Person · mythic_figure
Iphigenia
- Region
- Greek myth / Tauris
Mythic and dramatic daughter of Agamemnon. In Iphigenia among the Taurians, Artemis rescues her at the altar and substitutes a deer.
Metadata
These are descriptive fields, not conclusions.
- Edition
- 3
Text
Iphigenia is a figure of Greek myth and drama, presented as the daughter of Agamemnon, leader of the Greek expedition against Troy. No independent historical document establishes her as a historical person. [1]
In the opening of Euripides' Iphigenia among the Taurians (c. 414–412 BCE), she says that a false marriage promise brought her to Aulis. At the altar ArtemisArtemisGoddess of hunting in Greek traditions and Apollo’s sister, named among the divine company in the Iliad.Glossary · Click to read the explanation rescued her, left a deer to be killed in her place and carried her to the Taurian land. This ending of one play should not be assigned to every version of the myth, and a later image is not evidence that the narrated event occurred. [1][2]
References and notes
- Opening speech in English translation; not the entire play. Opening of Iphigenia among the Taurians, Gilbert Murray translation, lines 92–119; read 14 October 2026. Return to the text ↑
- Second-century BCE Boeotian bowl showing scenes from Iphigenia at Aulis, not the rescue in the other play. The Met, object 31.11.2, curatorial description and rights; read 14 October 2026. Return to the text ↑
Research history
Substantive changes are retained here. Minor copy edits remain in the internal operational log.
-
Substantive record update
-
Substantive record update
Suggest a correction · Suggest a source for this record
Cite this record
IL Archive, «Iphigenia», Edition 3, https://ilarchive.com/en/people/iphigenia