CHIRON

Also known as CHEIRON, KHEIRON

King of the Centaurs

CHIRON was the son of CRONUS who'd been horsing about with PHILYRA. With tutorials from APOLLO and a degree in healing from the University of Thessaly, he was very good at the healing arts and renowned for his wisdom. He taught Dr ASCLEPIUS the secrets of medicine and thus put the beginnings of medical practice on a very sound footing.

Sadly, CHIRON came to an unhappy end when he was accidentally shot with a poisoned arrow by his old pupil HERACLES. In frightful agony he roamed the world but, being immortal, could not die. Yes, the Great Healer could heal everyone except himself.

Eventually he wandered to the place where PROMETHEUS was undergoing his own agony. Here at last he found freedom from his pain. Performing the world's first immortality-swap operation, CHIRON donated his immortal nature to PROMETHEUS and became mortal.

PROMETHEUS found himself free, while the old centaur dropped dead at his feet. But shed no tears as a sobbing ZEUS granted CHIRON a second immortality and transformed him into the constellation of Sagittarius.