The Fall of Bellerophon
After defeating the Chimera and surviving impossible trials, Bellerophon's success gives way to isolation and downfall.
The Story
Bellerophon survived dangers that should have killed him.
He defeated the Chimera and overcame further enemies sent against him.
His victories brought him honour and royal status.
But the later part of his life was far darker.
Homer describes Bellerophon eventually becoming hated by the gods and wandering alone across the Aleian plain, avoiding other people.
Later tradition developed his downfall further.
Bellerophon possessed Pegasus, the extraordinary winged horse that had helped him overcome the Chimera.
According to a famous later version, the hero attempted to ride Pegasus upward toward Olympus itself.
The attempt failed.
Bellerophon fell back to earth while Pegasus continued upward and became associated with Zeus.
The hero who had once seemed capable of overcoming every mortal obstacle discovered that there were boundaries even he could not cross.
His story therefore ends very differently from its heroic beginning.
Victory over monsters did not guarantee a fortunate life.
Key Figures
Why It Matters
Bellerophon's downfall gives the hero's story a tragic second half and became an example of the danger of exceeding mortal limits.
Traditions & Variations
Homer does not tell the familiar story of Bellerophon attempting to reach Olympus on Pegasus. That episode belongs to later tradition and should not be treated as part of the earliest surviving account.