In
Greek mythology,
Lynceus or was a king of
Argos, succeeding
Danaus. He is named as a descendant of Belus through his father
Aegyptus, who was the twin brother of
Danaus. Danaus had fifty daughters, the
Danaides, while Aegyptus had fifty sons including Lynceus, whose name when translated means "lynx-eyed" (from Latin). Aegyptus commanded that his sons marry the Danaides and Danaus fled to
Argos, ruled by King
Pelasgus with his daughters. When Aegyptus and his sons arrived to take the Danaides, Danaus gave them to spare the Argives the pain of a battle. However, he instructed his daughters to kill their husbands on their wedding night. Forty-nine followed through, but one,
Hypermnestra refused because her husband, Lynceus, honored her wish to remain a virgin. Danaus was angry with his disobedient daughter and threw her to the Argive courts.
Aphrodite intervened and saved her. Lynceus later killed Danaus as revenge for the death of his brothers. Lynceus and Hypermnestra then began a dynasty of Argive kings (the Danaid Dynasty) beginning with
Abas. In some versions of the legend, the Danaides, minus Hypermnestra (or sometimes alternately
Amymone) were punished in
Tartarus by being forced to carry water through a jug with holes, or a sieve, so the water always leaked out.