Callisto in Greek tradition
Callisto was an Arcadian nymph who joined Artemis’s huntresses and, in some tellings, vowed to preserve her virginity. Zeus approached her in Artemis’s likeness, and his assault led to her pregnancy and to her transformation into a bear or her death. Zeus gave her son Arcas to Maia, then placed Callisto among the stars as the Great Bear.
The quick answers
Who is Callisto?
Callisto is a Greek being associated with hunting and the wilderness, bears and animal transformation, motherhood and heroic lineage, the night sky and constellations.Source
Source
- The Greek Myths
- Classical Mythology a to Z
What is Callisto associated with?
hunting and the wilderness, bears and animal transformation, motherhood and heroic lineage, the night sky and constellationsSource
Source
- The Greek Myths
- Classical Mythology a to Z
What family links are recorded for Callisto?
Father: Ceteus, 2 children.What happens in Callisto’s Transformation into a Bear?
Callisto’s pregnancy was revealed while she belonged to Artemis’s company, so she was expelled from the huntresses.Source
Source
- Apollodorus, The Library
- The Greek Myths
Callisto’s family, at a glance
Parents above, children below, and the figure’s consorts named in between, the same family data as the fact box, laid out as a chart instead of a field list.
The names Callisto answers to
Kallisto
Greek form of the name Callisto
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
The Bear
Callisto after her transformation into a bear
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
The Great Bear
Callisto as the constellation Ursa Major
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
Ursa Major
The Latin astronomical name for the Great Bear
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
Arcadian Nymph
Her mythic identity as a nymph of Arcadia
SourceClassical Mythology a to Z
The myths of Callisto
6 myths, each traced to its primary text and corpus sources, with 1 reviewed modern rework linked where the evidence supports it.
Arcas Hunts the Bear Callisto
Callisto, daughter of Lycaon, hunted with Artemis and wore the same clothing as the goddess. She had sworn to remain a virgin. Zeus desired her and, despite her unwillingness, slept with her after taking the form of Artemis, though some accounts say he took the form of Apollo. Callisto became pregnant. In another account, she willingly slept with Zeus.
Artemis noticed that Callisto was with child. Hera also discovered what had happened and, wishing to conceal the matter from her, turned Callisto into a bear. Hera then persuaded Artemis to hunt her as a wild animal. Some accounts say that Artemis herself changed Callisto into a bear after seeing her pregnant while she bathed. Artemis did not recognise her companion in this form. She called out to the hunting pack, and Callisto was pursued.
Callisto kept her human mind despite her bear shape. She sighed because she could no longer speak. She avoided hunters and other bears, and feared wolves, even though her father was among them. Zeus caught her up to heaven before the hunt could kill her. He placed her among the stars as a constellation. Some accounts instead say that Artemis shot her down as a wild beast, either because Hera had concealed her identity or because Callisto had broken her vow of virginity.
Callisto had borne a son, whom Zeus took after her transformation or death. He gave the child to Maia to raise in Arcadia and named him Arcas, also called Areas in one account. Years later, Arcas encountered the bear-shaped Callisto while hunting. He was about to kill her, not knowing that she was his mother, when Zeus intervened. Callisto and Arcas were then placed among the stars as constellations.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 3Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Arcas was about to kill the bear, not knowing it was Callisto, when Zeus placed them both among the stars.”
Apollodorus, The Library
Callisto and Arcas Among the Stars
Zeus approached Callisto, a companion of Artemis who hunted in the goddess’s train and wore the same clothing. Callisto had sworn to remain a virgin. Zeus desired her and, despite her unwillingness, had intercourse with her. Some accounts say that he took the form of Artemis, while others say that he took the form of Apollo. To conceal what had happened from Hera, Zeus changed Callisto into a bear.
Artemis later discovered that Callisto was pregnant. In one account, Hera persuaded Artemis to shoot the bear as a wild animal. In another, Artemis herself killed Callisto because she had broken her vow of virginity. A further account says that Hera changed Callisto into a bear and caused Artemis, who did not recognise her attendant, to hunt her. Callisto was killed, and Zeus gathered up her infant son.
Zeus gave the child to Maia, who brought him up in Arcadia. He named the boy Arcas. After Callisto’s death, Zeus placed her among the stars as the Great Bear, Ursa Major. He later placed Arcas in the heavens as the Little Bear, Ursa Minor. In some accounts, Hera prevented the two bears from setting beneath the horizon, so they remained in the sky instead of passing below it.
Callisto’s parentage also varies. Eumelos and some other sources call her a daughter of Lycaon. Hesiod calls her one of the nymphs. Asios makes her the daughter of Nycteus, while Pherecydes makes her the daughter of Ceteus.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Callisto became the Great Bear and Arcas the Little Bear, and in one account Hera kept them from setting beneath the horizon.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3Greek Myths & TalesT1
The Birth of Arcas
Zeus took Callisto by force after she had sworn to Artemis that she would remain a virgin. Callisto was a daughter of Lycaon, according to Eumelos and some other sources, and a companion of Artemis in the hunt. Zeus approached her in disguise, taking the form of Artemis, though some accounts say he took the form of Apollo. Callisto became pregnant, and Zeus sought to keep the matter hidden from Hera.
Hera nevertheless learned what had happened and persuaded Artemis to shoot Callisto, who had been changed into a bear. Artemis did not know that the animal was her companion. Some accounts say that Artemis shot Callisto because she had failed to preserve her virginity. Callisto was killed, and the child she had borne was left without his mother.
Zeus gathered up the baby boy and gave him to Maia to raise in Arcadia. He named the child Arcas. Zeus then changed Callisto into a constellation, so that she became the Bear among the stars.
The accounts differ over Callisto’s parentage and over the transformations. One version says that Callisto willingly slept with Zeus, after which Hera changed her into a bear. In the story attributed to Hesiod, Artemis changed Callisto when she saw that her companion was pregnant while bathing. Another account says that Artemis herself noticed the pregnancy, changed Callisto into a bear, and set the hunting pack upon her. In the version where Hera changes her, Artemis fails to recognise Callisto in bear form.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Zeus took Callisto’s infant son, gave him to Maia to raise in Arcadia, and named him Arcas.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3Greek Myths & TalesT1
Callisto Among Artemis’s Huntresses
Callisto joined Artemis and her companions in the hunt. She wore the same clothing as the goddess’s other huntresses. In some tellings, she swore to Artemis that she would remain a virgin. Artemis required this chastity from her companions, as she practised it herself. Callisto was the daughter of Lycaon, who ruled in Arcadia.
Zeus desired Callisto. Despite her unwillingness, he had intercourse with her. He took the form of Artemis in one telling, and the form of Apollo in another. He then tried to keep Hera from learning what had happened. Callisto became pregnant, and Artemis discovered this while she and her companions were together.
In one telling, Artemis changed Callisto into a bear after seeing that she carried a child. She called to the hunting pack, and the hounds pursued Callisto as if she were a wild animal. She would have been hunted to death if Zeus had not carried her up to heaven. In another telling, Zeus changed Callisto into a bear himself. Hera persuaded Artemis to shoot her, while Callisto’s identity remained unknown. Some said that Artemis shot her because Callisto had failed to keep her oath of virginity.
After Callisto died, Zeus gathered up her infant son and gave him to Maia to raise in Arcadia. He named the child Areas. Zeus then turned Callisto into a constellation, although the constellation’s name was not given.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Callisto joined Artemis and her companions, but after Zeus slept with her, she was changed into a bear or killed, and Zeus took her son.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
Zeus Seduces Callisto
Zeus approached Callisto while she was among Artemis’s hunting companions. Callisto was the daughter of Lycaon and had sworn to remain a virgin. She wore the same clothing as Artemis and followed her in the hunt. Zeus desired her, and, despite her unwillingness, had intercourse with her. He took the form of Artemis, though some accounts say that he appeared as Apollo. He then turned Callisto into a bear so that Hera would not discover what had happened.
Artemis later noticed that Callisto was pregnant. In one account, Artemis saw her companion’s condition while Callisto was bathing and, angered by it, changed her into a bear. In another, Hera persuaded Artemis to shoot Callisto, without revealing that the bear was her companion. Artemis either failed to recognise Callisto in her animal form or punished her for breaking the vow of virginity. She called the hunting pack, and Callisto was hunted as a wild beast.
Zeus gathered up Callisto’s infant son after her death and gave him to Maia to raise in Arcadia. He named the child Arcas, also given as Areas in one account. Zeus then placed Callisto among the stars as a constellation. She was identified there as Arctos, the Bear.
In the modern world
No modern rework confirmed yet.
3 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“Zeus took the form of Artemis, or Apollo in some accounts, slept with Callisto, and later placed her among the stars as Arctos, the Bear.”
Apollodorus, The Library
- 3The Library of Greek Mythology (Oxford World's Classics)T1
Callisto’s Transformation into a Bear
Callisto’s pregnancy was revealed while she belonged to Artemis’s company. The discovery ended her place among the goddess’s companions. Artemis required perfect chastity from the women who hunted and lived with her, and Callisto could no longer remain within that group. She was expelled from Artemis’s company and separated from the companions with whom she had shared the hunt.
After Callisto’s expulsion, her human form was taken from her. She was changed into a bear. The transformation changed a woman into an animal, and Callisto no longer belonged to Artemis’s company as she had before. She was no longer described as hunting with the goddess or living among the other companions after the change.
In one telling, Hera changed Callisto into a bear. In another, Artemis caused the transformation herself. Both tellings followed the same order of events. Callisto’s pregnancy was revealed while she remained among Artemis’s companions. She was then expelled from the group, and the transformation followed. No person was named as the cause of Callisto’s pregnancy, and no later action by Callisto was given after she became a bear. Her destination and her life after the transformation were left unstated.
In the modern world
Callisto, la petite nymphe de Diane
FilmThe film keeps Callisto as Diana's nymph who is violated then punished with transformation, ending with her placed eternally among the stars alongside her son.
2 sources· checked 2026-08-19
- 1The Greek MythsT1
- 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1
Quote
“When Callisto’s pregnancy was revealed, she was expelled from Artemis’s company and changed into a bear, by Hera in one version and by Artemis in another.”
Apollodorus, The Library
Also appears in
The myths across MythSource where Callisto features, each on that figure’s page.
- Arcas and Callisto Become Constellations · on Arcas
- Arcas Hunts the Bear · on Arcas
- The Birth and Succession of Arcas · on Arcas
- Artemis and the Transformed Callisto · on Artemis
- Artemis Chooses Her Virginity and Powers · on Artemis
- The Exposure and Raising of Atalanta · on Atalanta
- Hera Maddens the Proetides · on Hera
- Hera Punishes Callisto · on Hera
- Ilmarinen Captures the Wolf and Bear · on Ilmarinen
- Juno Turns Callisto into a Bear · on Juno
- The Madness and Cure of the Proetides · on Proetus
- Skuld’s Rebellion Against Hrólf Kraki · on Skuld
- Syrinx and the Reeds · on Syrinx
- Zeus and Callisto · on Zeus
- Zeus and Lycaon · on Zeus
1 work catalogued
This is the candidate catalogue for Callisto: candidate reworks first, then references, then names used as atmosphere. Nothing here has been checked against a source yet. Only reviewed myth-to-work links are promoted in Overview.
Showing 1 of 1 works.
Film1
- Callisto, la petite nymphe de DianeCallisto’s Transformation into a BearRework
These are catalogue candidates, not proof that every work retells this figure. Reviewed myth-to-work links appear in Overview.
What this page is built from
About this page
Written and maintained by MythSource. Last reviewed not yet recorded. How a page gets built.
4 sources are cited on this page, primary texts and corpus scholarship, listed below.
Cite this page
MythSource. (n.d.). Callisto. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/callisto
"Callisto." MythSource, n.d., www.mythsource.com/figures/callisto.
"Callisto." MythSource. n.d. https://www.mythsource.com/figures/callisto.
The mythology summaries and identity fields on this page are grounded in the primary texts and scholarship above. The appearance table records candidates separately; only reviewed joins are presented as modern reworks in Overview.
The film
The Underdrawing video on Callisto embeds here once it publishes.