 the calydonian or aetolian boar () is one of the monsters of greek mythology that had to be overcome by heroes of the olympian age. sent by artemis to ravage the region of calydon in aetolia because its king failed to honor her in his rites to the gods, it was killed in the calydonian hunt, in which many male heroes took part, but also a powerful woman, atalanta, who won its hide by first wounding it with an arrow. this outraged some of the men, with tragic results. strabo was under the impression that the calydonian boar was an offspring of the crommyonian sow vanquished by theseus.strabo, geography viii 6.22. ==importance in greek mythology and art== the calydonian boar is one of the chthonic monsters in greek mythology, each set in a specific locale. sent by artemis to ravage the region of calydon in aetolia, it met its end in the calydonian hunt, in which all the heroes of the new age pressed to take part, with the exception of heracles, who vanquished his own goddess-sent erymanthian boar separately. since the mythic event drew together numerous heroespseudo-apollodorus, bibliotheke 1. 8. 2.âamong whom were many who were venerated as progenitors of their local ruling houses among tribal groups of hellenes into classical timesâthe calydonian boar hunt offered a natural subject in classical art, for it was redolent with the web of myth that gathered around its protagonists on other occasions, around their half-divine descent and their offspring. like the quest for the golden fleece (argonautica) or the trojan war that took place the following generation, the calydonian hunt is one of the nodes in which much greek myth comes together.  both homerphoinix's long digression on meleager and the war before calydon embodies many parallels with the war of troy: they are identified and analyzed by s. c. r. swain,
Aetolian_mythology Greek_legendary_creatures Mythological_pigs