Oedipus and the riddle of the Sphinx: anatomy of the foot

The subject of the article - the article explores the oldest available metrical version of the riddle of the Sphinx in the context of the Oedupus myth. The main theme - a metaliterary parallel between anatomical feet of the enigmatic creature in the riddle and metrical feet of dactylic hexameter. Methods applied - a structural-semantic and poetry analysis. Results - the author argues, that the story of a creature with the “changing number of feet” can be read as an allegory of dactylic hexameter, based on the changing number of syllables in metrical feet. Application of results - literary studies and literary theory. Conclusion - the author argues that the canonical riddle of the Sphinx, written by Asclepiades, contains a hidden reference to dactylic hexameter which makes it a meta-riddle about the metre.