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Book Nine
quietly tolerated, for the acceptability of a text depends on its auctoritas as
much as its intelligibility. There is some uncertainty about the dual verb
in Homer (see 10.36411., 13.346^, and Hoekstra, SES 28), though nouns
and pronouns seem to have given the poet little trouble (but see 5.487-
8n.).
Solution (6) comes close to denying the integrity of the text, for it is but
a short step from maintaining that the duals of 182-98 reflect an archetype
to maintaining that the verses are an undigested fragment of an earlier or
alternative embassy. It may be that there is an insight at this point into
the mind of Homer at work, as he improves an embassy of two heralds
(Agamemnon's first idea, it appears), to one with two major heroes besides,
to one also including Phoinix - whose contribution alone advances the plot
of the Iliad. The traditional position is less subtle and demands the excision
of Phoinix and all allusions to him; see e.g. Leaf's introduction to his
commentary to book 9 and Page's summary of the analysts' position in
HHI297-304. The excisions, however, cannot be performed with surgical
neatness. The removal of Phoinix, moreover, obscures much of the Iliad's
moral force, see 502-i2n. and introduction to this Book.
The conventions of iconography do not clearly reveal early understandings
of the npECTpeioc, see Lex. Icon. 'Achilleus' 437-65, Friis Johansen, Iliad
in Early Greek Art 51-7. Some vases show Diomedes as if present but in an
averted posture, to indicate his disapproval (cf. 697-703) of this approach
to Akhilleus.
183 The assembled chiefs prayed to Zeus (implied at 172), now the
emissaries pray to Poseidon alongside whose element they are walking and
who is one of their stoutest allies on Olumpos. yaifjoxos (< yaidpoxos,
IG v.i 213), probably because the ocean embraces and supports the earth,
cf. Burkert, Religion 402. evvoaiyoaos should be capitalized; like 'Aiacptyurjeis,
KUAAOTTO6ICOV, 'ApyupoTo^os, Ku8epeir|, the oblique reference avoids a metrically
awkward divine name.
184 uey&Aocs 9pevas; i.e. 'proud' heart, like Ouuov uEyccv at 496.
185 = ! -328. At 1.329 Akhilleus waited for Agamemnon's minions irapd
T6 KAiairj KOC! vnt uEAaivrj, but the present scene contains no specific indication
of Akhilleus' position. He is alone with Patroklos, unaware of the
ambassadors' approach. If then he is within his KAiairi (as seems likely) there
is a minor inconsistency between