Icarus was the son of Daedalus and one of Minos' slaves called Naucrate. When Daedalus explained to Ariadne how Theseus could find his way out of the Labyrith, Minos became so angry that he imprisoned Daedalus and his son Icarus within the walls of the deep mazelike palace that Daedalus had once built for Minos.

Since Minos' fleet controlled the sea around Crete, Daedalus knew their only route of escape would be by air. He fashioned two sets of wings for himself and Icarus made of feathers and thread held together and fixed to their shoulders with wax. He warned Icarus not to fly too close to the water as the dampness would make the feathers heavy, and not to fly too close to the sun because the intense heat would melt the wax. Alas, Icarus became euphoric with the thrill of flying, and soared too close to the sun.