Penelope was the Queen of Ithaca and the wife of Odysseus during the 12th century BC.
Biography[]
Penelope was the daughter of King Icarius of Sparta and the nymph Periboea, and she married King Odysseus of Ithaca and bore him a son, Telemachus, was born in 1193 BC, just before Odysseus was called upon to fight in the Trojan War. Penelope waited twenty years for Odysseus' return, during which 108 suitors arrived to court her. While Homer, author of the Odyssey, claimed that she devised various ploys to delay marrying any of them, later authors claimed that Penelope had slept with all of them, including the god Apollo, who fathered their child Pan (whose name means "all", possibly referencing Penelope's infidelities). However, Penelope remained loyal to Odysseus when he returned, testing which man among the suitors was Odysseus by having him string up his old bow, something which only Odysseus was able to do. After Odysseus identified himself, he massacred all the other suitors, and she enjoyed a happy life with Odysseus and their son Telemachus. In 1160 BC, this was brought to an end when Odysseus' illegitimate son by Circe, Telegonus, came to raid Ithaca, mistaking it for Corcyra, and killed Odysseus in battle. However, Telegonus took to Penelope, and they married; Penelope bore him a son, Italus, who became the namesake of Italy.