3-072-167 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Cleobis and Biton with Cydippe in the Front of Hera Temple, 1764. Additional Info: When Cydippe, a priestess of Hera in the Greek town of Argos, was suddenly summoned to the temple to give a sacrifice, her two sons-Cleobis and Biton-pulled her cart by themselves, because the oxen were working in the field. Having travelled 45 stadia (over 8 km), the tired boys fell asleep in the shadow of a sacred oak. Her mother asked the gods to reward the boys for their effort with the best thing that can happen to a human being on Earth, so the gods sent them death in sleep. In the sanctuary at Delphi, there were two archaic statues donated by the inhabitants of Argos, which were regarded as images of Cleobis and Biton.