Aesacus (myrtle branch) In Greek mythology, son of King Priam of Troy and Arisbe
(or Alexiroe); he learned the art of interpreting dreams from his maternal grandfather, Merops. Priam consulted Aesacus about Hecuba’s bad dreams prior to the birth of Paris. Aesacus’s advice was to have the child killed because he would bring about the destruction of Troy. Aesacus married the nymph Asterope (or Hesperia). When he pursued her, she threw herself into the sea and was changed into a bird. In despair Aesacus also threw himself into the sea and was changed into a diver bird (cormorant). Ovid’s Metamorphoses (book 11) and Apollodorus’s Bibliotheca (Library) (3.12.5) tell the story.
SOURCE:
Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow-Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante
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