Noriel G Bultron

10-17
Daedalus and Icarus
The myth
The story of Daedalus and Icarus begins way before the birth of Icarus. Daedalus, as the myth goes, was
an unparalleled sculptor. In one of Plato’s dialogues, Socrates mentions a legend that Daedalus’
sculptures had to be tied down, otherwise they would run away. Daedalus’ art was so lifelike that it
ended up coming to life. It is no coincidence that many ancient wooden cult images in multiple Greek
temples were said to be his works. Pausanias, the travel writer of the second CE century, saw quite a
few of these images that were believed to belong to the legendary sculptor and wrote that they
captured a sense of the divine.

But Daedalus was more than a skillful artist. He was also an inventor. The ancients attributed a series of
inventions to him, the most important being carpentry. In a sense, Daedalus was the mythical equivalent
of a Renaissance man.

Daedalus In Athens
However, there was a darker side of Daedalus. The inventor was the greatest of his era, but there was a
brief time when he faced serious competition. According to Ovid (Metamorphoses VIII.236-259),
Daedalus was born in Athens (other sources claim he was Cretan) and had quickly become a respectable
citizen due to his skill and intellect. His sister believed that her son, Talos (in other sources he can be
also found as Calos or Perdix), could greatly benefit by studying next to his uncle in Athens. Little did she
know.

Daedalus took Talos and taught him everything he knew. The boy was young and quite witty. He quickly
took in all the knowledge and began applying it to the world around him. Daedalus soon realized that
the boy was not simply smart. It was smarter than him. If Talos continued this way, Daedalus would be
completely overshadowed by him. So, he threw Talos off the cliff of the Acropolis. The goddess Athena
saved Talos by transforming him into a bird that received his mother’s name Perdix. Still, Daedalus was
tried for this act and banished from Athens.

Daedalus In Crete

After his expulsion from Athens, Daedalus found refuge in the court of King Minos, the mythical king of
Crete. Minos ruled the seas with a mighty fleet that had no equal. With Daedalus in his court, he became
an unstoppable force.

During his time in the court of Minos, Daedalus had the chance to start over. It was there that he got a
son of his own by a slave called Naukrate. The boy’s name was Icarus. There is absolutely no information
about Icarus’ early life nor his relationship with his father