Midas

Midas was a legendary king of Phrygia whose name became attached to several myths and historical figures. The most famous King Midas is known for his "golden touch" or "Midas touch"—the ability to transform everything he touched into pure gold. According to legend, this Midas was the son of Gordias (founder of the Phrygian capital Gordium and creator of the famous Gordian Knot) and the goddess Cybele. Though traditions Legendary Place him and Gordias in the 2nd millennium BCE before the Trojan War, they aren't mentioned in Homer's works, which instead reference different Phrygian kings.

The name Midas appears in several historical contexts: the city Midaeum was reportedly named after him, and he's credited with founding Ancyra (modern-day Ankara). A later King Midas ruled Phrygia in the late 8th century BCE, likely the same figure known as Mita, king of the Mushki, who fought against Assyria. Herodotus mentions yet another Midas as part of the Phrygian royal house in the 6th century BCE.