DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.9261#0186
423 P.OVIDII METAMOR-
cafion of his Fate, when he makes Ulyfles fay , that
in He 11, the Shades of all the Grecian Heros imme-
diatly met him, except Ajax's; whofe Refentment of
the old Quarrel about Achilles's Armour was llill fo
frelh, that he would not come near him. The Scho-
liast of Homer, & Euftathius, in explaining this Paf-
fage, fay, That Agamemnon, very much embarrafled
how to behave in a Difpute which might have proved
fatal to the Army, ordered the Trojan Prifoners be-
fore the Council, to give their Opinion which of the
Two Rivals had done them mod Mifchief; and that
they fliould have anfwered in Favour of Ulyfles. The
Scholiaft of Ariflophanes , on the Authority of the
Little Iliad, adds , That Agamemnon not fatisfied
with this Inquiry, lent out Spies to know what Opi-
nion the other Trojans had of thefe two Heros; and
that upon their Report, he decided for Ulyfles.
Be that Matter as it will, Ajax was buried near the
Promontory Sigaum, where a Tomb was ere&ed for
him; as Paufanias & Pliny fay ; tho' other Authors
following Diclys Cretenlis place his Tomb on the
Promontory Rhetaum : And when Horace talks of
his being denied the Honours of a Funeral ; he changes
the Matter of Fa£t, that he may allude to a Pafiage
in the Tragedy of Sophocles, where the Poet makes
Agamemnon obftinately refufe to allow him a Burial}
till he is at laft foftened by the Intreaties of Teuccr.
Many other Fables have been vended concerning
Ajax : But that I mayn't repeat here what 1 have
infilled on in another Place, I refer the Reader who
would know them more particulary , to my Expli-
cation of Fables Tom. III. As to his Metamorphofis,
fee what I have faid of it in the Story of Hyacinthus,
who was changed into the fame fort of Flower. In
(9) In Eqait:
(10) Sat. III. Lib. II.
P.OVID'S METAMOR-
the Second Plate of this Book , the Engraver has
touch'd an Incident of Achilles's Life, which UlyfTes
mentions in his Harangue; I mean his Difguifing him-
felf like a Woman: This is the Story. Thetis learning
by an Oracle that the Trojan War would be fatal to
her Son , lhe fent him privately to Lycomedes her
Brother, who reigned in Scyros-, and to conceal him
the better, fhe clothed him in Woman's Apparel. But
as the Fate of Troy was fiich, that the Deftruction of
it depended upon Achilles's Prefence ; the Greeks
made a narrow Search after him, and hearing that he
was at Lycomedes's Court, Ulyfles undertook to bring
him away by a Stratagem, which fucceeded to his Willi.
Among feveral Parcels of Jewels, which he defigned
to make Prefents of to the Queen's Daughters, he mixt
fome Arms of a particularly beautiful Workmanfhip j
which Achilles no fooner faw, than he took them
up, & handled them with an Air & Pleafure that
foon difcovered who he was. This is the Account that
Ovid, Hygin, and Statius, as well as other Ancients,
give of it: For Homer, it is probable, fuch a Story
was llrange to him} fince, fpeaking of the manner
how this Hero was drawn into the War , he fays,
that Neftor 8c UlyfTes, went to fee Peleus & Mene-
tius, and eafily obtained of them that Achilles & Pa-
troclus mould come along with them. It is certain,
however, that Achilles had been at the Court of Ly-
comedes } for it was there he fell in Love with and
married Deidamia , by whom he had Pyrrhus or
Neoptolemus, who was prefent at the Taking of Troy*
tho' only in the fifteenth or Sixteenth Year of his Age.
But there are feveral Difficulties in the Chronology of
this Hiftory; and I mould expatiate too far, if I infilled
on them at a proper Length.
(11) Iliad. Lib. XL
F A B>
cafion of his Fate, when he makes Ulyfles fay , that
in He 11, the Shades of all the Grecian Heros imme-
diatly met him, except Ajax's; whofe Refentment of
the old Quarrel about Achilles's Armour was llill fo
frelh, that he would not come near him. The Scho-
liast of Homer, & Euftathius, in explaining this Paf-
fage, fay, That Agamemnon, very much embarrafled
how to behave in a Difpute which might have proved
fatal to the Army, ordered the Trojan Prifoners be-
fore the Council, to give their Opinion which of the
Two Rivals had done them mod Mifchief; and that
they fliould have anfwered in Favour of Ulyfles. The
Scholiaft of Ariflophanes , on the Authority of the
Little Iliad, adds , That Agamemnon not fatisfied
with this Inquiry, lent out Spies to know what Opi-
nion the other Trojans had of thefe two Heros; and
that upon their Report, he decided for Ulyfles.
Be that Matter as it will, Ajax was buried near the
Promontory Sigaum, where a Tomb was ere&ed for
him; as Paufanias & Pliny fay ; tho' other Authors
following Diclys Cretenlis place his Tomb on the
Promontory Rhetaum : And when Horace talks of
his being denied the Honours of a Funeral ; he changes
the Matter of Fa£t, that he may allude to a Pafiage
in the Tragedy of Sophocles, where the Poet makes
Agamemnon obftinately refufe to allow him a Burial}
till he is at laft foftened by the Intreaties of Teuccr.
Many other Fables have been vended concerning
Ajax : But that I mayn't repeat here what 1 have
infilled on in another Place, I refer the Reader who
would know them more particulary , to my Expli-
cation of Fables Tom. III. As to his Metamorphofis,
fee what I have faid of it in the Story of Hyacinthus,
who was changed into the fame fort of Flower. In
(9) In Eqait:
(10) Sat. III. Lib. II.
P.OVID'S METAMOR-
the Second Plate of this Book , the Engraver has
touch'd an Incident of Achilles's Life, which UlyfTes
mentions in his Harangue; I mean his Difguifing him-
felf like a Woman: This is the Story. Thetis learning
by an Oracle that the Trojan War would be fatal to
her Son , lhe fent him privately to Lycomedes her
Brother, who reigned in Scyros-, and to conceal him
the better, fhe clothed him in Woman's Apparel. But
as the Fate of Troy was fiich, that the Deftruction of
it depended upon Achilles's Prefence ; the Greeks
made a narrow Search after him, and hearing that he
was at Lycomedes's Court, Ulyfles undertook to bring
him away by a Stratagem, which fucceeded to his Willi.
Among feveral Parcels of Jewels, which he defigned
to make Prefents of to the Queen's Daughters, he mixt
fome Arms of a particularly beautiful Workmanfhip j
which Achilles no fooner faw, than he took them
up, & handled them with an Air & Pleafure that
foon difcovered who he was. This is the Account that
Ovid, Hygin, and Statius, as well as other Ancients,
give of it: For Homer, it is probable, fuch a Story
was llrange to him} fince, fpeaking of the manner
how this Hero was drawn into the War , he fays,
that Neftor 8c UlyfTes, went to fee Peleus & Mene-
tius, and eafily obtained of them that Achilles & Pa-
troclus mould come along with them. It is certain,
however, that Achilles had been at the Court of Ly-
comedes } for it was there he fell in Love with and
married Deidamia , by whom he had Pyrrhus or
Neoptolemus, who was prefent at the Taking of Troy*
tho' only in the fifteenth or Sixteenth Year of his Age.
But there are feveral Difficulties in the Chronology of
this Hiftory; and I mould expatiate too far, if I infilled
on them at a proper Length.
(11) Iliad. Lib. XL
F A B>