Polybus
Polybus
Corinthe antique
7 min read
In Greek mythology, Polybus is the king of Corinth who takes in and raises Oedipus, abandoned as a child, knowing nothing of his true origins. Oedipus believes himself to be his legitimate son, which drives him to flee Corinth to escape the oracle foretelling that he will kill his father and marry his mother.
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Legendary king of Corinth, husband of Merope (or Periboea according to some versions)
- Takes in and raises Oedipus, a child abandoned by Laius and Jocasta, king and queen of Thebes
- Raises Oedipus as his own son, never revealing the adoption
- His death, reported to Oedipus, leads the latter to believe he has escaped the prophecy of patricide
- A central figure of the Theban cycle, notably taken up in Sophocles' Oedipus Rex (5th century BC)
Works & Achievements
Taking in the abandoned child and raising him as a prince of Corinth is **Polybus**'s central act. Without this kind-hearted adoption, the tragic fate of Oedipus could never have come to pass.
**Polybus** rules the wealthy city of the isthmus, portrayed as a stable and prosperous kingdom. His kingship grants Oedipus a princely standing throughout his youth.
On the death of **Polybus**, the Corinthians send a messenger to offer the crown to Oedipus. This promised succession paradoxically triggers the revelation of the hero's origins.
**Polybus** and **Merope** let Oedipus believe he is their legitimate son. This family secret is the mechanism that drives Oedipus to consult **Delphi** and then to flee.
Anecdotes
According to mythological tradition, shepherds belonging to King Polybus found an abandoned infant on Mount Cithaeron, his ankles pierced and bound. They brought him to Corinth, where the childless Polybus and his wife Merope adopted him and raised him as their own son.
The very name of Oedipus (*Oidipous*), often interpreted as “swollen feet” in Greek, recalls the ankle wounds the child bore when he was entrusted to the court of Polybus. Raised as a Corinthian prince, he had no idea throughout his youth that he was not the king's son.
During a banquet, a drunken guest taunted Oedipus that he was merely a supposed child and not the true son of Polybus. Troubled, the young man went to consult the oracle of Delphi, which proclaimed that he would kill his father and marry his mother: believing Polybus and Merope to be his parents, he fled Corinth never to return.
According to Sophocles, it is the natural death of old Polybus that reassures Oedipus for a moment: a Corinthian messenger comes to announce the death and offer him the throne. Oedipus rejoices at having escaped the parricidal oracle — before learning, from that very same messenger, that he was only an adopted child.
In several versions, it is the Corinthian shepherd who received the child from the hands of a servant of Laius, king of Thebes. The figure of Polybus thus links two cities, Corinth and Thebes, and his well-meaning ignorance is the tragic mechanism that makes Oedipus's destiny possible.
Primary Sources
Polybus of Corinth was my father, and my mother was Merope, a Dorian. I was looked upon as the foremost of the citizens.
The Messenger: Polybus was no kin to you by blood. — Oedipus: What are you saying? Polybus did not father me? — The Messenger: No more than I did; he and I alike were strangers to you.
The child was taken in and brought to Polybus, king of Corinth, who raised him; and because his feet were swollen from the bonds, he named him Oedipus.
The shepherds of Polybus found the exposed child and brought him to Queen Periboea (Merope), who raised him as her own son.
Key Places
City where Polybus is king and where Oedipus grows up as an adopted prince. A commercial crossroads located on the isthmus linking the Peloponnese to mainland Greece.
Mountain between Thebes and Corinth where the infant Oedipus was exposed, then taken in by Polybus's shepherds. A wild place laden with omens in Theban mythology.
Sanctuary of Apollo where Oedipus consults the oracle that seals his fate. It is here that he learns the prophecy driving him to flee Polybus and Corinth.
Oedipus's true city of origin, ruled by Laius and then by Oedipus himself. The complete opposite of Polybus's peaceful Corinth, it is the place where the truth will come to light.
Residence of Polybus and Merope, where Oedipus is raised in ignorance of his origins. The heart of Corinthian power and the setting of the hero's happy childhood.