 According to the mythographer Apollodorus, Porphyrion was (along with Alcyoneus), the greatest of the Giants, and during the Gigantomachy, the battle between the Giants and the Olympian gods, Porphyrion attacked Heracles and Hera, but Zeus caused Porphyrion to become enamoured of Hera, whom Porphyrion then tried to rape, but Zeus struck Porphyrion with his thunderbolt and Heracles killed him with an arrow.According to Pindar, who calls him "king of the Giants", he was slain by an arrow from the bow of Apollo.Aristophanes' comedy "The Birds", contains two brief mentions of Porphyrion.