In Greek mythology, Aganippe (/ægə'nɪpiː/; Ancient Greek: Ἀγανίππη means 'mare who kills mercifully'[1]) was the name of both a spring and the Naiad (a Crinaea) associated with it.[2] The spring is in Boeotia, near Thespiae, at the base of Mount Helicon,[3] and was associated with the Muses who were sometimes called Aganippides. Drinking from her well, it was considered to be a source of poetic inspiration. The nymph is called a daughter of the river-god Permessus (called Termessus by Pausanias).[4][5] Ovid associates Aganippe with Hippocrene.[6]

Aganippe by Philip Galle (Holland, Haarlem, 1537-1612)

Notes

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  1. ^ Graves, Robert (2017). The Greek Myths - The Complete and Definitive Edition. Penguin Books Limited. pp. Index s.v. Aganippe. ISBN 9780241983386.
  2. ^ Bell, Robert E. (1991). Women of Classical Mythology: A Biographical Dictionary. ABC-CLIO. p. 14. ISBN 9780874365818.
  3. ^ Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia 4.12.1
  4. ^ Smith, "Aganippe" 1.; Pausanias, 9.29.5; Virgil. Eclogues 10.12
  5. ^ Bane, Theresa (2013). Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology. McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. p. 14. ISBN 9780786471119.
  6. ^ Ovid, Fasti 5.7

References

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  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainSmith, William, ed. (1870). "Aganippe 1". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.