Greek mythology · 3 chapters

Philomela, Procne, and Tereus

When a king silences his victim, she weaves her story into a tapestry

Tereus, king of Thrace, marries Procne of Athens. He travels to Athens to fetch her sister Philomela to visit, and on the journey rapes her. To prevent her speaking of what he has done, he cuts out her tongue. He tells Procne that her sister is dead. But Philomela, though voiceless, weaves the truth into a tapestry and sends it to her sister. Procne understands. Her revenge is absolute: she kills her own son Itys, cooks him, and serves him to Tereus at dinner. When Tereus discovers what he has eaten, he pursues both sisters with an axe. The gods intervene: Philomela becomes a swallow, Procne a nightingale, Tereus a hoopoe. The nightingale's song is still heard as grief for Itys. The story is a myth about the failure of justice, and what those denied a voice can still make known.