Geography Index

Mount Pelion

A distinctive mountain in Magnesia.

  Mount Pelion was the backdrop for several definitive prehistorical events.

  Pelion was the home a race of hairy beast-men. They were reared by the Nymphs of Pelion and maintained their place as aboriginal inhabitants until they reached maturity and began mating with mares—their offspring were called Centaurs (Kentauroi)—a race of sentient beings having the head, trunk, and arms of a man but the body of a horse. Others believed the Centaurs were the children of a local ruler named Ixion and his wife Nephele, which fails to account for the sheer numbers of Centaurs.

  The Centaurs demanded an equal share of Ixion's kingdom but were denied their birthright by Ixion's human son, Peirithoos (Peirithous). A bitter war broke out and Peirithoos evicted the Centaurs from Mount Pelion with the assistance of heroes like Theseus, Nestor, Dryas, Kaineus (Caeneus), Exadios (Exadius), and Polyphemos (Polyphemus).

  The war with the Centaurs occurred two generations before the Trojan War. After the Centaurs were driven from their homes on Mount Pelion they were exiled to the domain of the Aithikes (Aethices) in northwestern Greece, near the Illyrian Mountains.

  Perhaps the most notable occurrence on Mount Pelion was the marriage of Peleus and Thetis. Peleus was a brave and resourceful man who was loved by the Olympian gods. Thetis was a Neriad, a sea goddess. Thetis was reluctant to marry Peleus but after an unsuccessful series of shapeshifting maneuvers, Peleus subdued Thetis and the marriage became the defining event of that generation. As a wedding gift, Peleus was given an ashen spear cut from the mountain timber. Athene (Athena), Hephaistos (Hephaestus), and the noble Centaur Cheron fashioned the remarkable spear for Peleus, which he passed along to his son Achilles. Using the wedding as a suitable stage, the goddess Eris (Discord) initiated a feud between the goddesses Athene, Aphrodite, and Hera—the result of that quarrel became the foundation of the Trojan War. It's easy to conclude that the Trojan War started on Mount Pelion.

  During the Trojan War, Achaian (Achaean) commander Prothoos (Prothous) led the Magnetes from Mount Pelion and the vicinity of the Peneios (Peneius) River.

Latitude North, Longitude East
39.4082, 23.0665