ERIGONE  , in

Greek mythology, daughter of Icarius, the hero of the Attic deme Icaria . Her father, who had been taught by Dionysus to make wine, gave some to some shepherds, who became intoxicated . Their companions, thinking they had been poisoned, killed Icarius and buried him under a tree on Mount Hymettus (or threw his body into a well) . Erigone, guided by her faithful dog Maera, found, his grave, and hanged herself on the tree . Dionysus sent a plague on the land, and all the maidens of Athens, in a fit of madness, hanged themselves like Erigone . Icarius, Erigone and Maera were set among the stars as Bootes (or Arcturus), Virgo and Procyon . The festival called Aeora (the " swing ") was subsequently instituted to propitiate Icarius and Erigone . Various small images (in Lat. oscilla) were suspended on trees and swung backwards and forwards, and offerings of fruit were made (Hyginus, Fab . 130, Poet. astron. ii . 4; Apollodorus iii . 14) . The story was probably intended to explain the origin of these oscilla, by which Dionysus, as god of trees (Dendrites), was propitiated, and the baneful influence of the dog-star averted (see also OSCILLA) .