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Midas 𐌌Ι𐊅𐌀𐊖 | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 8th century BCE Phrygia |
| Died | c. 696 BCE Gordum, Phrygia |
| Cause of death | Suicide |
| Nationality | Phrygian |
Midas (died c. 696 BCE) was a king of Phrygia in the eighth century BCE. He allied with Urartu against the Assyrian king Šarrukīn II in 717 BCE. In 614 BCE, he made peace with Assyria after being defeated.[1]
Mythology[edit | edit source]
According to legend, the god Dionysus transformed everything Midas touched, including the food he tried to eat, into gold.[1]
In another legend, Midas judged a music competition between the gods Apollo and Pan and declared Pan the winner. Apollo punished him by giving him the ears of a donkey. Midas hid his ears under a Phrygian cap, so only his barber knew about his ears. The barber wanted to tell the secret of the king's ears but feared being punished, so he dug a whole in the ground and whispered, "King Midas has ass's ears." Reeds later grew in that spot to tell the world about Midas's ears.[1]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Grigory Bongard-Levin, Boris Piotrovsky (1988). Ancient Civilisations of East and West. https://archive.org/details/ancientciveastwest/mode/1up.