Episode 17: Jason Gets the Golden Fleece…with a Bit of Help

Join us for the next installment from Season 3: Myths in the Far East. In this episode, Jason reaches Colchis after a few more stops and after having lost two more Argonauts to death but picking up four more passengers. When in Colchis, the king, Aietes, is suspicious of Jason’s intentions and doubtful of the Argonauts’ divine lineages, and makes a test of their strength and courage by forcing Jason to accept impossible challenge: tame and yoke fire-breathing bulls, plow a massive field with them, and overcome the armed warriors that sprout and grow from the serpent’s teeth he planted in the furrows behind him. After all of that? There’s still the never sleeping serpent who guards the fleece itself. How will Jason overcome all of this? Tune in and find out!

As always, we provide some visual materials: 1) a map, 2) a genealogical chart, and 3) two scenes from ancient Greek vases that show some different and weird versions of Jason’s obtaining of the Golden Fleece (explored in the last section of the episode).

Stops Argonauts Make from Bosporos to Colchis

Genealogical Chart for Episode 17: Jason Gets the Golden Fleece

Vase attributed to the Orchard Painter (NY Metropolitan Museum of Art) depicting Jason successfully obtaining the Fleece—where is Medeia?

Douris Cup (Vatican Museums) of an otherwise unattested version of the story: Jason (identified by his name under his hair) hangs from the serpent’s mouth—is he being swallowed or disgorged?