The Labors and Mycenae

History of The Labors

The tale of Herakles' labors is one that has been discussed over many years.  Why was Herakles enslaved to do the labors for Eurystheus, the king of Mycenae?  Most mythographers agree that Herakles was the ruler over the citadel of Tiryns, as well as a vassal of Eurystheus (Nichols 148).  That is one of the only items in agreement concerning the labors.  The most common version of the myth dealing with the labors that he did for Eurystheus explains that Hera caused a fit of madness during which he killed his wife and his own children.  After he realized what he had done, he visited the Delphic oracle to ask what he could do to make up for his wrong doings.  The oracle tells Herakles that he must become a servant of Eurystheus for twelve years and do ten labors of the king’s choice.  There is another version in Euripides’ The Madness of Heracles that places the labors before he went mad and killed his family.  The reasons for the labors are conflicting because the Herakles legends come from many sources during many periods in time.

If we cannot rely on one version over another version one must find the truth to the labors within the labors themselves. 

Labors

The Reason for the Labors

The labors all entail Herakles' incurring major physical challenges.  The labors do not seem to have a common purpose behind them.  The first six labors all are located on the Peloponnese, while the last six occur all over the know world during Heracles’ time.  The first six labors also all deal with animal and nature adversaries (Nemean lion, Stymphalian birds, Erymanthian boar.)  The last six deal more with adversaries that are more mystical (apples of the Hesperides, belt of Hippolyte, Cerberus.)  Herakles would return after every labor victorious, and Eurystheus would send him back out for greater challenges.  What were the reasons for the labors?

A reflection of Historical Realities?

The Lion Gate of Mycenae, c. 1250 BCE

Tribute

According to legend and archaeology, researchers believe that Eurystheus ruled Mycenae during the fifteenth century BCE.  During this time, Mycenae was growing in wealth and power.  Mycenae would have had much control over satellite cities.  The parent government would watch over smaller ones and smaller cities were at the mercy of the greater power.  Power at the time was shown through ownership of material wealth and land, but mostly by military force (Nichols 148).  Payment for the larger cities to protect the smaller cities was called tribute.  Many legends have tribute in their plot. 

One such story deals with Herakles reversing a tribute payment.  There was a blood feud between the king of Minyans and the king of Thebes.  The Minyan prince defeats the Theban army, leading to the Thebans being forced to pay tribute.  While the Minyan messengers are traveling to collect their king’s tribute, they run into Herakles. 

Herakles ends up cutting the noses and ears off the messengers and hanging them around their necks.  The Minyan king reacts with a blitz of military force.  Herakles defeats the attacking army and in the process makes the Minyan king now play double the tribute to Thebes.  The balance of power was reversed (Apollodorus 2.4.11). 

Tribute and the Labors

The labors could be interpreted as a tribute from a smaller city-state of Tiryns to the larger governing party of Mycenae.  Herakles would be serving a tribute to Eurystheus; the only problem is, what is the tribute.  Herakles did not bring Eurystheus luxury goods, the loot from defeated cities, or any of the other normal tributes of the day.  Herakles’ labors seem to serve no obvious purpose to Eurystheus.  There seems to be no exchange of services or materials.  The twelve labors could be seen as a knight’s service to his king.  With Tiryns being so close to Mycenae, and having much less power than Mycenae, it would make sense that Tiryns paid tribute to Mycenae.  Herakles, the ruler of Tiryns, would be involved in the tribute.

Heracles the Hydroengineer

Herakles was well known for his heroic actions, his drinking, his eating habits, and his relationships with women.  Many other heroes of the time did the same things that make Herakles so famous.  Many scholars believe that Herakles is remembered so well because he helped the people of Greece so much.  Many believe it what Herakles did during those first six labors, which made him so famous.

In more recent times the Dutch writer, Jan Schoo says that the first six labors that happen in the Peloponnesos are engineering feats against nature.  The word use and description of the events could be connected with hydroengineering.  Several of the first six labors took place in certain areas where water was a problem to agriculture.

In the second labor, Herakles was sent to battle the Hydra of Lerna.  The creature, which had from five to hundreds of heads flowing from one neck, could be interpreted as water routes flowing from one major source.  Herakles, with the help of Iolaus, used flaming stumps to kill the heads of the Hydra, finally stopping the last head with a large bolder.  This sounds like a man trying to dam up a water flow for irrigational reasons.  The name "hydra" itself means water snake.  Lerna is a dry area most of the year but during certain time of the year, it does flood and hurt the farmers’ crops.  According to this theory, Herakles stopped the flooding and saved the city from starvation (Nichols 156). 

 In Herakles’ fifth labor, set in the same general location as the other first half of the labors, he must rid the area around the swampy Lake Stymphalia of man- eating birds that make the noise of a bronze rattle (158).  The birds could have symbolically represented the unhealthy damp fog rising from the moist marshes.  A study at Lerna showed that the early Mycenaean population suffered from malaria.  The mosquitoes would account for the mythical birds’ sharp feathers.  Herakles’ feat was to create more drainage and direct the water flow in one larger channel; the result would be a waterfall that would make sounds like a rattle. 

Final Six Labors

The subject of the final six labors is radically different from the subjects of the first six labors.  The final six labors are purely mythical and have mystical significance.  The finale six labors have connections to common myths of other cultures.

In the eleventh labor Herakles is to fetch Hera’s golden apples from a tree in her garden, the Hesperides.  The dragon Ladon guards the garden.  Herakles was told by the sea god Nereus to not pick the apples himself but to employ Atlas by relieving the giant of holding the earth on him shoulders.  Herakles tricked Atlas into stealing the apples and then brought them back to Eurystheus.  Amazed by the feat, the king set Herakles free of his labors.  Hera sent her nymphs to return the apples to her garden.

The symbols of the garden and sacred fruit have been in many cultures’ myths.  Fruit has been the symbol for the agency through which one can achieve everlasting life or paradise in many cultures.  A tree represents the life cycle or family tree.  Talking to the sea god and then tricking Atlas to get the apples shows the difficulty of the labor and has connections to other common cultural myths.  When the apple is returned to the garden it represents the denial of everlasting life.  This labor, like the other six later labors, seems to be more mystical myth that has no basis in history.  Herakles’ last six labors make no historical sense and have no dating or sequencing importance.

Demystified Herakles 

Explaining Herakles in a historic way demystifies the hero and he becomes just a hired hydro-expert.  Pausanias first observed in Mycenae, large dams and canals that looked to be great undertakings.  The manpower need for these building must have taken whole communities to finish.  The cities would even hire experts to design difficult drainage systems.  Herakles was one of these hired chief engineers.  In folk memory, Herakles would be connected to the gods for what he did for the city.  His hydro labors would be passed down from generation to generation until the actual evens were turned into mythic folklore.  Herakles, in an unromantic light, could have been nothing more then a very good plumber.  (BD)

A Mycenaean gold head of a lioness