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Pyrrha, a MythSource painting
Greek

Pyrrha

Daughter of Epimetheus · Wife of Deucalion · Mother of Hellen

01Identity

Pyrrha in Greek tradition

Pyrrha helps restore humanity after Zeus’s flood by casting stones behind her as she descends from Mount Parnassus. The stones become women, while those thrown by her husband Deucalion become men, creating a new blameless race. She is the daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora, the wife of Deucalion, and the mother of Hellen. Unlike Deucalion, who casts the stones that become men, Pyrrha’s stones become women.

Top questions

The quick answers

02Family

Pyrrha’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.

EpimetheusPandora
Pyrrha

with Deucalion

AmphictyonCandybusHaemoneHellenMelantho daughter of DeucalionOrestheusPandoraProtogeneia
Thyia
03The myths

The myths of Pyrrha

2 myths, each traced to its primary text and corpus sources.

Pyrrha Survives the Great Flood

Zeus sent a flood to destroy the race of bronze. The flood followed his anger against the impious sons of Lycaon, who had served him a loathsome meal containing the flesh of their brother Nyctimus. Zeus changed the sons into wolves, restored Nyctimus to life, and then released the flood. On the advice of his father Prometheus, Deucalion built a chest. He ruled around Phthia and was married to Pyrrha, daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora.

The rain continued for many days. The waters covered the earth, leaving only the summit of Mount Parnassus above the flood. Deucalion and Pyrrha survived in the chest. They were the sole survivors, since Zeus had remembered their piety and chosen to spare them. Zeus ordered the winds back to their cave and commanded the rain to stop. Poseidon blew his conch shell, and the waves returned to their usual bounds.

The chest came to rest on Mount Parnassus after the waters subsided. Deucalion and Pyrrha followed the receding water down the steep mountain. A dove is also said to have reassured Deucalion by making an exploratory flight. They disembarked safely and offered a sacrifice to Zeus, the preserver of fugitives. They then went to the shrine of Themis beside the river Cephissus. Seaweed hung from its roof, and its altar was cold.

They prayed that mankind should be renewed. Zeus heard them and sent Hermes to say that their request would be granted. Themis then appeared and instructed them to cover their heads and throw the bones of their mother behind them. Since their mothers were dead and they had different mothers, Deucalion and Pyrrha understood the words to mean Mother Earth and her bones, the rocks beside the river. They stooped with covered heads and began to carry out the instruction.

Pyrrha Survives the Great Flood, a MythSource painting of the scene

In the modern world

No modern rework confirmed yet.

3 sources· checked 2026-08-18

  1. 1The Greek MythsT1
  2. 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1

    Quote

    “Deucalion and Pyrrha, spared for their piety, survived the flood in a chest, then learned from Themis to throw their mother's bones behind them so the human race could be renewed.”

    Apollodorus, The Library

  3. 3Greek Myths & TalesT1

Pyrrha Recreates Humanity from Stones

The waters finally fell, and Deucalion and Pyrrha came safely to land. Some accounts place their vessel on Mount Parnassus. Others name Mount Aetna, Mount Athos, or Mount Othrys in Thessaly. A dove had reassured Deucalion during the journey by returning from an exploratory flight. They offered a sacrifice to Zeus, called the preserver of fugitives, then went to the shrine of Themis beside the river Cephissus. Seaweed covered its roof, and its altar was cold.

They prayed for the renewal of humankind. Zeus heard them and sent Hermes to say that their request would be granted. Themis then appeared and told them to cover their heads and throw the bones of their mother behind them. Deucalion and Pyrrha understood that she meant Mother Earth, since their different mothers were dead and the stones beside the river could be regarded as the earth's bones.

They covered their heads and cast stones over their shoulders as they walked. The stones thrown by Deucalion became men. Those thrown by Pyrrha became women. One account says that twelve men and twelve women emerged, filled with wonder, hope, and ignorance. They formed a new generation, and the growing population left its first settlement, travelling by boat to islands and the mainland.

Another account says that Deucalion and Pyrrha soon had a son named Hellen. His sons Aeolus and Dorus, and his grandsons Ion and Achaeus, were counted as ancestors of the Aeolian, Dorian, Ionian, and Achaian peoples. Thus the earth was peopled again after Zeus had destroyed the earlier human race.

Pyrrha Recreates Humanity from Stones, a MythSource painting of the scene

In the modern world

No modern rework confirmed yet.

3 sources· checked 2026-08-18

  1. 1The Greek MythsT1
  2. 2Apollodorus, The LibraryT1

    Quote

    “Themis's command meant that Deucalion's stones became men and Pyrrha's became women, thereby restoring the human race after the flood.”

    Apollodorus, The Library

  3. 3Monsters of Greek Mythology, Volume OneT1

Also appears in

The myths across MythSource where Pyrrha features, each on that figure’s page.

The film

The Underdrawing video on Pyrrha embeds here once it publishes.