Iliad, 24.440

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Then up he leapt, and in his hands he took

The whip and reins, and serv'd as char'oteer.

When they were come to th' Argive ditch and wall,

The watch that placed was the gate to keep,

410

Their supper to provide were busy all,

And Mercury there laid them all asleep,

Took off the bars, the gate wide open laid,

And in the char'ot and the waggon went,

With all the wealth for Hector to be paid,

415

And forward pass unto Achilles' tent,

Built for him by his Myrmidons, and high,

With fir-trees tall, and cover'd over head

(To keep it out of danger from the sky)

With the deep vesture of the flow'ry mead,

420

And to it had a great court pal'd about,

And in the pale a high two-valved door,

For cars and waggons to go in and out,

And one great bar of fir-tree and no more,

So great that it required three common men

425

Upon the lofty gate to set it on,

And three such men to take it off again;

None but Achilles shut it could alone.

This gate then Hermes open to him laid,

And with the car and waggon in he came,

430

Then leaping to the ground to Priam said,

Old father, I a God immortal am,

Hermes, and hither sent to be your guide,

From heaven, on purpose by my father Jove.

But by Achilles I'll not here be spied;

435

Gods must not shew to men such open love.

But go you to Achilles in, and try

What favour from him at his knees your find,

And put him of his son in memory,

And father. That will work upon his mind.

440

Iliad. . Germany. 2014.

Current edition Experimental

English (Thomas Hobbes, 1667, ed. Molesworth 1843) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Thomas Hobbes, 1667, ed. Molesworth 1843))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)

Ἰλιάς Perseus (Homer. Homeri Opera, Volumes 1-2. Monro, D. B. (David Binning), editor; Allen, Thomas W. (Thomas William), editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1908-1920.) — 24.440 focus

ἦ καὶ ἀναΐξας ἐριούνιος ἅρμα καὶ ἵππους

440

καρπαλίμως μάστιγα καὶ ἡνία λάζετο χερσίν,

ἐν δʼ ἔπνευσʼ ἵπποισι καὶ ἡμιόνοις μένος ἠΰ.

ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ πύργους τε νεῶν καὶ τάφρον ἵκοντο,

οἳ δὲ νέον περὶ δόρπα φυλακτῆρες πονέοντο,

τοῖσι δʼ ἐφʼ ὕπνον ἔχευε διάκτορος ἀργεϊφόντης

445

πᾶσιν, ἄφαρ δʼ ὤϊξε πύλας καὶ ἀπῶσεν ὀχῆας,

ἐς δʼ ἄγαγε Πρίαμόν τε καὶ ἀγλαὰ δῶρʼ ἐπʼ ἀπήνης.

ἀλλʼ ὅτε δὴ κλισίην Πηληϊάδεω ἀφίκοντο

ὑψηλήν, τὴν Μυρμιδόνες ποίησαν ἄνακτι

δοῦρʼ ἐλάτης κέρσαντες· ἀτὰρ καθύπερθεν ἔρεψαν

450

λαχνήεντʼ ὄροφον λειμωνόθεν ἀμήσαντες·

ἀμφὶ δέ οἱ μεγάλην αὐλὴν ποίησαν ἄνακτι

σταυροῖσιν πυκινοῖσι· θύρην δʼ ἔχε μοῦνος ἐπιβλὴς

εἰλάτινος, τὸν τρεῖς μὲν ἐπιρρήσσεσκον Ἀχαιοί,

τρεῖς δʼ ἀναοίγεσκον μεγάλην κληῗδα θυράων

455

τῶν ἄλλων· Ἀχιλεὺς δʼ ἄρʼ ἐπιρρήσσεσκε καὶ οἶος·

δή ῥα τόθʼ Ἑρμείας ἐριούνιος ᾦξε γέροντι,

ἐς δʼ ἄγαγε κλυτὰ δῶρα ποδώκεϊ Πηλεΐωνι,

ἐξ ἵππων δʼ ἀπέβαινεν ἐπὶ χθόνα φώνησέν τε·

ὦ γέρον ἤτοι ἐγὼ θεὸς ἄμβροτος εἰλήλουθα

460

Ἑρμείας· σοὶ γάρ με πατὴρ ἅμα πομπὸν ὄπασσεν.

ἀλλʼ ἤτοι μὲν ἐγὼ πάλιν εἴσομαι, οὐδʼ Ἀχιλῆος

ὀφθαλμοὺς εἴσειμι· νεμεσσητὸν δέ κεν εἴη

ἀθάνατον θεὸν ὧδε βροτοὺς ἀγαπαζέμεν ἄντην·

τύνη δʼ εἰσελθὼν λαβὲ γούνατα Πηλεΐωνος,

465

καί μιν ὑπὲρ πατρὸς καὶ μητέρος ἠϋκόμοιο

λίσσεο καὶ τέκεος, ἵνα οἱ σὺν θυμὸν ὀρίνῃς.

Translations (7)

Iliad Perseus (Homer. The Iliad, Volume 1-2. Murray, A. T. (Augustus Taber), translator. London: William Heinmann; New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1924-1925.) — 24.440 focus

440 So spake the Helper, and leaping upon the chariot behind the horses quickly grasped in his hands the lash and reins, and breathed great might into the horses and mules. But when they were come to the walls and the trench that guarded the ships, even as the watchers were but now busying them about their supper, 445 upon all of these the messenger Argeiphontes shed sleep, and forthwith opened the gates, and thrust back the bars, and brought within Priam, and the splendid gifts upon the wain. But when they were come to the hut of Peleus' son, the lofty hut which the Myrmidons had builded for their king, 450 hewing therefor beams of fir —and they had roofed it over with downy thatch, gathered from the meadows; and round it they reared for him, their king, a great court with thick-set pales; and the door thereof was held by one single bar of fir that 455 three Achaeans were wont to drive home, and three to draw back the great bolt of the door (three of the rest, but Achilles would drive it home even of himself)—then verily the helper Hermes opened the door for the old man, and brought in the glorious gifts for the swift-footed son of Peleus; and from the chariot he stepped down to the ground and spake, saying: 460

Old sire, I that am come to thee am immortal god, even Hermes; for the Father sent me to guide thee on thy way. But now verily will I go back, neither come within Achilles' sight; good cause for wrath would it be that an immortal god should thus openly be entertained of mortals. 465 But go thou in, and clasp the knees of the son of Peleus and entreat him by his father and his fair-haired mother and his child, that thou mayest stir his soul.

Iliad Perseus (Homer. The Iliad of Homer, rendered into English prose for the use of those who cannot read the original. Butler, Samuel, 1835-1902, translator. London: Longmans, Green, and Co, 1898.) — 24.468 focus

468 With these words Hermes went back to high Olympus . Priam sprang from his chariot to the ground, leaving Idaios where he was, in charge of the mules and horses. The old man went straight into the house where Achilles, loved of the gods, was sitting. There he found him with his men seated at a distance from him: only two, the hero Automedon, and Alkimos of the race of Ares, were busy in attendance about his person, for he had but just done eating and drinking,

475 and the table was still there. King Priam entered without their seeing him, and going right up to Achilles he clasped his knees and kissed the dread murderous hands that had slain so many of his sons.

480 As when some cruel spite [ atê] has befallen a man that he should have killed some one in his own country, and must flee to a great man's protection in a land [ dêmos] of strangers, and all marvel who see him, even so did Achilles marvel as he beheld Priam. The others looked one to another and marveled also, but Priam besought Achilles saying, "Think of your father, O Achilles like unto the gods, who is such even as I am, on the sad threshold of old age. It may be that those who dwell near him harass him, and there is none to keep war and ruin from him. Yet when he hears of you being still alive, he is glad, and his days are full of hope that he shall see his dear son come home to him from Troy ; but I, wretched man that I am, had the bravest in all Troy for my sons, and there is not one of them left. I had fifty sons when the Achaeans came here; nineteen of them were from a single womb, and the others were borne to me by the women of my household. The greater part of them has fierce Ares laid low, and Hektor, him who was alone left, him who was the guardian of the city and ourselves, him have you lately slain; therefore I am now come to the ships of the Achaeans to ransom his body from you with a great ransom. Fear, O Achilles, the wrath of heaven; think on your own father and have compassion upon me, who am the more pitiable, for I have steeled myself as no man yet has ever steeled himself before me, and have raised to my lips the hand of him who slew my son."

507 Thus spoke Priam, and the heart of Achilles yearned as he bethought him of his father. He took the old man's hand and moved him gently away. The two wept bitterly - Priam, as he lay at Achilles' feet, weeping for Hektor, and Achilles now for his father and now for Patroklos, till the house was filled with their lamentation. But when Achilles was now sated with grief

513 and had unburdened the bitterness of his sorrow, he left his seat and raised the old man by the hand, in pity for his white hair and beard; then he said, "Unhappy man, you have indeed been greatly daring; how could you venture to come alone to the ships of the Achaeans, and enter the presence of him who has slain so many of your brave sons? You must have iron courage: sit now upon this seat, and for all our grief we will hide our sorrows in our hearts, for weeping will not avail us. The immortals know no care, yet the lot they spin for man is full of sorrow; on the floor of Zeus' palace there stand two urns, the one filled with evil gifts, and the other with good ones. He for whom Zeus the lord of thunder mixes the gifts he sends, will meet now with good and now with evil fortune; but he to whom Zeus sends none but evil gifts will be pointed at by the finger of scorn, the hand of famine will pursue him to the ends of the world, and he will go up and down the face of the earth, respected neither by gods nor men. Even so did it befall Peleus; the gods endowed him with all good things from his birth upwards, for he reigned over the Myrmidons excelling all men in prosperity [olbos] and wealth, and mortal though he was they gave him a goddess for his bride. But even on him too did heaven send misfortune, for there is no race of royal children born to him in his house, save one son who is doomed to die all untimely; nor may I take care of him now that he is growing old, for I must stay here at Troy to be the bane of you and your children. And you too, O Priam, I have heard that you were aforetime happy [ olbios]. They say that in wealth and plenitude of offspring you surpassed all that is in Lesbos , the realm of Makar to the northward, Phrygia that is more inland, and those that dwell upon the great Hellespont ; but from the day when the dwellers in heaven sent this evil upon you, war and slaughter have been about your city continually.

549 Bear up against it, and let there be some intervals in your sorrow. Mourn as you may for your brave son, you will take nothing by it. You cannot raise him from the dead, ere you do so yet another sorrow shall befall you."

552 And Priam answered, "O king, bid me not be seated, while Hektor is still lying uncared for in your tents, but accept the great ransom which I have brought you, and give him to me at once that I may look upon him. May you prosper with the ransom and reach your own land in safety, seeing that you have suffered me to live and to look upon the light of the sun."

559 Achilles looked at him sternly and said, "Vex me, sir, no longer; I am of myself minded to give up the body of Hektor. My mother, daughter of the old man of the sea, came to me from Zeus to bid me deliver it to you. Moreover I know well, O Priam, and you cannot hide it, that some god has brought you to the ships of the Achaeans, for else, no man however strong and in his prime would dare to come to our host; he could neither pass our guard unseen, nor draw the bolt of my gates thus easily; therefore, provoke me no further, lest I err against the word of Zeus, and suffer you not, suppliant though you are, within my tents."

English (Butler, rev. Nagy et al., 2020) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Butler, rev. Nagy et al., 2020)) — 24.440 focus

The bringer of good luck then sprang on to the chariot, and seizing the whip and reins he breathed fresh spirit into the mules and horses. When they reached the trench and the wall that was before the ships, those who were on guard had just been getting their suppers, [445] and the slayer of Argos threw them all into a deep sleep. Then he drew back the bolts to open the gates, and took Priam inside with the treasure he had upon his wagon. Ere long they came to the lofty dwelling of the son of Peleus [450] for which the Myrmidons had cut pine and which they had built for their king; when they had built it they thatched it with coarse tussock-grass which they had mown out on the plain, and all round it they made a large courtyard, which was fenced with stakes set close together. The gate was barred with a single bolt of pine which it took three men to force into its place, [455] and three to draw back so as to open the gate, but Achilles could draw it by himself. Hermes opened the gate for the old man, and brought in the treasure that he was taking with him for the son of Peleus. Then he sprang from the chariot on to the ground and said, [460] “Sir, it is I, immortal Hermes, that am come with you, for my father sent me to escort you. I will now leave you, and will not enter into the presence of Achilles, for it might anger him that a god should befriend mortal men thus openly. [465] Go you within, and embrace the knees of the son of Peleus: beseech him by his father, his lovely mother, and his son; thus you may move him.”

English (William Cullen Bryant, 1870) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (William Cullen Bryant, 1870)) — 24.440 focus

So Hermes spake, and leaped into the car,

And took into his hands the lash and reins,

And breathed into the horses and the mules

Fresh vigor. Coming to the wall and trench

About the ships, they found the guard engaged

560

With their night-meal. The herald Argicide

Poured sleep upon them all, and quickly flung

The gates apart, and pushed aside the bars,

And led in Priam, with the costly gifts

Heaped on the car. They went, until they reached

565

The lofty tent in which Achilles sat,

Reared by the Myrmidons to lodge their king,

With timbers of hewn fir, and over-roofed

With thatch, for which the meadows had been mown,

And fenced for safety round with rows of stakes.

570

One fir-tree bar made fast its gate, which three

Strong Greeks were wont to raise aloft, and three

Were needed to take down the massive beam.

Achilles wielded the vast weight alone;

Beneficent Hermes opened it before

575

The aged man, and brought the treasures in,

Designed for swift Achilles. Then he left

The car and stood upon the ground, and said: -

"O aged monarch, I am Mercury,

An ever-living god; my father, Jove,

580

Bade me attend thy journey. I shall now

Return, nor must Achilles look on me;

It is not meet that an immortal god

Should openly befriend a mortal man.

Enter, approach Pelides, clasp his knees;

585

Entreat him by his father, and his son,

And fair-haired mother; so shall he be moved."

English (Alexander Pope, 1720, ed. Watson, 1857) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Alexander Pope, 1720, ed. Watson, 1857)) — 24.440 focus

He said, then took the chariot at a bound,

And snatch'd the reins, and whirl'd the lash around:

Before th' inspiring god that urged them on,

The coursers fly, with spirit not their own.

And now they reach'd the naval walls, and found

545

The guards repasting, while the bowls go round:

On these the virtue of his wand he tries,

And pours deep slumber on their watchful eyes:

Then heav'd the massy gates, remov'd the bars,

And o'er the trenches led the rolling cars.

550

Unseen, through all the hostile camp they went,

And now approach'd Pelides' lofty tent.

Of fir the roof was rais'd, and cover'd o'er

With reeds collected from the marshy shore;

And, fenced with palisades, a hall of state,

555

(The work of soldiers,) where the hero sat.

Large was the door, whose well-compacted strength

A solid pine-tree barr'd of wondrous length;

Scarce three strong Greeks could lift its mighty weight,

But great Achilles singly closed the gate.

560

This Hermes (such the power of gods) set wide;

Then swift alighted the celestial guide,

And thus, reveal'd: ‘Hear prince! and understand

‘Thou ow'st thy guidance to no mortal hand;

‘Hermes I am, descended from above,

565

‘The king of arts, the messenger of Jove.

‘Farewell: to shun Achilles' sight I fly;

‘Uncommon are such favours of the sky,

‘Nor stand confess'd to frail mortality.

‘Now fearless enter, and prefer thy prayers;

570

‘Adjure him by his father's silver hairs,

‘His son, his mother! urge him to bestow

‘Whatever pity that stern heart can know.’

English (George Chapman, 1611, ed. Hooper 1857) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (George Chapman, 1611, ed. Hooper 1857)) — 24.440 focus

These words past, he put the deeds in use

395

For which Jove sent him; up he leapt to Priam's chariot,

Took scourge and reins, and blew in strength to his free steeds, and got

The naval tow'rs and deep dike straight. The guards were all at meat,

Those he enslumber'd, op'd the ports, and in he safely let

Old Priam with his wealthy prize. Forthwith they reach'd the tent

400

Of great Achilles, large and high, and in his most ascent

A shaggy roof of seedy reeds mown from the meads; a hall

Of state they made their king in it, and strength'ned it withal

Thick with fir rafters, whose approach was let in by a door

That had but one bar, but so big that three men evermore

405

Rais'd it to shut, three fresh take down, which yet Aeacides

Would shut and ope himself. And this with far more ease

Hermes set ope, ent'ring the king, then leap'd from horse, and said:

" Now know, old king, that Mercury, a God, hath given this aid

To thy endeavour, sent by Jove; and now away must I,

410

For men would envy thy estate to see a Deity

Affect a man thus. Enter thou, embrace Achilles' knee,

And by his sire, son, mother, pray his ruth and grace to thee."

¹²

English (William Cowper, 1791, ed. Southey) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (William Cowper, 1791, ed. Southey)) — 24.440 focus

So Mercury, and to the chariot seat

Upspringing, seized at once the lash and reins,

555

And with fresh vigour mules and steeds inspired.

Arriving at the foss and towers, they found

The guard preparing now their evening cheer,

All whom the Argicide with sudden sleep

Oppress'd, then oped the gates, thrust back the bars,

560

And introduced, with all his litter-load

Of costly gifts, the venerable King.

But when they reach'd the tent for Peleus' son

Raised by the Myrmidons (with trunks of pine

They built it, lopping smooth the boughs away,

565

Then spread with shaggy mowings of the mead

Its lofty roof, and with a spacious court

Surrounded it, all fenced with driven stakes;

One bar alone of pine secured the door,

Which ask'd three Greecians with united force

570

To thrust it to its place, and three again

To thrust it back, although Achilles oft

Would heave it to the door himself alone ;)

Then Hermes, benefactor of mankind,

That bar displacing for the King of Troy,

575

Gave entrance to himself and to his gifts

For Peleus' son design'd, and from the seat

Alighting, thus his speech to Priam turn'd.

Oh ancient Priam! an immortal God

Attends thee; I am Hermes, by command

580

Of Jove my father thy appointed guide.

But I return. I will not, entering here,

Stand in Achilles' sight; immortal Powers

May not so unreservedly indulge

Creatures of mortal kind. But enter thou,

585

Embrace his knees, and by his father both

And by his Goddess mother sue to him,

And by his son, that his whole heart may melt.

New Alexandria Commentaries

Douglas Frame

cited as evidence for the well recognized notion that Priam’s ransom of Hector in Iliad XXIV is represented as a journey to the underworld and a consequent “return to life”

source

reference to same lines in similar thematic connection in Il. XXIV.328

source

reference to location and time (sunset) of Herme’s meeting with Priam, the tomb if Ilus. Indication of Priam’s ransom of Hector as a to the underworld and consequent ‘return to life’ [MRBTP: 'ff']

source

quoted and translated; analysis of the role of nóos in the encounter between Priam and Hermes

source

quoted and translated; analysis of the role of nóos in the encounter between Priam and Hermes

source

quoted and translated; analysis of the role of nóos in the encounter between Priam and Hermes

source

quoted and translated; analysis of the role of nóos in the encounter between Priam and Hermes

source

Gregory Nagy

The Iliad ends with the funeral of Hector, not of Achilles. And it is Hector, not Achilles, who is lamented at the end. But it is Achilles who makes it all happen, since he has transcended his rage and has shown mercy to an old father. The tears of Priam had made Achilles think of his own old father, of his own ancestors—and of Patroklos, who embodied the glories of the ancestors. Achilles was looking bad at the beginning of Iliad 23 and even at the beginning of Iliad 24, but he looks very good by the time Iliad 24 comes to a close.

draft js image error Mourners lament as Hector’s corpse is laid out in preparation for the funeral that closes Iliad Rhapsody 24. Copperplate etching (1795) by Tommaso Piroli, after a drawing (1793) by John Flaxman. Image via Wikimedia Commons.

source

In speaking to Priam, the god Hermes disguises himself as a therapōn of Achilles. It is as if he were the spirit of the dead Patroklos, the other self of Achilles himself.

source

See again the comment on I.24.393.

source

See the anchor comment at O.07.256.

source

Leonard Muellner

analysis of the development of the meaning of Latin spendō, in the context of analyzing the development of uoueō/eukhesthai

source

example of a transformation of the themes in a prayer, in the context of the analysis of composition by theme in prayers, which can be amplified or minimized according to circumstances

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comment on eukhomenos and epos being traditionally and syntactically bound together, despite the separate existence of epos ēuda# as in this verse

source

example of a transformation of the themes in a prayer, in the context of the analysis of composition by theme in prayers, which can be amplified or minimized according to circumstances

source

comment on overlap between Hermes and Athena (here, Athena’s wearing Hermes’ sandals), in the context of analyzing her reminding of Hermes in O.13.221ff.

source

comparison of Greek formulas for asking a person’s identity with Avestan and Indic parallels, as well as genos eukhesthai einai formulas

source

comparison of Greek formulas for asking a person’s identity with Avestan and Indic parallels, as well as genos eukhesthai einai formulas

source

Iliad 24.440

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