SINIS IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY

​Sinis was a bandit who preyed upon the unwary traveller upon the round around the Saronic Gulf, and would famously be encountered by Theseus. 

Sinis the Pine Bender

​Sinis was the son of Sylea, daughter of the eponymous Corinthus, with Sylea’s partner named as either Polypemon, a bandit also known as Procrustes, or the god Poseidon. 

Sinis would reside on the Isthmus of Corinth, where he would become a feared bandit, robbing travellers who crossed his path. 

​Sinis was though known, not just for taking the valuables from travellers, but he would also kill the unwary. Most commonly, Sinis was said to tie travellers between two bent over fir trees, when the fir trees were unleashed, the victim would be torn in two. 

Alternatively, Sinis was said to force the traveller to hold down the fir trees, until the point of exhaustion, at which point the trees would rebound, flinging the traveller into the air, and killing them when they landed. 

Sinis’ method of killing would see him also called Pityocamptes, the Pine-Bender.

Sinis and Theseus

​Having decided to take the dangerous land route from Troezen to Athens, around the Saronic Gulf, Sinis was the second bandit, after Periphetes, that the hero Theseus encountered. 

Theseus would, of course, easily overcome Sinis, and the robber would meet the same fate that had befallen his victims. Theseus would tie Sinis between two bent over fir trees, and when released, the fir trees tore Sinis in two. 

Theseus then had his way with Perigune, Sinis’ daughter, with the result that Theseus became father to a son, a son called Melanippus. Afterwards, Sinis’ daughter would marry Deioneus, son of King Eurytus of Oechalia. 

Theseus had thus completed his second Labour. 

Contents

Colin Quartermain - Sinis - 29th August 2021