Asterion was the son of
Tectamus (son of
Dorus) and an unnamed daughter of
Cretheus. His father sailed to
Crete with some
Aeolians and
Pelasgians and became the ruler of the island. Asterion inherited the throne from his father and he was the king of
Crete at the time when Europa was abducted by Zeus and brought to his kingdom. He married
Europa and became the stepfather of her sons by
Zeus,[1] who assumed the form of a bull (not to be confused with the Cretan Bull that was sire to the minotaur) to accomplish his role. Asterion brought up his stepsons:
Minos, the just king in Crete who judged the
Underworld;
Rhadamanthus, presiding over the
Blessed Island or in the Underworld; and
Sarpedon, king in
Lycia. When he died without male heirs, Asterion gave his kingdom to Minos, who promptly "banished" his brothers after quarreling with them.
Crete, daughter of Asterion, was a possible wife of Minos.[2][3]