Sources and interpretations

The best-known source for the myth of Arachne was written by Roman poet Ovid (43 BCE—17 CE) in his Metamorphoses, a work that contains numerous different accounts of mythical characters whose lives were transformed by the gods. In Ovid’s version it is clear that Arachne’s problem was one of pride or hubris, an exaggerated belief in one’s own abilities. Yet in other versions the theme is more one of Athena’s envy of a mortal whose skills are at least comparable with—and possibly even greater than—her own. In one version of

Below: This painting of Athena’s contest with Arachne is the work of Venetian artist Tintoretto (c. 1518—1594).

ARACHNE

Arachne in Art

Two of the 100 surviving works by Diego Velazquez (1599-1660) show the Spanish painter's fascination with the legend of Arachne. One is a portrait of the woman herself. The other, dated 1657-1658, is entitled Las Hilanderas ("The Women Weavers") in Spanish and The Fable of Arachne in English. The foreground of this fascinating canvas depicts Arachne in the process of weaving her fatal tapestry. This part of the painting is a partial copy of an earlier masterpiece, The Rape of

Europa by Titian (c. 1489-1576). The women with Arachne in the foreground are mysterious and unidentified; in the background, Athena is wearing an armored helmet—a reminder that she was the goddess of war, as well as of the arts. Velazquez's masterpiece now hangs in the Prado Museum in Madrid, Spain.

Below: This detail from a painting by Diego Velazquez shows Arachne busily weaving the tapestry that will cost her her life.

The legend, Athena became so jealous ofArachne’s tapestry that she tore it in two, causing Arachne to hang herself in terror.

The Arachne myth can be interpreted on a variety of levels. It is a story of the dangers of pride or envy, but also of the consequences of failing to respect the gods. It also attempts to explain a natural phenomenon—spiders’ ability to weave their webs. After her transformation, Arachne hid from Athena by weaving the rope on which she hanged herself into an intricate web. Finally, the story can be interpreted in the light of economic rivalry between the city of Athens and the region of Lydia. Historical and archaeological evidence suggests that, in the second millennium BCE, Lydia was the largest exporter of dyed woolen cloth in the Mediterranean. In this reading of the story, Athena is Athens, while Arachne symbolizes her native Lydia.

Andrew Campbell

Bibliography

Howatson, M. C. The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.

Ovid, and A. D. Melville, trans. Metamorphoses. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.

Warner, Rex. Men and Gods: Myths and Legends of the Ancient Greeks. New York: New York Review Books, 2008.