Talos

 This one came to me in the form a crossword puzzle clue: "ancient Greek robot." It was recent, so maybe some of you have come across it too. Although no expert, I have read or at least read about a fair number of the ancient Greek classics,  so I was pleasantly surprised to discover a new character. And for some reason, the idea that the ancient Greeks were as fascinated by robots as we are charmed me. Although I suppose I should have gathered that from the Trojan horse. Which, of course, was Greek.

Talos, armed with a stone

Here's what Wikipedia has to say about Talos:

In Greek mythology, Talos, also spelled Talus or Talon was a giant automaton made of bronze to protect Europa in Crete from pirates and invaders. He circled the island's shores three times daily.

But apparently there was more than one theory about who or what Talos was. The one above has Zeus asking the god Hephaestus, who was the god of fire and metalwork among other things, to make this metal man. But in other versions he is a descendent from the race of brass people. I found this relevant passage in Hesiod's Works and Days. Hesiod tells us that the gods made different races of men in rapidly declining order of excellence, starting with gold, silver and then bronze (humans coming decidedly further down the scale).

Hesiod--or someone's idea of him anyway

Then Zeus the father made yet a third race of men, the bronze, not like the silver in anything. Out of ash-trees he made them, a terrible and fierce race, occupied with the woeful works of Ares and with acts of violence, no eaters of corn, their stern hearts being of adamant; unshapen hulks, with great strength and indescribable arms growing from their shoulders above their stalwart bodies. They had bronze armour, bronze houses, and with bronze they laboured, as dark iron was not available. They were laid low by their own hands, and they went to chill Hades house of decay leaving no names: mighty though they were, dark death got them, and they left the bright sunlight.

                                                                                --translated by M. L. West

Or he may have been a brass bull. Which I have just learned was a well documented instrument of ancient Greek torture. But we're not going there today.

There are a couple of things that fascinated me about the story of Talos. One is that even this early version of a robot was described as having human emotions, and as you will see below, his desires proved his undoing, a very human failing. 

The other thing that seems to persist through many versions of his story is that he was fueled by one vein, which ran up and down his body and was full of ichor. What is ichor, you ask? It is the celestial blood of the gods. I have always pronounced it as ICK-or when I've come across it, which made it sound disgusting, but apparently it's more like EYE-core (American English) or EYE-cur (British English), either of which is much more palatable. 

As I sought out usable images I came across a strange one. It is of a statue found on Guildhall Street behind the Lion Yard Centre in Cambridge, England. . It was sculpted by Michael Ayrton and it was posted on a blog called "Art in Cambridge" by a woman named Nina Lübben. Her post contains more photos of this statue and others by the sculptor. Here's a link. And here's a little quote I found from the sculptor himself within it:

A certain tranquillity lies in his stupid presence, a certain comfort.  He has no brains and no arms, but looks very powerful.

Talos, by Michael Ayrton

The article asks if this is the ugliest statue in Cambridge, but I find it rather poignant.

It turns out that Talos, or at least someone called Talos has made his way into modern culture even if I've personally been ignorant of this. (What else is new? It's the name of the blog, people.) There is a very impressive Talos (for its time) in the 1963 movie Jason and the Argonauts.

And the gaming world is familiar with at least the name Talos, as he is a god in the game The Elder Scrolls/Skyrim, though not a bronze automaton. But there is a newer entry in the gaming universe, The Talos Principal, which seems quite germane. According to Wikipedia:

The game features a philosophical storyline. The name of the game refers to a philosophical principle formulated by a fictional Greek philosopher known as Straton of Stageira. In texts found in the game, Straton argues that the consciousness of Talos of Greek mythology (a mechanical yet conscious man) implies that humans are also merely machines (albeit biological ones). 

And of course I can't forget to mention that Talos has even made his way into the world of TED Talks in the form of this very charming very short animated film by Adrienne Mayor, The Greek Myth of Talos, the First Robot.

 

And now that you've watched the film and know the end of the story, what better way to finish this off but with the death of Talos on an ancient Grecian vase?

The Death of Talos