a t a l a n t a
The story of Atalanta is given in Edith Hamilton's Mythology: Atalanta's father was
bitterly disappointed that she was born a girl, not a boy; so disappointed in fact that
he left the baby to die in the wilderness. A she-bear claimed her and cared for her until
she was adopted by some kind hunters. She became an excellent hunter herself and joined some of the
best hunters in Greece to fight the Calydonian boar, a terrible beast sent by Artemis out of
pique because King Oeneus forgot the goddess when it was time to sacrifice the first fruits of the harvest.
It was Atalanta's arrow that was the first to wound the boar; the King's son Meleager delivered
the death blow. Meleager had fallen in the love the skilled huntress, and he gave her the skin of
the boar, since it was her arrow that enabled him to move in for the kill. The story might have
ended happily if Meleager hadn't killed his uncles and Meleager's mother hadn't have killed
Meleager in her anger and vengeance. (The uncles were angry Meleager gave the skin to Atalanta,
Meleager was angry at the uncles, and it all went downhill from there.) Instead, Atalanta
returned to the woods and various adventures, including successfully wrestling the young man
who would be Achilles' father. Remember him? Of course you don't! See
Amphitrite's story. Atalanta did marry, thanks to interference and trickery from
Aphrodite, whom she and her daring husband must have offended at some point because they were
both turned into lions. Amethyst the gemstone is attributed with alleviating sadness and dissolving
negativity, but the color purple is associated with royalty, luxury, power and
ambition. I like to think that Atalanta would have understood the benefits of both. The deep purple
pendant in this necklace is fashioned by the talented artisans of SilverRocks, and it's paired
with a strong but delicate 1mm sterling silver box chain.
Cost: $44.00 USD
Cost of gift shipment (domestic shipping only): $5.95 USD
m a k e i t a g i f t
s h i p m e n t :
Looking to ship this item separately as a gift? Gift shipment includes gift boxing and an occasion specific
card sent to the recipient via USPS Priority Mail. Fill out the fields below including this
jewelry item name, the recipient name and address, and occasion and this item will be
sent to the recipient with a card and note. See the gift box section
for samples of shipments with different occasion specific cards. Cost of gift shipment (domestic shipping only): $5.95 USD
c a t e g o r i e s :
- Color: purple
- Material: quartz rocks
- Type: necklace - mid
- Geek Chic: literary allusions
- Cool Finds: cool stones
- Something Special: iconic pieces
The pendant and chain are robust to toddler tugs, but as with
all beaded jewelry: do not let young toddlers chew on it.
