Who Was Icarus?

Who Was Icarus? Icarus was a figure in ancient Greek mythology. He was one of the two sons, of the great craftsman and artist, Daedalus, and was imprisoned with him by King Minos in Crete. Daedalus was the creator of the Labyrinth, a huge maze located under the court of King Minos of Crete, where the Minotaur, a half-man half-bull creature lived.

In order for the secret of the Labyrinth to be kept, Minos had then imprisoned Daedalus and Icarus in a tower above his palace. Daedalus managed to create two sets of wings for himself and his son, that were made of feathers glued together with wax.

He taught Icarus how to fly and warned him not to fly too high, which would cause the wax to melt, nor too low, which would cause the feathers to get wet with sea water. Together, they flew out of the tower towards freedom.

However, Icarus soon forgot his father’s warnings, and started flying higher and higher, until the wax started melting under the scorching sun. His wings dissolved and he fell into the sea and drowned. The area of the sea where he fell took the name Icarian Sea after him, while a nearby island was named Icaria.

Content for this question contributed by Allison Leber, resident of Glenshaw, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA