Sea sirens in mythology - who are these terrible creatures and what is their role. Sirens What kind of siren was it?

Sirens called in ancient times Greek mythology mysterious and mysterious female sea creatures, they were credited with a deceptive and cruel disposition. With their songs and seductive appearance, sirens lured sailors to their deaths. Mention of these fish girls or bird girls is common, there are also a lot of legends and legends associated with them, they are united by one thing, that everyone who met the sirens, we are, of course, talking about men, first of all, certainly died.

The deadly charm of ancient legend

Different sources describe different versions of the origin of these creatures. According to one legend, these creatures are the offspring of the sea god Phorcys or Achelous, and one of the muses (Calliope, Terpsichore or Melpomene) was considered the mother, and Sterope was also sometimes considered the mother. This explains their demonic essence and melodic voice. The number of these creatures ranged from two or three and reached a whole multitude. According to legend, they lived on the rocks of an island strewn with the bones and dried skin of unfortunate wanderers who fell into the trap of their insidious nature.

Another legend is connected with their origin: the sirens used to be very beautiful and arrogant girls who angered Aphrodite with their obstinate disposition, and she punished them by turning them into birds. Another, no less wonderful legend says that nymphs who were turned into birds by the muses became sirens. Because they had extraordinary voices, they were so proud of it that they dared to challenge the muses in a competition, and lost. As punishment, they were turned into sirens.

According to another version, they were turned into sirens by Demeter, the mother of Persephora, who was kidnapped by Hades. And another version claims that they themselves began to want to become birds, because they were going to find the young goddess kidnapped by Hades, but since people did not want to help them, they settled on a distant island and began to take revenge on everyone, luring wanderers and sailors to their deaths.

Over the years, poets and writers have tried to recreate the ancient image, and each time the legend comes to life in a new way. Either these are insidious beautiful maidens, or they are harbingers of death from the other world. Their image was often carved on tombstones because they were associated with the angels of death, who sang funeral songs to the sounds of the lyre.

The Middle Ages also left many references and facts that proved amazing devotion to this image. Very often you can see images of birds with female heads or the body of fish on coats of arms and frescoes.

There is also a less common version of the origin of female birds. She claims that they were the result of experiments by an alien Intelligence, which ultimately created man using genetic engineering. But this result was not obtained immediately. First, intermediate variants of living creatures appeared, which combined the appearance of both animals and people, so sirens can be called one of the side branches of the experiment, such as: pegasi or satyrs. Of course, the same theory states that after receiving a clean result, all these beings were destroyed. But if this is so, then it remains unknown exactly how many individuals were created and how many were destroyed; there is a possibility that someone managed to survive and become the object of numerous legends and traditions.

Maybe the mysterious nature of the sirens was collective in nature and personified the changeable and sometimes even unpredictable female nature? Maybe they really were part of our world, but subsequently disappeared due to unknown changes? Or maybe somewhere else on a distant island you can hear a wonderful voice calling the wanderer to rest after a long journey, and the sailor to drop anchor and enjoy wonderful singing and music.

Sirens are one of the most famous monsters from Greek mythology. About sirens in modern world They are also known thanks to numerous films, books, comics, and games that refer to ancient Greek history in a mythological vein. Let's look at them through a magnifying glass.

In the article:

Sirens - origin and characteristics

These creatures personify the beautiful, changeable and treacherous surface of the sea - sailors have more than once encountered the fact that the seemingly reliable depth turned out to be shallow or, even worse, fraught with sharp cliffs. Sirens refer to mixanthropic creatures - their bodies are half female, half bird. In some legends they have fish tails, which reminds them.

In the Odyssey, Homer wrote that there were two sirens, but he did not call them by name. Later there were three of them, like . The eldest was called Persinoia, the middle one was Aglaotha, and the youngest was Telskepia. The first was fluent in playing the cithara, the second had a beautiful voice, and the third was mesmerizing in playing the flute. In addition, they had a bewitching look. According to other myths, the sirens were called Parthenope, Ligeia and Leukosia.

It is not known for certain who gave birth to the creatures enchanting with their singing - it could have been Phorcys, or chthonic goddess Keto, or deity Ahelous. Sometimes legends call one of the muses their mother - Melpomene, Terpsichore or Calliope. In addition, myths indicate that the mother of the sirens could be Sterope, and Gaia.

Another possible father, Achelous, was a powerful river deity, a descendant of Tethys and Oceanus, or the son of Oceanus and Gaia, or Gaea and Helios. From the union of Achelous with Melpomene or Terpsichore, the sirens appeared. In his travels, Hercules fought with Achelous. God took the form of a bull to fight the hero, but Hercules broke one of his horns and saved Princess Deianira from an unwanted suitor.

Still from the film "Pirates" Caribbean Sea»

Phorcys also took on different forms - thus, the possible fathers of the sweet-voiced creatures were werewolves, hence the duality in the description of their animal parts. Post-Homeric tales of the Sirens describe them as maidens with the wings of birds, or women resembling mermaids, or maidens with human heads but bird bodies and legs. From their father they inherited a furious, spontaneous, unbridled disposition, and their mother, the muse, gave them her enchanting voice.

Some legends indicate that the sirens acquired a semi-animal appearance as a result of a curse. According to the legends, they were Persephone’s retinue, and after her abduction by Hades they wandered aimlessly around the earth. Eventually they joined Apollo. Angered by the loss of her daughter, Demeter cursed the sirens, causing them to grow bird wings.

There is another version of this legend - the gods turned the sirens into birds for their desperate search for the missing goddess, since Zeus himself allowed his brother to kidnap her. Or Aphrodite sent the curse because they rejected marriage. According to the third version, the new appearance was the desire of the sirens themselves, which was fulfilled by the gods.

Sirens in legends

"Orpheus and the Sirens", Herbert Draper, 1909

One of the legends describes a competition between sirens and muses in the art of singing in the city of Apter. Hera advised the sea maidens to challenge the muses to a duel - her goal is unknown, but perhaps Zeus liked one of the sirens, and the goddess of marriage became angry. One way or another, victory remained with the muses. They plucked their rivals, making victory wreaths out of feathers. Zeus gave the island of Anthemoessu to the humiliated sirens.

Post-Homeric legends described them as having incredibly beautiful voices. They lured sailors by singing, and when their ship was smashed on sharp coastal rocks, they looked for people washed ashore to tear them into pieces and eat them. The Argonauts managed to escape - Orpheus sailed with them, capable of drowning out the song of the sirens with his music. All the time the ship sailed past the disastrous island, Orpheus played the forming (lyre) and sang. One of the crew members, Booth, still had a chance to hear the voices of the sirens - he threw himself from the ship into the sea waves, trying to swim to the island, but Aphrodite saved him. Booth spent the rest of his days in Lilybaeum.

The most ancient source with references to these creatures is the Homeric "Odyssey". Homer described the location of the island of the Sirens - it was located between the possessions of Circe and the abode of Scylla. The island is littered with the withered skin and whitened bones of victims. Odysseus's team managed to escape thanks to Circe's warning and cunning - they covered their ears with beeswax, so they did not hear the songs. Odysseus himself, wanting to understand the destructive secret of the magic songs, ordered him to be tied to the mast. No matter how he raged, wanting to go to the source of the sound, the sailors did not untie him, and the ship safely passed the deadly island.

Long before these events, the sirens were predicted that death would come to them along with a ship that passed their island without casualties. When Odysseus's ship passed by unharmed, they went mad. Most of one of them threw herself into the sea and turned into cliffs, and the rest tore out their feathers and drowned. But often a ship is called a deadly ship Jason and the Argonauts.

Sophocles claimed that he met the surviving Sirens who revealed to him the law of Hades. A fan of classical antiquity, Sophocles imagined them as good, wise virgins, each living in their own celestial sphere on the world spindle of the all-mother goddess Ananke. With their singing they generate majestic cosmic harmony. The home of the classic sirens is Hades. Later legends connect them with the Delphic Oracle and world harmony.

Over time, these creatures became close to and. Images of sirens can be found on tombstones of the late Greek period. Nikomon and Theopompus created comedies of the same name about these creatures. The southern Italian city of Surrente once had a magnificent temple in honor of the Sirens, and near Naples there is the tomb of the Elder Siren.

Sirens in the Middle Ages

With the beginning of the Middle Ages, the Christian vision intervened in the ancient vision of the universe and its monsters. Homeric myths began to be perceived from the point of view of Catholics, who saw biblical canons and interpretations in everything. The perception of the canonical myth of Odysseus has also changed.

IN "Physiologist", the very first work from which later bestiaries were written, the episode with the sirens was borrowed from the Homeric text. The author rewrote it in his own way:

The moralist says that sirens bring death. Their habitat is the sea, and their songs are mesmerizing. Sailors who hear the sirens lose consciousness, fall into the sea waves and die there. Up to the navel their bodies are female, and from the navel they are bird-like.

Thus, the author concluded that double-minded people are cunning in everything. And those who came to the church, but did not move away from their sins, are like sirens. With gentle words, sinners deceive the gullible and lead them to destruction.

Medieval authors compared Odysseus to Christ, and the mast to which he was tied to a cross. The ship became an allegory of the church, the siren - of carnal desires. Their sweet songs expressed worldly goods that were destructive to the soul. Only ropes symbolizing faith could keep Odysseus from falling into sin and eternal torment in the afterlife. The three siren sisters became an expression of greed, pride and debauchery. Ignoring the descriptions of Pliny and Ovid, medieval monks deprived the sirens of wings and bird legs, rewarding them with fish tails. The “heavenly” past of the virgins was forgotten.

Sirens in modern culture

In the modern world, images of sirens are common in many works of art. Often, authors turn directly to ancient primary sources to recreate an accurate image of the creature. The destroyer sea maidens are not forgotten these days.

When was the last time you heard a civil defense siren?

In Austria, the answer to this question at any time of the year is “as recently as last week.”

After World War II, Austria was so intimidated that they covered the entire country with a network of sirens and since then they have been testing it every week at exactly 12:00 on Saturday. Every Saturday for half a century now. All over the country, to the farthest corners. Farmers in mountain villages have long been in the habit of setting their watches using these signals.

How then do you distinguish real anxiety from an unscheduled test? - I ask my colleague.
- So the signal will be different.
- Do you know the types of signals?
- Well, yes, everyone at school is forced to go through them - and he listed all five types for me. Well done guys, I thought and immediately forgot these signals.
- So, in your memory, have you ever turned it on?
- They say that it was turned on during the Chernobyl disaster. And again in the 2000s, when there was a threat of strong winds in Austria.

It's clear. Gradually I got used to the signals and began to check the time using them myself.

Today, as usual, on Saturday at noon the standard test signal sounded: “15 seconds of a single tone.” However, after about ten minutes, the siren howled again, only not for 15 seconds, but much longer. A minute or two... the siren still sounds the same tone. I look out the window. In the window, people continue to go about their business, no one panics. What the hell?.. I connect the FM radio, start turning the stations - nothing anywhere. At this time, the siren finally stops. “Some kind of bug,” I thought.

About five minutes later it starts working again and again with a non-standard signal. What the hell... I go on the Internet, look for what the types of signals mean and finally come across a paragraph on Wikipedia: “Every year on the first Saturday of October, the entire range of signals is launched - both for testing and to introduce the population to them.” Yep, today is October 4th, Saturday, phew.

Types of sirens from Wikipedia:

1: Test: 15 seconds (usually there is a half-minute pause after this, and the test is repeated)

2: Fire. 15 seconds signal with very at short intervals(7 seconds). At the signal, all fire brigades and volunteers (there are a lot of volunteer brigades here) must arrive at the unit. I have never heard it, because there are many other ways to notify firefighters.

3: DANGER! A three-minute signal (it was the first signal after the test today) means imminent fuck-up. It is recommended to turn on television and radio to find out exactly how you are about to die.

4: A siren with a constantly changing tone without pauses (like an ambulance or police) - means that a nuclear missile is already approaching and it would not hurt to start moving towards the nearest shelter. Well, or at least defrost

The ancient Greek bestiary is full of interesting creatures with special abilities. Among female creatures, one of the most significant is the sea maiden. Siren is a demon who has the appearance of a beautiful nymph. She is known for her divine voice, characterized by charm and alluring notes.

Origin of Creatures

The god Ahel and the muse Terpsichore are considered the probable parents of the half-bird, half-woman birds. There are versions about other higher creatures who gave birth to young nymphs, but the exact information has not been preserved. Mysterious maidens lived on the rocks of a small island near Sicily.

It says that at the beginning of their existence, the sirens were nymphs looking after the young goddess Persifona. During one of the summer walks, the young maiden was kidnapped by Hades, who dreams of getting her as his wife. The beauties were upset by their inattention and immediately went in search of Persephone.

They could not find her either with the help of Demeter, the mother of the young goddess, or with the participation of influential representatives from the human world - they simply refused to help. Then the nymphs swore to take revenge on the human race for inattention and moved to small island, where they began to invite careless travelers with their enchanting voice, and then tear them apart and deprive them of blood.

Description of the image of sirens

Sirens are portrayed as beautiful creatures with a charming voice and unusual appearance.

According to references in mythology, sea maidens had two appearances:

1. who lost their tail and acquired wings as punishment from Demeter for the loss of Persephone.
2. Women with bird bodies, into which Aphrodite turned nymphs because they did not want to get married.

The virgins inherited the alluring voice from their mother. With its help, beautiful creatures enchanted sailors and lured them into the depths of their lair. Some sources preserve a description of an attractive gaze that helped beauties tempt travelers.

The first legends speak of two sea creatures, but their names have not been preserved. Later, information appeared about three sirens:

• Peisinoe playing the cithara;
• Aglaofa, who has a magical voice;
• flutist Telxiepia.

In other sources, the names of the nymphs change. In total, references to eight maidens have been preserved, tempting men with an alluring voice and bewitching appearance.

The image of mythical creatures is filled with special symbols. Their unusual appearance speaks of the fallacy of judgments based only on appearance, and warns that malicious intentions may be hidden behind a person’s beauty. The singing of half-women, half-birds in mythology symbolizes deceit and danger. The appearance of sea creatures warns of animal instincts and the bitterness of beauties.

Mention of beautiful maidens in ancient legends

Greek mythology of different eras interprets the essence and appearance of sirens according to the spirit of the current time:

1. The first information about bewitching people was preserved in Homer's Odyssey. He mentioned the existence of maidens living on desert island. Its territory was littered with the bones of their victims and the remains of ships.
2. Ancient myths described sea creatures as muses who came from another world. They were considered angels of death, mourning the dead, and the image of sea nymphs was carved on stone tombstones.
3. In the Middle Ages, sirens gained unprecedented popularity. The appearance of beautiful half-birds, half-women was used in the coats of arms of noble families. They were depicted not only in the traditional form: sometimes the maidens were given the torso of animals or details from the images of other creatures.
4. In the classical era, enchanting creatures were mistaken for spirits that accompanied the deceased to the Kingdom of the Dead and immortalized them on monuments.

One of the old legends refutes the incomparable beauty of the voice of sirens. It talks about the competition between nymphs and muses. The sea maidens then lost, and the insidious muses took off their plumage and wove wreaths from it, which they carried with them until the end of their days in memory of the victory.

Death of the magical maidens

The sirens were predicted to die instantly if one of the sailors was able to resist temptation and sail past the lair of the beautiful maidens. Not a single traveler was able to resist the magical attraction of the beauties until Odysseus sailed near the island. Circe warned him about strange nymphs, and Odysseus was able to find a way out of the situation. He covered the ears of the entire team with wax, and ordered himself to be tied in order to hear the magical call and understand the essence of the magic of half-women, half-birds.

The ship was able to sail past the lair of wondrous creatures. Then the sirens drowned themselves by jumping from the cliff and turned into the cliffs that surrounded the island for many centuries.

The story of the death of the beauties refutes the opinion that the Virgins did not want death and were forced to lure every sailor to their island, avoiding the punishment of the prophecy.

Impact on the modern world

Current culture does not forget about mythical creatures; references to them can be found in TV series, books, and computer games.

An alarm system is called a siren in memory of the main symbolic meaning of the nymphs' voice - a warning about danger.

Astronomers have not forgotten half-women, half-birds. A small asteroid is named in their honor. Another one bears the name of the most beautiful nymph - Parthenope.

Screenwriters and writers love sirens, and in many works they add fantasy to the image of maidens. The Witcher series showed magical creatures in their true form, but there are much more beauties in the series than in the stories. Siren is the name given to the heroine of the film “Pirates of the Caribbean” - a mermaid who was tested and was able to truly fall in love with a man. In 2018, the series “Sirens” was released, filmed in the fantasy genre, which convinces viewers of the existence of sea maidens in the real world and talks about their wars and lives.

Conclusion

Legends and myths about bird women have passed through the centuries and continue to influence culture and life. Their image combines many symbols warning of the hidden danger and vindictiveness of enchanting beauties. The story of their death changes the concept of the character of the virgins - they followed the prophecy and had no other choice.

Tananova Ekaterina

Sirens

Summary of the myth

Siren figure. Bronze. 8.1 cm. Etruscans, V century. BC.

Sirens are mythical female creatures, bird-women or mermaids. They were the product of one of the sea gods - either Phorkis or Achelous - and one of the muses, most likely Terpsichore. The sirens lived on one of the lifeless islands of Anfemoesse near Sicily.

According to legend, the sirens were originally nymphs surrounded by the young goddess Persephone. One day, when Persephone was walking in a meadow near Enna by Lake Perg, the god of the underworld, Hades, kidnapped her to make her his wife. The poor nymphs could not forgive themselves for not keeping track of their beautiful goddess. No one could tell them where Persephone had disappeared, so they decided to go find her on their own. Not finding the young goddess on land, they went to Persephone's mother, Demeter, for help. The desperate mother turned the nymphs into half-birds and half-fish so that they could search for Persephone in the air and water kingdom. But that didn't help either. When the sirens turned to ordinary people for help, mortals refused to help them. The sirens, in despair, moved to a deserted island and began to take revenge on the entire human race: the fish maidens, singing, pulled the sailors into the depths of the sea. The winged maidens sucked the blood of those who stopped to listen to them.

The Sirens were predicted that they would die when any of the travelers passed by their island without succumbing to temptation. When Odysseus sailed his ship past the island of Anthemoess, he heeded Circe's warning and ordered everyone on the ship to cover their ears with wax, and he himself was tied to the mast. Only thanks to this trick, Odysseus’s ship remained intact, and the sirens rushed into the sea and turned into cliffs.

Images and symbols of myth

Waterhouse John William
Siren, 1900

The image of the siren in ancient Greek mythology represents an alluring but destructive beauty. Sirens are accompanied by numerous symbolism, which makes the image complete. I would like to highlight the main symbols in the myth of the sirens.

Bird and fish bodies symbolize that part of the sirens' nature that is animalistic and embittered.

The beauty of sirens shows us how deceiving appearances can be. Often bad thoughts and intentions are hidden behind a beautiful, pleasant face.

Odysseus and the Sirens. Drawing from an antique vase

The singing of the sirens attracts men and forces them to face certain death. The singing of sirens symbolizes danger and threat. It’s not for nothing that in the modern world a siren is a signal used to warn about something.

Sirens are almost always found at sea. Perhaps this is due to the fact that on water spaces travelers become defenseless and more easily succumb to the spell of sirens.

Communicative means of creating images and symbols

Herbert Draper. Odysseus and the Sirens. 1909

The first surviving mention of sirens is in Homer's Odyssey. According to him, they live between the land of Circe and Scylla on the rocks of the island, strewn with the bones and dried skin of their victims. They killed many people, whose bones are white in the meadow. Sirens with enchanting songs lure travelers sailing by, who, forgetting about everything in the world, swim to the magical island and perish along with the ships.

In ancient times, sirens were perceived as the muses of another world. They were often carved on stone tombstones in the form of angels of death singing funeral songs to the sound of a lyre.

Siren sculpture
Gold. 3x4 cm
Late 4th century BC

In the Middle Ages, sirens were also very popular as symbols; they became widespread in the coats of arms of noble families. They were depicted not only with birdlike features and a fish tail, but even with the body of a four-legged animal.

Fountain "Sirens" F. F. Shchedrin
1805 Petrodvorets

Pre-classical and pre-classical paintings and sculptures classical era Sirens are also depicted with the bodies of birds, and they are quite difficult to distinguish from harpies. Sirens were often depicted on ancient classical tombstones and could symbolize the souls of the dead or the spirits that accompany the soul to the god of the underworld Hades (Hades).

American researcher John Pollard points out that works of art that have come down to us indicate a connection between sirens and a number of associations and symbols preserved in literature, not counting images of sirens on tombstones and those encountered by Odysseus and his companions. Sirens are depicted next to Theseus, Artemis, Hera, Athena, Dionysus; Although most sirens are female, some, especially from earlier eras, have beards. They not only foretell death or lead to death, but also bring unearthly pleasure with their singing and symbolize animal strength.

Social significance of the myth

Edward Boutibonne. Sirens. 1883

In Greek mythology, sirens are demons in female form. Sirens represent the deceptive but charming surface of the sea, beneath which lie sharp cliffs or shoals. The siren is a symbol of deceit, seduction, the disastrous temptation of the material world, tempting the spirit on its way to the goal.

Frederic Leighton
The Fisherman and the Siren
1858

In general, the image of sirens actualizes the motif of disastrous female beauty, characteristic of Greek culture at a certain stage (during the transition from matriarchy to patriarchy). Sirens are associated with destruction and death.

Also, remembering the sirens, the ancient Greeks often talked about their double-mindedness and saw this as a great danger, because you never know how they will behave: like a beautiful girl or like an animal.

However, sirens are not only associated with negative associations. The image of sirens can be endowed with positive connotations (in the context of the interpretation of music and singing as symbols of world creation). In Plato, for example, the sirens are located on the eight spheres of the cosmic spindle of the goddess Ananke, creating harmony in the world with their sweet-sounding singing.