Merope: Encyclopedia - Merope

Merope

In Greek mythology, several unrelated women went by the name Merope (bee-mask later reinterpreted as honey-like or eloquent), which may, therefore, have denoted a position in the cult of the Great Mother rather than a mere individual's name:

1. Merope, one of the Heliades
2. Merope, foster mother of Oedipus, wife of Polybus
3. Merope, one of the Oceanids, a daughter of Oceanus and Tethys, mother of Phaeton by Helios or Clymenus
4. Merope, one of the Pleiades, she married a mortal, Sisyphus, and was thus the faintest star in the star cluster that bears their name. With Sisyphus, she had one son: Glaucus.
5. Merope of Khios, consort/daughter of Oenopion, linked with Orion (q.v.) who fell in love with Merope but Oenopion did not want the marriage to happen. Orion raped Merope. For revenge, Oenopion got Orion drunk and stabbed out his eyes, then cast him into the sea. Hephaestus took pity on the blind Orion and gave him a young boy as a guide. The boy guided him east, where the rising sun restored Orion's sight. Orion then decided to kill Oenopion, but Hephaestus had built the king an underground chamber. Orion couldn't find the king and went to Delos, where Artemis slew him.

There is also a character named Merope Gaunt in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling.

Categories: Greek mythology | Queen consorts

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Merope", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki