The Myth of Archias & Spaghetti Alla Siracusana
The story of Ortigia’s founder and a breadcrumb-based spaghetti recipe!
From Ortigia’s Simposio cookbook!
“I don’t understand, Poseidon. I still don’t get it.”
Melisso sits back in a plush armchair, facing the god.
“What is it you don’t get?” Poseidon snaps. “And why should I waste more time explaining what you clearly refuse to understand? You’re still blinded by rage, my friend, even after all these centuries.”
“Why did my heir have to die?” Melisso’s voice is tight. “Why him? The most beautiful boy in Corinth. A respectful son, an educated citizen. And more than that — a soul so candid, so untouched by trivialities like popularity and power. I raised him well, didn’t I? Taught him a man’s true values, the duties of a Greek freeman, and respect for the gods. What was our reward? What was his reward? A body torn apart by a cult that glorifies irrationality, the drowning of rules, wild orgies, and ecstatic frenzy. Was that the proper treatment for the son of Abrone? The man who betrayed the King of Argos to save a thousand Corinthian children? The man the city welcomed with open arms?”
“The Bacchiadae are the offspring of Bacchus, you fool. How could you compete?” Poseidon shifts restlessly in his seat.
“Then why did you punish Archias?” Melisso asks, as if he hadn’t asked the same question a thousand times before.
“He crossed the line. His obsession with your — yes, undeniably beautiful — son was out of control. Not because of rejection, nor because he was drunk after a frenzied orgy, could he justify taking what he wanted by force. Worse still, involving his family and friends in a despicable kidnapping. And then you — you fool — climbing up my temple and hurling your humiliated body off a cliff. No god could ignore such an act.”
“Corinth didn’t even punish him — too popular, too powerful, that arrogant little imbecile.”
“Careful,” Poseidon warns, “you’re speaking of the founder of Syracuse.”
“Only because they saved him,” Melisso sneers. “Because you sent him to Sicily.”
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