Nephele’s Family Tree

About Nephele →

Family

• Athamas(spouse),Helle(child),Phrixus(child)— Marriage

  King Athamas of Orchomenus married the cloud nymph Nephele, and they had two children: Phrixus and Helle. Nephele later departed, and Athamas took Ino as his second wife.

• Ixion(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.

Guards

• Helle

  Nephele sent the golden ram Chrysomallus to rescue her children Helle and Phrixus from sacrifice. Though the ram saved Phrixus, Helle fell from its back during the flight over the sea.

Guarded by

• Chrysomallus

  The golden ram Chrysomallus served Nephele by carrying her children Phrixus and Helle to safety when they were threatened with sacrifice by their stepmother Ino.

Enemy of

• Ino

  After Athamas took Ino as his second wife, Ino plotted to destroy Nephele's children Phrixus and Helle by parching the seed grain and bribing the Delphic oracle to demand their sacrifice.

Created by

• Zeus

  Zeus fashioned Nephele, a cloud in the exact likeness of Hera, to test whether Ixion would act on his desire for the queen of the gods.

Associated with

• Golden Fleece

  Nephele sent the golden ram Chrysomallus to rescue her children Phrixus and Helle from sacrifice by their stepmother Ino. The ram's flight to Colchis placed the Golden Fleece at the edge of the world.

• Hera

  Zeus shaped Nephele as an exact replica of Hera in form and appearance to test Ixion's intentions. When Ixion embraced the cloud-phantom, his crime against hospitality was confirmed.

• Ixion

  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.