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Homer’s Iliad
BOOK XI
And now as Dawn rose from her couch beside Tithonus, harbinger
of light alike to mortals and immortals, Jove sent fierce Discord
with the ensign of war in her hands to the ships of the Achaeans.
She took her stand by the huge black hull of Ulysses’ ship which
was middlemost of all, so that her voice might carry farthest on
either side, on the one hand towards the tents of Ajax son of
Telamon, and on the other towards those of Achilles- for these two
heroes, well-assured of their own strength, had valorously drawn
up their ships at the two ends of the line. There she took her stand,
and raised a cry both loud and shrill that filled the Achaeans with
courage, giving them heart to fight resolutely and with all their
might, so that they had rather stay there and do battle than go
home in their ships.
The son of Atreus shouted aloud and bade the Argives gird
themselves for battle while he put on his armour. First he girded
his goodly greaves about his legs, making them fast with ankle
clasps of silver; and about his chest he set the breastplate which
Cinyras had once given him as a guest-gift. It had been noised
abroad as far as Cyprus that the Achaeans were about to sail for
Troy, and therefore he gave it to the king. It had ten courses of dark
cyanus, twelve of gold, and ten of tin. There were serpents of
cyanus that reared themselves up towards the neck, three upon
either side, like the rainbows which the son of Saturn has set in
heaven as a sign to mortal men. About his shoulders he threw his
sword, studded with bosses of gold; and the scabbard was of silver
with a chain of gold wherewith to hang it. He took moreover the
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