[Greek] Homer's Odyssey (c. 800 BCE) alludes to the story of Argus by referring to Hermes as 'the guide, the slayer of Argus' (8.332). Similar references to Argus appear in Hesiod's Works and Days (c. 750-700 BCE) and many of the Homeric Hymns, including those to Aphrodite, Apollo, Hermes, and Demeter (c. 700-500 BCE). Hermes's epithet 'Argeiphontes' (ar-jee-fon-teez) means 'slayer of Argus.' The myth's outline is that Zeus had seduced Io when Hera arrived on the scene. Zeus transformed Io into a cow to hide his infidelity, but Hera was not deceived. When Hera asked, Zeus was obliged to give her the cow. Hera appointed her servant Argus to guard the cow, and Hermes, at Zeus' command, killed Argus. The detail omitted in this summary varies depending on which source is referenced. Two prominent sources of the myth of Argus's death are Aeschylus's play Prometheus Bound (c. 500 BCE) and Ovid's Metamorphoses (c. 8 CE). In Prometheus Bound Io, as a cow, has been wandering all over Greece desperate...
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