The Lion of Kea and Related Myths
Numerous myths try to explain the lion’s creation. The starting point for most of these tales is that Kea island was home to water nymphs who used their beauty to make the gods jealous. Thanks to this behavior, the gods sent a lion to lie in wait and protect the island from the provocative nymphs. While the true reason for the creation of the lion monument is unknown, almost all the related myths claim that the island was once home to water nymphs.
In John Caskey’s 1981 article,
Notes on Keos and Tzia , he detailed the lion and its importance in maintaining the island’s fertility and clean drinking water. The island itself is said to have had many freshwater springs from which the nymphs would drink. The gods sent the lion to the island to chase the nymphs away and keep the island s water safe. According to Caskey, the sculpture serves as “a poetical record of a rare and damaging drought, still symbolized by a huge figure of the beast o