< Tantalus, son of Clymenus >
1 Origin
Tantalus was born in Cydonia, northwest of Crete, in 1370 BC.
1.1 Father of Tantalus
The father of Tantalus is presumed to be Clymenus, son of Cardys, for the following reasons:
1) Clymenus was from Cydonia in Crete. [Paus.6.21.6]
Cydonia was near Aptera in Berecynthus. [Diod.5.64.5]
Tantalus owned Berecyntian land near Mount Ida in the Troad. [Strabo.12.8.21]
2) Pelops, son of Tantalus, who migrated from Lydia to Peloponnesus, settled in Pisa, which held Olympia, the place where Clymenus and his grandfather, the Idaean Heracles (or Acmon), held their games. [Paus.5.7.6, 5.8.1]
3) There is a tradition that Pelops, before competing with Oenomaus of Pisa, sacrificed himself in the temple of Athena surnamed Cydonian, built by Clymenus. [Paus.6.21.6]
2 Family
2.1 Tantalus' Wife
Dio Chrysostom, a 2nd century BC orator, states that the descendants of Atreus were connected to the Trojan royal family through Pelops. [DioChry.11.120]
Since Pelops' father Tantalus was not related to the Trojan royal family, it is likely that Pelops' mother was from the Trojan royal family.
The 5th century BC historian Pherecydes of Athens reports that Pelops' mother was Eurythemiste, daughter of Xanthus. [Euri.Scho.Or.11.1, FGrH.Nr333.F40]
This Xanthus is thought to be the river god Scamander, which flows through the Troad. [Home.Il.20.54]
In other words, Xanthus is Tros, the king of Troy who was one generation before Tantalus, and Eurythemiste is presumed to be Tros' daughter.
The marriage of Tantalus and Eurythemiste is presumed to have occurred in 1341 BC.
During Tros' time, Tantalus, who lived around Mount Ida, had a good relationship with the Trojan royal family.
2.2 Children of Tantalus
Tantalus had a son, Broteas. [Euri.Scho.Or.5.1, Paus.3.22.4]
Tantalus had a son, Pelops. [Diod.4.74.3, Hyginus.124, Paus.5.25.10, Strabo.7.7.1]
Tantalus had a daughter, Niobe. [Apo.3.5.6, Diod.4.74.3, Paus.8.2.5]
3 Others
3.1 Migration to Olympia
In 1345 BC, Tantalus and his father Clymenus migrated from Cydonia to Olympia. [Paus.5.8.1, Strabo.8.3.30]
3.2 Migration to Troad
In 1344 BC, Clymenus and Tantalus were banished from Olympia by Endymion, son of Aethlius, who lived in Elis. [Paus.5.8.1]
Clymenus migrated to the Troad, where he had lived as a child. [See Clymenus, son of Cardys]
3.3 Tantalus's territory
Tantalus lived in the land of Berecyntes near Mount Ida. [Strabo.12.8.21]
After Tantalus was banished by Ilus, son of Tros, the area was given to Adrastus, father of Ilus' wife Eurydice, and the area was subsequently called Adrasteia. [Apo.3.12.3, Strabo.13.1.13]
3.4 Tantalus' Marriage
In 1341 BC, Tantalus married Eurythemiste, daughter of Tros, from the Trojan royal family. [DioChry.11.120, FGrH.Nr333.F40, Euri.Scho.Or.11.1]
It is believed that Tantalus had a daughter Niobe and a son Broteas by another woman before this.
3.5 Tantalus and the Trojan Royal Family
The maternal grandfather of Tantalus' father Clymenus was the Idaean Heracles.
The Idaean Heracles was one of the Idaean Dactyls. [Paus.5.7.6, Paus.8.31.3, Strabo.8.3.30]
The Idaean Dactyls belonged to a tribe called the Telchines. [Strabo.10.3.7]
Teucrus, the ancestor of the Trojan royal family, also belonged to the Telchines. [See Teucrus]
3.6 Migration to Lydia
In 1325 BC, Tantalus was pursued by Ilus, the son of Tros, and emigrated to Lydia near Mount Sipylus. [Diod.4.74.4]
Earlier, Ilus had usurped the throne of Wilusa, a Hittite vassal state, and Troy (Wilusa) had expanded its power to the surrounding areas with the backing of Hittite military power. [See Ilus]
Tantalus fled to Pessinus, near the source of the Sangarius River in Phrygia, but was attacked by Ilus and emigrated to Lydia. [Diod.10.Fr.Incerta.3, TzeAdLyco.355]
3.7 The seizure of Arzawa's rule
Lydia, where Tantalus migrated, was ruled by Arzawa.
At that time, the king of Arzawa was Maskhuiluwa, the son of Tarhuntaradu, who succeeded Anzapahhadu. [wiki: Maskhuiluwa]
Tantalus accumulated great wealth by mining gold from the deposits around Mount Sipylus. [Strabo.14.5.28, Thucy.1.9]
It is presumed that the Idaean Dactyls, who were engaged in mining around Mount Ida, also participated in Tantalus' migration to Lydia.
Tantalus, with his wealth and the support of the Maeonians, whose leaders were descendants of Manes, whose common ancestor was Inachus of Argos, expelled Maskhuiluwa and became king of Arzawa.
Tantalus appears in Hittite texts under the name Uhha-Ziti.
3.8 Battle with the Hittites
The inhabitants of Hittite vassals fled to Arzawa, where Tantalus lived.
Tantalus refused the Hittites' demand to hand them over, and a battle ensued.
Tantalus made Apasas (Ephesus) his base and waited for the Hittite army led by Mursili II.
However, Tantalus became ill before the Hittite army reached Apasas and fled to a nearby island.
In 1318 BC, Tantalus' illness worsened and he died.
Tantalus moved his base from Mt. Sipylus to Apasas probably because it could no longer live near Mt. Sipylus due to the great earthquake.
Strabo writes that during Tantalus' reign, there was a great earthquake that caused Mount Sipylus to collapse. [Strabo.1.3.17]
