The Quest for the Golden Fleece
Jason gathers the Argonauts and sails aboard the Argo to Colchis in search of the Golden Fleece.
The Story
Jason's claim to power in Iolcus brought him into conflict with King Pelias.
Pelias feared the young hero and found a way to send him on what appeared to be an impossible mission.
Jason was ordered to bring back the Golden Fleece from distant Colchis.
To reach it, he assembled a company of heroes aboard the ship Argo.
The crew became known as the Argonauts.
Their number and membership vary between ancient sources, but the group came to include some of the greatest figures of the Heroic Age.
Heracles was counted among them in many traditions.
Orpheus brought his music.
Castor and Polydeuces joined the expedition, along with numerous kings, princes and heroes.
The voyage itself became a chain of adventures.
The Argonauts encountered strange peoples, dangerous coastlines, monsters and divine obstacles.
One of the most famous challenges involved the Symplegades, the Clashing Rocks that crushed ships attempting to pass between them.
The Argonauts successfully navigated the danger and eventually reached Colchis.
But arriving at the Golden Fleece did not mean they could simply take it.
King Aeetes had no intention of surrendering the treasure.
Instead he demanded that Jason complete a series of deadly trials.
Jason now needed more than courage and a famous crew.
He needed someone inside Colchis willing to help him.
That person was Medea.
Key Figures
Why It Matters
The Argonaut expedition is one of the earliest great ensemble adventures in Greek mythology and brings together many heroic traditions into a single voyage.
Traditions & Variations
Ancient authors disagree extensively about the Argonaut crew, the order of the voyage and individual adventures. Apollonius of Rhodes provides the most complete surviving literary version.