Hercules' Fourth Labor - The Erymanthian Boar

The Erymanthian Boar
For the fourth labor, Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him

the Erymanthian boar alive. Now, a boar is a huge, wild pig with
a bad temper, and tusks growing out of its mouth.
Dewing 2440, silver stater from Lycia in Asia Minor, c. 520-500 B.C.
Obverse: the forepart of a boar.
Photograph by Maria Daniels, courtesy of the Dewing Numismatic Foundation
This one was called the Erymanthian boar, because it lived on a

mountain called Erymanthus. Every day the boar would come
crashing down from his lair on the mountain, attacking men and
animals all over the countryside, gouging them with its tusks,
and destroying everything in its path.
Malibu 86.AE.154, Attic black figure Siana cup, c. 580-570 B.C.

A boar hunt.
Collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, California
:
On his way to hunt the boar, Hercules stopped to visit his friend
Pholus, who was a centaur and lived in a cave near Mount
Erymanthus. Everyone knows that centaur is a human from his
head to his waist, and a horse for the rest of his body and his
legs. Hercules was hungry and thirsty, so the kindly centaur
cooked Hercules some meat in the fireplace, while he himself ate
his meat raw.
London B 226, Attic black figure neck amphora, c. 530-510 B.C.

Hercules and the centaur Pholos shaking hands.
Photograph courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum, London
When Hercules asked for wine, Pholus said that he was afraid to
open the wine jar, because it belonged to all the centaurs in
common. But Hercules said not to worry, and opened it himself.
Soon afterwards, the rest of the centaurs smelled the wine and
came to Pholus's cave. They were angry that someone was
drinking all of their wine. The first two who dared to enter were
armed with rocks and fir trees.
:
RISD 22.215, Apulian red figure calyx krater, c. 430-420 B.C.
A centaur holds a rock, poised to attack Hercules.
Photograph by Brooke Hammerle, courtesy of the Museum of Art, RISD,
Providence, RI
Hercules grabbed burning sticks from the fireplace and threw

them at the centaurs, then went after them with his club.
Malibu 88.AE.24, Attic black figure amphora, c. 530-520 B.C.

Hercules rauses his club, about to hit a centaur.
Collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, California
:
He shot arrows at the rest of them and chased after them for
about twenty miles. The rest of the centaurs fled in different
directions. One of the centaurs, Chiron, received a wound that no
amount of medicine would heal...but what happened to Chiron is
another story.
While Hercules was gone, Pholus pulled an arrow from the body
of one of the dead centaurs. He wondered that so little a thing
could kill such a big creature. Suddenly, the arrow slipped from
his hand. It fell onto his foot and killed him on the spot. So when
Hercules returned, he found Pholus dead. He buried his centaur
friend, and proceeded to hunt the boar.
It wasn't too hard for Hercules to find the boar. He could hear the
beast snorting and stomping as it rooted around for something to
eat. Hercules chased the boar round and round the mountain,
shouting as loud as he could. The boar, frightened and out of
breath, hid in a thicket. Hercules poked his spear into the thicket
and drove the exhausted animal into a deep patch of snow.
Harvard 1960.314, Attic black figure neck amphora, c. 510-500 B.C.

Hercules grabs the boar's head and raises his club to strike it. On the right, the
god Hermes offers assistance.
Photograph by Maria Daniels, courtesy of Harvard University Art Museums
Then he trapped the boar in a net, and carried it all the way to
Mycenae. Eurystheus, again amazed and frightened by the hero's
powers, hid in his partly buried bronze jar.
:
Mississippi 1977.3.63, Attic black figure neck amphora, c. 540-520 B.C.
Hercules brings the boar to Eurstheus, carrying it on his shoulder. He rests his
foot on the rim of the pithos, where Eurystheus cowers.
Photograph by Maria Daniels, courtesy of the University Museums, University
of Mississippi
(wpm)
To read more about these topics, see Further Resources.
Labor 1: The Nemean Lion

Labor 2: The Lernean Hydra
Labor 3: The Hind of Ceryneia
Labor 4: The Erymanthean Boar
Labor 5: The Augean Stables
Labor 6: The Stymphalian Birds
Labor 7: The Cretan Bull
Labor 8: The Horses of Diomedes
Labor 9: The Belt of Hippolyte
Labor 10: Geryon's Cattle
Labor 11: The Apples of the Hesperides
Labor 12: Cerberus
This exhibit is a subset of materials from the Perseus Project

digital library and is copyrighted. Please send us your comments.
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The Erymanthian Boar

For the fourth labor, Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him

This one was called the Erymanthian boar, because it lived on a

Malibu 86.AE.154, Attic black figure Siana cup, c. 580-570 B.C.

London B 226, Attic black figure neck amphora, c. 530-510 B.C.

Hercules grabbed burning sticks from the fireplace and threw

Malibu 88.AE.24, Attic black figure amphora, c. 530-520 B.C.

Harvard 1960.314, Attic black figure neck amphora, c. 510-500 B.C.

To read more about these topics, see Further Resources.

Labor 1: The Nemean Lion

This exhibit is a subset of materials from the Perseus Project

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