion had fourteen children (the Niobids), and in a moment of arrogance, Niobe bragged about her seven sons and seven daughters at a ceremony in honor of Leto, the daughter of the titans Coeus and Phoebe. She mocked Leto, who only had two children, Apollo, god of prophecy and music, and Artemis, virgin goddess of the wild. Leto did not take the insult lightly, and in retaliation, sent Apollo and Artemis to earth to slaughter all of Niobe's children. Apollo killed the seven sons while they practiced their athletics. The last son begged to be spared, but the arrow had already left Apollo's bow, and the boy was struck dead. Artemis killed the seven daughters w...
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