# Antiochus — Pericles character guide

> Antiochus in Pericles by William Shakespeare.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** the great Antiochus, Antiochus Prince Pericles, Antiochus Thaliard

**First appearance:** 0002-act-i-scene-i

## Snapshot

Antiochus, king of Antioch, guards his daughter behind a riddle that kills every suitor who fails to read it rightly.

## Who they are

Antiochus stages his daughter like a bride for Jove, then warns Pericles that her beauty is a Hesperides guarded by death. His court is a graveyard of princes, and he wields the riddle as both gate and executioner's axe. The tension between his royal hospitality and the lethal trap he sets makes him the story's first test of whether courage can survive a corrupt throne.

## In the story

### [Scene I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/chapters/act-i-scene-i)

Hosts the deadly contest, conceals his incest, and orders Thaliard to kill Pericles.

### [Scene II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/chapters/act-i-scene-ii)

Feared tyrant whose incestuous secret Pericles discovered; his potential retaliation drives Pericles' actions.

### [Scene III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/chapters/act-i-scene-iii)

Referenced as the source of displeasure that caused Pericles to flee.

### [Scene IV: The Counsel of Tyre](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/chapters/act-ii-scene-iv)

Mentioned as having been punished by divine fire for his incest with his daughter.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/characters/antiochus
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pericles_se/characters