Halcyon Days – The Ancient Greek Love Story of Ceyx and Alcyone
Ceyx and Alcyone – 1750 – Carle van Loo
Days of warm sun and calm seas, Alkionides Meres, as the Greeks call them, usually appear at some time from the end of December to mid January.
When we think of Halcyon days, our minds usually turn to the long, lazy days of summer, or we associate them, with the, never to come again, tranquil, happy summer days of our childhood, yes, this is all true, but where did the term Halcyon days originally come from?
The phrase, Halcyon Days, evolved from a bittersweet Greek myth about love.
Let me tell you the story.
The Bittersweet Love Story of Ceyx and Alcyone
Illustration from Ovid Metamorphoses Florence 1832
So in love were they, they jokingly called each other Zeus and Hera, after the king and queen of Greek Gods, who were famous for their passionate love for each other, this was classed as sacrilege, and through the grapevine, it didn’t take long to reach Zeus’s ears.
Alcyone and Ceyx must be punished for their audacity, thought Zeus, I’ll bide my time, the moment is sure to present itself.
One stormy morning, Ceyx set sail to visit The Oracle at Delphi, as was the norm in those days, when advice and forethought were needed about pressing matters.
Alcyone, knowing all about the treacherous ways of the weather (had she not witnessed the storm clouds and lightning wreaking havoc around her father’s palace?) begged him not to go, or at least, to take her with him.
Ceyx, said not to worry, he would be fine and be home before she knew it, little did either of them know, that Zeus had been keeping his eye on the couple, and here was his chance to punish them.
The Drowning of Ceyx
Alcyone’s farewell to Ceyx -Christoffer Wilhelm Ekersberg 1813. National Gallery of Denmark
Alcyone was left alone on the shore to watch Ceyx disappear into the misty, darkening sea.
Ceyx was not long out to sea when tragedy struck.
A terrific storm blew up (no doubt the doings of Zeus), tossing his ship around in the furious waves, the ship was wrecked and Ceyx drowned, his last thought being of his true love, Alcyone, and with his dying breath, he pleaded with the sea-god, Poseidon, to return his body to the arms of his love.
The storm that killed Ceyx. Richard Wilson. National Museum Wales
Meanwhile, Alcyone, not knowing of the terrible fate of Ceyx, prayed to the goddess Hera, pleading to her, to keep him safe and send him home quickly.
Hearing the prayers, Hera, feeling sorry for Alcyone, as she already knew of the death of Ceyx, and sent her messenger, Iris, to Hypnos, the God of sleep, to demand that he send a vision to Alcyone, revealing the death of Ceyx.
Ceyx and Alcyone – Engraving by Doherty – 1860
Hypnos, then sent his son Morpheus, God of dreams, to visit Alcyone.
Morpheus appeared at Alcyone’s bedside in the form of Ceyx, wet and naked, and recounted the story of the shipwreck and his death.
On awakening and finding herself alone, Alcyone rushed to the shore, where she recognized something floating in the sea, it was the body of Ceyx.
Alcyone searches for Ceyx. Painting: Herbert James Draper
Alcyone threw herself into the sea.
Before she had chance to drown, Zeus, who had been watching the drama from high above, took pity on the couple and transformed both her and Ceyx into Halcyons, a type of kingfisher.
The two lovers, united again, flew off into the horizon.
Kingfisher. Painting: Carel Pieter Brest Van Kempen 2004
The Kingfisher Days
Zeus was not about to let them off lightly though and ordered that Alcyone should make her nest and lay her eggs in the winter, on the shore, at the spot where she had discovered Ceyx’s body.
But when Alcyone made her nest on the beach, the fierce waves of winter washed it away.
Again, Zeus’s heart softened and he ordered Aeolus, Alcyone’s father, to restrain his winds, which he kept imprisoned in a cave and calm the waves for fourteen days, seven before and seven after the winter solstice, in ancient Greece, the month of Poseidon, allowing Alcyone to lay her eggs.
These fourteen days became known as the ‘Halcyon Days’.
Halcyon – Kingfisher
This then, is the story of the Halcyon days.
Oh, if only Ceyx had listened to his wife, Alcyone and never gone to sea, this question would never have arisen.
