Harpy

The Harpy were winged death spirits. They are better known for stealing food from the Phineas. The literal meaning seems to be "that which grabs".

The Harpy could also bring life. It was mothered by the West Wind and Zephryos one of the horses of Achilles.

Though Hesoid describes them as beautiful -haired creatures, the came to be known winged creatures later on when the Siren a creature that was seductive in nature but later softened into a death angel.

Harpies were the sisters of Iris daughters of
Echidna nad Typhon
King Phineas of Thrace had the gift of a prophecy. Zeus angry that he reavealed too much decided to punish him by puttiing him in a island with lots of food that he could never eat because whenever he got the food the harpies would always steal it out of his hand.

This continued until the arrival of Jason and the Argonauts, the Boreads the sons of the north wind succeeded in driving of the harpies but did not kill any of them because their sisiter iris had promised that the harpies would never bother ever again. The harpies returned to Crete. Phineas thanked jason and the argonauts by telling them how to pass Symplegades.

The harpies then tortured people and were considered as agents of death as they made their way to tarturus. They were vicious and very cruel and they lived on Strophades. Harpies came to be seen as personification the deadly winds. They were considered as three Aello, Celeano and Ocypete.

Aeneas encountered the harpies on the Strophades as they stole food from the Trojans. Celeano cursed them saying that they would their tables before reaching the end of their journey. The Trojans fled in fear.

Harpies remianed in the middle ages as Dante in his Inferno XIII

"Here the repellent Harpies make their nests,

Who drove the Trojans from the Strophades
With dire announcements of the coming woe.
They have broad wings, a human neck and face,

Clawed feet and swollen, feathered bellies; they caw
Their lamentations in the eerie trees."

They were aslo made people poular by the term "virgin eagles".