Descent of Perithous

The Descent of Perithous (Ancient Greek: Πειρίθου κατάβασις, Peirithou katabasis) is a fragmentary epic poem that was ascribed to Hesiod by the 2nd-century CE geographer Pausanias. The titular topic of the poem would have been the myth of Theseus and Perithous' trip to Hades seeking to win Persephone as bride for Perithous. During the expedition, Hades trapped the heroes by seating them in the "chairs of forgetfullness", and only Heracles could save them. One tentatively assigned papyrus fragment survives which includes a conversation between Meleager and Theseus. It is also possible that this fragment belongs to the Minyas, and the existence of an independent Hesiodic poem on the descent of Theseus and Perithous is complicated by the fact that elsewhere Pausanias attributes the myth to the Minyas. The sheer number of Hesiodic papyri that have survived compared to those of other works of archaic epic, however, lends credence to the attribution to the Hesiodic corpus.

Contents

• Critical editions
• Translations
• References