Arachne was a Lydian girl famous for her excellent weaving
and embroidery. The tapestries she designed were so beautiful that the
Nymphs used to come to admire them. Everyone thought that Arachne received
her skill as a gift from Athena, the patron
of spinners and embroiderers. But Arachne refused to attribute her talent
to anyone but herself and challenged the goddess to a contest. Athena accepted
the challenge. Arachne made the perfect work, but the theme of her tapestry
was insulting for the gods. Athena, outraged with the mortal’s skill and
impudent behavior, struck Arachne with a shuttle and turned her into a
spider, which spins and weaves until it has no more thread.
See: Diego Velázquez. The
Fable of Arachne (Las Hilanderas).