Hydre de Lerne

See also: Hydre

To kill the Hydre de Lerne was one of the Twelve work of Héraclès.

Hydre was generated by Typhon and Échidna and was raised by Héra under a plane tree near the source Amymoné with Lerne. Lerne is located in the gulf of Argolide and roughly vis-a-vis Nauplie.

Description of Hydre de Lerne

This water snake to body of dog had several heads (their variable number according to the authors) including one immortal. These heads were regenerated doubly when they were distinct. Moreover, the breath puffed up by the multiple mouths exhaled a radical poison, even during the sleep of the animal. The monster devastated the cattle and ransacked harvests…

Unfolding of the combat

Héraclès, covered with its skin of lion to protect itself from the bites, attracted the animal out of its den by stripping some ignited arrows to him. Hydre appeared accompanied by a crab (or a giant crayfish) sent by Héra with an aim of distracting Héraclès at the time of the combat. Aggravated by the pinchings of crab, Héraclès crushed it heel.

Héra will make a constellation of it: that of Cancer beside that of the Lion.

Overflowed by multiple cephalic regenerations, Héraclès called Iolaos with the rescue. On the order of his uncle, it ignited some trees and used torches in order to cauterize the stubs of neck. As for the immortal head, it was still sliced and buried whistling, under a rock.

Héraclès cut up the animal and collected venom of it to impregnate its arrows with them. The blood which ran out of the carcass poured in the river Anigros (?) by spreading a stench.

Eurysthée refused this exploit because Héraclès had profited from the assistance of Iolaos.

Other versions

  1. Héraclès was to drain the marsh of Lerne. The sources which fed the marsh, filtered the ground permanently and made vain its efforts. The marsh was thus compared with the hydre, and the sources with the reappearing heads.

  2. Pausanias admitted that there was a hydre much larger than usually with a powerful venom, but according to him, it is Pisandre de Caminos which exaggerated the description of Hydre in order to make it appear more terrible and to give more force to its worms.
  3. the surrounding cities of Mycènes were subjected to Eurysthée, except one: Lerne, controlled by a king of the same name. The second task of Héraclès consisted in subjecting this city and destroying a named citadel “Hydre” kept day and night by fifty archers posted at the top of a tower. The tower was attacked and, with each time an archer was killed, two others came to replace it. King Lerne called upon the army of a mercenary carien named Crabe with an aim of reinforcing his lines. Héraclès made in the same way with the assistance of Iolaos, come with reinforcements thébains. The tower was set fire to and the destroyed army of Lerne.

See too

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