The Greek mythology It is populated by fantastic beings. Winged horses, giants, nymphs, satyrs ... and, in the seas, accompanying Poseidon , we find the Tritons. The origin of these spectacular beings is possibly Phoenician, but in any case they triumphed in the collective imaginary of later centuries. The mermaids, which initially had winged form, became the female equivalent of the newts and both terms are confused. Sirens and Tritons. Who were they? What function did they have?
Sirens and Tritons
The terms siren and triton are synonymous. Sirens and Tritons they are the same fantastic beings that have come to us from the hand of Greek mythology although their origin is possibly more remote. During the Middle Ages, they were considered responsible for the storms that made the ships that sailed the seas shipwreck by their violence.
According to the historical moment and the mythology that we study Triton figure it is very variable both in appearance and in behavior. They can be evil and horrible beings that cause terrible storms and end with human lives or venerable elders with fish tail who seek nothing more than to help. Some are seductive and have melodious voices with which they attract humans, like sirens, and others are repulsive with green hair.
What is a triton
The newts they are the descendants of Triton, the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, and the marine nymphs. They make up a race of divine creatures, half human and half fish, which could be both masculine and feminine and which, in general, accompanied other superior marine divinities as escorts. In Greek mythology, in addition, they used to carry in their hand a trident or a conch shell used as a trumpet to calm or shake the waves of the sea. Tritons can have a single tail or two, similar to the two legs of a human, but shaped like a fish tail.
Pausanias, the Greek geographer and historian of the second century, describes them as follows: "The Tritons have the following appearance: in their heads, hair grows like those of the swamp frogs not only in color, but also in the impossibility of separating a hair of other. The rest of its body is rough with fine scales like the shark: under its ears they have gills and a man's nose, but the mouth is wider and the teeth are of a beast. His eyes look blue to me, and they have hands, fingers and nails like the murex shells. Under the chest and belly there is a tail like that of a dolphin instead of feet. "
Famous Tritons
In the mythology there are some tritons that have particular histories, the most important are Triton and Glauco.
Triton
Triton , the son of Poseidón and Anfitrite, is the most famous since it was the one that gave name to the whole race: the newts. Unlike his parents who had human form although they could remain under water as long as necessary, Triton was born with the lower part of his body of fish. He was a god and acted as a messenger in the deep sea. Its attributes were the trident and the contorted shell with which it calmed or agitated the waves of the sea.
Glaucous
Glaucous He was the son of Poseidon and a naiad. In spite of his divine origin, he lived as a humble fisherman on the seashore until one day he consumed some magical herbs that turned him into a triton. His hair turned green like algae and his legs became the tail of a fish and he dived into the sea where he lived with the other marine deities.
Sirens and Tritons
For us the sirens they are mythological beings that have the torso of a woman and instead of legs the tail of a fish. However, the sirens in Greek mythology were half woman and half bird and this appearance was a punishment of Demeter for not taking care of his daughter Persephone and letting her be kidnapped by her uncle Hades . If you want to know the full story, we invite you to read the post: Why do sirens have fish tail? Discover the myth!
In this primitive sense, mermaids and tritons they did not have any kind of relationship and those beings half woman and half fish were just female newts. It was later, in the Middle Ages, that the mermaids, who were really nereids, and the newts as members of the same species of fantastic beings were paired.
Triton in mythology
A Triton in the mythology from Ireland It is a half human and half fish, with an extremely unpleasant aspect. His nose is red, his hair, skin and teeth are green and his eyes are very close together. An old Irish legend tells of a triton that captured the souls of drowned sailors and kept them locked in cages.
A Triton in mythology Cornish is represented as a sad and lonely old man with green hair and scaly skin. The sailors offered him fish that they left on the beach to placate him and prevent him from causing storms. Also in Finnish mythology there was a being similar to the triton, but unlike other cultures for them was a wise and benevolent being who cured diseases and unmade curses.
The ictiocentauros, tritons with horse legs
There is no single type of triton in mythology Greek There is a variant that is known as ictiocentauros They are tritons with the legs of a horse, the human torso and the tail of a fish.
Did you know the newts ? Have you been reminded of "King Triton", the father of Ariel ? Do you think the Disney factory was true to the classic image of what s tritons and sirens ?