Then Daedalus layered them according to size and shape. It has also given wings to dreams of human-powered flight ever since the tale was first told.Īccording to the Greek myth, Daedalus and his son secretly collected heaps of bird feathers. One of the most beloved myths of classical antiquity, the story of Icarus and the ever-inventive Daedalus soaring aloft on wings made of feathers and wax has been recounted by storytellers and illustrated by artists over the centuries. If only they could simply fly away like birds! The brilliant inventor dreamed up a bold scheme to liberate himself and his son from Minos's grasp. Gazing at the horizon from their prison window, Daedalus mused. ( Public domain ) Necessity, Mother of Invention: The Creation of a Flying Machine Relief of Daedalus and the Story of Icarus. Enraged by the killing of his son and Theseus's escape, King Minos imprisoned Daedalus and his young son Icarus in the Labyrinth. It was Daedalus who gave the string to Ariadne and explained how Theseus should unwind the string as he entered the labyrinth and then follow it back out. The Dramatic and Tragic Life of Ancient Greek Legend Daedalus.Myth of the Minotaur: The Making of a Monster.But the Athenian hero Theseus managed to kill the Minotaur and escape from the twisting passages of the maze, thanks to a ball of string given to him by Princess Ariadne. According to legend the Athenians were compelled to send fourteen young men and women to be sacrificed to the cannibal with the bull's head each year. It was Daedalus who designed and built the bewildering Cretan labyrinth as a prison for Minos' monstrous son, the Minotaur. ― Anonymous (often attributed to Leonardo da Vinci) The Story of Icarus, Daedalus and the Evil King Minos You will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward,įor there you have been, and there you will always long to return.” Within the stories of Ovid, Homer or even Pausanius, Daedalus was credited with creating myriad marvels, from carpenter's tools to animated statues, as well as a pair of wings with which to escape King Minos in the famed story of Icarus.
Daedalus, the legendary inventor of ancient Greek mythology, joined the court of Minos, the ruler of Crete, as the king's star engineer.