Greek heroes and characters
Kallistó
In Greek mythology, Callisto was the daughter of the Arcadian king Lycaon. Callistó was the most beautiful girl in the kingdom, which is why she became a member of the retinue of Artemis, the goddess of the hunt.
The beauty of Kallistó did not escape the attention of Zeus, who wanted to appropriate the girl. According to one version, he took her by force; according to another, he took the form of Artemis. As soon as Artemis learned that Callistó was with child, she banished her from her retinue. She then gave birth to a son, Arcado, alone in the forest. Hera subsequently took revenge on Zeus for his infidelity by turning Callistó into a bear.
When Arcas grew up, hunting became his passion. One day he was on the trail of a bear and was about to kill it when Zeus stopped him at the last moment. The bear was his mother, Callisto. Arcado was then transformed into a bear by Zeus, and both he and Callistó were lifted into the sky, where they became the constellation of the Great Bear and the Little Bear (in other words, the Big and Little Chariot).