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Judgment of Paris: A Myth on Mount Ida
Dossier in brief
Place, time and memory in one narrative.
On Ida, three divine promises meet a single decision. In Pseudo-Apollodorus’s account, Alexandros’s choice turns a mythic judgment toward Sparta and Helen’s departure.
Mythological narrative · Undated mythological narrative · A link to today · deniz-doga
The apple reaches Ida
One apple, three goddesses, one judge. In the Epitome 3.2 of Pseudo-Apollodorus’s Library, Eris throws an apple as a prize of beauty among Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Zeus sends Hermes to bring them to Ida to be judged by Alexandros, called Alexander in the published translation. The passage gives the scene no historical year; it belongs to myth, not a dated event.
Three promises, one choice
Each goddess offers more than praise. Hera promises rule over all people, Athena victory in war, and Aphrodite the hand of Helen. Alexandros chooses Aphrodite. The story turns on the future each promise opens, and on the judge’s decision between them.
From Ida to Sparta
At the end of Epitome 3.2, Alexandros sails to Sparta in ships built by Phereclus. The next section tells how Helen leaves with him. A judgment on a mountain gives way to a voyage across the sea; the text names Ida but does not describe a precise summit.
A name carried in place memory
The Kazdağı and Mount Ida entry offers a route into the mountain’s mythic place memory. It keeps the story connected to the Aegean landscape without turning its scene into a datable historical occurrence. The apple remains the tale’s hinge: three promises gathered into one choice, then carried toward Sparta.