Dragon of Ares

Dragon of Ares by KingovRats

The Dragon of Ares (also called the Ismeanian Dragon) is a serpentine dragon from ancient Greek mythology. The dragon was the guardian of the spring of Dirce, which is sacred to the god Ares, before being slain by the warrior Cadmus. As a consequence, for slaying it Cadmus would be indentured to Ares for a year (equal to eight modern years) and would later be transformed into either a dragon or serpent alongside his wife Harmonia.

Description

The dragon of Ares is in its most basic form, a large serpent. Ovid had written a detailed account of the creature, writing that it had a golden crest, eyes that emitted fire, it's body "swelling" with venom, three tongues, and three rows of teeth. Nonnus wrote that that the dragon had a crest on its neck and can release a poison from its mouth that can paralyze and turn the color of its victims into "livid iron"

Mythology

According to myth, Cadmus had been told by the god Apollo to forgo his original mission of finding his sister and instead follow a cow and build a city where it rests. From where it rested, Cadmus founded Thebes, wanting to then sacrifice the cow afterwards to the goddess Athena. He told his men to fetch him some water from the spring of Dirce, where his men were killed by the dragon. Angry at the dragon, Cadmus slew it. After this, Athena told Cadmus to take the dragon's teeth and sow them into the ground. From these teeth, a group of men called the Spartoi (sown men) sprang up from them, who then proceeded to try to kill each other until five remained. Cadmus was then indentured to Are's service for a year. After his service, Athena gave him a kingdom and the god Zeus gave him Harmonia, daughter of the deities Ares and Aphrodite, as a wife.

Cadmus and Harmonia would then travel to the Encheleans (Eel people), who were at war with the Illyrians. According to a god's prophecy, the Encheleans would win the war If they made Cadmus and Harmonia their leaders, prompting the Encheleans to do so. The group would then conquer the Illyrians, Cadmus becoming the conquered group's leader. Cadmus and Harmonia would then transform into serpents, Zeus sending them to the Elysian fields.

The teeth of the Dragon of Ares would also end up in the hands of Aeetes, the king of Colchis. The king would utilize the teeth to form "sown man" as tools to combat the Argonaut Jason. Apollonius of Rhodes claims that Athena had divided the teeth to be shared by Aeetes and Cadmus. In Orphic myth, the man Phrixus retrieved half of the teeth and bought them to Colchis as a "bride-price" for Medea's sister Chalciope.

Commentary

Palaephatus rationalized the dragon as simply a man named Dragon that was the son of Ares and a king. This man had the usual wealth of kings as well as some elephant's tusks. Cadmus would slay him and rule in his place, prompting the king's sons to make war. After this, the king's friends stole Cadmus's money and the elephant tusks and proceeded to scatter. They then made war with the Thebans, the citizens remarking how many "good men have become scattered (spartoi)".

Gallery

Cadmus and the Serpent, Alabaster 100 to 200 BC. Credit to Wikimedia Commons