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Athamas

Athamas ăthˈəmăs [key], in Greek mythology, king of Boeotia. He married Nephele, who bore him Phrixus and Helle, but he later fell in love with Ino, who bore him Learchus and Melicertes. According to one legend, Athamas went mad, killed Learchus and forced Ino, who was fleeing with Melicertes, to leap to her death in the sea.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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