Plate Depicting the Myth of Cadmus

Obeying the command of an oracle, Cadmus followed a cow to Boeotia, or “oxen-land.” There he slayed a dragon and buried its teeth in the ground. From the teeth grew a crop of warriors who fought each other until only the strongest five remained. Cadmus invited the victors to join him, and together they built the city of Thebes, where the mythological hero, Hercules (or Herakles) was later born.