Europa’s Family Tree

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Family

• Zeus(spouse),Minos(child),Rhadamanthus(child)— Consort

  Zeus abducted Europa in the form of a white bull, carrying her across the sea to Crete where she bore him Minos and Rhadamanthus, both destined to become judges of the dead in the underworld.

  ⚠ Apollodorus (Bibliotheca 3.1.1) names a third son Sarpedon, but this is a different figure from Homer's Sarpedon son of Laodamia who fought at Troy (Iliad 6.196-205).

• Agenor(parent),Cadmus(sibling)

  Cadmus and Europa were children of King Agenor of Tyre. Zeus's abduction of Europa prompted Agenor to send Cadmus on the quest that led him to found Thebes in Boeotia.

Associated with

• Arachne

  Arachne wove Europa's abduction by Zeus in bull form into her tapestry, depicting the princess riding the white bull across the sea to Crete.

• Cadmus

  Cadmus's search for Europa brought him from Phoenicia to Greece, ultimately leading to the founding of Thebes. Europa's abduction by Zeus was the catalyst for Cadmus's entire mythological journey.

• Talos

  In Apollodorus, Zeus gave Europa three gifts after their union on Crete: the bronze automaton Talos to guard the island, a golden javelin that never missed, and a hunting dog named Laelaps that always caught its prey.