Erinyes
Sign in to savethumb|upright=1.2|Clytemnestra tries to awaken the sleeping Erinyes. Detail from an [[Apulian red-figure bell-krater, 380–370 BC.]]
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The Erinyes were vengeful spirits in ancient Greek mythology, depicted as supernatural beings who pursued and punished those guilty of serious crimes, particularly murder within families. They appear prominently in Greek dramatic works like Aeschylus's *Oresteia*, where they play a crucial role in the story's exploration of justice, guilt, and the transition from divine vengeance to human law.
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Article
11 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Description
- Cult
- In ancient Greek literature
- Aeschylus
- Euripides
- Other
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
thumb|upright=1.2|Clytemnestra tries to awaken the sleeping Erinyes. Detail from an [[Apulian red-figure bell-krater, 380–370 BC.]]
The Erinyes ( ; , ), also known as the Eumenides (, the "Gracious ones"), are chthonic goddesses of vengeance in ancient Greek religion and mythology. A formulaic oath in the Iliad invokes them as "the Erinyes, that under earth take vengeance on men, whosoever hath sworn a false oath". Walter Burkert suggests that they are "an embodiment of the act of self-cursing contained in the oath". Their Roman counterparts are the Furies, also known as the Dirae. The Roman writer Maurus Servius Honoratus ( AD) wrote that they are called "Eumenides" in hell, "Furiae" on Earth, and "Dirae" in heaven. Erinyes are akin to some other Greek deities, called Poenai.