| Harmonia | |
|---|---|
 Harmonia embracing her husband, Cadmus, after he was transformed into a serpent | |
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Other Names |
Concordia |
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First Appearance |
Greek Myth |
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Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
In Greek mythology, Harmonia is the goddess of harmony and concord. Her Greek opposite is Eris and her Roman counterpart is Concordia. Harmonia is most well-known for her marriage to Cadmus and the many misfortunes that haunted her descendants, particularly those related to the fabled Necklace of Harmonia.
Mythological narratives surrounding Harmonia are deeply intertwined with those of her husband, Cadmus. Harmonia is commonly acquired by Cadmus as his bride in two different ways. In the version of the myth where Harmonia was born to Zeus and Electra on Samothrace, she was either given to Cadmus or carried off by him after he was initiated into the island's mysteries. In the version of the myth where she is the daughter of Aphrodite and Ares, Zeus gifted her to Cadmus upon his founding of Thebes and the completion of his eight-year servitude to Ares after he slew a dragon sacred to the god.
The wedding of Harmonia and Cadmus was attended by all the gods. Many gifts were lavished upon the couple, most notably a peplos and a necklace (ὅρμος) wrought by Hephaestus. Other traditions claim that the necklace and peplos were instead gifted by Athena, Aphrodite, or Cadmus's sister Europa, who had received them as a gift from Zeus. The necklace, commonly referred to as the Necklace of Harmonia, was famed for bringing misfortune upon all those who wore it, even though it granted youth and beauty. This misfortune primarily fell upon queens and princesses of Thebes. Although no solid description of the Necklace exists, it is usually described in ancient Greek passages as being of beautifully wrought gold and inlaid with various jewels. The Necklace was in the shape of two serpents whose open mouths formed a clasp.
When Cadmus was expelled from Thebes, Harmonia accompanied him. The pair went to Illyria to fight on the side of the Enchelii, and conquered the enemy. Cadmus then became king of the Illyrians. However, he was turned into a serpent soon afterwards. His transformation may have been related to the ill fortune which clung to him as a result of his having killed the sacred dragon; one day he remarked that if the gods were so enamored of the life of a serpent, he might as well wish that life for himself. Immediately he began to grow scales and change in form. Harmonia, seeing the transformation, stripped herself and begged the gods to share her husband's fate. As she was embraced by the serpent Cadmus in a pool of wine, the gods granted her request and transformed her, unable to stand watching her in her dazed state. The couple was sent to Elysium.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Harmonia from before January 1, 1931 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Theogony
- The Homeric Hymns
- Odes
- Pindar, Fragments
- Greek Elegaic Theognis, Fragments
- Suppliant Women
- Bacchae
- Phaedo
- The Library
- The Argonautica
- Callimachus, Fragments
- Love Romances
- The Library of History
- Strabo, Geography
- Description of Greece
- Imagines
- New History
- Dionysiaca
- Greek Papyri III Anonymous, Fragments
- Fabulae
- Metamorphoses
- Thebaid
- Silvae