batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l7293-l7322
---
record_id: batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l7293-l7322
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
passage_locator:
label: EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION.; lines 7293-7322
start: '7293'
end: '7322'
translation: The Metamorphoses of Ovid, Books VIII-XV
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: Æsacus was the son of Priam, and ... was changed into a didapper, or diver
summary: 'The passage summarizes ancient variant accounts concerning Æsacus: his
parentage, marriage, grief after Sterope''s death, transformation into a diving
bird, prophetic warnings about Hecuba''s offspring and Troy''s destruction, the
exposure of an infant on Mount Ida, an attempted killing of another mother and
infant to avert the prophecy, and differing authorities for the interpretation
of Hecuba''s dream.'
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Ovid and Apollodorus are said to agree that Æsacus was Priam's son and was
changed into a didapper or diver.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Apollodorus is reported to give Æsacus different parentage from Ovid, naming
Priam and Arisbe, daughter of Merope, as his parents.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Apollodorus is reported to say that Priam made Æsacus marry Sterope, who died
young, and that Æsacus threw himself into the sea in grief.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Æsacus is said to have foretold that Hecuba's progeny would cause a bloody
war ending in the destruction of Troy.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: After this prediction, an infant was exposed on Mount Ida when born.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Tzetzes is said to add that Æsacus declared both the mother and the infant
born on that same day had to be put to death.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Priam, hearing that Cilla had given birth to a son that day, ordered Cilla
and the child killed in an attempt to escape the prediction.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: Other authorities attribute interpretation of Hecuba's dream to the oracle
of Zelia, the sibyl Herophila, Cassandra, or related traditions.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: Apollodorus is said to report that Æsacus learned the art of foretelling the
future from his grandfather Merops.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Æsacus
description: Son of Priam in the summarized accounts; changed into a didapper or
diver; associated with prophecy and grief after Sterope's death.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Priam
description: Father of Æsacus; repudiates Arisbe to marry Hecuba; responds to predictions
by exposing an infant and ordering killings in one account.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Arisbe
description: Named by Apollodorus as Priam's first wife and mother of Æsacus.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Merope
description: Father of Arisbe in the account summarized from Apollodorus.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Sterope
description: Woman whom Priam made Æsacus marry; she died very young in Apollodorus'
account.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Hecuba
description: Daughter of Cisseus and Priam's wife after Arisbe; pregnant with a
second son when Æsacus makes the prophecy; associated with a dream interpreted
by various authorities.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Cisseus
description: Father of Hecuba.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: infant of Hecuba
description: Infant born after the prediction and exposed on Mount Ida.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Cilla
description: Wife of Thymætes, said by Tzetzes to have given birth to a son on the
day in question and to have been ordered killed by Priam.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: son of Cilla
description: Infant son born to Cilla on the day specified; ordered killed by Priam
in Tzetzes' account.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Thymætes
description: Husband of Cilla.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: sibyl Herophila
description: Named by Pausanias as interpreter of Hecuba's dream.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:13
name_or_label: Cassandra
description: Named by other ancient writers as interpreter of Hecuba's dream.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:14
name_or_label: Merops
description: Grandfather of Æsacus, from whom Æsacus learned foretelling according
to Apollodorus.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: transformed figure
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Æsacus is described as changed into a didapper or diver.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: prophet
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Æsacus foretells a bloody war and Troy's destruction and is said to have
learned foretelling.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: role:3
label: grieving husband
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: He is said to have been afflicted by Sterope's death and to have thrown himself
into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: royal father
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Priam is identified as Æsacus' father and the husband of Arisbe and Hecuba.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: role:5
label: attempted averter of prophecy
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Priam exposes an infant or orders killings in response to predictions, seeking
to escape their realization.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: repudiated first wife
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Priam is said to have repudiated Arisbe to marry Hecuba.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:7
label: dead young wife
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Sterope is described as dying very young after being married to Æsacus.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:8
label: pregnant queen
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Hecuba is described as pregnant of her second son when Æsacus gives the prophecy.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:9
label: exposed infant
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The infant born after the prediction is said to have been exposed on Mount
Ida.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:10
label: substitute victims
assigned_to:
- fig:9
- fig:10
basis: Cilla and her newborn son are ordered killed by Priam under the mistaken
belief that this will avert the prediction.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:11
label: dream interpreter
assigned_to:
- fig:12
- fig:13
basis: Herophila and Cassandra are named among those said to have interpreted Hecuba's
dream.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:12
label: teacher of divination
assigned_to:
- fig:14
basis: Merops is said to have taught Æsacus the art of foretelling things to come.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sea
literal_form: sea into which Æsacus throws himself
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: Mount Ida
literal_form: mountain where the infant is exposed; also associated with the town
of Zelia at its foot
associated_figures:
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: didapper or diver
literal_form: diving bird form into which Æsacus is changed
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:4
label: prophetic dream
literal_form: dream of Hecuba requiring interpretation
associated_figures:
- fig:6
- fig:12
- fig:13
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Variant account of Æsacus' parentage and transformation
summary: The explanation notes that Ovid and Apollodorus agree on Æsacus as Priam's
son and on his transformation into a diving bird, while differing on other biographical
details.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Marriage, death, and sea-leap
summary: In Apollodorus' account, Priam makes Æsacus marry Sterope; after Sterope
dies young, Æsacus grieves and throws himself into the sea.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Prophecy and exposure on Mount Ida
summary: Æsacus predicts that Hecuba's offspring will cause war and Troy's destruction,
after which the newborn infant is exposed on Mount Ida.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:6
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Attempt to escape the prediction
summary: In Tzetzes' version, Æsacus says the mother and infant born that day must
be killed; Priam orders Cilla and her newborn son killed, thinking he can avoid
the prophecy.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Competing interpreters of Hecuba's dream
summary: The passage reports multiple ancient authorities for the interpretation
of Hecuba's dream, including the oracle of Zelia, Herophila, Cassandra, and others.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
- fig:12
- fig:13
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Instruction in foretelling
summary: Æsacus is said to have learned foretelling from his grandfather Merops.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:14
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: human transformed into bird
taxonomy_refs:
- shapeshifter
basis: Æsacus is explicitly said to have been changed into a didapper or diver.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is explanatory and does not narrate the transformation scene
in detail.
- id: motif:2
label: prophecy of destructive offspring
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: Æsacus foretells that Hecuba's progeny will cause a bloody war ending in
Troy's destruction; multiple authorities are cited for dream interpretation and
divination.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The available taxonomy has no specific prophecy motif; the association
with wisdom is broad.
- id: motif:3
label: exposure of dangerous infant
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: After the prediction, the infant is exposed on Mount Ida.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy reference directly names infant exposure.
- id: motif:4
label: killing to avert prophecy
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: Priam orders Cilla and her newborn son killed in the belief that doing so
will prevent the prediction from being fulfilled.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: low
cautions: The passage describes attempted preventive killing, not an explicit ritual
sacrifice to a deity.
- id: motif:5
label: grief-driven plunge into water
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Æsacus, afflicted by Sterope's death, throws himself into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not explicitly state whether this plunge causes death
or transformation.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: quote
locator: lines 7293-7299
quote_or_summary: Ovid and Apollodorus agree that Æsacus was Priam's son and was
changed into a didapper or diver, though they differ on other circumstances; Apollodorus
names Priam and Arisbe, daughter of Merope, as his parents.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 7299-7303
quote_or_summary: Apollodorus says Priam made Æsacus marry Sterope; when Sterope
died young, Æsacus was so afflicted that he threw himself into the sea.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 7303-7310
quote_or_summary: Priam repudiates Arisbe to marry Hecuba; Æsacus sees Hecuba pregnant
and predicts that her progeny will cause a bloody war ending in Troy's destruction;
the infant is exposed on Mount Ida when born.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 7311-7318
quote_or_summary: Tzetzes adds that Æsacus said the mother and infant born that
day had to be killed; Priam, hearing that Cilla had borne a son that day, ordered
both killed to avoid the prediction.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 7318-7321
quote_or_summary: Servius, Euphorion, Cicero's quoted poet, Pausanias, and other
writers are cited for variant accounts in which the oracle of Zelia, Herophila,
or Cassandra interprets Hecuba's dream.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 7321-7322
quote_or_summary: Apollodorus says Æsacus learned from his grandfather Merops the
art of foretelling future events.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: The passage is an explanatory note summarizing mythographic variants rather
than a continuous narrative. Literal extraction is strong; motif assignment is
cautious where taxonomy terms are broad.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage mainly reports source variants and does not itself support a broader comparative mythology claim beyond those variants.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg__l7293-l7322
passage_sha256=e927704c34e1484456a4218cd889442b3322a6e79a58bb227b0db18cd1517190