Editing Jason (section)

== The Argonauts and the Quest for the Golden Fleece ==
Jason assembled for his crew, a number of heroes, known as the [[Argonauts]] after their ship, [[Argo|the ''Argo'']].<ref name="pbs" /> The group of heroes included:<ref>Powell, Barry B. (2015). ''Classical Myth''. with translations by Herbert M. Howe (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson. {{ISBN|978-0-321-96704-6}}.</ref>{{Rp|485}}

*[[Acastus]];
*[[Admetus]];
*[[Argus (Argonaut)|Argus]], the eponymous builder of the Argo;
*[[Atalanta]];
*[[Augeas]];
* the winged [[Boreads]], Zetes & Calaïs;
*[[Castor and Pollux|the Dioscuri]], Castor & Polydeuces;
*[[Euphemus]];
*[[Heracles]];
*[[Idas]];
*[[Idmon]], the [[Prophet|seer]];
*[[Lynceus of Argos|Lynceus]];
*[[Meleager]];
*[[Orpheus]];
*[[Peleus]];
*[[Philoctetes]];
*[[Telamon]]; and
*[[Tiphys]], the helmsman

===The Isle of Lemnos===
The isle of [[Lemnos]] is situated in the north [[Aegean Sea]], near the Western coast of [[Asia Minor]] (modern day [[Turkey]]).

The island was inhabited by a race of women who had killed their husbands. The women had neglected their worship of [[Aphrodite]], and as a punishment the goddess made the women so foul in stench that their husbands could not bear to be near them. The men then took [[concubine]]s from the [[Thrace|Thracian]] mainland opposite, and the spurned women, angry at Aphrodite, killed all the male inhabitants while they slept. The king, [[Thoas (king of Lemnos)|Thoas]], was saved by [[Hypsipyle]], his daughter, who put him out to sea sealed in a chest from which he was later rescued. The women of Lemnos lived for a while without men, with [[Hypsipyle]] as their queen.
 
During the visit of the Argonauts the women mingled with the men creating a new "race" called [[Minyae]]. Jason fathered twins with the queen. Heracles pressured them to leave as he was disgusted by the antics of the Argonauts. He had not taken part, which is truly unusual considering the numerous affairs he had with other women.<ref group="note">In ''Hercules, My Shipmate'' [[Robert Graves]] claims that Heracles fathered more children than anyone else of the crew.</ref>

===Cyzicus===
After Lemnos the Argonauts landed among the [[Doliones]], whose king [[Cyzicus (mythology)|Cyzicus]] treated them graciously. He told them about the land beyond Bear Mountain, but forgot to mention what lived there. What lived in the land beyond Bear Mountain were the [[Gegeines]], which are a tribe of Earthborn giants with six arms who wore leather loincloths.

While most of the crew went into the forest to search for supplies, the Gegeines saw that few Argonauts were guarding the ship and raided it. [[Heracles]] was among those guarding the ship at the time and managed to kill most of them before Jason and the others returned. Once some of the other Gegeines were killed, Jason and the Argonauts set sail.

The Argonauts departed, losing their bearings and landing again at the same spot that night. In the darkness, the Doliones took them for enemies and they started fighting each other. The Argonauts killed many of the Doliones, among them the king Cyzicus. Cyzicus' wife killed herself. The Argonauts realized their horrible mistake when dawn came and held a funeral for him.

===Phineus and the harpies===
Soon, Jason reached the court of [[Phineus]] of [[Kiyikoy|Salmydessus]] in [[Thrace]]. [[Zeus]] had sent the [[harpy|harpies]] to steal the food put out for Phineus each day. Jason took pity on the emaciated king and killed the Harpies when they returned; in other versions, [[Boreads|Calais and Zetes]] chase the harpies away. In return for this favor, Phineus revealed to Jason the location of Colchis and how to pass the [[Symplegades]], or The Clashing Rocks, and then they parted.[[File:Jason Pelias Louvre K127.jpg|thumb|right|225px|Jason bringing [[Pelias]] the [[Golden Fleece]], [[Apulia]]n red-figure [[calyx krater]], {{circa|340 BC}}–330 BC, [[Louvre]]]]

===The Symplegades===
The only way to reach Colchis was to sail through the [[Symplegades]] (Clashing Rocks), huge rock cliffs that came together and crushed anything that traveled between them. Phineus told Jason to release a dove when they approached these islands, and if the dove made it through, to row with all their might. If the dove was crushed, he was doomed to fail. Jason released the dove as advised, which made it through, losing only a few tail feathers. Seeing this, they rowed strongly and made it through with minor damage at the extreme stern of the ship. From that time on, the clashing rocks were forever joined leaving free passage for others to pass.

===The arrival in Colchis===
Jason arrived in [[Colchis]] (modern [[Black Sea]] coast of [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]) to claim the fleece as his own. It was owned by King [[Aeetes]] of Colchis. The fleece was given to him by [[Phrixus]]. Aeetes promised to give it to Jason only if he could perform three certain tasks. Presented with the tasks, Jason became discouraged and fell into depression. However, [[Hera]] had persuaded [[Aphrodite]] to convince her son [[Eros (mythology)|Eros]] to make Aeetes' daughter, [[Medea]], fall in love with Jason. As a result, Medea aided Jason in his tasks.<ref name="Ovid, Metamorphoses vii.100"/>

First, Jason had to plow a field with fire-breathing oxen, the [[Khalkotauroi]], that he had to yoke himself. Medea provided an ointment that protected him from the oxen's flames. Then, Jason sowed the [[Dragon's teeth (mythology)|teeth of a dragon]] into a field. The teeth sprouted into an army of warriors ([[spartoi]]). Medea had previously warned Jason of this and told him how to defeat this foe.<ref name="Ovid, Metamorphoses vii.100"/>

Before they attacked him, he threw a rock into the crowd. Unable to discover where the rock had come from, the soldiers attacked and defeated one another. His last task was to overcome the sleepless dragon which guarded the [[Golden Fleece]]. Jason sprayed the dragon with a potion, given by Medea, distilled from herbs. The dragon fell asleep, and Jason was able to seize the Golden Fleece.<ref name="Ovid, Metamorphoses vii.100">{{cite web|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Ov.+Met.+7.1.100&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0028|title=Metamorphoses}}</ref>

He then sailed away with Medea. Medea distracted her father, who chased them as they fled, by killing her brother [[Apsyrtus]] and throwing pieces of his body into the sea; Aeetes stopped to gather them. In another version, Medea lured Apsyrtus into a trap. Jason killed him, chopped off his fingers and toes, and buried the corpse. In any case, Jason and Medea escaped.