Calais

Family: Argonauts · Role: hero · First appears: Book I 2

In Book I, Calais is the son of Boreas and Oreithyia, and the sibling of Zetes: “Zetes and Calais, sons of Boreas.” Through Oreithyia, daughter of Erechtheus, Erechtheus is his elder kin.

In Book II, Zeus grants Calais and Zetes tireless strength to pursue the Harpies. Phineus offers them counsel, while Iris warns them that it is not lawful to strike Zeus’s Harpies with their swords. At the Floating Islands, Iris swears by the waters of Styx that the Harpies will never again approach Phineus’s home, and Calais and Zetes, yielding to the oath, turn back to the ship.

Relationship record

Life events

• Zeus grants Zetes and Calais tireless strength to pursue the Harpies.(Book II 3)
  • With: Zeus Zetes
  • “For Zeus imparted to them tireless strength;”
• Iris swears the Harpies will never again approach Phineus, ending the pursuit.(Book II 3 · 📍 Floating Islands)
  • With: Iris Zetes Phineus
  • “With these words she took an oath by the waters of Styx, which to all the gods is most dread and most awful, that the Harpies would never thereafter again approach the home of Phineus, son of Agenor, for so it was fated. And the heroes yielding to the oath, turned back their flight to the ship.”

Book I 2

• parent: Boreas “Zetes and Calais, sons of Boreas”
• parent: Oreithyia “Oreithyia, daughter of Erechtheus, bare to Boreas”
• siblings with Zetes “Zetes and Calais, sons of Boreas”
• elder kin: Erechtheus “Oreithyia, daughter of Erechtheus, bare to Boreas”

Book II 3

• siblings with Zetes “the two sons of Boreas”
• parent: Boreas “the two sons of Boreas”
• patron: Zeus “For Zeus imparted to them tireless strength”
• mentor: Iris “It is not lawful, O sons of Boreas, to strike with your swords the Harpies, the hounds of mighty Zeus”
• with Phineus (Calais helps defend Phineus from the Harpies.) “Then were those two eager to help him because of the oath.”
• mentor: Phineus “Wherefore now obey my counsel, if indeed with prudent mind and reverencing the blessed gods ye pursue your way;”

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Extracted from the original text of The Argonautica. Made with Rho MD.