Achilles

Also known as Ahilleus or Akhilleus.

In Greek mythology, Achilles was a hero of the Trojan War who was known as being the greatest of all the Greek warriors.

He’s the main character in Homer’s Iliad. He was the son of the Nereid named Thetis & King Peleus of Phthia (& famous Argonaut). He had a few nicknames: “Swift-footed,” “Breaker of men,” “Aristos Achaion” (Best of the Greeks).

Achilles was raised in Phthia along with his childhood companion Patroclus & received his education from the centaur, Chiron. In the Iliad, he was presented as a member of the mythical tribe of the Myrmidons. The Myrmidons are/were an ancient Thessalian tribe.

Achilles’ most notable feat during the Trojan War was the unaliving of the Trojan prince Hector outside the gates of Troy. Achilles’ death isn’t shown in the Iliad. Other sources concur that he was unalived near the end of the Trojan War by Paris, who shot him with an arrow.

Later legends (beginning with Statius’ unfinished epic Achilleid, written in the 1st century CE) state that Achilles was invulnerable in all of his body except for 1 heel. According to that myth, when his mother, Thetis, dipped him in the River Styx as an infant, she held him by 1 of his heels, leaving it touched by the waters & thus his only vulnerable body part.

Achilles was the son of Thetis & King Peleus of the Myrmidons. Zeus & Poseidon had been rivals for Thetis’ hand in marriage until Prometheus (the fore-thinker) warned Zeus of a prophecy (originally said by Themis, goddess of divine law) that Thetis would have a son who would be greater than his dad. For this reason, the 2 gods withdrew their affections & had her marry King Peleus.

There’s a story that tells an alternative version of events: In the Argonautica, Zeus’ sister-wife (his literal biological sister, whom Zeus married), Hera, refers to Thetis’ chaste resistance to Zeus’ advances. It points out that Thetis was so loyal to Hera’s marriage bond (with Zeus) that she rejected Zeus.

Even though Thetis was Nereus’ daughter, she was also raised by Hera. This further explains her resistance to Zeus’ advances. Zeus was BIG mad. Zeus decreed that she would never marry an immortal.

According to the Achilleid (written by Statius in the 1st century), when Achilles was born, Thetis tried to make him immortal by dipping him in the River Styx. He was left vulnerable at the part of the body by which she held him, his left heel/tendon.

In another version of the story, Thetis anointed Achilles in ambrosia & put him on top of a fire in order to burn away the mortal parts of his body. She was interrupted by Peleus & abandoned both dad & son in a rage.

In the Iliad, Achilles isn’t completely invulnerable. He gets wounded in Book 21. For the original Greeks, Achilles was terrifying not because he was magic. But because he was just better – faster, stronger, & more relentless than any mortal man.

The Paeonian hero Asteropaios, son of Pelagon, challenged Achilles by the river Scamander. He was ambidextrous. He threw a spear from each hand. 1 grazed Achilles’ elbow. Peleus entrusted Achilles’ education to Chiron.

Chiron lived on Mount Pelion & was known as the most righteous of the Centaurs. In some accounts, Achilles’ original name was “Ligyron,” & he was later named Achilles by his tutor, Chiron.

According to Homer, Achilles grew up in Phthia with his childhood companion Patroclus. Homer tells us that Achilles taught Patroclus what he himself had been taught by Chiron, including the medical arts.

Thetis foretold that her son’s fate was either to gain glory & die young, or to live a long but uneventful life in obscurity. Achilles chose the former & chose to take part in the Trojan War.

The pivot point of Achilles’ life is Patroclus. It’s highly debated about their relationship status – cousins, friends, or lovers. The intensity of Achilles’ grief suggests a relationship beyond a regular friendship. He fasted, wept over his body openly, & demanding their ashes be mixed together.

When Patroclus is killed by the Trojan prince Hector, Achilles transforms from a brooding soldier into a terrifying force of nature.

Some post-Homeric sources claim that to keep Achilles safe from the war, Thetis (or in some versions, Peleus) hid Achilles dressed as a girl at the court of Lycomedes, king of Skyros. There, a properly disguised, Achilles lived among King Lycomedes’ daughter. With Lycomedes’ daughter, Deidamia, (Achilles started a relationship with her.) Achilles fathered 2 sons (Neoptolemus & Oneiros) there.

According to this story, Odysseus learned from the prophet Calchas that the Achaeans would be unable to capture Troy without Achilles’ help. Odysseus went to Skyros in disguise as a peddler selling women’s clothes & jewellery & put a shield & spear amongst his wares. When Achilles immediately picked up the spear, Odysseus saw through the disguise. Odysseus talked Achilles into joining him for the Greek campaign.

According to the Iliad, Achilles arrived at Troy with 50 ships. Each ship carried 50 Myrmidons. Achilles appointed 5 leaders: Menesthius, Eudorius, Peisander, Phoenix, & Alcimedon. Each leader commanded 500 Myrmidons.

When the Greeks left for the Trojan War, they accidentally stopped in Mysia. Mysia was ruled by King Telephus. In a battle, Achilles gave Telephus a wound that wouldn’t heal. King Telephus talks to an Oracle, who said that “he that wounded shall heal.” Guided by the Oracle, he arrived at Argo, where Achilles healed him in order that he might become their guide for the voyage to Troy.

According to Cypria, when the Achaeans wanted to return home, they were stopped by Achilles (who afterwards attacked the cattle of Aeneas), sacked neighboring cities (like Pedasus & Lyrnessus, where the Greeks capture the queen Briseis) & unalived Tenes (a son of Apollo), as well as King Priam’s son Troilus in the sanctuary of Apollo Thymbraios.

At the end of the Iliad, King Priam of Troy snuck into Achilles’ tent to beg Achilles from the return of his son Hector’s body. Instead of unaliving, or turning him away, Achilles openly weeps with King Priam. They share a meal & recognize their shared suffering.

At this moment, the “Breaker of men” finally acknowledges the humanity of his enemy. King Priam says his famous line to Achilles during this interaction: “I have endured what no one on earth has ever done – I have kissed the land of the name who killed my son.”

The poem ends with a description of Hector’s funeral, with the doom of Troy & Achilles himself still to come.

In Book 22 of the Iliad, Hector predicts with his last breath that both Paris & Apollo will unalive him at the Scaean Gates leading to Troy, with an arrow to the heel. In Book 23, the sad spirit of dead Patroclus visits Achilles as he just drifts off to sleep. The ghostly Patroclus asks that his bones be placed in his golden vase, along with Achilles’ bones, as a present of his mom.

Achilles’ armor was the object of a feud between Odysseus & Ajax the Great. They competed for it by giving speeches on why they deserved the armor, to their Trojan prisoners (who decided that Odyssesu got the armor). Ajax didn’t particularly care for that decision. So he cursed Odysseus.

Athena didn’t like Ajax’s curse. She said, “I got something for ya, boy.” The goddess made Ajax temporarily upset/mad with grief & anguish that he began killing sheep, thinking they were his friends. After a while, Athena lifted the madness.

Ajax realized what he’d done, he was so ashamed that he self-deleted. Odysseus eventually gave the armor to Achilles’ son, Neoptolemus.

The armor was made by Hephaestus. The Shield of Achilles was made by Hephaestus. Achilles’ legendary spear was given to him and participated in the Trojan War. It was called the Pelian Spear, which no other man could wield.

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The Nereids

In Greek mythology, the Nereid/Nereides are sea nymphs (female spirits of the sea/waters), the 50 daughters of Nereus (the “Old Man of the Sea”) & Doris (an Oceanid). They’re sisters of the Nerites. They often accompany Poseidon & can be kind to sailors (as in the Argonauts’ search for the Golden Fleece).

While they’re often grouped together as a group of sea nymphs, they represent the multifaceted nature of the Mediterranean.

The Nereids were distinct from other nymphs. Like the freshwater Naiads or the deep-ocean Oceanids. They were specifically associated with the Aegean Sea. The Nereids symbolized everything beautiful & kind about the sea. Their beautiful voices sang as they danced around their dad. They’re pictured as beautiful women crowned with branches of red coral & dressed in white silk robes trimmed with gold.

They lived with their dad, Nereus, in the depths of a golden palace. While there were 50 sisters, 3 stand out:

• Thetis, the mom of a legend
  • She was so beautiful & powerful that Zeus & Poseidon courted her. Until a prophecy says that her son would be greater than his dad. To stop this prophecy from upsetting the “cosmic balance” (so Zeus’ power stayed with him), Zeus forced Thetis to marry a mortal king, Peleus. This wedding was the catalyst for the Trojan War. It’s where Eris threw the “Apple of Discord.” Thetis spent her life trying to protect her son, Achilles, from his destiny. She was 1 of the few nymphs to have a significant cult following, particularly in Laconia & Thessaly.
• Amphitrite, the Queen of the Sea
  • Amphitrite is the “First Lady” of the ocean. Poseidon may be the king, but Amphitrite represents the sea’s actual substance. Legend says that she initially ran away from Poseidon’s romantic advancements. She hid in the Atlas Mountains to get away from Poseidon. Poseidon sent a dolphin to find her & plead his case. The dolphin successfully pleaded Poseidon’s case. She agreed to marry Poseidon. Poseidon put the dolphin in the stars as a reward (the Delphinus constellation).
• Galatea, the beloved & the bitter
  • She was loved by the giant cyclops, Polyphemus. However, Galatea loved a mortal shepherd named Acis. In a fit of rage, Polyphemus crushed Acis with a boulder. Galatea, using her divine sea powers, transformed her lover’s blood into a river (the River Acis in Sicily) so that he could remain immortal in spirit.

In Homer’s Iliad XVIII, when Thetis cries out in sympathy for the grief of her son, Achilles, for the slain Patroclus, her sisters show up. 4 of her sisters, Cymodoce, Thalia, Nesaea, & Spio, were among the nymphs in the training of Cyrene. Later on, these 4 together with their sisters (Thetis, Melite, & Panopea) were able to help the hero Aeneas & his crew during a storm.

In 1 account, Cassiopeia boasted that her daughter, Andromeda, was more beautiful than the Nereides. The Nereids were livid at Cassiopeia’s claim. Their divine homie, Poseidon, being sympathetic towards them, sent a flood, & a sea monster to the land of the Aethiopians, demanding Andromeda’s sacrifices.

These sea goddesses were also said to reveal the mysteries of Dionysus & Persephone. The Nereids were worshipped in several parts of Greece. More specifically, in seaport towns, such as Cardamyle & the Isthmus of Corinth.

In the ancient world, the Nereids weren’t some fanciful fairy tales. They were a part of a functional religious system. Historical records show that sailors & military commanders (like Alexander the Great) offered sacrifices to the Nereids before going out on dangerous voyages.

The Nereid is the direct ancestor of the modern mermaid. The Greeks usually pictured them as fully human. But later Roman & Hellenistic art began to blend them with fish-like features.

The 3rd largest moon of Neptune is called Nereid. It was discovered in 1949 by Gerard Kuiper. The moon is famous for having 1 of the most eccentric (non-circular) orbits of any moon in the solar system. Also, there’s a “lake” in Antarctica that bears their name.

Fresko aus Pompeji: Die von Aeneas verlassene Königin Dido (Haus des Melager)

#roman #römisch #romanitas #romanempire #fresco #fresko #wandmalerei #pompeji #dido #aeneas #mythologie #mythology

@Barbarast ! Helemaal vergeten te posten dat we vorige week met #Maqam de mooiste operastukken in een uitverkocht Maldestijn ten gehore mochten brengen.... Een Opera de Mariage.

https://www.maqam.nl/operakoren/

Hier een stukje uit #Dido en #Aeneas

#opera #koor #maqâm

@Richardjunior

Het Forum van Augustus (2)

Wie het Augustusforum, waaraan ik ook het vorige blogje wijdde, betrad vanaf het Forum van Caesar, zag op het plein eerst een beeld van keizer Augustus in een vierspan. Daar achter verrees de vijfendertig meter hoge tempel van Mars de Wreker. De onverwachte aanblik van zo’n groot bouwwerk moet enorme indruk hebben gemaakt, zeker als het witte Carraramarmer op een zomermiddag fonkelde in de zon.

Aan de voet van de ook nu nog imponerende trap stonden fonteinen, waarvan tegenwoordig alleen lage muurtjes resteren die amper boven het gras uitsteken. Hier stonden ook enkele standbeelden die ooit van Alexander de Grote waren geweest. In het gevelveld van de tempel lag links een beeld van Palatinus (de personificatie van de heuvel waarop Rome was ontstaan), daarop volgde een zittende Romulus die het voorteken van de twaalf gieren gadesloeg (een voorteken dat ook Octavianus eens zei te hebben ontvangen), en middenin stonden een schaars geklede Venus en een stoere Mars. Rechts van hem stond Victoria, zat Roma en lag de riviergod Tiber. Door deze verwijzingen naar de stichtingssage presenteerde Augustus zich als nieuwe Romulus.

De binnenkant van de tempel was een bont geheel. De vloer bestond uit alle soorten marmer van het Middellandse-Zee-gebied en dat bracht de omvang van het rijk en dus de macht van de heerser in herinnering. Achterin stond op een sokkel van enkele nog altijd zichtbare treden van Egyptisch albast een beeldengroep: een baardige Mars leunde op een lans, met aan zijn zijde een elegant geklede Venus die van haar zoontje Amor het zwaard van haar geliefde kreeg aangereikt. De groep kan worden gereconstrueerd aan de hand van een reliëf dat is gevonden in Algiers.

Aan weerszijden stonden de veldtekens die ooit door vijanden waren buit gemaakt maar later heroverd. Zo waren hier de in 53 v.Chr. door de Parthen op Crassus veroverde standaards, die ten tijde van Augustus waren teruggegeven aan zijn adoptiefzoon Tiberius. (Dit is de scène die is afgebeeld op het borstpantser van de Augustus van Primaporta.) Waarschijnlijk waren hier ook de adelaars te zien van het Zeventiende, het Achttiende en het Negentiende Legioen te zien, die waren verloren tijdens en heroverd na de slag in het Teutoburgerwoud.

Het forum had verschillende functies. Sommige kwamen we al tegen in het vorige blogje: rechtspraak en oorlogszaken. Uit andere bronnen weten we dat dit de plaats was waar jonge mannen werden ingeschreven in het dienstplichtigenregister (hoewel ze zelden werden opgeroepen), waar verslagen vijanden hun eed van trouw aflegden en waar de ridders hun jaarlijkse diner hadden. Augustus’ biograaf Suetonius vermeldt een incident:

Eens woonde keizer Claudius op het Forum van Augustus een rechtszitting bij toen hij de geur opsnoof van een maaltijd die in de tempel van Mars daar vlakbij werd klaargemaakt. Hij verliet de zitting, begaf zich naar de priesters en ging bij hen aan tafel.noot Suetonius, Claudius 33.1; vert. Den Hengst.

Achter de galerijen aan weerszijden van het plein lagen grote, halfronde ruimtes, zogenaamde exedra’s. Tegenwoordig resteren er twee, maar er waren er aanvankelijk nog twee, gelegen in de richting van het Forum van Caesar. Ze zijn gesloopt om ruimte te creëren voor het Forum Transitorium en het Trajanusforum.

De nissen in de muren van de exedra’s boden plaats aan standbeelden. Die in de noordwestelijke galerij stelden Augustus’ voorouders voor: middenin de nu zichtbare exedra stond een beeld van de legendarische voorouder Aeneas, met daaromheen alle andere voorouders, de  Julii. Dit was niets nieuws: elke Romeinse familie die het zich kon permitteren, bewaarde de portretten van haar overledenen en toonde zo haar geschiedenis. De omvang van de portretgalerij was een van de zaken waarin de rivaliteit tussen de aristocratische geslachten tot uiting kwam, en het spreekt vanzelf dat de galerij in het Augustusforum moest tonen dat de keizerlijke familie iedereen overtrof.

De exedra aan de overzijde vormde een “hall of fame” van voorname Romeinen uit heden en verleden. Centraal stond het beeld van – alweer – Romulus, geflankeerd door succesvolle generaals, bekende politici en de principes van de Senaat. De laatsten waren zeer belangrijk in de augusteïsche propaganda: door hen hier af te beelden, suggereerde Romes eerste keizer dat zijn eigen alleenheerschappij eigenlijk heel gewoon was – er waren gedurende de hele republikeinse periode dominante politici geweest.

Augustus bepaalde dat alle generaals die in de toekomst een triomftocht hielden of zogeheten triomfale eretekenen kregen, recht hadden op een standbeeld. Toen twee exedra’s werden gesloopt, werden de daar geplaatste beelden overgebracht naar de nieuwe fora: zowel het Forum Transitorium als het Trajanusforum hadden vergelijkbare galerijen. Zo gaf Augustus elke voorname Romein de ruimte en presenteerde hij zijn alleenheerschappij alsof ze paste binnen de republikeinse staatsinrichting. Het forum was echter ook bedoeld als persoonlijk monument. Niet voor niets stond zijn standbeeld midden op het plein. Er was nog een tweede beeld, dat zijn persoonlijke beschermgod voorstelde. Het was geplaatst in een apart vertrek in de noordhoek van het forum. Met een hoogte van tien meter was het de oudste van de colossi die Rome in de keizertijd sierden.

De veelkleurige vloer van dit vertrek is een kwart eeuw geleden gerestaureerd. In de muurdecoratie waren twee afbeeldingen opgenomen van Alexander de Grote, vervaardigd door de beroemdste schilder uit de Oudheid, Apelles (ca. 375-ca. 315). Augustus identificeerde zich graag met de Macedoniër, die net als hij Egypte had veroverd en zich als god had laten vereren. Zó ver kon Augustus niet gaan, maar het feit dat het standbeeld van zijn beschermgod groter was dan dat van Mars, zei genoeg.

#Aeneas #AlexanderDeGrote #Apelles #Augustus #Claudius #ForumVanAugustus #ForumVanCaesar #ForumVanTrajanus #Keizerfora #LegioXIX #LegioXVII #LegioXVIII #Mars #Octavianus #Rome #Romulus #slagInHetTeutoburgerwoud #Suetonius

„Das Programm #Aeneas [ von #Deepmind ] kann fragmentarische römische Inschriften ergänzen und schätzt besser als Fachleute, wo und wann die lateinischen Texte entstanden sind.“

https://www.derstandard.de/story/3000000280848/wie-ein-neues-ki-modell-von-deepmind-die-epigrafik-erobert

#KI #Epigrafik #Latein