Theseus persuades his father to allow him to go to Crete, with the aim of killing the Minotaur. And if he kills the creature he will signal his success by flying a white sail on the return journey.

According to the historian Apollodorus, Theseus “killed [the Minotaur] by smiting him with his fists; and drawing the clue after him made his way out again.” Though Theseus would become a ...