Icarus's father Daedalus, a talented and remarkable Athenian craftsman, built the Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete near his palace at Knossos to imprison the Minotaur, a half-man, half-bull monster born of his wife and the Cretan bull. Today, the Hellenic Air Force Academy is named after Icarus, who is seen as the mythical pioneer in Greece's attempt to conquer the skies. The myth shares thematic similarities with that of Phaëton-both are usually taken as tragic examples of hubris or failed ambition-and is often depicted in art. He ignored instructions not to fly too close to the sun, and the melting wax caused him to fall into the sea where he drowned. The main story told about Icarus is his attempt to escape from Crete by means of wings that his father constructed from feathers and wax. In Greek mythology, Icarus is the son of the master craftsman Daedalus. In some versions of the tale, Daedalus and Icarus escape by ship.įreebase Rate this definition: 4.1 / 14 votes The myth gave rise to the idiom, "fly too close to the sun." Icarus fell from the sky, plunged into the sea, and drowned. Icarus ignored Daedalus’ instructions not to fly too close to the sun, causing the beeswax in his wings to melt. Daedalus warned Icarus first of complacency and then of hubris, instructing him to fly neither too low nor too high, lest the sea's dampness clog his wings or the sun's heat melt them. Icarus and Daedalus escaped using wings Daedalus constructed from feathers, threads from blankets, clothes, and beeswax. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, King Minos suspected that Icarus and Daedalus had revealed the labyrinth's secrets and imprisoned them-either in a large tower overlooking the ocean or the labyrinth itself, depending upon the account. In Greek mythology, Icarus ( Ancient Greek: Ἴκαρος, romanized: Íkaros, pronounced ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. Wikipedia Rate this definition: 0.0 / 0 votes
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