Cretan Bull

Overview

The Cretan Bull was a beautiful and terrible creature, originally sent by the god Poseidon to the Cretan king Minos. The bull was so beautiful, in fact, that Minos’ queen, Pasiphae, fell in love with it. From their union was born a son: the half-man, half-bull Minotaur.

When Minos failed to sacrifice the Cretan Bull to Poseidon, the god grew angry and made the creature go wild. Eventually, Heracles was sent to capture the bull as one of his Twelve Labors. He subdued the beast and brought it back with him to the Peloponnese to show King Eurystheus (who had assigned him the task), before ultimately setting it free.

In some traditions, the Cretan Bull then traveled to Attica, becoming the “Marathonian Bull” that was killed by Theseus.^[1]