Ampelus Greek Mythology: Discover the Reckless Lover of Dionysus
Ampelus in Greek Mythology is a satyr that has been seen, written about, and spoken of in various ways, as he has even appeared in other mythologies as well. This satyr was the one who fell in love in a reckless way, with a goddess, more specifically with the goddess of wine.
Who Is Ampelus?
Ampelus represents the grapevine and his lover is Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry, fertility and ecstasy. The beauty of the young satyr drew the gods' attention, but Dionysus won his heart. Unfortunately, his life was cut short in his prime.
He was a satyr who symbolized the grapevine and fell in love with the god of winemaking and orchards, Dionysus. He was known as a reckless youth whose antics resulted in his death which his lover deeply mourned.
Some scholars believe that this satyr was not a classical Greek mythology character but was added centuries later. Though information about him is scanty, we have done our best to bring you all there is to know about this minor character of Greek mythology.
The Myth of Ampelus
There are two sources of the myth of Ampelus and both tell different endings of the story. Both versions agree that he was a young and attractive satyr who caught the eye of the gods. It was not surprising that Dionysus fell in love with him because he spent his time reveling with the satyrs. The satyrs were creatures who had the ears and tail of a horse but looked like humans.
They were fun-loving and excellent musicians, comedians, and dancers and they loved women – characteristics that were akin to Dionysus. The satyrs were depicted with a permanent erection and they tried to seduce mortals but often failed.
Overall, it was not surprising that Dionysus took them as his regular companions and together they roamed woodlands and green fields. It is key to know that he loved to roam the fields of his homeland Thrace and was often joined by Dionysus.
Nonetheless, he was also notorious for his reckless behavior which caused his death in both versions of the myth as we discovered earlier. The young satyr often took unnecessary risks without recourse to his safety as told by the Roman poet Ovid.
According to Ovid
Ovid narrated that Ampelus picked the sacred grapes of Dionysus and even reached out to pick some fruits that were beyond his reach. Realizing that he wouldn’t get to those grapes, he climbed a tall elm tree but unfortunately, he slipped and fell to his death.
The god Dionysus was grieved at the sight of his lifeless body and mourned him greatly. He then decided to immortalize him by transforming him into one of the stars in the constellation that became known as Vindemitor popularly referred to as Bootes.
This version of the myth was handed down to generations for almost 400 years until Nonnus, gave a different account.
According to Nonnus
In his book, Dionysica, which detailed the adventures and wars of Dionysus, he died due to his pride rather than through an accident. In this version of the myth, Nonnus blamed Selene the goddess of the Moon for her role in the satyr’s death.
He narrated that while riding a ferocious bull under the moonlight, this satyr called out to Selene and challenged her to do her worst. Selene was believed to possess horns and controlled large herds of bulls hence the arrogant challenge.
By accepting and enhancing this challenge, he had just displayed one of the greatest ‘sins’ in Greek mythology, hubris, and he would pay dearly for it. Selene decided to punish him by sending a gadfly to sting the bull on which he was riding. After several stings from the insect, the bull lost his senses and threw him off its back but he was not done. He chased the youth around and killed him with a lot of blood flowing from his mother.
This moved Dionysus to tears and he mourned the death of his lover. To memorialize him, Dionysus turned the blood of the satyr into a grapevine. The resulting fruit from the grapevine was used to make the first wine which was the blood of Dionysus’ lover.
The Reason for the Myth
The myth of the satyr and the wine, according to Nonnus, was to explain the origin of the grapevine and the wine it produces. The technical term for such for the study of the origin of something is termed etiology and it is very common in Greek mythology.
For example, the myth of Cyparissus explains the origins of the cypress tree and the sap that flowed along its bank. Another origin myth is the trick Prometheus played on Zeus by offering him bones covered by fat instead of meat which is used to explain why fat and bones are offered to deities instead of meat.
Ovid’s version of the satyr’s myth was to explain the origin of the constellation Vindiatrix or Bootes which houses the fourth brightest star. Vindiatrix was a very important constellation in ancient times because it contained other bright stars which were easily visible.
In his poem, the Odyssey, Homer mentions the Vindiatrix as a point of reference for navigating the seas. Another constellation origin myth is the story of the Ursa Major (Big Bear) where Zeus turned his lover, Callisto, into the Ursa Major constellation, which is seen till this very day.
Some literary critics claim that the mythology of the satyr, and how he died isn’t really a picture that is drawn and stayed through history, that is why different versions exist. On the contrary, some raise their value of the writer, and how he tried to explain with a new story a fact about the consolation of the stars and the lovers, and what the death resulted in.
The Mythology in the European Tradition
The mythology was not known during the Medieval and Renaissance period in Europe. However, interest in the myth was revived after the various translations of “The Acts of Dionysus” were published in the 17th Century.
Other prominent books on both Greek and Roman mythology, published in the same century, featured the images and myth of Ampelos. The relationship between Dionysus and Ampelos also inspired the revered homosexual author Andre Gide.
Ampelus Pronunciation
The name is pronounced |am-pe-los|
FAQ
How Is Lore Olympus Related to Ampelus?
The story of this satyr has inspired some modern mythologies including Lore Olympus which is a webcomic today. Overall, this narration is still a story being told of the satyr from another perspective, but still, it is seen as a Greek myth, just like the satyr.
In the webcomic, Ampelus is a nymph who serves Aphrodite on Mount Olympus, however, her true form is Psyche a mortal princess. Although the original Greek version, he is a male, the modern version of the character is female. Psyche disguises herself as a nymph because Mount Olympus is barred from mortals. She wears dark purple skin and has horse-like ears with golden eyes and indigo-colored hair.
Ampelus Psyche is kind and has a curious mind but has weak willpower thus she can easily be manipulated. Just like the Ampelus of Greek mythology, how he is very beautiful but now she always seeks to please people to the detriment of her self-esteem. Her melancholic nature does not help matters as she is always afraid to stand up for herself or fight for what she wants.
While on Mount Olympus Eros and Ampelus fall in love and he treats her better than anyone she had ever encountered. With Eros, Ampelus feels secure and begins to have a sense of strong self-belief and willpower.
She becomes more outspoken and independent and can fight for what she wants. However, traces of her gullibility occasionally come to the fore as her sisters are able to convince her to distance herself from Eros.
Conclusion
We have looked at the myth of Ampelus, its role in ancient Greek society and how modern writers have adapted it to suit modern society. Here is a summary of all that we’ve read so far:
According to the poet Nonnus, he was a beautiful but petulant satyr who fell in love with Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry.
One night, while riding a bull through the woodlands, he challenged the moon god, Selene, to do her worst and she did by killing the young prideful Ampelus.
Grieved by the death of Ampelus, Dionysus turned him into a grapevine and his blood became the first wine ever produced.
However, the poet Ovid narrated that Ampelus’ died when he tried to to get some grapes that were out of his reach on Dionysus’ sacred grapevine.
Ampelus fell to his death and Dionysus decided to memorialize his lover by turning him into the constellation Vindiatrix, popularly referred to as Bootes.
Both versions of the myth are known as etiology or origin myths and they explain the origins of the grapevine and wine it produces and the origin of the constellation Vindiatrix. An Australian webcomic writer has used the name of Ampelus in her series Lore Olympus.
