(), a daughter of Minos and Pasiphae or Creta.
(Apollod. 3.1.2.) When Theseus was sent by his father to
convey the tribute of the Athenians to Minotaurus, Ariadne fell in love with him, and gave him
the string by means of which he found his way out of the Labyrinth, and which she herself had
received from Hephaestus. Theseus in return promised to marry her (Plut. Thes. 19; Hyg. Fab. 42 ; Didym. ad Odyss. 11.320), and she accordingly left Crete with him; but when they arrived in
the island of Dia (Naxos), she was killed there by Artemis. (Hom.
Od. 11.324.) The words added in the
Odyssey, Διονύσου μαρτυρίῃσιν, are difficult to understand, unless we interpret them
with Pherecydes by " on the denunciation of Dionysus," because he was indignant at the
profanation of his grotto by the love of Theseus and Ariadne. In this case Ariadne was
probably killed by Artemis at the moment she gave birth to her twin children, for she is said
to have had two sons by Theseus, Oenopion and Staphylus. The more common tradition, however,
was, that Theseus left Ariadne in Naxos alive; but here the statements again differ, for some
relate that he was forced by Dionysus to leave her (Diod. 4.61,
5.51; Paus. 1.20.2, 9.40.2, 10.29.2), and that in his
grief he forgot to take down the black sail, which occasioned the death of his father.
According to others, Theseus faithlessly forsook her in the island, and different motives are
given for this act of faithlessness. (Plut. Thes. 20; Ov. Met. 8.175, Heroid. 10 ; Hyg. Fab. 43.) According to this tradition, Ariadne put an end to her
own life in despair, or was saved by Dionysus, who in amazement at her beauty made her his
wife, raised her among the immortals, and placed the crown which he gave her at his marriage
with her, among the stars. (Hesiod. Theog. 949; Ov. Met.
l.c. ; Hygin. Poet. Astr. 2.5.) The Scholiast on Apollonius Rhodius
(3.996) makes Ariadne become by Dionysus the mother of Oenopion, Thoas, Staphylus, Latromis,
Euanthes, and Tauropolis. There are several circumstances in the story of Ariadne which
offered the happiest subjects for works of art, and some of the finest ancient works, on gems
as well as paintings, are still extant, of which Ariadne is the subject. (Lippert, Dactylioth. 2.51, 1.383, 384; Maffei, Gem. Ant. 3.33;
Pitture d'Ercolano, ii. tab. 14 ; Bellori, Adm. Rom.
Antiq. Vest. tab. 48; Böttiger, Archaeol, Mus. part i.) [L.S]