< Teucrus, son of Idaea >

1 Origin

Teucrus (or Teucer, Teukros) was born in Aptera, northwest of Crete, in 1460 BC.

Teucrus' mother was Idaea (or Ida, Idothea). [Apo.3.12.1]

Idaea was the daughter of Melisseus. [Apo.1.1.6]

Melisseus ruled Crete. [HygAstro.2.13.5, Lacta.1.22.3]

2 Family

Teucrus had a daughter, Bateia (or Batia, Arisbe). [Diod.4.75.1, Apo.3.12.1, TzeAdLyco.1305]

3 Others

3.1 Migration to the Troad

In 1435 BC, Teuclus led a group of immigrants from Crete and landed near Hamaxitus in the northwest of the Anatolia Peninsula. [Strabo.13.1.48]

Teucrus founded Teucris (later Dardanus) near the Hellespontus Strait. [Antiq.1.61.4, StephByz.D218.1]

3.2 Motivations for migration

In 1438 BC, Celmis (or Kelmis, Scelmis) and Damnameneus (or Damnaneus) discovered iron on Mount Ida in Crete. [Parian.Marble.11]

Celmis and Damnameneus, called the Idaean Dactyls, also discovered iron on Cyprus. [Hesiod.ID.F2]

Teucrus's migrants called the mountain of Troad, Mount Ida, the same as the mountain of their homeland. [Strabo.13.1.48]

The Idaean Dactyls made and worked iron on Mount Ida in Troad. [Diod.17.7.5, Strabo.10.3.22]

Teucrus' mother Idaea is presumed to be the sister of Celmis and Damnameneus.

In other words, Teucrus's immigrant group included Idaean Dactyls, and it is believed that the purpose of their migration was mineral exploration.

3.3 Indigenous People

The people who settled with Teucrus were the Greeks, who were the first to settle in the northwestern part of the Anatolia Peninsula.

At that time, the land that would later become Ilium was inhabited by the people of Wilusa, a vassal state of Hittite.

The Hittites were in the final stages of the Middle Kingdom, and were in turmoil due to ongoing internal conflicts.

Teucrus was not driven out, but it is believed that there was conflict between Teucrus and Wilusa.

3.4 Living with Dardanus

In 1420 BC, Teuclus accepted Dardanus, who had migrated to the Troad from Arcadia via Samothrace, as a fellow resident. [Apo.3.12.1, Diod.5.49.2, Hesiod.CW.F102]

Teucrus and the Idaean Dactyls belonged to the Telchines, whose ancestor was Telchine, the son of Aegialeus (or Aezeius) of Sicyon. [Strabo.10.3.7]

In other words, Teuclus and Dardanus were descendants of Inachus, and it is assumed that they spoke the same language.