Jason and the Golden Fleece

Retold By: Cameron LewisDavid O’BrightAlexander Troy

One day a guy named Jason was walking through the market place looking for a new pair of sandals because he lost one of his on a long journey.

All of a sudden King Pelias and some of his soldiers rode horses into the market place.

When King Pelias went into the market he told Jason about visitors who had told him that someone with one sandal on was coming to harm King Pelias.

Jason realized King Pelias as his uncle and now Jason wanted the throne back.

King Pelias said that there was a ram with a golden fleece that was stolen. If Jason could return the fleece then the throne would be awarded to him.

Jason hired a master shipbuilder to build the Argo. The Argo was a ship for fifty rowers. Jason was going to use the Argo to sail away.

Jason and the Argonauts got tired and stopped at an island to rest. Then they found a man named Phineus who had been kidnapped by huge birds called Harpies. The Argonauts saved Phineus from the birds. Thanking Jason and the Argonauts, Phineus warned them about two crashing islands that waited ahead of them.

Phineus explained to them that when anything goes through, the islands will squeeze together and crush what tried to go through. He told Jason that when they get close to the islands they should free a dove. The islands will crush the dove and then when the islands are opening the Argonauts can go through them.

So when they got to the crushing islands, Jason set the dove free. The bird flew through and the islands crushed the bird. When the islands were opening, the Argonauts rowed the boat past the islands.

When they got to Colchis, Jason demanded that the king give up the golden fleece. The king told him that he must earn the reward. The king told him that he had to harness two fire-breathing bulls and plant a field with the teeth of a dragon.

He also told them that when he planted the teeth, soldiers would sprout and Jason would have to defeat them. Jason prayed for the gods’ help. Hera heard Jason’s prayers and took pity. She asked the god of love to shoot and arrow down on Medea (the daughter of the King of Colchis) so she would fall in love with Jason.

Medea gave Jason some magic salve to protect him from the breathing of the bulls and a magic charm which would make the warriors that sprang from the teeth try to fight against each other.

Jason completed the final task that he had to do. King Pelias refused to put the crown on Jason’s head so Medea tricked King Pelias’ daughter into killing him. Medea gave the daughter herbs that she said were supposed to be magic. King Pelias’ daughter gave him the poisonous herbs. The herbs weren’t magic so King Pelias died.

When Jason and the Argonauts returned to shore and Jason was resting, there was a strong wind. The wind took off part of the Argo and it landed on Jason and killed him. Zeus decided to make the Argo a constellation.