The Promethean unguent
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Made from a herb on which some of the blood of Prometheus had fallen. Medea gave Jason some of it, and thus rendered his body proof against fire and war- like instruments.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “The Promethean unguent” mean?
Made from a herb on which some of the blood of Prometheus had fallen. Medea gave Jason some of it, and thus rendered his body proof against fire and war- like instruments.
Is “The Promethean unguent” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.