In
Greek mythology,
Machaon (,
Makhaon) was a son of
Asclepius; with his brother
Podalirius, he led an army from
Thessaly in the
Trojan War on the side of the Greeks. Both Machaon and Podalirius were highly valued surgeons and medics. In the
Iliad he was wounded and put out of action by
Paris. Machaon (or his brother) healed
Philoctetes,
Telephus and
Menelaus, after he sustained an arrow at the hand of
Pandarus, during the war. He was also supposed to possess herbs which were bestowed to his father Asclepius by
Chiron, the centaur.