Itys: The Unfortunate Son Who Was Killed By His Mother

Itys is one of the tragic characters in Greek mythology because of the actions of his parents. This story is no doubt one of the worst ones in the whole of mythology and you will know just why and how. He had a deadly fate and was the innocent victim in all of the drama that was spewed around him. In this article, we have gathered all the most authentic information about Itys and his family for your dissemination.

Who Was Itys?

Itys was the son of Tereus and Procne, who was killed by his mother, Procne in Greek mythology. She killed him to avenge the rape of her sister, Philomela, at the hands of Tereus. The trio was then turned into birds by the Olympian gods.

Having a Troubled Family

In Greek mythology, Itys or Itus was the son of King Tereus and his queen, Procne. Tereus, a Thracian king, was the son of Ares and a naiad, Bistonis whereas, Procne was a princess from Athens. The pair were married in goodwill and their union brought alliance and safety to both civilizations. Procne bore Tereus a son who would carry the family name and throne.

All was going very well and harmonious until the most tragic incident took place. Procne had a beloved little sister named Philomela who had come to live with her but little did she know that she would come into the sight of Tereus and who would start falling for her, as his likeness soon turned into uncontrollable lust and he did the unthinkable.

Tereus raped his sister-in-law, the aunt of his son, and to hide his heinous crime, he cut Philomela's tongue. He went about his life as usual after that and pretended to be a great husband, to Procne, and a great father to his son, Itys. No one could suspect his animal-like behavior towards Philomela. She was so scared that she did not dare act out of the ordinary.

Philomela and Her Tapestry of Truth

As time passed by, Philomela still carried the fear in her heart. She did not tell anyone about her tongue but acted like she has just gone mute and would like to stay that way. After some time, when she couldn't bare it any longer and she had had enough and wanted revenge, it was about time that the Thracian king paid for what he had done.

As she was exceptional at weaving clothes and tapestries, it was her hobby and it brought her peace amidst all the whirlwinds of the world. She thought of weaving a tapestry that would showcase all of her stories and call it the tapestry of truth, she couldn't say it, but she had the ability to show it. She got on with it and in the end, had the most beautiful looking tapestry that had the ugliest story to tell.

She got to the room of her sister, in Procne Greek mythology, and showed her the tapestry. Procne did not first understand what had happened. As she tried to understand everything and the story unfolded, Procne was in disarray. She was disgusted, embarrassed, and angered at what her husband had done to her sister and all that behind her back.

His Fate

Right there and then, Procne promised Philomela that whatever it cost, she would avenger her and will not let the heinous crime of his husband pass quietly. Philomela had an evil plan already in her mind which she told Procne about. This is where the story gets even darker. Procne agreed to the plan and without a second thought, sided with Philomela, leaving everything and everyone behind.

Itys was the one and only beloved son of Tereus, who loved him more than anything as he was the apple of his eye. Keeping the latter in mind, Philomela thought of a plan. According to her plan, Tereus would be served a pie made from the dead meat of his son, Itys and this is exactly what happened.

Procne killed her own son, Itys, and baked a pie made of her dead son. She then served Tereus the pie at the dining table where Philomela was also seated. As Tereus ate and enjoyed the meat pie, just as he was done, Procne confronted Tereus and told him the truth. Tereus learned that he was eating his dead son so he choked on the food and shrieked in agony.

The End of Tereus, Procne, and Philomela

Tereus tried to kill both the sisters and they tried to escape, because he was in raging anger from what had happened to his only and most loving son. In all this mess, the Olympian gods interfered.

When the Olympians saw how each and every one of the three had crossed a line and committed unspeakable crimes, they came to a decision together and the three were then turned into different breeds of birds by the gods as a punishment.

Tereus was turned into a hoopoe, Philomela was made into a swallow, and Procne was turned into a nightingale. The nightingale Procne would then sing the song and mourn her son, Itys forever.

Conclusion

Itys' story is incomplete without mentioning his troubled family. He was an innocent soul who paid for the crimes of his father. Here we have concluded the article with a few points:

• Itys was the son of a Thracian king Tereus and an Athenian princess Procne.

• Tereus raped Philomela, his sister-in-law, and cut her tongue for the sake of secrecy. Philomela wove her story and truth in a tapestry which she showed to Procne.

• Procne murdered Itys and served it to Tereus to avenge Philomela.

• Tereus was turned into a hoopoe, Philomela was made into a swallow, and Procne was turned into a nightingale by the Olympian gods.

This is no doubt one of the worst stories in all of Greek mythology. A man's lust and a woman's revenge took the life of an innocent boy. Here we come to the end of the article about Itys.