A few years ago on the island of Crete, archaeologists uncovered the remains of a maze. It was in the ancient city of Knossos which used to be ruled by King Minos, son of Zeus and Europa. Could this maze have been the Labyrinth, home of the mythical creature known as the Minotaur?

The story starts with Theseus whose father was Poseidon, god of the sea.. The name 'Theseus' means 'he who lies down'.

The myth tells us that the Minotaur had the body of a man and the head of a bull. It lived in the centre of the Labyrinth and it only ate human flesh.

Minos  was the King of Knossos. He had three sons and one of them, Androgeos, was murdered by a person from Athens. A war started between Athens and Knossos. Finally a peace settlement was made. Part of the settlement was that, each year, seven young men and seven young women were sent from Athens to Knossos. They were sent into the Labyrinth as sacrifices. None of them ever came back. The Labyrinth was home to the Minotaur. It was a huge maze built of stone.

One year Theseus, a young man from Athens, was chosen to be sacrificed to the Minotaur. He sailed to the island of Crete where the city of Knossos was built. He spoke to King Minos about his famous father. Minos was annoyed by Theseus's bragging. He threw a gold ring into the sea and told Theseus to get it. With the help of the gods, Theseus dived in, found the ring and returned it to King Minos. On seeing this Ariadne, daughter of King Minos, fell in love with Theseus.

Soon, Theseus faced two dangers; the Labyrinth and the Minotaur. Theseus was given some help. Daedalus, who had built the Labyrinth, gave Theseus a ball of string. Then he told Theseus how the Minotaur could be killed. The ball of string was for Theseus to find his way out of the Labyrinth if he should succeed in the battle with the monster.

Finally the day came. Theseus was given a bronze sword by a sentry and sent into the Labyrinth. He carefully tied one end of the string to the gate and unwound the string as he walked through the endless corridors. The maze went in all directions, with the high stone walls getting closer and closer together. From ahead, Theseus could hear the snorting of a bull and the stamping of feet.

Suddenly, Theseus came to a clearing; the centre of the Labyrinth. A mighty roar filled his ears as the Minotaur charged. Though it was a fearsome sight, Theseus resisted the urge to turn and run. Daedalus had told him to stand and fight the Minotaur. After a fierce battle, Theseus was exhausted but uninjured and the Minotaur was dead. By following the string, Theseus was able to find his way out of the Labyrinth.

So Theseus sailed back towards Athens. Before he had left Athens, he Aegeus, king of Athens that if he survived and killed the Minotaur, he would raise a white sail on his boat. But Theseus forgot his promise. His ship's sail was black. On seeing this, King Aegeus threw himself to his death. The sea where he died is called the Aegean Sea.

Theseus went to achieve many things. He became King of Athens. He united many of the cities near Athens. He did not marry Ariadne, but instead married Hippotya who was Queen of the Amazons. When she died, his second wife was Phaedra, who was a princess of Crete and Ariadne's sister. He led the Athenians into battle against the Amazons and the Centaurs. Finally, after a rebellion. Theseus was forced to leave Athens.

*  To read another version of this story, click here.

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