Calypso

Calypso bound within the human-form of Tia Dalma

**Calypso** is a sea-goddess from the *Pirates of the Caribbean* films.

## History

### Mythology

Calypso originates from Hellenic greek mythology where she was a minor nymph (ocean affiliated nature spirit). She was the daughter of the titan Atlas and another nymph named Pleione. She is most notable for her role in the story of The Odyssey where she seduced the hero Ulysses to stay with her on the isle of Ogygia for seven years before he escaped out of love for his wife Penelope.

### Pirates of the Caribbean (films)

In the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, Calypso is the goddess of the sea and the personification of it. She came to seduce a mortal sailor named Davy Jones who she gifted with immortality at a great cost. Jones would be made the captain of the Flying Dutchman, a supernatural ship which ferried the souls of those who died at sea to the afterlife. However, this position resulted in Jones not being able to step foot on dry land except for one day every ten years, a day arranged for him and Calypso to be together.

For ten years Jones served his duty as captain of the Dutchman but on the one day that he and Calypso could be together, she didn't show up. Heart-broken, Jones made an arrangement with the first Brethren Court, an international organization of pirates who wished to bind Calypso so that they could control the seas for themselves. The arrangement succeeded and Calypso was bound within the human form of a Haitian woman named Tia Dalma as Davy Jones proceeded to lock away his heart and corrupt his purpose.

In this form, Tia Dalma took up residence in a shack within a bayou along the Pantano River on the isle of Cuba. She would come to be affiliated with Captain Jack Sparrow who she gifted with a magic compass that pointed to whatever the user wanted most in the world. Years later, she assisted Jack Sparrow in his search for the chest containing Jones' beating heart and later guided his crew to Davy Jones' Locker to resurrect Jack following his death at the hands of the kraken. In 1729, the fourth Brethren Court of Shipwreck Cove decided free Calypso after the East India Trading Company enslaved Davy Jones to be an agent of British imperialism. After being freed, Calypso would betray the Court and create a maelstrom which terrorized the pirates, British and Flying Dutchman.

## Appearances and allusions

### A Pirate's Adventure: Treasures of the Seven Seas

Calypso created the Treasures of the Seven Seas in this attraction and her voice is present throughout several missions.

## Connections

### Jungle Cruise

In the interactive attraction *A Pirate's Adventure: Treasures of the Seven Seas*, Calypso is revealed to have created and enchanted seven different treasures. One of these treasures is the Treasure of the Pacific, possessed by Adventureland's headhunters.

#### Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar

in Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar, one of the two lockets that Davy Jones and Calypso possessed is in Sam's display case.

#### Trader Sam's Grog Grotto

The shell, "Shelley" in the bar resembles a giant clam which Calypso used to speak with mortals.

### Tortuga Tavern

The jar of dirt which Calypso gave Jack as Tia Dalma can be found in the backroom of this Tortuga tavern.

## Trivia

* Greek mythological figures related to Calypso have appeared in other Disney attractions. This includes a statue of Zeus in the Adventurers Club which was known as, "Zeus goes fishing", Hades serving as main-antagonist in Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom, an amphora portraying a battle between Heracles and the Nemean Lion in Mystic Manor, Medusa's portrait in the Haunted Mansion, and a statue head of Poseidon in Mystic Point.

## References

1. ↑ https://www.instagram.com/p/Bem3CQMFiDj/
2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUa0BI5qOAo
3. ↑ http://www.fromscreentotheme.com/FunFindFriday.aspx