Opheltes

This article is about the infant son of Lycurgus killed by a serpent. For other mythological figures named Opheltes, see Opheltes (mythology). For a genus of beetles, see Mallodon.
Not to be confused with Opheltius, two mythological figures killed in the Trojan War.
Opheltes ensnared by the serpent.

In Greek mythology, Opheltes (Ancient Greek: Ὀφέλτης), also called Archemorus (Αρχέμορος, Beginning of Doom), was a son of Lycurgus of Nemea. His mother is variously given as Eurydice, Nemea, or Amphithea. As an infant, he was killed by a serpent at Nemea. Funeral games were held in the boy's honor, and these were supposed to have been the origin of the Nemean Games.[1]

  1. ^ Tripp, s.v. Opheltes; Parada, s.v. Opheltes 1; Smith, s.v. Opheltes 1.