Greek mythology · 3 chapters

Io and the Jealousy of Hera

A mortal woman loved by Zeus is turned into a cow and hunted across the earth

Zeus falls in love with the priestess Io and transforms her into a white heifer to hide her from Hera. But Hera is not deceived. She asks Zeus to give her the beautiful heifer as a gift. He cannot refuse without admitting guilt. She sets the hundred-eyed giant Argus to watch Io day and night. Hermes, sent by Zeus, lulls Argus to sleep with stories and music, then kills him. Hera, in grief, sets a gadfly to torment Io without rest. Io wanders the earth, fleeing the fly, crossing seas (the Ionian Sea and Bosphorus are named for her path), until she reaches Egypt. There Zeus restores her form by touching her. She gives birth to Epaphus, ancestor of Heracles and Danaus, making her one of the founding mothers of Mediterranean civilization.