20-The Trojan Horse

Athena advised Odysseus to instruct Epeios to build a huge wooden horse. The horse went down in history known as the Trojan Horse. Indeed, Epeios, managed to build a wooden horse of huge dimensions with hidden openings left and right, using wood from the nearby mountain Ida. The Achaeans set up an inscription on the Trojan horse with the words "Danae charistirion Athena" meaning "dedicated to Athena by the Greeks” on their return home. Then the most valiant heroes of the Achaeans went inside, Odysseus, Diomedes, Menelaus, Ajax of Lokris, Neoptolemos, Teukros, Idomeneas, Meriones and of course Epeios, who knew how to open the secret side hatches. Once the Trojan Horse was manned, the rest of the army set their tents on fire, dragged their boats at sea, sailed and withdrawed to Tenedos, to a point that could not be seen from Troy. They only left behind a relative of Odysseus, Sinon, who had acting skills in order to try and deceive the Trojans the next day.

The next morning, the Trojans discovered that the enemy camp had been abandoned. In their enthusiasm they believed that the war was over after ten years and felt it was necessary to move the Trojan horse inside the city. Their decision was facilitated by Sinon, who told them a fake story in which he suffered at the hands of the Achaeans, who were forced to withdraw because they fell out of favor from the goddess Athena. Some Trojans in particular felt that the Horse was cursed and should be thrown in a cliff or be burned. Cassandra and Laocoon warned that only suffer would it bring to the city. The Laocoon shouted, “Beware of the Greeks and bearing gifts”. But even though Cassandra had the clairvoyance from Apollo to foretell future events, she also had the curse of Athena, not to be able to convince anyone. Laocoon and his two sons, were attacked by the huge sea serpents of Poseidon that strangled them in the sea. Aeneas and his followers believed these predictions and withdrew to Mount Ida. The Trojans filled with excitement, decided to transfer the Trojan Horse within the walls of Troy. In fact, because it was a large enough structure, they had to demolish part of the main gate of the city. Soon after they took to the streets to celebrate their victory in the war.

< Prophecies ...

The Fall of Troy >