Ixion’s Family Tree

About Ixion →

Family

• Dia(spouse),Pirithous(child)— Marriage

  Ixion and Dia are the parents of Pirithous, the Lapith king and companion of Theseus.

  ⚠ Homer (Iliad 2.741, 14.317-318) names Zeus as Pirithous's true father, implying a divine union with Dia rather than mortal conception by Ixion.

• Nephele(spouse),Centaurs(child)— Consort · Miraculous

  Ixion lay with Nephele, a cloud shaped like Hera by Zeus, and their union produced Centaurus. Centaurus mated with the Magnesian mares on Mount Pelion, begetting the race of Centaurs.

Slew

• Deioneus

  Ixion murdered his father-in-law Deioneus by luring him into a pit of burning coals after refusing to pay the promised bride-price for Dia.

Rules over

• Lapiths

  Ixion ruled as king of the Lapiths, the Thessalian warrior tribe that inhabited the region around Mount Pelion.

Associated with

• Hermes

  Hermes conducted Ixion to Olympus on Zeus's orders, escorting the mortal to dine among the gods after his purification.

• Nephele

  Ixion embraced Nephele, the cloud shaped by Zeus in Hera's likeness, believing he was seducing the queen of the gods. Their union produced Centaurus, progenitor of the centaur race.

• Tartarus

  Ixion spins bound to a fiery wheel in Tartarus for eternity, punished by Zeus for attempting to seduce Hera after being granted the unprecedented honor of dining at the table of the gods.

• Zeus

  Zeus purified Ixion of his blood-guilt for murdering Deioneus and welcomed him to Olympus, but when Ixion attempted to seduce Hera, Zeus bound him to an eternally spinning fiery wheel.