The Minotaur was a creature in Greek mythology which had the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man, being part man and part bull. The original Minotaur was born when King Minos of Knossos' wife Pasiphae was cursed by Poseidon to fall in love with the snow-white Cretan Bull after her husband refused to sacrifice the beautiful animal. Pasiphae had the craftsman Daedalus build a hollow wooden cow which she could climb into, leading to the bull impregnating her. Their child was the Minotaur, which grew in size until it became a ferocious beast which devoured humans for sustenance. King Minos had Daedalus build the "Labyrinth of Lost Souls" underneath the Palace of Knossos to hold the Minotaur, which was fed Athenian youths provided by King Aegeus of Athens due to a humiliating peace treaty with Minos. In 1293 BC, Aegeus' son Theseus volunteered to travel with the youths to find the Minotaur and slay him, and he was aided by Minos' daughter Ariadne, who had fallen in love with him and given him a golden thread which he could use to trace his way back from the Minotaur's lair once the deed was done. Theseus, donning powerful armor, slew the Minotaur with Aegeus' sword, and Theseus then led the other Athenians out of the Labyrinth to freedom.
There were other Minotaurs in Greek mythology, including the Egyptian pirate Kamos (who was slain by the Atlantean admiral Arkantos in 1240 BC) and the Minotaur which was slain by the Spartan mercenary Kassandra in 429 BC during the Peloponnesian War.