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Palaephatus · 4th century BC or later

On Unbelievable Tales

Περὶ ἀπίστων
Ancient Sources / Palaephatus / On Unbelievable Tales

Forty-five short chapters, each retelling a famous myth and then giving “the truth” (τὸ ἀληθές): the actual event from which, in the author’s view, the story grew. Centaurs are horsemen, the Sphinx a rebel Amazon, the golden fleece a golden statue. The text is an epitome of a larger work; the proem states the author’s method. The English is a new GreekMythology.com translation of Festa’s Teubner text of 1902.

Read from the start
Text
Greek original with English translation, 8 passages, about 9100 words in English.
Translator
GreekMythology.com (2026)
Edition
Nicola Festa (ed.), Palaephati Περὶ ἀπίστων, in Mythographi Graeci III.2, Leipzig: Teubner, 1902
Cite as
Palaephatus, On Unbelievable Tales 0.1 (by chapter)

Contents · 8 passages

  1. 0.1–3Preface, Proem, Centaurs, Pasiphae, the Sown Men2014 words
  2. 4–8Sphinx, Fox, Actaeon, Horses, Niobe948 words
  3. 9–14Lynceus, Caeneus, Cycnus, Daedalus and Icarus, Atalanta, Callisto633 words
  4. 15–21Europa, the Horse, Aeolus, Hesperides, Hundred-Handers, Scylla, Daedalus’ Statues864 words
  5. 22–29Phineus to Pelops1324 words
  6. 30–32Phrixus, the Phorcides, the Amazons1232 words
  7. 33–39Orpheus to Cerberus1136 words
  8. 40–45Alcestis to the Horn of Amalthea920 words

English translation by GreekMythology.com (2026). Original text: Nicola Festa (ed.), Palaephati Περὶ ἀπίστων, in Mythographi Graeci III.2, Leipzig: Teubner, 1902.

Text layer: Greek text: public domain (Festa, Teubner 1902; our OCR correction of the Internet Archive scan mythographigrae01festgoog). English translation © GreekMythology.com.. Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.