Furies
Also called Erinyes, Alecto, Tisiphone, Megaera, Semnai, Furia.
In Greek and Roman mythology, the Furies are Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera, avenging spirits born from the blood of the castrated sky god Uranus who relentlessly pursue and punish serious wrongdoing, especially crimes against kin.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Greek mythologyRoman mythology
- Symbols
- Furies
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Furies is image-domain The Furies are the unceasing avengers of blood-guilt and betrayed kinship, serpent-haired sisters whose pursuit is the psyche's refusal to let a crime go unowned.
why
In Greek and Roman mythology, the Furies are Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera, avenging spirits born from the blood of the castrated sky god Uranus who relentlessly pursue and punish serious wrongdoing, especially crimes against kin.
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Form
- Horse head bat wings hybrid
why
some sources giving them serpent hair, foul odor, and bat-like wings, or the heads of dogs
- Snake hair
why
Descriptions of their appearance vary, with some sources giving them serpent hair, foul odor, and bat-like wings, or the heads of dogs, emphasizing their role as something between hunting hounds and hags, relentless once set upon a guilty target.
Sight and sound
- Musky odor
why
foul odor
Offensive powers
- Vengeful pursuit
why
Their best-known appearance in this capacity comes in the story of Orestes, who is hounded by the Erinyes after killing his mother Clytemnestra to avenge his father Agamemnon, a pursuit that drives him to the edge of madness before he secures judgment and eventual release.
Curses
- Curse infliction
why
This practice of substitution reflects a broader pattern in which the Furies are treated less as villains than as an impersonal, almost cosmic mechanism of retribution, one that continues its pursuit even beyond death in some tellings, underscoring that the wrongs they punish are considered beyond the reach of ordinary human remedy.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Shadow carries both readings
5 citations
- Apollodorus, translated by J. G. Frazer, The Library, p. 540.
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth, p. 15.
- Threshold carries
5 citations
- Apollodorus, translated by J. G. Frazer, The Library, p. 540.
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth, p. 15.
- Death meets
5 citations
- Apollodorus, translated by J. G. Frazer, The Library, p. 540.
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth, p. 15.
- Father meets
5 citations
- Apollodorus, translated by J. G. Frazer, The Library, p. 540.
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth, p. 15.
- Hero meets
5 citations
- Apollodorus, translated by J. G. Frazer, The Library, p. 540.
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Erinyes."
- Timothy Gantz, Early Greek Myth, p. 15.