Iphigenia
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Definition: In Greek mythology, the story of Iphigenia is one of the tragic tales about the House of Atreus. Iphigenia was the daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon. Agamemnon had angered the goddess Artemis. In order to propitiate the goddess, Agamemnon had to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia at Aulis where the Achaean fleet was impatiently waiting for a wind to cross over to Troy. In order to trick Iphigenia into coming, Agamemnon sent word to Clytemnestra that Iphigenia was to marry Achilles, so Clytemnestra willingly brought her daughter to the wedding/sacrifice.
In some versions of the story, Artemis saved Iphigenia at the last minute.
In revenge for the trickery and killing of their daughter Iphigenia, Clytemnestra killed her husband when he returned from the Trojan War.
Related Resources:
Iphigenia Resources
Elsewhere on the Web:
Iphigenia
Carlos Parada page on Iphigenia. Includes ancient sources on Iphigenia.
