> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://theparnassian.com/en/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Causes of the death of Laocoön's sons in Virgil and Sophocles
- URL: https://theparnassian.com/en/po-vergiliiu-za-to-chto-proritsatel-laokoon-preduprezhdal-troiantsev-ne-vvvodit-gigantskogo-konia-v-gorod-bogi-poslali-dvukh-zmei-chtoby-zadushit-zhretsa-i-ego-synovei/
- Published: 2017-05-19T14:33:22.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-02T18:58:36.000Z
- Author: Alexandr Radayev
- Tags: Art, Books

According to Virgil, for warning the Trojans not to bring the gigantic horse into the city, the gods sent two serpents to strangle the prophet Laocoön and his sons. Sophocles' version ties the punishment to the breaking of a prohibition on marriage and the desecration of the temple of Apollo, where Laocoön had lain with his wife. As punishment, the priest's children were killed by serpents right there in the temple, while he himself was condemned to mourn his loss for ever.