Amymone

In Greek mythology, Amymone (the "blameless" one) was a daughter of Danaus. As the "blameless" Danaid, her name identifies her as, perhaps, identical to Hypermnestra ("great wooing" or "high marriage"), also the one Danaid who did not assassinate her Egyptian husband on their wedding night, as her 49 sisters did. (See the myth at the entry for Danaus.) The author of the Bibliotheca, in his list of names for the Danaids, does mention both Hypermnestra and Amymone, however. (Library 2.1.5)

Poseidon, in archaic times the consort of the two goddesses Demeter and Persephone in Argos, had dried up all the region's springs after the Argolid was awarded to the protection of Hera. It would appear from the myth that Poseidon preceded Hera in the heartland of her cult. But he rescued Amymone from a chthonic satyr that was about to rape her. To possess her himself, the god revealed the springs of Lerna, a cult site of great antiquity near the shores of the Argolid. To Poseidon she bore Nauplius, "the navigator," who gave his name to the port city of Argos.

The Suppliants (Aeschylus)

The Suppliants (Ancient Greek: Ἱκέτιδες, Hiketides; Latin Supplices), also called The Suppliant Maidens, or The Suppliant Women, is a play by Aeschylus. It was probably first performed sometime after 470 BC as the first play in a tetralogy, sometimes referred to as the Danaid Tetralogy, which probably included the lost plays The Egyptians (also called Aigyptioi), and The Daughters of Danaus (also called The Danaids or The Danaides), and the satyr play Amymone. It was long thought to be the earliest surviving play by Aeschylus due to the relatively anachronistic function of the chorus as the protagonist of the drama. However, evidence discovered in the mid-20th century shows it one of Aeschylus' last plays, definitely after The Persians and possibly after Seven Against Thebes.

Plot of The Suppliants

The Danaids form the chorus and serve as the protagonists. They flee a forced marriage to their Egyptian cousins. When the Danaides reach Argos, they entreat King Pelasgus to protect them. He refuses pending the decision of the Argive people, who decide in the favor of the Danaids. Danaus rejoices the outcome, and the Danaids praise the Greek gods. Almost immediately, a herald of the Egyptians comes to attempt to force the Danaids to return to their cousins for marriage. Pelasgus arrives, threatens the herald, and urges the Danaids to remain within the walls of Argos. The play ends with the Danaids retreating into the Argive walls, protected.