Agamemnon in the Ancient Sources: 172 Passages in Greek & English

Hesiod (1)

Hesiod, Fragments 1.69–71The Trojan War and the house of AtreusA long papyrus fragment tells how the gods were divided by strife and how Zeus planned storm and tempest over the boundless earth. The shorter fragments cover Agamemnon and Menelaus and the fate of Iphigeneia.

Homer (49)

Homer, Iliad 11.163–283Iris to Hector; Agamemnon is woundedZeus sends Iris to tell Hector to hold back until Agamemnon has been wounded and left the field, and then he will have power to kill until sunset. Agamemnon kills Iphidamas, and Iphidamas' brother Coon wounds him in the arm. Agamemnon kills Coon and fights on until the blood dries, and then pain seizes him like a woman in labour and he drives to the ships.
Homer, Iliad 10.1–130A sleepless night; Agamemnon wakes NestorWhile the other chieftains sleep, Agamemnon lies awake, troubled by the Trojan fires and the sound of their pipes, and he groans and tears his hair as he prays to Zeus. He rises and puts on a lion's skin, and Menelaus, who is also sleepless, comes to him; they agree to rouse the chiefs. Agamemnon goes to Nestor, who agrees to go round and wake the others.
Homer, Iliad 1.68–187Calchas and the quarrel of Achilles and AgamemnonThe seer Calchas asks for protection if he is to explain the plague, and Achilles swears that no one will harm him. Calchas says that Apollo is angry because Agamemnon dishonoured his priest Chryses, and Agamemnon agrees to give back the girl but demands another prize in her place. Achilles replies that the army has no common store to pay him from, and Agamemnon threatens to take Achilles' own prize, Briseis.
Homer, Iliad 2.1–101Zeus sends a deceptive dream to AgamemnonWhile the other gods sleep, Zeus plans to honour Achilles and sends a deceitful dream to Agamemnon in the likeness of Nestor, telling him that the gods now favour him and that he can take Troy. Agamemnon wakes with the voice in his ears, dresses and bids the heralds summon the Achaeans. He first holds a council of the elders beside Nestor's ship and tells them of the dream.
Homer, Iliad 2.394–483Agamemnon's sacrifice; the army mustersAgamemnon sacrifices an ox to Zeus and prays that the sun may not set before he burns Priam's palace and slays Hector, but Zeus accepts the offering and increases their toil. After the feast Nestor urges them to arm, and the army pours out onto the plain of Scamander like flocks of birds and swarms of flies, with Athena moving among them holding the aegis. The poet compares Agamemnon to Zeus, Ares and Poseidon.
Homer, Iliad 11.84–162Agamemnon's onslaughtThe armies meet at midday, and the Danaans break the Trojan ranks with Agamemnon leading. He kills Bienor and Oileus, then Isus and Antiphus, sons of Priam, and then Peisander and Hippolochus, who beg to be ransomed. Agamemnon refuses, recalling that their father had urged the Trojans to kill Menelaus when he came to Troy as an envoy, and the Trojans flee toward the wall.
Homer, Iliad 19.154–275The gifts and the oath: Briseis is returnedAchilles says that Agamemnon may give the gifts or keep them, since he wants only to fight. Odysseus advises that the men first take food, since a man cannot fight fasting, and the gifts are brought to the middle of the assembly. Agamemnon swears by Zeus that he never lay with Briseis and sacrifices a boar, and Achilles accepts.
Homer, Iliad 1.304–427Briseis is taken from Achilles; Achilles prays to ThetisAgamemnon launches a ship to take the girl home to Chryses and sends heralds to Achilles' hut to take Briseis. Achilles lets her go, then sits weeping by the sea and prays to his mother Thetis, who rises from the water to comfort him. He asks her to go to Zeus and win honour for him by having the Achaeans driven back to their ships.
Homer, Iliad 4.73–219Pandarus breaks the truce and wounds MenelausAthena goes down in the likeness of Laodocus and persuades Pandarus to shoot at Menelaus. The arrow passes through belt and corselet and draws blood, and Agamemnon, in dread, says that the broken oath will bring ruin on Troy. Talthybius is sent for Machaon, who sucks the blood from the wound and spreads soothing drugs upon it.
Homer, Iliad 4.220–326Agamemnon inspects the Achaean ranksAs the Trojans advance, Agamemnon goes through the ranks, praising the men who are eager and rebuking those who hang back. He commends Idomeneus, who promises his support, and encourages the two Ajaxes. Nestor tells of his younger days and bids the charioteers keep their ranks.
Homer, Iliad 4.327–421Agamemnon rebukes Odysseus and DiomedesAgamemnon chides Menestheus and Odysseus for standing back, and Odysseus answers sharply, so that Agamemnon takes back his words. He then finds Diomedes by his horses and tells him that his father Tydeus was a better fighter. Diomedes is silent, but Sthenelus answers that they are better men than their fathers because they took Thebes.
Homer, Iliad 9.89–178Nestor's counsel; Agamemnon's offer to AchillesAt the feast in Agamemnon's hut Nestor tells the king that he was wrong to dishonour Achilles, and urges him to win Achilles back with gifts and gentle words. Agamemnon admits his folly and promises seven tripods, ten talents of gold, twenty cauldrons, seven women of Lesbos, and the return of the girl he took, with one of his daughters in marriage and seven cities. Nestor names Phoenix, Ajax and Odysseus to go as envoys, with the heralds Odius and Eurybates.

37 more passages of Homer that name Agamemnon

Apollodorus (5)

Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.3.1–35Paris and Helen; the muster at Aulis and the landing at TroyParis judges the contest of the three goddesses, carries off Helen, and Menelaus and Agamemnon call the Greek kings to arms; Odysseus's feigned madness is exposed and Palamedes is framed. The section gives the catalogue of the Greek fleet at Aulis, the omen of the snake and sparrows, the failed first landing in Mysia and the healing of Telephus, and the sacrifice of Iphigenia. After Tenedos and the abandonment of Philoctetes, Protesilaus is the first to die at Troy, Achilles takes many nearby cities, and the Trojan allies are listed.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.6.1–29The returns from Troy: Nauplius, Agamemnon's murder and OrestesThe Greeks quarrel at an assembly over whether to leave at once, and the section follows the returns: Calchas and Mopsus at Colophon, the storm at Tenos in which Ajax dies, Nauplius's false beacon at Caphereus, Neoptolemus in Molossia, and the fates of Demophon and Phyllis, Podalirius and the Locrian maidens. Agamemnon is murdered by Clytemnestra and Aegisthus, and Orestes avenges him, is tried at Athens, and brings the image of Artemis from the Taurians. The section ends with Menelaus's wanderings and his return to Sparta.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.2.1–16Tantalus, Pelops and the house of AtreusThe Epitome describes the punishment of Tantalus in Hades, Pelops' revival after being boiled at the gods' banquet, and his winning of Hippodamia from Oenomaus with the help of the charioteer Myrtilus, whom he then drowns. It follows the sons of Pelops: Atreus and Thyestes quarrel over the kingdom of Mycenae because of the golden lamb, Atreus serves Thyestes his own sons, and Aegisthus, born to Thyestes by his daughter, kills Atreus. It ends with Agamemnon, Menelaus and the children of Agamemnon.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome 3.2.1–2Catreus, Althaemenes and NaupliusAn oracle tells Catreus that one of his children will kill him, and his son Althaemenes leaves Crete for Rhodes with his sister Apemosyne, whom he later kicks to death when she says Hermes took her by trickery. Catreus gives his daughters Aerope and Clymene to Nauplius to sell abroad; Aerope marries Plisthenes and becomes the mother of Agamemnon and Menelaus, and Clymene marries Nauplius. In old age Catreus goes to Rhodes and is killed unknowingly by Althaemenes, who then vanishes into a chasm.
Apollodorus, The Library (Bibliotheca), with the Epitome E.5.1–23The death of Achilles, the Wooden Horse and the fall of TroyPenthesilea and then Memnon come to Troy's aid and are killed by Achilles, who is himself shot by Paris and Apollo. The contest for Achilles' arms drives Ajax to madness and suicide. Troy falls after Philoctetes shoots Paris, Helenus reveals the three conditions, Neoptolemus joins the army and Odysseus steals the Palladium, and the Greeks take the city with the Wooden Horse, Sinon and the beacon at Tenedos; the section closes with the sack, the deaths of Astyanax and Polyxena, and the division of the captives.

Pindar (1)

Pindar, Pythian Odes 11.1–64Pythian 11: for Thrasydaeus — Orestes and AgamemnonPindar invites the daughters of Cadmus to honour Thrasydaeus of Thebes, victor in the boys' foot-race, and then tells how Orestes was rescued by his nurse after Clytaemnestra killed Agamemnon and Cassandra, how he reached Strophius, and how he later killed his mother and Aegisthus. He asks whether a wind has blown him off course, like a traveller at a fork in the road, and returns to the glory of Thrasydaeus and his father. The ode ends with a prayer to Iolaüs and to Castor and Polydeuces, who live alternately at Therapne and on Olympus.

Aeschylus (16)

Aeschylus, Agamemnon 914–974Third episode (cont.): the purple tapestriesAgamemnon answers Clytaemestra's welcome and refuses to walk on the purple cloths, saying that such honour is for gods and not for a mortal, and that he does not want to be envied. She persuades him, and he gives way, has his sandals taken off, asks her to treat Cassandra kindly, and walks into the palace over the purple, praying that no god's envy may strike him. Clytaemestra prays to Zeus to fulfil her wishes.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1372–1447Fifth episode: Clytaemestra stands over the bodiesClytaemestra appears over the bodies of Agamemnon and Cassandra and says that she is not ashamed of what she has said or done. She tells how she threw a net, a robe, round him and struck him three times, and says that she did it to avenge Iphigenia. The Chorus are shocked and say that she will be an outcast, and she answers that they did not condemn Agamemnon when he killed his own child.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 40–175Parodos (1): the army sails and the omen of the eaglesThe Chorus of old men of Argos recall that it is now the tenth year since Menelaus and Agamemnon sailed against Troy, and say that they are too old to fight and wait at home. They ask Clytaemestra why sacrifices are burning on every altar, then tell of the omen seen as the army set out, two eagles devouring a pregnant hare. They tell how the seer Calchas read it as the capture of Troy and warned that Artemis was angry, and they pray that she will not hold back the fleet with contrary winds.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 475–582Second episode: the Herald arrives from TroyThe elders doubt Clytaemestra's news, saying that it is like a woman to trust good tidings too quickly. A Herald from the army then arrives, greets his native Argos and the gods, and confirms that Troy has fallen and that Agamemnon is coming home. The Chorus tell him that they feared for the army while it was away, and he describes the hardships of the siege.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1178–1255Fourth episode (cont.): Cassandra's visions of the house of AtreusCassandra says that she will no longer speak in riddles, and tells how the Furies haunt the house for the old crime of Atreus, the banquet in which Thyestes was served the flesh of his own sons. She tells how Apollo loved her and cursed her never to be believed, and says that a lion lies in wait for her master, betrayed by the woman who is like a hound that licks his hand. The Chorus recognise the story of Thyestes, and Cassandra says that they will see Agamemnon dead.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1256–1330Fourth episode (cont.): Cassandra goes in to dieCassandra sees the lioness who will slay her, throws down her prophetic staff and garlands, and foretells that an avenger will come to repay her death and that of Agamemnon. She goes to the palace door, which she calls the gates of Death, and the Chorus pity her. Before she goes in she says that the house smells of blood and prays that her enemies will pay for killing a slave.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1331–1371Fourth stasimon; Agamemnon's death-cries and the elders' debateThe Chorus sing that no one is ever satisfied with prosperity, and that Agamemnon may now be paying for the blood shed before him. Agamemnon is heard crying out from inside the palace that he has been struck, once, and again. The elders then argue about what to do, with proposals to call the citizens, to break in and to make sure first of what has happened.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1448–1576Kommos: the lament for Agamemnon and the Fiend of the houseThe Chorus mourn the king and blame Helen for the deaths at Troy, and Clytaemestra says that the Fiend of the house, which has fed on the family of Tantalus, has done the deed through her. The elders ask who will bury Agamemnon, and she says that she will not allow them to mourn him, and that Iphigenia will meet him at the river of sorrows. The Chorus say that they are in doubt, and that the blow will be repaid with a blow.
Aeschylus, Libation Bearers 931–972Third stasimon: Justice has come to the houseThe Chorus sing that Justice has come at last to the house of Priam and to the house of Agamemnon, and that the exile who was urged on by the gods has finished his work. They sing that the light has come, and that the house is free from the long curse and the work of its enemies.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 176–263Parodos (2): the hymn to Zeus and the sacrifice of IphigeniaThe Chorus sing a hymn to Zeus, who has set men on the road to wisdom through suffering. They tell how Agamemnon, when the fleet was held at Aulis by contrary winds, put on the yoke of necessity and sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia to obtain a favourable wind. In the last lines the Chorus leader turns to Clytaemestra and asks whether her sacrifices mean good news.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 810–913Third episode: Agamemnon arrives and Clytaemestra's welcomeAgamemnon arrives in his chariot with the captive Cassandra and greets Argos and its gods, saying that the gods have punished Troy and that he will deal with the affairs of the city in assembly. Clytaemestra then speaks before the citizens of her long loneliness, her fears for her husband and the reports of his death, and tells how she sent their son Orestes away for safety. She greets him with a string of images and tells her servants to strew purple cloths for his path.
Aeschylus, Agamemnon 1577–1673Exodos: Aegisthus and the ChorusAegisthus enters and says that he rejoices to see Agamemnon in the net of justice, and tells the story of Atreus and the banquet he served to his brother Thyestes. The Chorus mock Aegisthus as a man who left the killing to a woman, and say that Orestes may still come back to take vengeance, and the two sides almost come to blows. Clytaemestra stops them and tells Aegisthus that they will be masters of the house.

4 more passages of Aeschylus that name Agamemnon

Sophocles (9)

Sophocles, Ajax 1316–1375Odysseus persuades Agamemnon to allow the burialOdysseus arrives and calms the quarrel, telling Agamemnon that he must not let hatred override justice, since Ajax was the best of the Greeks after Achilles, and the gods will be angered by the dishonouring of a brave man. Agamemnon argues that Ajax was an enemy, and finally agrees to allow the burial, though he says that he is doing it for Odysseus' sake and that his hatred remains.
Sophocles, Ajax 1223–1315Fifth episode: Agamemnon and Teucer quarrelTeucer returns when he sees Agamemnon coming, and Agamemnon calls him a captive's son and asks how he dares to speak so boldly. Teucer tells him how Ajax saved the Greek ships from Hector's fire, and how much the army owes him. He answers with the ancestry of Agamemnon and says that he will protect the body with his own life.
Sophocles, Electra 86–153Parodos: Electra's lament and the ChorusElectra, alone in front of the palace, cries out to the light and the air that she mourns her father every night and every day, and calls on the gods below and the Erinyes to send her brother. The Chorus of Mycenaean women ask why she wastes away in grief for Agamemnon, and tell her that weeping will not bring him back from Hades. She answers that it would be foolish to forget a murdered parent, and compares herself to the nightingale mourning Itys and to Niobe weeping in her rocky tomb.
Sophocles, Electra 155–250Parodos (cont.): the Chorus consoles ElectraThe Chorus tell her that she is not the only mortal to suffer, and that Orestes lives and will come, but Electra answers that she waits year after year, childless and unwed, and serves in her father's halls like a slave. The Chorus recall the murder of Agamemnon at his banquet, and Electra says that the killers must pay for it, or shame and reverence will vanish from the world. The Chorus urge her to say no more, since such strife is dangerous against the powerful, but she says that she will not stop her cries while she lives.
Sophocles, Electra 328–416First episode (cont.): Chrysothemis warns ElectraHer sister Chrysothemis comes from the house, and Electra blames her for obeying their mother and the murderers of their father. Chrysothemis answers that she has no power to resist, and warns that Aegisthus and Clytaemnestra mean to shut Electra up in an underground cell if she does not stop her mourning. She then says that Clytaemnestra has sent her with libations for the tomb of Agamemnon, out of fear caused by a dream, and Electra asks her to tell it.
Sophocles, Electra 417–471First episode (cont.): Clytaemnestra's dream and the offeringsChrysothemis tells how Clytaemnestra dreamed that Agamemnon returned to the light and planted his sceptre at the hearth, and that a branch grew from it and shaded all Mycenae. Electra persuades her not to lay Clytaemnestra's offerings on the tomb, and to give instead locks of hair from both sisters and Electra's belt, praying for the return of Orestes. The Chorus approve, and Chrysothemis agrees and asks them to keep silent.
Sophocles, Electra 472–557First stasimon; Clytaemnestra defends the killing of AgamemnonThe Chorus say that Justice will come, since the dream means that the murder will be avenged, and recall the old chariot race of Pelops, the source of the curse on the house. Clytaemnestra comes out and complains that Electra runs loose when Aegisthus is away and slanders her. She defends her killing of Agamemnon by saying that he sacrificed their daughter Iphigenia, and Electra asks leave to answer her.
Sophocles, Electra 558–633Second episode: Electra answers her motherElectra answers that Agamemnon killed a stag sacred to Artemis and was compelled to sacrifice his daughter for that, and not for Menelaus' sake, so that Clytaemnestra had no right to kill him. She says that her mother did it for her lover, with whom she now has children, while she has cast out Orestes and made Electra a servant. Clytaemnestra threatens her with punishment when Aegisthus returns, and prepares to sacrifice.
Sophocles, Electra 1442–1510Exodos: Aegisthus is led in to dieAegisthus arrives and asks where the Phocian strangers are who brought news of Orestes' death, and Electra says that they are inside and have shown the body. He orders the gates opened, and sees a shrouded body, which he thinks to be Orestes. Orestes tells him to lift the veil himself, and when he sees Clytaemnestra's corpse he knows that he is lost. Orestes drives him into the house to die where he killed Agamemnon, and the Chorus end the play by saying that the house is free at last.

Euripides (57)

Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 677–740Second episode: Clytemnestra questions Agamemnon about the weddingAgamemnon sends Iphigenia in, and Clytemnestra asks about the bridegroom's family, and he tells her of Aegina, of Peleus and Thetis, and of the Centaur Chiron. Clytemnestra asks who will give the bride away and where she is to prepare the feast for the women. Agamemnon says that she must go back to Argos, and Clytemnestra, after protesting, refuses to obey.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 631–676Second episode: Iphigenia greets her fatherIphigenia runs to her father and greets him, saying that she has longed to see his face. She notices that he is troubled and that tears are in his eyes, and Agamemnon answers her in broken words that hide his purpose. She asks where the Phrygians live and wishes she could go with him to Troy, and he tells her that she will make a voyage of her own, alone.
Euripides, Hecuba 749–785Third episode: Hecuba asks Agamemnon to avenge her sonHecuba says that she cannot avenge her children without Agamemnon's help, and implores him by his knees and his beard to be her ally. Agamemnon at first thinks that she wishes to be set free, and Hecuba says that it is not that. She tells him that the corpse is her son Polydorus, sent with gold to Polymestor, who killed him when Troy fell, and that a maid found the body on the shore.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 1098–1145Fourth episode: Clytemnestra confronts AgamemnonClytemnestra comes out to look for her husband, and Agamemnon asks her to send the maiden out for the lustral water, the barley-meal and the heifers to be slain before the marriage. Clytemnestra, who now knows what he intends, brings Iphigenia out with the child Orestes. She asks whether he means to slay their child, and Agamemnon, unable to deny it, cries out on fate.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 115–163Prologue: Agamemnon sends a second letter to stop IphigeniaAgamemnon tells the old servant that he has changed his mind and is sending a second letter, to forbid Clytemnestra to send their daughter to Aulis. The old servant asks how Achilles will take being cheated, and Agamemnon says that Achilles lent his name without knowing it. He sends the old man off, telling him to guard the seal and watch the roads, and says that no one was ever born to a painless life.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 303–333First episode: Menelaus seizes Agamemnon's letterMenelaus has stopped the old servant on the road and taken the letter from him, and when the old man refuses to let go, Menelaus threatens to beat him with his staff. The old man calls for Agamemnon, who comes out and angrily asks what is going on. Menelaus says that he has read the letter and will not give it up until he has shown its contents to the whole army.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 1–48Prologue: Agamemnon and the old servant before dawnAgamemnon calls an old servant out of his tent before dawn, when the sea is calm and the winds are hushed, and says that he envies those who live in obscurity rather than those in high office. The old servant answers that a chief must take joy and sorrow alike, and tells him that he has seen him writing a letter and erasing it. He asks him to share his trouble, and reminds him that Tyndareus sent him as part of Clytemnestra's dowry.
Euripides, Iphigenia at Aulis 473–527First episode: Menelaus relents but Agamemnon fears the armyMenelaus swears by Pelops and Atreus that he will speak the truth, says that the sight of his brother in tears has made him pity him, and withdraws his former demands, asking whether he could not find another bride. The Chorus Leader calls it a generous speech, and Agamemnon thanks him. Agamemnon answers that the whole army will force him to the sacrifice, once Calchas and Odysseus reveal the oracle.
Euripides, Hecuba 722–748Third episode: Agamemnon arrives and Hecuba hesitates to speakThe Chorus sees Agamemnon coming, and he asks Hecuba why she delays burying her daughter and why she is not as he expected. He sees a corpse near the tents, and Hecuba, unsure whether to throw herself at his knees or to say nothing, will not explain what has happened. Agamemnon tells her that he cannot guess her thoughts.
Euripides, Hecuba 876–904Third episode: Hecuba plans her revenge on PolymestorAgamemnon asks how she will avenge herself, with a sword or with drugs, and who will help her. Hecuba says that she has the Trojan women within the tents, and that women have killed before, as the Danaids killed the sons of Aegyptus and the women of Lemnos cleared the island of men. Agamemnon agrees to let her do it, as long as there is no wind to sail, and she sends a servant to summon Polymestor with his children.
Euripides, Hecuba 1240–1295Exodos: Agamemnon's verdict and Polymestor's prophecyAgamemnon says that it goes against his grain to judge, but that Polymestor must bear what he has brought on himself, since he murdered a guest for gold. Polymestor, taunting them, says that Dionysus has told him that Hecuba will climb the ship's mast and be changed into a dog, that Cassandra must die, and that a murderous bath awaits Agamemnon in Argos. Agamemnon orders him to be cast away on a desert island, and the Chorus leaves for the ships.
Euripides, Hecuba 1056–1131Exodos: the blinded Polymestor appeals to AgamemnonPolymestor crawls out of the tent, blinded, and cries out for his Thracian spearmen and for the sons of Atreus, saying that he wishes to seize the women and tear them limb from limb. The Chorus says that his pain is great, and Agamemnon, hearing his cry, comes out and asks who has blinded him and killed his children.

45 more passages of Euripides that name Agamemnon

Diodorus Siculus (1)

Diodorus Siculus, Library of History, Books 4 to 6 (the Greek myths) 5.50.1–5.54.4Naxos, Syme, Calydna and NisyrosThe first settlers of Naxos are Thracians led by Butes; their dealings with the sons of Aloeus and with Dionysus, who is said to have been reared there, are told in turn. The historian then briefly gives the settlement of Syme, with its king Nireus, and of Calydna and Nisyros.

Ovid (2)

Ovid, Metamorphoses 12.534–628Periclymenus and the death of AchillesNestor ends his tale, and Tlepolemus, a son of Heracles (Hercules), reproaches him for passing over his father, and Nestor says that Heracles killed all his brothers except Periclymenus, whom Poseidon (Neptune) had given the power to change his shape, and who escaped by turning into an eagle until Heracles shot him. Poseidon, angry at the death of Cycnus, asks Apollo to destroy Achilles, and Apollo directs Paris' arrow, which kills him. His ashes lie in a small urn, and the contest for his armour begins.
Ovid, Metamorphoses 13.623–747Aeneas at Delos; Anius' daughters; ScyllaAeneas escapes from Troy with his father and his household gods and comes to Delos, where the king Anius shows them the temple and tells how his three daughters had the power of turning things into corn, wine and oil. Agamemnon tried to take them for the Greek army, and they escaped by prayer to Dionysus (Bacchus), who turned them into doves. Aeneas sails on past Sicily and the straits of Scylla and Charybdis, and the nymph Scylla asks the sea-nymph Galatea why she weeps.

Pausanias (16)

Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.16.1–7Mycenae: Perseus, the Argive kings, the Lion Gate and the tombsPausanias lists the Argive kings from Argos and Triopas to Danaus and Lynceus, the division between Acrisius and Proetus, and the death of Acrisius by Perseus’ quoit. He gives accounts of why Perseus founded Mycenae, and of how the Argives later destroyed it. He describes the surviving walls with the lion gate, the Persea fountain, the treasuries of Atreus and the graves of Agamemnon and his companions, with Clytemnestra and Aegisthus outside the walls.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 5.19.1–10Olympia: the Chest of Cypselus, fourth and fifth fieldsPausanias describes the fourth field, including Boreas and Orithyia, Hercules and Geryon, the fight of Achilles and Memnon, the Dioscuri rescuing Helen, scenes from the Trojan war, the judgment of Paris and the sons of Oedipus. He then gives his readings of the unlabelled uppermost field, such as Ulysses and Circe, and guesses that the verses are by Eumelus of Corinth.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 1.43.1–8Megara: shrines of heroes, the Aesymnium, Dionysus and Aphrodite, and the grave of CoroebusPausanias lists Megarian shrines and tombs: Iphigenia, Adrastus, Artemis, the Prytaneum burials, the rock Anaclethra, the Aesymnium Council House and the tombs of Pyrgo and Iphinoe. He describes the sanctuary of Dionysus and the temples of Aphrodite and Fortune with works by Praxiteles, Scopas and Lysippus, and tells the story of Coroebus, who killed Punishment sent by Apollo and founded Tripodisci.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.6.1–7Sicyon: Epopeus and Antiope, and the later kings of SicyonPausanias relates how Epopeus carried off Antiope, daughter of Nycteus, and how Lycus and Lamedon settled the quarrel, with Antiope giving birth to Zethus and Amphion at Eleutherae. He continues the Sicyonian kings, including Sicyon himself, Polybus and Adrastus, Phaestus, Zeuxippus, Hippolytus under Agamemnon and Lacestades, whose rule was shared with the Dorian Phalces.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 3.9.1–13Sparta: Agesilaus’ expedition to Asia and the outbreak of the Corinthian warAgesilaus leads the allied army to Asia, but at Aulis the Thebans interrupt his sacrifice, and he defeats Tissaphernes near Sardes. The Persians send Timocrates to bribe Greek leaders and stir up war, a Locrian-Phocian quarrel draws in Thebes and Sparta, and Agesilaus is recalled. He marches back through Thrace and Thessaly, wins at Coronea, and respects the sanctuary of Itonian Athena.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 7.24.1–13Aegium and Helice: the sanctuaries and the destruction of HelicePausanias lists the sanctuaries beside the market-place and sea at Aegium, including that of Homagyrian Zeus, where Agamemnon assembled the Greek chiefs, and describes the bronze child Zeus and Hercules by Ageladas. He then turns to Helice, where the Achaeans put suppliants to death in the sanctuary of Heliconian Poseidon, and the city was swallowed by an earthquake and the sea. He lists the signs that precede earthquakes and describes their kinds, and compares Helice to a city lost under Mount Sipylus.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 9.40.1–12Lebadea and Chaeronea: the discovery of the oracle, the works of Daedalus and the sceptre of AgamemnonPausanias tells how the Boeotians found the oracle of Trophonius by following bees, and lists the surviving works of Daedalus. He moves to Chaeronea, once called Arne, and discusses the Roman trophies and why Macedonians set up none, the tomb of the Thebans who fell fighting Philip with its lion, and the sceptre of Agamemnon, which the Chaeroneans worship as a spear and which the priest keeps in his house for a year.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.25.1–11Delphi: the Cnidian Lesche and Polygnotus' painting of Troy after its capture (1)Pausanias describes the building dedicated by the Cnidians at Delphi, called the Lesche or Club-room, with its paintings by Polygnotus. On the right wall the painting shows Troy after its capture and the Greeks setting sail, with Menelaus' crew and the pilot Phrontis, then Helen and her handmaids, Helenus, the wounded Meges and Lycomedes, Aethra and Demophon, and the captive Trojan women, Andromache, Medisicaste and Polyxena, with Nestor.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.30.1–9Delphi: Polygnotus' painting of the underworld (3): the daughters of Pandareos, Phocus, Orpheus and ThamyrisPausanias continues the underworld painting with the daughters of Pandareos, Antilochus, Agamemnon, Protesilaus, Achilles and Patroclus, and Phocus giving a signet to Iaseus. He describes Maera, Actaeon with his mother and hound, and Orpheus seated in the grove of Proserpine beside the willows and Promedon. He ends with Schedius, Pelias, the blind Thamyris with his broken lyre and Marsyas teaching Olympus to play the flute.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 1.33.1–8Attica: Brauron, Rhamnus and Phidias’ statue of NemesisAt Brauron Iphigenia is said to have left the image of Artemis. At Rhamnus stands the sanctuary of Nemesis, with Phidias’ statue made from the marble the Persians brought to set up as a trophy. Pausanias digresses on the Ethiopians shown on her bowl and on Ocean, Atlas and the sources of the Nile, notes that Nemesis was originally wingless, and explains the figures on the pedestal, where Leda brings Helen to Nemesis.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.18.1–9Argos: the road from Mycenae, the tomb of Thyestes and the kings of ArgosOn the road to Argos are a shrine of Perseus, the tomb of Thyestes with its ram, the sanctuary of Mysian Demeter, the river Inachus and an altar of the Sun. Pausanias explains the division of the Argive kingdom among the lines of Anaxagoras, Bias and Melampus, then the rule of Orestes and Tisamenus and the return of the Heraclids, who drove out Tisamenus and the descendants of Nestor.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.22.1–9Argos: sanctuaries of Hera and Latona, the Dioscuri, Hecate and the gymnasium of CylarabesSouth of the Latona sanctuary Pausanias describes the temple of Flowery Hera and the grave of the Sea-Women, the sanctuary of Pelasgian Demeter, a bronze vessel said to hold the bones of Tantalus, and the shrine of Poseidon of the Dashing Wave. He then lists the grave of Argus, the temple of the Dioscuri, the sanctuary of Ilithyia founded by Helen, and the temple of Hecate with images by Scopas, Polyclitus and Naucydes. He ends with the tomb of Sacadas and the gymnasium of Cylarabes.

4 more passages of Pausanias that name Agamemnon

Quintus Smyrnaeus (11)

Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 5.121–236Aias and Odysseus claim the armsThetis offers the arms to the best of the Argives, and Aias and Odysseus rise to claim them. Nestor speaks privately to Idomeneus and Agamemnon, warning that this contest will cost the army dear. The three refuse to judge between the heroes.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 5.456–567The death of AiasAthena clears his mind, and Aias sees the dead sheep and, knowing that the gods have cheated his senses, thrusts Hector's sword into his throat. Teucer wants to die with him and is held back. Tecmessa, his captive-bride, wails over the body, and Agamemnon promises her that no man shall make her a slave while he and Teucer live.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 9.444–546Philoctetes is healedAt the camp the Argives are glad to see him, and his wound is healed. Agamemnon asks his forgiveness and gives him gifts, and Philoctetes forgives. The Argives arm for battle at dawn.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 3.514–581Achilles' body is washedAt nightfall Nestor tells Agamemnon what to do for the body. Water is heated, and Achilles is washed and dressed, and Athena pours ambrosia on him so that he looks as if asleep. The captive women, and above all Briseis, lament him.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 4.465–595Funeral games: leaping, javelin, chariot-race and horse-raceAgapenor wins the long jump and Euryalus the javelin, and no one dares box against Aias. Menelaus wins the chariot-race, in which Thoas and Eurypylus are thrown from their cars, and the text breaks off in the middle of the race. Agamemnon then wins the horse-race with Sthenelus second, and Thetis gives gifts to all the riders, while Odysseus is kept out by his wound.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 6.335–450Eurypylus kills MachaonThe Argives pour out from the camp around Agamemnon and at first press the Trojans back. Eurypylus kills Nireus, and Machaon attacks him in revenge but is struck down. Teucer shouts to the Danaans to hold.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 7.556–734Neoptolemus is honoured at the feastAthena comes down to Sigeum to watch Neoptolemus, who kills the twin sons of Meges, Celtus and Eubius, and many more. At nightfall the Argives honour him with gifts and a feast, and Agamemnon praises him as his father's image. Meanwhile the Trojans in their camp praise Eurypylus.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 9.75–209The battle before the wallsThe Trojans see the Argive host and are afraid, but arm and go out against the chariots. Deiphobus kills Nestor's charioteer. Neoptolemus cuts down the Trojans like a woodman felling trees, while elsewhere Agamemnon and Diomedes fight on.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 11.1–128The battle after Paris' deathThe Trojan women mourn in the city, but the young men go on fighting outside, for Strife and the Fates stalk through both armies. Neoptolemus, Aeneas, Philoctetes, Polydamas, Odysseus, Diomedes, Agamemnon, Thoas and Teucer kill in turn, and the dead are numbered.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 14.1–120The spoil of TroyThe Argives plunder Troy. Menelaus leads Helen from the burning city, and Cassandra falls to Agamemnon, Andromache to Neoptolemus and Hecuba to Odysseus. Xanthus mourns with his Nymphs, and the Argives sacrifice and feast at the ships.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 3.422–513The lament for AchillesThe Myrmidons mourn round the body. Aias, old Phoenix and Agamemnon each speak their grief, and the whole camp joins in the wailing.

Epic Cycle (4)

Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 5.1–38CypriaProclus' summary of the Cypria opens with Zeus planning the Trojan War with Themis, the quarrel of the three goddesses, Alexandrus, Helen and the gathering of the Greeks at Aulis. The fragments cover the earth burdened by men, the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, Helen's birth to Nemesis, Castor and Polydeuces, and Alexandrus carrying Helen to Ilium.
Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 9.1–10.2Returns and TelegonyProclus' summary of the Returns begins with Athena causing a quarrel between Agamemnon and Menelaus about the voyage from Troy. The fragments mention Medea and Aeson, Heracles at Themiscyra, and Telemachus marrying Circe. The Telegony, in two books, has Odysseus sailing to Elis after the suitors are buried, and the author says that Odysseus had a son Telegonus by Calypso.
Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 7.1–26Little IliadProclus' summary of the Little Iliad begins with the judging of the arms of Achilles, which Odysseus wins, and the madness and death of Aias. Philoctetes is brought from Lemnos, Eurypylus is killed by Neoptolemus and Epeius builds the wooden horse. The fragments give the girls' quarrel over Aias and Odysseus, Achilles at Scyros, the golden vine given to Laomedon for Ganymedes, and the death of Astyanax.
Epic Cycle, Summaries and Fragments 8.1–8Sack of IliumProclus' summary tells how the Trojans debated what to do with the wooden horse, some wishing to hurl it from the rocks, some to burn it and some to dedicate it to Athena. The fragments say that one Palladium was given to Dardanus, that Astyanax was hurled from the wall, and that Agamemnon gave gifts to the sons of Theseus. One fragment describes the gifts of the Earth-Shaker to Machaon and Podaleirius.

Agamemnon in the ancient sources

Hesiod (1)

Homer (49)

Apollodorus (5)

Pindar (1)

Aeschylus (16)

Sophocles (9)

Euripides (57)

Diodorus Siculus (1)

Ovid (2)

Pausanias (16)

Quintus Smyrnaeus (11)

Epic Cycle (4)