In Greek mythology, Theseus killed the Minotaur in the Labyrinth of Crete.
The Minotaur was a creature with a man’s body and a bull’s head. It was born to Pasiphae, queen of Crete, after Poseidon caused her to desire a sacred bull. King Minos commissioned Daedalus to build the Labyrinth, a confusing structure where the creature was kept.
Athens was required to send young people to Crete as tribute, traditionally every nine years, although ancient sources differ on the exact interval. Theseus volunteered to join the group and promised to defeat the Minotaur. Ariadne, Minos’s daughter, gave him a ball of thread, allowing him to retrace his path after entering the maze.
After killing the Minotaur, Theseus escaped with Ariadne, though later traditions tell different versions of what happened to her. The Minotaur and the Labyrinth are often confused with the Cyclops and its cave, but they belong to separate Greek myths.