Brewer's: Althæa's Brand

a fatal contingency. Althæa's son was to live so long as a log of wood, then on the fire, remained unconsumed. She contrived to keep the log unconsumed for many years, but being angry one day with Meleager, she pushed it into the midst of the fire, and it was consumed in a few minutes. Meleager died at the same time. —Ovid: Metamorphoses, viii. 4.

“The fatal brand Althæa burned.” Shakespeare: 2 Henry VI, Act i. 1.

Related Content Allusions Foreign Words and Phrases Latin and Greek Word Elements Names: Their Origins and Meanings Old Testament Names Mythology Ancient Greek Literature & Mythology The Bible (King James version) The Koran (translation by J. M. Rodwell) Shakespeare's Plays Tales from Shakespeare (Charles and Mary Lamb) Frequently Misspelled Words Frequently Mispronounced Words Easily Confused Words Writing & Language