Mnemosyne — Classical Greek Myth Library

Marpessa, daughter of Evenus (son of Ares) and Alcippe, was sought by Idas, son of Aphareus—the strongest of men, who had received a winged chariot from Poseidon. Idas seized Marpessa and fled; Evenus pursued, failed to catch them, and slaughtered his horses then cast himself into the river thereafter called Evenus. Apollo also desired Marpessa and took her from Idas (or contested her). Idas dared to face the god with drawn bow. Zeus parted them and bade Marpessa choose. She chose Idas, fearing that Apollo—immortal—would abandon her when she grew old, as gods leave aging mortal lovers. So she preferred a mortal husband who would grow old with her. The pair’s daughter Cleopatra (also called Alcyone, because Marpessa wept like a kingfisher when Apollo carried her off) later married Meleager. Homer’s Phoenix cites the tale to illustrate how even a goddess-wooed woman may cling to a mortal house; Apollodorus gives the genealogy and the choice. The myth is Apollo’s desire checked not by force of arms alone but by a mortal woman’s reasoned preference for human fidelity over divine passion.