Ichor

In Greek mythology, ichor (/ˈaɪkər/; Ancient Greek: ἰχώρ)[1] is the ethereal fluid that is the blood of the gods and/or immortals.

This article is about the mythological term. For the modern meaning, see Bile.

In classical myth

Ichor originates in Greek mythology, where it is the ethereal fluid that is the Greek gods' blood, sometimes said to retain the qualities of the immortals' food and drink, ambrosia and nectar.[2] Ichor is said to be toxic to humans, killing them instantly if they came in contact with it.[3][4] Great heroes and demigods occasionally attacked gods and released ichor, but gods rarely did so to each other in Homeric myth.

Iliad V. 339–342[2]

    Blood follow'd, but immortal; ichor pure,
    Such as the blest inhabitants of heav'n
    May bleed, nectareous; for the Gods eat not
    Man's food, nor slake as he with sable wine
    Their thirst, thence bloodless and from death exempt. †

†   We are not to understand that the poet ascribes the immortality of the Gods to their abstinence from the drink and food of man, for most animals partake of neither, but the expression is elliptic and requires to be supplied thus—They drink not wine but nectar, eat not the food of mortals, but ambrosia; thence it is that they are bloodless and from death exempt.

— W. Cowper, The Iliad of Homer, Schol. per Vill

In Ancient Crete, tradition told of Talos, a giant man of bronze portrayed with wings. When Cretan mythology was appropriated by the Greeks, they imagined him more like the Colossus of Rhodes. He possessed a single vein running with ichor that was stoppered by a nail in his back. Talos guarded Europa on Crete and threw boulders at intruders until the Argonauts came after the acquisition of the Golden Fleece and the sorceress Medea took out the nail, releasing the ichor and killing him.[5]

"It [a magical herb] first appeared in a plant that sprang from the blood-like ichor of Prometheus in his torment, which the flesh-eating Eagle had dropped on the spurs of Kaukasos (Caucasus)."[6]

Prometheus was a Titan who stole fire from the gods and gave it to the mortals. Prometheus was punished by Zeus for all eternity. Prometheus was chained to a rock for his liver eaten by an eagle. His liver would then regrow, just to be eaten again, repeated for all eternity. Prometheus bled Ichor, a golden blood-like substance that would sprout a magical herb when it touched the ground.

In medicine

In pathology, "ichor" is an antiquated term for a watery discharge from a wound or ulcer, with an unpleasant or fetid (offensive) smell.[7]

The Greek Christian writer Clement of Alexandria used "ichor" in the ancient medical understanding of a foul-smelling watery discharge from a wound or ulcer, in a polemic against the pagan Greek gods. As part of his evidence that they are merely mortal, he cites several cases in which the gods are wounded physically, and then adds, "And if there are wounds, there is blood. For the ichor of the poets is more repulsive than blood; for the putrefaction of blood is called ichor."[8]

Pop culture

Ichor appears throughout the popular young adult series Percy Jackson & the Olympians, written by Rick Riordan. Its first mention is in the first book of the series, The Lightning Thief, when Percy Jackson injures Ares, the god of war.[9]

See also

References
  1. Of uncertain etymology; R. S. P. Beekes has suggested that is a foreign word (Etymological Dictionary of Greek, Brill, 2009, pp. 607–8).
  2. Homer, (trans. William Cowper) (1802). Johnson, John (ed.). The Iliad of Homer, Translated into English Blank Verse. Volume 1. Iliad V. 364–382 (p. 153).
  3. "Ichor". www.greekmythology.com. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  4. "Ichor - Ancient Greek Element • Greek Gods & Goddesses". Greek Gods & Goddesses. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
  5. William Smith, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, volume III (London, 1849), 973.
  6. Rhodius, Apollonius. The Argonautica. p. 844.
  7. "Ichor - definition". Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.
  8. Clement of Alexandria. "Protrepticus (EXHORTATION TO THE HEATHEN)". Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  9. Riordan, Rick (2005). The Lightning Thief. New York, NY: Hyperion. ISBN 9780786856299.
  • The dictionary definition of ichor at Wiktionary
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