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Ichor
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In Greek mythology, ichor (/ˈaɪkər/) is the ethereal fluid making up the blood of the gods and/or immortals. The Ancient Greek word ἰχώρ (ikhṓr) is of uncertain etymology, and has been suggested to be a foreign word, possibly the pre-Greek substrate.[1]
In classical myth
[edit]Ichor originates in Greek mythology, where it is the "ethereal fluid" that is the blood of the Greek gods, sometimes said to retain the qualities of the immortals' food and drink, ambrosia and nectar.[2] Ichor is described as toxic to humans, killing them instantly if they came in contact with it.[3][4] Great heroes and demigods occasionally attacked gods and released ichor, but gods rarely did so to each other in Homeric myth.[original research?]
According to G.S. Kirk, the term is used in the sense of "divine equivalent of blood" only twice, in the Homeric passages of the Iliad.[5] The goddess Athena confers on Diomedes the ability to distinguish gods and mortals, and grants specific permission to wound Aphrodite.[7]:
πρυμνὸν ὕπερ θέναρος·[a] ῥέε δ᾽ ἄμβροτον αἷμα θεοῖο
ἰχώρ, οἷός πέρ τε ῥέει μακάρεσσι θεοῖσιν·
οὐ γὰρ σῖτον ἔδουσ᾽, οὐ πίνουσ᾽ αἴθοπα οἶνον,
τοὔνεκ᾽ ἀναίμονές εἰσι καὶ ἀθάνατοι καλέονται·
—Iliad vv. 339–342:[9]
Translation:
[His spear.. struck Aphrodite at the base of her palm,][10] Blood [flowed], but immortal [blood at that]: ichor pure,
Such as the blessed inhabitants of heaven may bleed,
For the Gods eat not man's food,
Nor [drink sparkling] wine,
For they are bloodless and [called] death-exempt [Athanatoi, or "Immortals"].[b]
-Griechische_Bilderchroniken-pl_II-Sarti_tabuli_iIliaca-detail.jpg)
The scene where Diomedes with spear is on the verge of confronting and wounding Aphrodite is depicted on the Sarti tabula iliaca (cf. fig. right).[6]
In the second passage shortly after in the Iliad where ichor recurs, Aphrodite (Dione) merely wipes the ichor (ἰχῶ, v. 416) with both her hands, and she is none the worse for wear. So despite the agony it carried, the wound inflicted by the mortal turned out to be but a slight one.[5]
In Ancient Crete, tradition told of Talos, a giant man of bronze[14] and ichor.[15][16] Apollodotus explains that Talos had a single vein running from neck to ankle, pinned down by bronze nails. Talos encircled the island, guarding it, so that when the Argonauts arrived (having already acquired the Golden Fleece), Talos threw boulders at their ship. The sorceress Medea defeated it by either driving it to madness with drugs, or falsely promising to give it immortality, and pulling out the nail (presumably the lower one at the ankle) draining out all its ichor.[17][14] In Apollonius of Rhodes's account, Talos nicked its ankle on a crag and the precious ichor gushed out like molten lead.[18]
Prometheus was a Titan, who made humans and stole fire from the gods and gave it to the mortals, and consequently was punished by Zeus for all eternity. Prometheus was chained to a rock for his sin, and his liver was eaten daily by an eagle. His liver would then regrow, just to be eaten again, repeated for all eternity. Prometheus bled ichor, a blood-like substance that would cause a magical herb to sprout when it touched the ground (cf. connection to mandrake lore):
It [a magical herb] first appeared in a plant that sprang from the blood-like ichor of Prometheus in his torment, which the flesh-eating Eagle had dropped on the spurs of the Kaukasos.[19][20]
As allusion
[edit]Because Alexander the Great fashioned himself as a son of god, once when he received injury that drew blood, the grappler Dioxippus told the king "That is 'ichor', such as flows in the veins of the blessed gods", according to Aristobulus of Cassandreia[22] Plutarch in Parallel Lives has the king himself say "This, you see, is blood, and not 'ichor', etc.".[23]
In medicine
[edit]In pathology, "ichor" is an antiquated term for a watery discharge from a wound or ulcer, with an unpleasant or fetid (offensive) smell.[24]
The Greek Christian writer Clement of Alexandria deliberately confounded ichor in its medical sense as a foul-smelling watery discharge from a wound or ulcer with its mythological sense as the blood of the gods, in a polemic against the pagan Greek gods. As part of his evidence that they are merely mortal, he cites several cases in which the gods are wounded physically, and then asserts that
if there are wounds, there is blood. For the ichor of the poets is more repulsive than blood; for the putrefaction of blood is called ichor.[25]
See also
[edit]Explanatory notes
[edit]- ^ "root of the palm of the hand".[8]
- ^ The editor footnotes the scholium by J. de Villoison: "We are not to understand that the poet ascribes the immortality of the Gods to their abstinence from the drink and food of man, for most animals partake of neither, but the expression is elliptic and requires to be supplied thus – they drink not wine but nectar, eat not the food of mortals, but ambrosia; thence it is that they are bloodless and exempt from death."
- ^ Pandarus's corpse lies on ground.
References
[edit]- ^ Beekes, R. S. P. (2009). Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Brill. pp. 607–08.
- ^ a b Homer (1802). Johnson, John (ed.). The Iliad of Homer. Vol. 1. Translated by Cowper, William. Iliad V, 364–382 (p. 153).
Translated into English blank verse
- ^ "Ichor". Greek Mythology (greekmythology.com). Retrieved 2021-01-26.
- ^ "Ichor – ancient Greek element". Greek Gods & Goddesses. Greek Gods & Goddesses. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
- ^ a b Kirk, G.S. (2004). The Iliad: A Commentary: Volume 2, Books 5-8. Cambridge University Press. note to v. 416, p. 104. ISBN 9780521281720.
- ^ a b Heslin, Peter (2015). The Museum of Augustus: The Temple of Apollo in Pompeii, the Portico of Philippus in Rome, and Latin Poetry. Getty Publications. p. 77 and fig. 30, 31. ISBN 9781606064214.
- ^ Iliad vv. 334–339, apud Heslin (2015).[6]
- ^ Homer (1900). Leaf, Peter (ed.). The Iliad: Books 1-12 (2 ed.). Macmillan and Company. note to v. 319, p. 217.
- ^ "5. ΙΛΙΑΔΟΣ Ε". Homeri Opera, vol. 1 (in Greek). 1920 – via Wikisource. [scan
] (djvu only)
- ^ Cowper gives "He wounded.. Her inside wrist, fast by the rosy palm" in the preceding lines.
- ^ Almqvist, Olaf (2022). Chaos, Cosmos and Creation in Early Greek Theogonies: An Ontological Exploration. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 4. ISBN 9781350221888.
- ^ Compare modern translation by Richmond Lattimore (1951): "and blood immortal flowed from the goddess,/ ichor, that which runs in the veins of the blessed divinities.." quoted by Olaf Almqvist.[11]
- ^ Jahn, Otto; Michaelis, Adolf, eds. (1873). Griechische Bilderchroniken. lithograph by Aimé Henry. Bonn: Adolph Marcus. p. 14. doi:10.11588/diglit.14371#0143. digitized@U. Heidelberg
- ^ a b Smith, William (1849). "Talos". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 3. London, UK: Taylor Walton and Maberly. p. 973.
- ^ Mattingly, James; Cibralic, Beba (2025). Machine Agency. MIT Press. p. 21. ISBN 9780262380966.
- ^ Neer, Richard (2010). The Emergence of the Classical Style in Greek Sculpture. University of Chicago Press. p. 109. ISBN 9780226570655.
- ^ Apollodorus (1921). "I.ix.26". The Library. Loeb classical library (in Ancient Greek and English). Vol. 1. Translated by James George Frazer. William Heinemann. pp. 118–119.
- ^ Apollonius of Rhodes (2014). "Argonautica IV: 1679–1680". Delphi Complete Works of Apollonius of Rhodes (Illustrated) (in Greek and English). Delphi Classics.
- ^ Rhodius, Apollonius (2006). "3.851-853". The Voyage of Argo. Translated by E.V. Rieu. Penguin UK.
- ^ Clark, Raymond J. (Autumn 1968). "A Note on Medea's Plant and the Mandrake". Folklore. 79 (3): 227, n1. JSTOR 1258842.
- ^ a b Tarn, William Woodthorpe (1979). Alexander the Great: Volume 2, Sources and Studies. Cambridge University Press. pp. 358–359. ISBN 9780226570655.
- ^ Aristobulus fr. 47=Athen. Vi, 251A. apud Tarn (1979).[21]
- ^ Plutarch. Alexander xxviii, apud Tarn (1979).[21]
- ^ "Ichor". Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Encyclopedia (definition).
- ^ Clement of Alexandria. "Protrepticus". Exhortation to the Heathen. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
External links
[edit]
Look up ichor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Ichor
View on Grokipediafrom Grokipedia
In Greek mythology, ichor (Ancient Greek: ἰχώρ, ikhṓr) is the ethereal, blood-like fluid that courses through the veins of the gods and other immortals, distinguishing them from mortals who possess ordinary blood.[1] This substance is first described in Homer's Iliad, where it flows from the wounds inflicted on the goddess Aphrodite and the god Ares during the Trojan War, emphasizing the gods' divine nature as beings who "eat not bread neither drink flaming wine, wherefore they are bloodless, and are called immortals."[1] The term's etymology remains uncertain, possibly deriving from a pre-Greek substrate language, though it has no clear Indo-European cognates.[2]
Beyond mythology, ichor entered medical terminology in antiquity to denote a thin, acrid, watery discharge from ulcers or wounds, a usage attested in classical Greek texts and later adopted into Latin and modern English.[3] This secondary meaning, which contrasts with the divine connotations of the mythological sense, reflects the fluid's perceived otherworldly or unnatural qualities in both contexts. In literature and poetry, ichor often serves as a metaphor for something rarefied, golden, or poisonous to humans, underscoring the separation between the mortal and immortal realms.[4] Its enduring legacy appears in scientific nomenclature, such as petrichor (the scent of rain on dry earth, evoking a divine fluid) and various biological terms for fluids in invertebrates or plants.
Etymology and origins
Linguistic roots
The term "ichor" derives from the Ancient Greek noun ἰχώρ (ikhṓr), which primarily denoted a fluid such as serum, lymph, or a watery discharge, distinct from ordinary blood.[5] In its earliest known usage, ἰχώρ appears in the Homeric epics, particularly in the Iliad (Book 5, line 340), where it describes the ethereal substance flowing through the veins of the gods instead of mortal blood, as in the wounding of Aphrodite: "ἰχώρ, οἷός περ τε ῥέει μακάρεσσι θεοῖσιν" (ichor, such as flows in the blessed gods).[6] This attestation, dating to around the 8th century BCE, marks the word's initial association with divine physiology in epic poetry.[5] The etymology of ἰχώρ remains uncertain, with no clear connection to Proto-Indo-European roots; scholars propose it may stem from a pre-Greek substrate language, reflecting non-Indo-European influences in early Greek vocabulary. Phonetically, the word features a characteristic Greek initial iota and aspirated chi, without evident cognates in other Indo-European branches that suggest semantic ties to flowing or spewing. In related languages, ἰχώρ was adapted into Late Latin as īchōr, retaining the sense of a rarefied or acrid fluid, often in medical or mythological translations of Greek texts.[7] This Latin form shows minimal phonetic shift, preserving the original Greek pronunciation and spelling, though semantic extensions to pathological discharges emerged in post-classical usage.[8] From its Homeric origins, the term briefly transitioned in later Greek literature to emphasize its role in divine narratives, influencing broader mythological interpretations.[5]Historical development
The term ichor, derived from Ancient Greek ἰχώρ (ikhṓr) denoting a flowing fluid, was Latinized directly as ichor in Roman literature as part of the broader assimilation of Greek mythological elements during the late Republic and early Empire. Roman authors, influenced by Hellenistic traditions, employed the word to describe the ethereal substance circulating in the veins of immortals, preserving its original connotation while adapting it to Latin poetic forms. This adoption reflects Rome's cultural synthesis, where Greek terms like ichor were retained without alteration due to their technical specificity in mythological discourse.[9] The entry of ichor into English occurred in the early 17th century via translations and adaptations of classical literature, marking its shift into vernacular European languages amid the Renaissance revival of antiquity. The Oxford English Dictionary records the first known use in 1638, in Robert Burton's The Anatomy of Melancholy, where it describes a serous, watery discharge in medical pathology, extending the term's ancient sense to contemporary humoral medicine.[4] This adoption coincided with broader 17th-century efforts to render Greek and Latin texts accessible, such as Thomas Hobbes's 1675 translation of Homer's Iliad, which explicitly contrasts human blood with divine ichor to evoke mythological otherworldliness. By this period, ichor had thus evolved from a specialized classical term to one embedded in English intellectual discourse on body, divinity, and science.[2]Medical and biological applications
Historical usage in medicine
In ancient Greek medicine, the term ichor was employed in the Hippocratic corpus to denote a thin, serous or watery discharge emanating from ulcers or wounds, often signifying a humoral imbalance where excess phlegm or poor concoction of fluids led to pathological states. Texts such as Diseases of Women 1 describe ichor as appearing in menstrual flows or ulcerations alongside phlegm, bile, or clots, emphasizing its role as an indicator of disrupted bodily equilibrium that required purgative or dietary interventions to promote healing.[10] This usage reflected the broader Hippocratic emphasis on observing discharges to diagnose and treat imbalances among the four humors—blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile—without invoking supernatural elements.[11] Building on Hippocratic foundations, the Roman physician Galen (c. 129–216 CE) further refined the concept in works like Method of Medicine, classifying ichor as a distinct type of wound secretion characterized by its thin, lymph-like consistency, differentiating it from thicker pus, bloody sanies (a foul, ichorous pus variant), and the desirable "laudable pus" indicative of healthy suppuration. Galen argued that excessive ichor production in wounds signaled inadequate tissue repair or ongoing inflammation, advocating for astringent treatments to dry the area and prevent putrefaction, while noting its potential accumulation in internal cavities like the lungs during conditions such as peripneumonia.[12] His typology of secretions—ichor as the least substantial—underpinned surgical practices, prioritizing the promotion of laudable pus over ichorous flows to ensure vital nourishment reached the injured site.[13] During the medieval period, Arabic physicians extended these Greco-Roman ideas, with Avicenna (Ibn Sina, 980–1037 CE) integrating ichor-like descriptions into his comprehensive Canon of Medicine as watery, pathological fluids associated with ulcers and wounds lacking proper pus formation. Avicenna adapted the humoral framework to categorize such discharges as signs of cold or moist imbalances, recommending topical remedies like astringent herbs or cauterization to convert thin ichorous matter into more beneficial secretions, thereby facilitating union of wound edges.[14] This synthesis preserved and evolved the classical medical application of the term, influencing European practices through Latin translations until the 17th century.[15]Modern definitions and uses
In contemporary medicine, ichor is defined as a thin, watery, acrid, or serous discharge from ulcers, sores, or wounds, often tinged with blood and indicative of a low-grade inflammatory process.[3] This usage aligns with descriptions in standard medical references, where it denotes a fetid, serous exudate distinct from pus or more viscous fluids.[16] The term's application in clinical contexts emphasizes its role in characterizing wound healing stages, though it is less commonly invoked today amid advanced diagnostic terminology. In biological research, ichor designates a specific gene (ich) in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, encoding a zinc-finger transcription factor that regulates apical extracellular matrix assembly in tracheal terminal cells.[17] This protein promotes seamless tube integrity and shape during development by activating genes involved in matrix production, highlighting ichor's function in epithelial morphogenesis.[18] Such nomenclature reflects the term's adoption in molecular genetics to describe key developmental regulators, bridging classical etymology with precise scientific utility. While ichor occasionally appears in speculative discussions of non-terrestrial physiologies, such as potential fluid analogs in astrobiological models, its primary modern roles remain confined to medical diagnostics and genetic studies without established taxonomic applications in mycology or entomology.[19]Cultural and modern references
In literature and art
In Renaissance literature, John Milton employed the concept of ichor in Paradise Lost to depict the ethereal substance flowing from angelic wounds during the war in heaven, emphasizing their divine, non-mortal essence distinct from human blood. This usage draws on classical mythology, where ichor represents the immortals' vital fluid, as Raphael narrates the battle in Book VI with descriptions of "nectarous humor" that literary critics interpret as ichor-like in its purity and regenerative quality.[20] Such portrayals underscore ichor's symbolic role in highlighting the boundary between the divine and the earthly.[21] The 19th-century Romantic movement saw ichor reimagined in visual arts through William Blake's mythological paintings and illustrations, where divine fluids symbolize transcendent energy and spiritual corruption. In works like his illustrations for the Bible and Dante's Divine Comedy, Blake depicted luminous, otherworldly essences flowing from supernatural figures amid scenes of cosmic struggle and redemption. These representations blend classical symbolism with Blake's visionary mysticism.In science fiction and media
In science fiction literature, ichor serves as a motif for the alien biology of eldritch entities within H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, symbolizing their incomprehensible and corrupting nature. For instance, in "The Dunwich Horror," the corpse of the hybrid abomination Wilbur Whateley dissolves into a "fetid pool of greenish-yellow ichor and tarry stickiness," underscoring its otherworldly origins and the horror of its non-human composition.[22] Similarly, "At the Mountains of Madness" describes the severed bodies of the ancient Old Ones surrounded by a spreading pool of their "noisome dark-green ichor," which mingles with a stranger stench to evoke the terror of cosmic antiquity and rebellion by their creations, the shoggoths.[23] These depictions draw on ichor's mythological incorruptibility to contrast the purity of divine essence with the profane fluids of forbidden, star-spawned horrors. In video games inspired by Greek mythology, ichor appears as the golden blood of gods and immortals, highlighting their superhuman vitality and toxicity to mortals. God of War: Ghost of Sparta portrays the Olympian gods' life force as golden ichor, evident in combat scenes such as battles against figures like Thanatos, whose injuries reveal the gods' ethereal blood distinct from human red. In the video game adaptation of the Clash of the Titans films, ichor is explicitly invoked as a collectible resource; the achievement "Draw Out the Ichor" is earned by destroying the heads of 20 giant animated statues, symbolizing the extraction of divine essence from mythical beasts tied to the gods.[24] In young adult literature, Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson & the Olympians series (2005–2009) and its sequels through 2023 depict ichor as the poisonous golden blood of gods, monsters, and immortals, which is lethal to mortals and central to plot conflicts involving demigods. This usage, extended in Disney+ adaptations as of 2025, popularizes ichor among contemporary audiences by blending it with modern adventure narratives.[25] Contemporary tabletop role-playing games incorporate ichor as a hazardous magical substance derived from fiends, often with transformative or poisonous effects that propel narrative conflict. In Dungeons & Dragons, the 2019 adventure module Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus introduces demon ichor as a vile, pooling residue from slain demons in the hellish layer of Avernus, capable of warping mortal flesh into grotesque mutations upon exposure, serving as both a environmental hazard and plot device for infernal corruption. This usage positions ichor as a potent alchemical ingredient or curse, echoing its ancient symbolism while adapting it to mechanics of risk and reward in fantasy campaigns.References
- https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ichor