Greyhounds in myth - Lelaps Greyhounds, or dogs that seem to those of us who love them to certainly be greyhounds, are mentioned and even star in some of the oldest stories told by human kind. This is a story of the Romans. Lelaps Procris was a mortal woman, a great favorite of the Goddess Diana, the goddess of hunting. Diana (also famous for her hunting hounds) made a gift of a dog to Procris. Lelaps was the swiftest of dogs and could outrun any rival. Diana also gave a javelin that would never miss its target to Procris. Procris fell in love and married a beautiful youth by the name of Cephalus. Cephalus was also a great hunter, and so Procris gave the presents of the hound and javelin to her husband. It came to pass that some angry diety had sent a ravenous fox to plague the country, snatching his prey from under the farmers very noses. All the hunters turned out in great numbers and strength to kill the fox, but their efforts failed. None had a hound that could run this supernatural fox to ground. At last the people came to Cephalus and begged him to set Lelaps, the famous gift hound from Diana, after the fox. Lelaps was loosed and darted away faster than the eye could follow. It was said that if the men had not seen his footprints in the sand they would have thought he had taken flight. Cephalus and the hunters stood on a hill and watched the pursuit. The fox tried every trick, every sly, cunning art he knew to evade the hounds. He ran in a circle and turned on his track, he doubled back, he leapt over water and trotted across fallen logs, but no trick he knew would fool swift and clever Lelaps. The hound came on relentless, breathing on the foxes heels and snapping at his brushy tail, missing by only a hair! Cephalus was about to throw the magic javelin when suddenly both dog and fox stopped, frozen in mid-motion. The heavenly powers that had given both hound and fox their powers were not willing that either should conquer – or lose. In that very moment, they turned to stone. So lifelike they were, you expected the fox to finish his leap, the dog to snap his jaws and bark. So filled with wonder he was by this, that Cephalus almost forgot to mourn the loss of Lelaps. But I wouldn’t have wanted to be the one that had to go home and tell Procris what happened to the wonderful hound she gave him. This image is available at my Graphics site. Posted: Friday 7th October 2005, 8:03 PM

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