| When Artemis in the summertime was
bathing in a stream, Actaeon sought the same place for cooling himself and
the dogs which he had exercised in chasing wild beasts. He then caught
sight of the goddess, and to keep him from telling of it, she changed him
into a stag. As a stag, then, he was mangled by his own hounds. These are
the dogs of Actaeon according to three authors: Apollodorus, Library 3.4.4: Amarynthus, Arcena, Balius 2, Bores, Lynceus 3, Omargus, Spartus. Ovid, Metamorphoses 3.206ff.: Aello 2, Agre, Alce, Argiodus, Asbolus 2, Canache, Cyprius, Dorceus 1, Dromas, Harpalus 2, Harpyia, Hylactor, Hylaeus 2, Ichnobates, Labros, Lachne, Lacon, Ladon 2, Laelaps 1, Leucon 2, Lycisce, Melampus 2, Melanchaetes, Melaneus 3, Nape, Nebrophonus 2, Oresitrophos, Oribasus, Pamphagus, Poemenis, Pterelas 1, Sticte, Theridamas, Theron 1, Thoos, Tigris. Hyginus, Fabulae 181: Acamas 5, Aello 2, Aethon 5, Agre, Agriodus, Agrius 7, Alce, Arcas 2, Arethusa 4, Argo, Aura 1, Borax, Boreas 2, Canache, Charops 2, Chediaetros, Corus, Cyllo, Cyllopodes, Cyprius, Dinomache, Dioxippe 3, Dorceus 1, Draco, Dromas, Dromius, Echione, Echnobas, Eudromus, Gorgo 2, Haemon 5, Harpalicus, Harpalus 2, Harpyia, Hylactor, Hylaeus 2, Ichneus, Ichnobates, Labros, Lacaena, Lachne, Lacon, Ladon 2, Laelaps 1, Lampus 5, Leaena, Leon, Leucon 2, Lycisca, Lynceste, Machimus, Melampus 2, Melanchaetes, Melaneus 3, Nape, Nebrophonus 2, Obrimus 1, Ocydrome, Ocydromus, Ocypete 3, Ocythous 1, Oresitrophos, Orias, Oribasus, Oxyrrhoe, Pachylus, Poemenis, Pterelas 1, Sagnos, Sticte, Stilbon, Syrus 2, Theridamas, Theriope, Theriphone, Therodanapis, Theron 1, Thous, Tigris, Urania 3, Volatos, Zephyrus 2. |
- A different source (wiki), quoting
again Hyginus, his dogs Melampus, Ichnobates, [Echnobas], Pamphagos,
Dorceus, Oribasus, Nebrophonus, Laelap, Theron, Pterelas, Hylaeus, Nape,
Ladon, Poemenis, [Therodanapis], Aura, Lacon, Harpyia, Aello, Dromas, Thous
Canache, Cyprius, Sticcte, Labros, Arcas, Agriodus, Tigris, Hylactor, Alce,
Harpalus, Lycisca, Melaneus, Lachne, Leucon; his bitches: Melanchaetes, Agre,
theridamas, Oreistrophos.
- Authors other than Hyginus: (dogs), Acamas, Syrus, Leon, Stilbon, Agrius, Charops, Aethon, Corus, Boreas, Draco, Eudromus, Dromius, Zephyrus, Lampus, Haemon, Cyllopodes, Harpalicus, Machimus, Ichneus, Melampus, Ocydromus, Borax, Ocythous, Pachylus, Obrimus;(bitches): Argo, Arethusa, Urania, Theriope, Dinomache, Dioxippe, Echione, Gorgo, Cyllo, Harpyia, Lynceste, Leaena, Lacaena, Ocyptete, Ocydrome, Oxyrhoe, Orias, *Sagnos, Theriphone, *Volatos, *Chediaetros.
In relation to the Arthurian
Legend:
... Celtic hunting hounds perhaps?
Hounds of the Gaels? these images are sourced from the Bibliothèque nationale de France
The Hunt of the White Stag in Geraint, Son of
Erbin
While
Arthur is holding court at Caerlleon, the Forester of Dean (Madawc, son of
Twrgardarn) arrives with news of the White Stag that will precipitate the
adventure that is the story of Geraint (Erec) and Enid..."In the Forest I saw a
stag, the like of which beheld I never yet." "What is there about him," asked
Arthur, "that thou never didst see his like?" "He is of pure white, Lord, and he
does not herd with any other animal through stateliness and pride, so royal is
his bearing." "It seems best to me," said Arthur, "to go and hunt him to-morrow
at break of day; and to cause general notice there-of to be given tonight in all
quarters of the Court." And Arryfuerys was Arthur's chief huntsman, and Arelivri
was his chief page.Now, this is how Arthur hunted the stag. The men and the dogs
were divided into hunting parties, and the dogs were let loose upon the stag.
And the last dog that was let loose was the favorite dog of Arthur. Cavall was
his name. And he left all the other dogs behind him, and turned the stag. And at
the second turn, the stag came towards the hunting party of Arthur. And Arthur
set upon him. And before he could be slain by any other, Arthur cut off his
head. Then they sounded the death horn for slaying, and they all gathered
round...
Then they all set forth, holding converse together concerning the
head of the stag, to whom it should be given. One wished that it should be given
to the lady best loved by him, and another to the lady whom he loved best. And
all they of the household, and the knights, disputed sharply concerning the
head.The Mabinogion, Geraint Son of Erbin Lady
Charlotte Guest, trans. (London : J. M. Dent & Sons, 1910):
pp220-21,231.
The hunt of the
White Stag in Chretien de Troyes' Erec and Enide...
On
Easter day, in springtime,
at Cardigan, his castle,
King Arthur held
court.
So rich a one was ever seen,
for there were many good
knights,
brave and combative and fierce,
and rich ladies and
maidens,
daughters of kings, noble and beautiful;
but before the court
concluded
the king said to his knights
that he wanted to hunt the white
stag
in order to revive the tradition.
My lord Gawain was not a bit
pleased
when he heard this:
"Sire," said he, "from this hunt
you will
never have either gratitude nor thanks.
We have all known for a long
time
what tradition is attached to the white stag:
he who can kill the
white stag
by right must kiss
the most beautiful of the maidens of your
court,
whatever may happen.
Great evil can come from this,
for there
are easily five hundred
Damsels of high lineage here,
daughters of kings,
noble and prudent,
and there is not a one that is not the favorite
of some
valiant and bold knight,
each of whom would want to contend,
either
rightly or wrongly,
that the one who pleases him
is the most beautiful and
the most noble."
The king replied: "This I know well,
but I will not give
up my plan for all that,
for the word of a king
must not be
opposed.
Tomorrow morning with great pleasure
we will all go to hunt the
white stag
in the forest of adventures:
this hunt will be truly
wondrous."
Thus was the hunt arranged
for the morrow, at daybreak.
The
next day, as soon as it was light,
the king arose and made ready;
to go
into the forest
he put on a short tunic.
He had the knights
awakened,
the hunting-steeds readied.
They had their bows and their
arrows,
and set off to hunt in the forest.
The queen mounted up after
them,
accompanied by an attendant;
she was a maiden, daughter of a
king,
and sat upon a good palfrey.
A knight came spurring after
them:
his name was Erec.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
They rode speedily
on
and came straight to the forest.
Those who had gone on ahead
Had
already raised the stag:
some blew on horns, others shouted;
the dogs went
noisily after the stag,
running, rushing and barking;
the archers were
shooting thick and fast.
Out in front of all of them the king was
hunting,
mounted on a Spanish hunter.
As the hunting party moves on
ahead, Erec and the Queen chance upon a "armored knight on a charger,"
accompanied by a "fine looking maiden," and a dwarf, "who was very evil and
baseborn." The confrontation is an ugly one; "Folly is not prowess; / in this
Erec acted very wisely: / he withdrew...", but after reflection resolves to
follow the knight and avenge himself.
Erec left the queen
and followed
the knight.
And the queen remained in the woods,
where the king had caught
up with the stag:
at the taking of the stag
the king arrived before any of
the others.
They killed and took the white stag.
All started back,
carrying the stag as they went;
they arrived at cardigan.
After the
evening meal, when the nobles
were joyful throughout the house,
the king,
according to the tradition,
since he had taken the stag,
said that he
would bestow the kiss
in order to observe the tradition of the
stag.
Throughout the court there was much muttering:
They promised and
swore to one another
that this would never be done without contention
by
means of sword or lance of ash-wood.
Each one wanted, by deeds of arms,
to
contend that his lady
was the most beautiful in the hall;
these words did
not bode well;
When my lord Gawain heard this,
You may be sure that he was
not at all pleased.
Chretien, de Troyes.
Erec and Enide. Carleton W. Carroll, trans, ed. Garland Library of Medieval
Literature; vol. 25. series A. (New York : Garland Publishing, 1987). pp
3-5,7,15.*