Iris: Greek Goddess of the Rainbow

The Story of Iris

Iris was the goddess of the rainbow and a swift messenger of the gods. She was a daughter of the sea god Thaumas and the Oceanid Electra, and her sisters were the Harpies. With golden wings, she flew between heaven, earth and sea, and the rainbow was her path.

Iris served all the gods, but especially Hera. In the Iliad she carries messages from Zeus and Hera to gods and mortals on the battlefield, warning the Trojans and calling the gods to action. In later times, Hermes became the main messenger of Zeus, while Iris remained the servant of Hera.

When the gods needed to swear a binding oath, Zeus sent Iris to fetch water from the river Styx in a golden jug. Any god who broke an oath sworn on this water fell into a deathlike sleep for a year. It was a solemn duty that showed how trusted Iris was.

Iris also stood up for her family. When the Argonauts Zetes and Calais chased the Harpies to kill them for tormenting the blind prophet Phineus, Iris stopped them. She promised that the Harpies would never trouble Phineus again, and the brothers turned back.

In Virgil's Aeneid, Juno sends Iris down to Queen Dido as she lies dying. Iris cuts a lock of Dido's hair as an offering to the Underworld, releasing her spirit from her body. The Greeks honored Iris in a few places, and her name lives on in the iris flower and in the colored part of the eye.