Ariadne
King Minos
of Crete and Helios's daughter Pariphae's daughter, who helped the hero Theseus
defeat the Minotaur by giving him a spool of yarn, leaving a trace of thread
behind him in order to find his way back through the labyrinth.
The couple then fled Crete and went to Delos, and then to Naxos, where Theseus
left Ariadne after she had fallen asleep.
Dionysos fell in love, according to one version, with the young woman and
made her his wife. He took her in his chariot to the stars Another version
tells us that Ariadne drove Theseus away, and a third version makes Artemis
kill Ariadne.
Artemis was a goddess of nature, probably a Mycenaean one. Her cult was connected
with death and resurrection.
