thumb|Winged "" armed with a stone. Obverse of silver [[Ancient drachma|didrachma from Phaistos, Crete ( 300/280–270 BC) (Cabinet des Médailles, Paris)]]
In Greek mythology, Talos, also spelled Talus (; , Tálōs) or Talon (; , Tálōn), was a man of bronze who protected Crete from pirates and invaders. Despite the popular idea that he was a giant, no ancient source states this explicitly.
Narrative
Different literary sources provide a wide variety of accounts of Talos' role and genealogy. The most popular variant of the myth of Talos is that found in the Argonautica of Apollonius of Rhodes (fl. first half of 3rd century BCE). In this account, Talos is described as being a descendant of the bronze race (χαλκοῦ γένους) who sprang from ash-trees. He is described as being bronze and also invulnerable with the exception of a vein in his ankle which was protected by only a thin layer of skin.
He was given to Europa by Zeus in order to protect Crete, which he does by running around the island three times. The Argonauts encounter him on their return voyage after obtaining the Golden Fleece. As the Argo approached Crete, Talos kept them at bay by hurling great boulders at the ship. Medea then declares that only she will be able to defeat Talos, which she does by performing a feat of magic from the Argo. Summoning the keres (female death-spirits), Medea causes Talos to graze his ankle, leading to the ichor draining from his body, and thus killing him. In describing his death Apollonius employs a metaphor comparing Talos to a 'monstrous pine tree' (πελωρίη πεύκη, pelōriē peukē) being felled, which could be taken to imply a larger-than-human size.
thumb|right|alt=A red figure Column Krater showing Talos falling backwards into the arms of Castor and Pollux while a crouching male figure tampers with a small nail-like circle on Talos' ankle. |The Death of Talos depicted on a column krater (Museo Archeologico Nazionale del Sannio Caudino, Montesarchio)
Pseudo-Apollodorus collected several traditions regarding the origin, form, and death of Talos. In relation to his origin, two theories are given: either he belonged to the Race of Bronze, or he had been given to Minos by Hephaestus (no reason is given). Another two theories are provided regarding his form: he was either a bull or a bronze man. Pseudo-Apollodorus further states that Talos guarded Crete by running around the island three times daily and that he had a single vein running from his neck to his ankles, which was stopped with a bronze nail at the end.
Pseudo-Apollodorus also gives three variants regarding his death. The first two are at the hands of Medea: either she drove him mad with drugs, or, promising him immortality, she pulled the nail from his ankle, which caused the ichor to flow out. The final variant is that he was killed by the Argonaut Poeas, who shot an arrow into his ankle. On three kraters from around 400 BCE, his death at the hands of the Argonauts is depicted. One red-figure vase, now in the Jatta National Archaeological Museum, is the name vase of the Talos Painter. It shows Talos falling backwards, into the arms of the Dioskouroi. In order to distinguish his form from that of the other figures on the vase, Talos is painted in white, with details painted in brown and yellow. To the left stands Medea, holding a bowl, and looking across at Talos. Behind her is the Argo, with two more seated figures, inscribed as Zetes and Calais, whilst a third, unnamed figure, disembarks. To the right, the seated figures of Poseidon and Amphitrite look on. Below them a woman, identified by some as a representation of Crete, and by others as Europa, is shown fleeing from the scene. A bearded Talos, slightly larger than the other figures, falls to the right, into the arms of the Dioskouroi. A small, winged, and bearded figure hovers next to Talos's ankle, gesturing closely to the site with the circular object. This figure is probably Thanatos.
Other variants
Immolation of victims
Discussing the origin of the phrase sardonios gelos (σαρδόνιος γέλως)'sardonic laugh'both Photius in his Lexicon, and Zenobius in his Proverbs cite Simonides (c. 556-468 BCE) for a story which involves Talos. Photius's summary of the account by Simonides is that some Sardinans refused to take Talos to king Minos of Crete, in response to which Talos grabbed them and jumped into some flames whilst holding them tight, killing them. Zenobius' summary states that Talos lived in Sardinia before going to Crete, and killed many of the inhabitants without mentioning how or why. Not enough remains to establish whether Simonides associated Talos with the Argonauts. The fragments indicate that in this source, too, Talos killed his victims by burning them. Pausanias states at another point that Talos was one of the sons of Oenopion, without giving a source. Pausanias gives no details of Talos outside of his genealogy. The Suda, a Byzantine encyclopedia from the tenth-century CE, adds to this that Talos and Rhadamanthus introduced homosexuality to Crete.
Rationalisation
A euhemeristic interpretation of Talos is provided – along with many others – in the Minos, a dialogue which was attributed to Plato in antiquity, but which is regarded by most scholars today as being written by someone else. In this source, Talos is rationalised as a man who guards the laws of Crete by travelling around the villages of the island three times per year at the behest of Minos, in order to show the inhabitants the laws of the city, which were inscribed on tablets of bronze.
See also
- Jason and the Argonauts – a 1963 movie in which Talos is depicted as a giant who is killed by Jason.
- Talos No. 2 – an abstract bronze sculpture in Portland, Oregon.
- The Talos Principle – a 2014 video game, the premise of which is that Talos is akin to a human being.
- The Talos Dome in Antarctica, which is named after him.
- 5786 Talos, an asteroid discovered in 1991 named after Talos.