batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l2976-l3057
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l2976-l3057
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
passage_locator:
label: ARTEMIS (DIANA). / ARCADIAN ARTEMIS. / EPHESIAN ARTEMIS. / BRAURONIAN ARTEMIS.;
lines 2976-3057
start: '2976'
end: '3057'
translation: Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage recounts the Taurian cult of Artemis, its law of sacrificing
strangers, the near-sacrifice of Iphigenia at Aulis after Agamemnon offends Artemis,
Artemis's substitution of a deer and removal of Iphigenia to Taurica, and the
later arrival of Orestes and Pylades, whose threatened sacrifice leads to sibling
recognition and escape.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Greek settlers in Taurica identified a native Scythian divinity with Artemis,
and the Taurian Artemis was said to require the sacrifice of all strangers landing
or shipwrecked on her shores.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Agamemnon accidentally killed a stag grazing in a grove sacred to Artemis
while the Greek fleet was assembled at Aulis.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Artemis responded by sending continuous calms that delayed the fleet, and
Calchas declared that Iphigenia had to be sacrificed to appease the goddess.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Agamemnon sent for Iphigenia under the pretext that Achilles wanted to marry
her.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Iphigenia pleaded for her life, but was bound to the altar and prepared for
sacrifice.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: At the moment of sacrifice Iphigenia disappeared, a deer appeared in her place
on the altar, and Artemis conveyed her in a cloud to Taurica.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: In Taurica, Iphigenia became a priestess of Artemis and was charged with duties
that included offering human sacrifices.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: Orestes and Pylades came to Taurica to obtain the statue or image of the Taurian
Artemis because an oracle said this would pacify the Furies pursuing Orestes.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: After landing in Taurica, Orestes and Pylades were seized by the natives and
taken to the temple of Artemis for sacrifice.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:10
text: Iphigenia asked one of the Greek strangers to carry a letter to her family,
and Orestes and Pylades each urged the other to accept life and freedom.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:11
text: The letter was addressed to Orestes; Iphigenia and Orestes recognized each
other as siblings, and Iphigenia escaped with Orestes and Pylades.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Artemis / Taurian Artemis
description: Goddess identified with a Taurian divinity; her cult requires stranger-sacrifice,
she delays the Greek fleet after a sacred stag is killed, and she rescues Iphigenia
by substituting a deer.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Scythian inhabitants / Taurian natives
description: Inhabitants of Taurica associated with the native divinity and later
seize Orestes and Pylades for sacrifice.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Iphigenia
description: Agamemnon's daughter, nearly sacrificed at Aulis, saved by Artemis,
made priestess in Taurica, and later reunited with her brother Orestes.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Agamemnon
description: Commander of the Greek fleet and father of Iphigenia; he kills the
sacred stag, is told to sacrifice his daughter, and sends for her under a marriage
pretext.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Calchas
description: Soothsayer who declares that Iphigenia must be sacrificed to appease
Artemis.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Odysseus and other generals
description: Military leaders who deliberate with Agamemnon and persuade him that
the sacrifice must be made for the welfare of the state.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Clytemnaestra
description: Agamemnon's wife and Iphigenia's mother, who sends Iphigenia to Aulis
after receiving the false marriage pretext.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Achilles
description: Hero named in Agamemnon's pretext that Iphigenia is to be sent to Aulis
for marriage.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Orestes
description: Brother of Iphigenia, pursued by the Furies, who travels to Taurica
to obtain the image of Artemis and is later recognized by Iphigenia.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Pylades
description: Cousin and faithful friend of Orestes, who accompanies him to Taurica
and agrees to bear Iphigenia's letter.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Furies
description: Pursuing powers angered by Orestes' avenging of Agamemnon's murder.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: Oracle of Delphi
description: Oracular authority that tells Orestes to convey the image of Taurian
Artemis from Tauris to Attica to pacify the Furies.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: offended goddess and divine rescuer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Artemis demands appeasement after the sacred stag is killed, yet also rescues
Iphigenia by substituting a deer and transporting her to Taurica.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:2
label: endangered daughter turned priestess
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Iphigenia is selected for sacrifice, saved at the altar, and then becomes
priestess of Artemis in Taurica.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: conflicted father and commander
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Agamemnon resists sacrificing Iphigenia, is persuaded by arguments about
public welfare, and then summons her by deception.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: soothsayer interpreting divine demand
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Calchas states that only Iphigenia's sacrifice will appease Artemis.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:5
label: war-council persuaders
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Odysseus and other generals debate the crisis and persuade Agamemnon that
private feeling must yield to the state.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: questing brother
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: Orestes travels to Taurica to obtain Artemis's image and is revealed as Iphigenia's
brother.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: role:7
label: self-sacrificing companion
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: Pylades accompanies Orestes despite danger and participates in the dispute
over which friend should accept life and freedom.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: pursuing avengers
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: The Furies pursue Orestes after he avenges Agamemnon's murder.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:9
label: oracular authority
assigned_to:
- fig:12
basis: The oracle instructs Orestes how to pacify the Furies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:10
label: captors enforcing sacrifice law
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The natives seize Orestes and Pylades and convey them for sacrifice to Artemis's
temple.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sacrificial altar
literal_form: altar of Artemis
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: stag or deer
literal_form: stag killed in the sacred grove; deer substituted for Iphigenia on
the altar
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: cloud conveyance
literal_form: cloud carrying Iphigenia to Taurica
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: image of Taurian Artemis
literal_form: statue or image of the Taurian Artemis
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:5
label: recognition letter
literal_form: letter from Iphigenia addressed to Orestes
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: sym:6
label: temple of Artemis at Taurica
literal_form: temple where Iphigenia serves and where strangers are taken for sacrifice
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Taurian stranger-sacrifice law
summary: The Taurian Artemis is described as a divinity whose worship requires strangers
landing or shipwrecked on her shores to be sacrificed.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Aulis crisis and substitution
summary: After Agamemnon kills Artemis's sacred stag, the fleet is delayed, Iphigenia
is summoned under a false marriage pretext and prepared for sacrifice, but Artemis
replaces her with a deer and removes her to Taurica.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:3
label: Orestes and Pylades in Taurica
summary: Orestes and Pylades arrive to obtain Artemis's image, are seized by natives,
and are brought to Artemis's temple for sacrifice.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
- fig:12
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:4
label: Letter recognition and escape
summary: Iphigenia's letter reveals Orestes' identity; the siblings recognize each
other, and Iphigenia escapes from Taurica with Orestes and Pylades.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: human sacrifice demanded by a deity
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The Taurian Artemis requires stranger-sacrifice, and Calchas declares that
Iphigenia must be sacrificed to appease Artemis after the sacred stag is killed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The passage is a later handbook retelling; it summarizes cultic and mythic
material rather than presenting a primary ritual text.
- id: motif:2
label: animal substitution averts human sacrifice
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: Iphigenia is bound for sacrifice, but Artemis makes her disappear and places
a deer on the altar in her stead.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not frame the substitution as a general rule; it is a
single narrative rescue.
- id: motif:3
label: divine punishment and appeasement after sacrilege
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: Agamemnon kills a stag in Artemis's sacred grove; Artemis sends calms, and
a human sacrifice is declared necessary to appease her wrath.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The judgment is mediated through Calchas's interpretation in the narrative.
- id: motif:4
label: quest to remove or convey a sacred image
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_theft
basis: Orestes and Pylades travel to Taurica to obtain the statue or image of Taurian
Artemis and convey it to Attica as instructed by the oracle.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage states the objective to obtain and convey the image, but the
provided excerpt does not explicitly narrate the image's seizure or successful
transfer.
- id: motif:5
label: sibling recognition after separation
taxonomy_refs:
- sibling_pair
basis: Iphigenia and Orestes recognize each other as brother and sister after the
letter is found to be addressed to Orestes.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The taxonomy reference captures the sibling pair, while the recognition
device itself is more specific than the available taxonomy label.
- id: motif:6
label: self-sacrificing friendship
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Orestes and Pylades each ask the other to accept life and freedom when one
can carry Iphigenia's letter.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly names devoted friendship, so no taxonomy
reference is assigned.
- id: motif:7
label: escape from a land of ritual danger
taxonomy_refs:
- return
basis: Iphigenia, long exiled in Taurica and serving in a violent cult, escapes
with Orestes and Pylades after recognizing her brother.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:7
confidence: medium
cautions: The excerpt states escape from Taurica but does not narrate arrival back
home, so the return motif is only partially represented.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 2976-2987
quote_or_summary: Taurica is described as colonized by Greeks who identified a native
Scythian divinity with Artemis; her law requires all strangers landing or shipwrecked
there to be sacrificed on her altars.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 2989-3002
quote_or_summary: At Aulis, Agamemnon kills a stag in Artemis's sacred grove; Artemis
sends continuous calms, and Calchas says Iphigenia must be sacrificed to appease
her.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 3002-3015
quote_or_summary: Odysseus and other generals persuade Agamemnon that the sacrifice
must proceed; Agamemnon sends for Iphigenia by telling Clytemnaestra that Achilles
wants to marry her.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 3015-3028
quote_or_summary: Iphigenia pleads for life and is bound to the altar; before the
knife falls, Artemis replaces her with a deer, carries her in a cloud to Taurica,
and makes her priestess in the temple.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 3029-3043
quote_or_summary: Years later, Orestes and Pylades come to Taurica to obtain the
statue or image of Taurian Artemis because the Delphic oracle says this will pacify
the Furies pursuing Orestes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 3043-3052
quote_or_summary: Orestes and Pylades are seized by natives and taken for sacrifice;
Iphigenia asks one stranger to carry a letter home, and the two friends dispute
which of them should accept life and freedom.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 3052-3057
quote_or_summary: Pylades sees that the letter is addressed to Orestes; Iphigenia
and Orestes recognize each other, and she escapes with Orestes and Pylades from
Taurica.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: The extraction relies only on the supplied public-domain passage. Motif candidates
are evidence-based, but several available taxonomy labels are broader than the
exact narrative patterns. No comparison claims were generated.
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 external sources or unprovided variants were used.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg__l2976-l3057
passage_sha256=ac1b764462dc6bbd059d6b2f56e7e173639a203ec0119c33e5da1f82b90df4a2