The story of Daedalus and Icarus is found in book VIII of the Metamorphoses, taking place after the conclusion of Minos’ campaign against Megara. After Minos returned victorious, it had become impossible to hide the Minotaur, born of his wife and a bull. He therefore had Daedalus, a clever architect and inventor, build a labyrinth, in which he placed the Minotaur. After two groups of Athenians had been sacrificed to the Minotaur, Theseus killed it and escaped, all with the help of Princess Ariadne, who he later abandoned on Dia. Only then does the story of Daedalus and Icarus begin (Ovid and Charles Martin).
Daedalus wished to leave Crete and return to his home. However, Minos was not allowing him to do so, trapping him and his son, Icarus (Ovid and Charles Martin). The reason why he was not allowed to leave is not mentioned in the Metamorphoses, but there are several possibilities. One is due to how he helped Pasiphae, Minos’ wife, in her seduction of the bull which fathered the Minotaur. Another possibility is that he advised Ariadne in how to help Theseus (Cartwright). Since Minos has blocked both the sea and the land routes, he left the air free. Therefore Daedalus built two pairs of wings out of feathers and wax, among other materials. Though he advises Icarus not to fly too high, as this could melt the wax and destroy the wings, sending him plunging into the sea, Icarus eventually flies too high anyways, and dies (Ovid and Charles Martin). The sea he fell into was henceforth known as the Icarian sea (Cartwright).
The following story is essentially a flashback to a previous misdeed of Daedalus. While burying Icarus, Daedalus sees a partridge. The story of how Daedalus inadvertently helped in the creation of the partridge when he threw his nephew, Perdix, from the acropolis, and Athena turned him into a bird before he hit the ground, is then recounted. Daedalus does not feature in the Metamorphoses again, though his story does continue (Ovid and Charles Martin).
Daedalus and Icarus’ escape may first appear in the decorations on a vase from Athens in from 560 BC, followed by on “an inscribed Etruscan bulla (a type of amulet)” (Hornblower, Simon, and Antony Spawforth 425). Several authors wrote satyr-plays about Daedalus, including Sophocles, Aristophanes, Plato, Eubulus, in addition to Aeschylus who wrote about him in the Theoroi or Isthmiastae. His legend was later changed to be more Athenian by several authors, through such tactics like changing destinations from one place to Athens. At the same time, new stories were created featuring him, such as about him being “jealous of his nephew Talos” (Hornblower, Simon, and Antony Spawforth 426). Eventually the story was picked up by Ovid, as well as many artists who painted the escape. The story continued to be “A source of inspiration into the 20th century” (Hornblower, Simon, and Antony Spawforth 426).
Works Cited
Cartwright, Mark. “Daedalus.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 20 Mar. 2019, www.ancient.eu/Daedalus/.
Hornblower, Simon, and Antony Spawforth. The Oxford Classical Dictionary. Oxford University Press, 2003.
Ovid, and Charles Martin. Metamorphoses. W.W. Norton & Co., 2005.
