This famous legend from Ovid tells how Phaethon, the bastard son of the sun god Helios, begged his father to let him drive the sun chariot. He was unable to control the horses, however, and when the chariot raced out of control across the sky, Zeus had to blast Phaethon with a thunderbolt in order to bring the chariot's wild ride to a halt, while Phaethon plunged to his death. This fascinating image of Phaethon comes from a Renaissance tarot deck known as the Mantegna Tarocchi.
You can also find more myths and legends for the week of July 8-14 here. For more information and links to the actual javascript code, see the Myths & Legends Widget Reference Page.
