Neoptolemus in the ancient sources

Ancient Sources / Figures / Neoptolemus

66 passages from 8 ancient authors that tell of Neoptolemus, in the original with English translation, author by author in the order the Greeks read them. Neoptolemus was the son of the hero Achilles and the princess Deidamia in Greek mythology. Achilles' mother, the goddess Thetis, had foreseen that her... For the story in one place, read our article on Neoptolemus.

Homer (3)

Homer, Odyssey 11.465–567Achilles and AjaxThe ghosts of Achilles, Patroclus, Antilochus and Ajax come up. Achilles says that he would rather be the hired servant of a poor man on earth than king of all the dead, and asks for news of his son Neoptolemus and his father Peleus. Odysseus tells him how Neoptolemus fought at Troy, and Achilles departs rejoicing. The ghost of Ajax, still angry about the arms of Achilles, will not speak.
Homer, Iliad 19.276–337Briseis mourns Patroclus; Achilles refuses foodBriseis, brought from the hut, sees the body of Patroclus and cries over him, saying that he had promised to make her the wedded wife of Achilles. The women join in the lament, and the elders urge Achilles to eat, but he refuses, wanting only blood and slaughter. He weeps, thinking of his old father Peleus and of his son Neoptolemus in Scyros.
Homer, Odyssey 3.102–200Nestor tells of the Achaeans' returnNestor recalls the long fighting at Troy, where no one could match Odysseus in counsel, and tells how the Achaeans quarrelled and divided on the eve of their departure. Some sailed with Menelaus, Diomedes and Odysseus to Tenedos, where they quarrelled again, and Nestor sailed home. He says he has heard that Neoptolemus, Philoctetes and Idomeneus reached home safely, and he praises Orestes for killing Aegisthus.

Apollodorus (3)

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.
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 3.13.1–8Peleus, Thetis and the youth of AchillesPeleus flees to Phthia and is purified, kills Eurytion by accident in the Calydonian hunt, and escapes the plots of Astydamia, wife of Acastus. With help from Chiron he wins Thetis, who tries to make their son Achilles immortal in the fire. When Calchas declares that Troy cannot be taken without Achilles, Thetis hides him among the daughters of Lycomedes, where Odysseus finds him; Phoenix and Patroclus join him.

Pindar (1)

Pindar, Nemean Odes 7.1–105Nemean 7: for Sogenes — Neoptolemus at DelphiPindar invokes Eleithyia, goddess of birth, and praises Sogenes of Aegina, boys' pentathlon victor, saying that song gives fame to the deeds of heroes. He tells how Neoptolemus, who sacked Troy, lies buried at Pytho after being struck down in a quarrel over the sacrifice, and defends himself against the charge of having slandered him. He ends by praising the Aeginetan hero's family and warning against idle talk like babbling to babes of 'Corinth, the city of Zeus'.

Sophocles (18)

Sophocles, Philoctetes 730–826Third episode: the attack of painPhiloctetes is suddenly seized by a violent attack of pain in his foot, and begs Neoptolemus to cut off the foot, and gives him the bow to keep. Neoptolemus promises that no one else will touch it. Philoctetes curses Odysseus and the Atreidae, asks to be burned on Lemnos and, after the pain passes, begs him not to leave and falls into a deep sleep.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 1218–1262Exodos: Neoptolemus returns to give back the bowNeoptolemus returns with Odysseus following, and says that he has come back to undo his mistake and give the bow back. Odysseus tries to stop him, and threatens him with the army and with his sword, but Neoptolemus says that his act was shameful and he will undo it. Odysseus leaves to report him to the army, and Neoptolemus calls Philoctetes out of his cave.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 865–962Fourth episode: Neoptolemus admits the deceptionPhiloctetes wakes and is moved to find Neoptolemus still there, and asks to be helped up. Neoptolemus, troubled by his conscience, finally says that he is taking him to Troy, back to the Atreidae. Philoctetes cries that he has been betrayed, demands his bow back and curses Neoptolemus as a deceiver.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 1348–1407bExodos (cont.): Philoctetes refuses and Neoptolemus yieldsPhiloctetes cries out against the hateful life that keeps him alive, and says that he cannot join the Greeks who left him to rot, or the sons of Atreus. He asks Neoptolemus to keep his promise and take him home, and Neoptolemus, though he fears the vengeance of the Greeks, finally agrees to take him to Oeta. Philoctetes says that he will help him with the arrows of Heracles.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 86–134Prologue (cont.): Neoptolemus hesitates, then agreesNeoptolemus says that he would rather fail honestly than win by a base trick, and that he would take the man by force. Odysseus answers that force will not work against the bow and that one learns that it is the tongue and not deeds that rule among men, and that the bow alone will take Troy. Neoptolemus consents, and Odysseus goes away, promising to send a sailor disguised as a merchant if Neoptolemus delays.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 1263–1313Exodos (cont.): the bow restoredPhiloctetes comes out in fear, and curses Neoptolemus and the Atreidae when he will not listen. Neoptolemus swears that he is sincere and hands him back the bow, and Odysseus reappears to forbid it. Philoctetes aims at Odysseus, but Neoptolemus stops him, and Philoctetes praises Neoptolemus as the true son of Achilles.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 507–627Second episode: Neoptolemus agrees; the Merchant's warningThe Chorus urge Neoptolemus to pity the man, and he agrees to take Philoctetes on board, and Philoctetes is overjoyed. As they are about to go, a Merchant arrives and says that Phoenix and the sons of Theseus are coming after Philoctetes, and that Odysseus and Diomedes are sailing for the same purpose. He tells them that the Trojan seer Helenus has foretold that Troy will fall only if Philoctetes is brought to it, and Philoctetes says that he would rather die than be persuaded by Odysseus.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 391–506First stasimon; Philoctetes asks about Troy and begs to be taken homeThe Chorus pray to the Earth, mother of Zeus, in sympathy with Neoptolemus. Philoctetes asks about the men he knew at Troy, and hears that Ajax, Antilochus and Patroclus are dead while Odysseus and Thersites live, so that the gods spare the evil. When Neoptolemus says that he is about to set sail, Philoctetes begs him, by his father and mother and by everything dear to him, not to leave him but to take him home to Oeta.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 628–675Second episode (cont.): Philoctetes lets Neoptolemus hold the bowPhiloctetes says that he will not be taken by Odysseus' soft words and urges Neoptolemus to leave at once, and Neoptolemus says that they will sail when the wind changes. Philoctetes says that he must first take a herb that soothes the wound and his arrows from the cave. Neoptolemus asks to see the bow, and Philoctetes, thanking him for saving him, lets him handle it and asks him to come into the cave.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 1–85Prologue: Odysseus and Neoptolemus on LemnosOdysseus shows Neoptolemus the deserted shore of Lemnos where, ten years before, on the command of the chiefs, he left Philoctetes, whose foot was running with a gnawing disease and whose cries made it impossible to hold sacrifice. They find his cave, with its leaf bed, its wooden cup and its rags drying in the sun, and Odysseus sends a sailor to watch for the man. He tells Neoptolemus that he must cheat Philoctetes with a false story, in which he claims to hate the Greeks for giving his father's arms to Odysseus, in order to steal the bow.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 219–316First episode: Philoctetes meets NeoptolemusPhiloctetes comes out and asks, in delight at hearing Greek, who they are. Neoptolemus says that he is the son of Achilles and is sailing home from Troy. Philoctetes tells how he was left alone on the island by the Atreidae and Odysseus, and describes ten years of hunger, cold and the pain of his wound, with no visitors but sailors who would not take him home.
Sophocles, Philoctetes 317–390First episode (cont.): Neoptolemus' false storyThe Chorus pity Philoctetes, and Neoptolemus says that he too has a grievance against the Atreidae. He tells Philoctetes that Achilles is dead, and that after the army called him to Troy he was refused his father's arms, which were given to Odysseus. He says that he has left in anger and is sailing home.

6 more passages of Sophocles that name Neoptolemus

Euripides (7)

Euripides, Andromache 1–55Prologue: Andromache tells of her slavery at the shrine of ThetisAndromache, who has come from Thebes as the wife of Hector, recalls the fall of Troy and the death of her husband and tells how she became the slave of Neoptolemus and bore him a son. She says that his wife Hermione, who is childless, accuses her of using drugs and charms to make her barren, and that she has taken refuge at the shrine of Thetis while Neoptolemus is away at Delphi.
Euripides, Andromache 1070–1165Messenger speech: the death of Neoptolemus at DelphiA Messenger arrives with the news of the death of Neoptolemus. He tells how Neoptolemus came to Phoebus' shrine to atone for his past quarrel with the god, how men lay in ambush in the cover of the bay-trees, with Orestes, the author of the plot, among them, and how, when the Delphians attacked him at the altar, he fought alone, took armour from the pillar, and was at last struck down and stabbed by them all.
Euripides, Trojan Women 1118–1155Fourth episode: the body of Astyanax is brought on Hector's shieldThe Chorus sees the corpse of Astyanax, whom the Danaids have cruelly thrown from the battlements. Talthybius tells Hecuba that Neoptolemus, who sails for Phthia, has left Hector's shield to be used as a bier, that Andromache has been taken to the ships begging that her son might be buried, and he bids Hecuba bury him as best she can.
Euripides, Andromache 232–273First episode: Hermione threatens Andromache at the altarThe Chorus asks Hermione to come to terms with Andromache, but Hermione answers that she must die. Andromache says that she will leave the shrine only if she will not be killed, and Hermione threatens to drive her out with fire and wounds. She says that she has a plan to make Andromache rise before Neoptolemus returns, and Andromache says that no one has found a cure for a woman's venom.
Euripides, Andromache 957–1008Fourth episode: Orestes takes Hermione and plots Neoptolemus' deathOrestes says that he waited to see how the quarrel with Hector's wife would end, and that he came to take Hermione away, since her father had betrothed her to him before the war and then promised her to Achilles' son. Hermione begs him to take her at once, and Orestes tells her not to fear her husband, since he has woven a net for his death, of which Delphi's rock will bear witness.
Euripides, Andromache 1166–1221Exodos: the body of Neoptolemus is brought homeThe Chorus sees the body of Neoptolemus being carried on a bier from Delphi. Peleus, in grief, says that his line is ended, and curses the marriage that has brought all this on his house, and the Chorus laments with him that he will live alone.
Euripides, Hecuba 518–582Second episode: Talthybius describes the death of PolyxenaTalthybius tells how the whole army gathered at the tomb of Achilles, and how Neoptolemus took Polyxena by the hand and stood her on the mound. She bared her breast, saying that she would die willingly and asking that she should die free, and the Achaeans, moved by her courage, honoured her in death with leaves and gifts.

Pausanias (12)

Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.26.1–9Delphi: Polygnotus' painting of Troy after its capture (2): captive women, Epeus, Ajax and NeoptolemusPausanias continues the Polygnotus painting of Troy with the captive women Clymene, Creusa, Aristomache and Xenodice, and Epeus razing the wall with the Wooden Horse. He describes Ajax son of Oileus swearing an oath beside Cassandra and the image of Athena, the sons of Atreus, and Neoptolemus slaying Elasus and Astynous. He explains the bronze corselets of old, then Laodice, Medusa and a woman with a child.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 2.21.1–10Argos: the market-place, the death of Pyrrhus and the head of MedusaIn and around the Argive market-place Pausanias notes the tomb of Cerdo, a temple of Asclepius, the tomb of Hypermnestra, the sanctuary of Trumpet Athena and the grave of Epimenides. He describes the marble building where Pyrrhus was cremated, the mound said to hold the Gorgon’s head with two rationalising accounts of Medusa, and the grave of Gorgophone. He ends with the stone trophy over the tyrant Laphaes and the sanctuary of Latona with the story of Chloris.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.24.1–7Delphi: the maxims of the Sages, Homer's oracle, the temple interior and Neoptolemus' gravePausanias describes the maxims inscribed by the Seven Sages in the fore-temple at Delphi, the bronze likeness of Homer and the oracle said to have been given to him, with the rival claims of Ios and Cyprus to his birth. He notes the altar of Poseidon, the images of the Fates, the hearth where Neoptolemus was killed and the iron chair of Pindar. Outside he describes the grave of Neoptolemus, the small stone given to Cronus and the spring Cassotis.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.27.1–4Delphi: Polygnotus' painting of Troy after its capture (3): the dead and the house of AntenorPausanias lists the dead bodies in the Polygnotus painting of Troy, including Pelis, Eioneus, Admetus, Leocritus, Coroebus, Priam, Axion, Agenor and Laomedon, with the different poets' accounts of how each died. He then describes the house of Antenor, marked by a leopard's skin so the Greeks would spare it, with Theano and her children, and quotes Simonides' couplet naming Polygnotus of Thasos as the painter.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 1.11.1–7Pyrrhus of Epirus: ancestry and rise to the throneAthens has a statue of Pyrrhus. Pausanias traces the Epirote royal house from Pyrrhus son of Achilles, Andromache and Helenus, and tells how Aeacides, Alcetas and finally Pyrrhus came to the throne after the fall of Olympias, Pyrrhus being restored with Ptolemy’s help. As king he first attacks Corcyra; Pausanias notes that no Greek before Pyrrhus fought the Romans, since Alexander of Epirus fell in Lucania first.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 1.4.1–6The Gauls at Thermopylae and Delphi; origins of PergamumPausanias digresses to describe the Gauls (Celts) of the far north and their invasion of Greece. The Athenians under Callippus hold Thermopylae, but the Gauls cross Mount Oeta by the path Ephialtes once showed the Medes and march on Delphi, where thunderbolts, falling rocks and phantom warriors, among them Pyrrhus son of Achilles, drive them back. The survivors cross to Asia, take Ancyra and Pessinus and settle in Galatia, until the Pergamenians drive them from the coast; he sketches Pergamene history.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 4.17.1–11Second Messenian War: Aegila, the treachery of Aristocrates and the Great TrenchAristomenes is captured by the women of Aegila but escapes through the priestess Archidamea. At the battle of the Great Trench the Arcadian king Aristocrates, bribed by Sparta, leads his army in flight through the Messenian lines. Pausanias comments on Spartan bribery and its later retribution. Aristomenes leads the survivors to Mount Ira, where they hold out for eleven years.
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 3.6.1–9Sparta: the last Agid kings, from Cleombrotus to Cleomenes IIICleombrotus falls at Leuctra, and the throne passes through Agesipolis to Cleomenes and then to Areus after Cleonymus is passed over, leading Cleonymus to bring Pyrrhus into Laconia. Under Areus Sparta fails to relieve Athens from Antigonus. Leonidas is deposed in favour of Cleombrotus and later restored, and his son Cleomenes is the last Spartan king.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 3.25.1–10Laconian coast: Pyrrhichus, Teuthrone, Cape Taenarum and OetylumPausanias describes the river Scyras, Pyrrhichus with its well said to be a gift of Silenus, and its sanctuaries of Astratean Artemis and Amazonian Apollo, and Teuthrone. At Cape Taenarum he rejects the story of the descent of Hercules and discusses Hecataeus’ account of the snake called the hound of hell. He also notes Arion’s statue, the dolphin at Poroselene, Caenepolis, Hippola, Messa and Oetylum.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 7.5.1–13Ionia: Smyrna, the Erythraean Heracles and the wonders of IoniaPausanias tells how the new city of Smyrna was founded by Alexander after a dream of the Nemeses, and ranks the great sanctuaries of Ionia, led by the Ephesian Artemis and the unfinished temples of Apollo at Branchidae and Clarus. At Erythrae he describes the ancient wooden image of Hercules that floated from Tyre and was towed ashore with a rope made from the hair of Thracian women, and the temple of Athena Polias. He ends with a list of the natural wonders of Ionia, including its rivers, springs, warm baths, the grotto of Homer on the Meles and the tomb of Oenopion at Chios.
Pausanias, Description of Greece 10.7.1–8Delphi: plots against the sanctuary and the history of the Pythian contestsPausanias lists those who plotted against the sanctuary at Delphi, from the Euboean robber and Pyrrhus to the Phocians, the Gauls and Nero. He then gives the history of the Pythian games: the first prize for a hymn, the contests added by the Amphictyons in the forty-eighth Olympiad, the dropping of the flute-song as too doleful, and the later additions of chariot, armed and foal races. He ends with the laurel wreath as the Pythian prize.

Quintus Smyrnaeus (20)

Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 7.431–555Neoptolemus enters the battleOdysseus, Diomedes and Neoptolemus leap from the ship and go to Odysseus' tent, where Neoptolemus puts on his father's arms and looks like Achilles himself. The Argives, pressed against their wall, rejoice at his coming like sailors given a fair wind. Neoptolemus and his companions beat Eurypylus' men back from the wall, and he hurls down so many Trojans that they think Achilles has returned.
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) 8.108–236Neoptolemus kills EurypylusEurypylus kills Eurytus, Menoetius and many other Argives, and then meets Neoptolemus, who answers his challenge by naming his father and his horses. Neoptolemus leaps down from his chariot, and after Eurypylus hurls a huge stone at his shield they fight a long, even duel on foot. His spear passes through Eurypylus' throat, and he strips the arms and charges on among the Trojans in his chariot.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 7.292–430Neoptolemus leaves ScyrosLycomedes blesses his grandson and Deidameia is left alone in her grief, as a swallow over her empty nest. Neoptolemus strides to the ship, and the ship runs before a fair wind across the sea to the Trojan shore.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 8.1–107Neoptolemus and the Myrmidons attackAt dawn Neoptolemus calls on the Myrmidons to fight and puts on his father's arms while Thetis rejoices from the sea. The armies clash like two seas meeting. Neoptolemus kills Melaneus and Alcidamas, and Aeneas kills Aristolochus.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 9.210–320Apollo and Poseidon check NeoptolemusNeoptolemus drives against Deiphobus, who is snatched away by Apollo in a cloud, and Zeus then lifts the cloud. Neoptolemus presses the Trojans to the Scaean Gate. Apollo comes down to strike him as he struck his father, but Poseidon strengthens the Greeks, and Apollo yields.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 8.237–394Ares rallies the TrojansAres comes unseen to the Trojans as they flee within their gates, and they turn and fight again like hounds at a wolf. Neoptolemus kills Perimedes, Cestrus, Phalerus and many more, and the Argives press the Trojans into the city.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 9.1–74Neoptolemus at Achilles' tombIn the morning Troy stands unharmed. Antenor prays to Zeus either to turn Achilles' son from the city or to end the war, and Zeus hastens the end but does not turn Neoptolemus back. After a truce for burying the dead, Neoptolemus visits his father's tomb and weeps, and then goes to the ships.
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) 12.1–116Odysseus plans the Wooden HorseCalchas assembles the chiefs and tells of a falcon that waited in vain by the cleft in the rock where a dove had hidden. Odysseus proposes building a great horse in which the best of the Argives will hide. Neoptolemus objects, but Zeus's thunderbolt falls, and Athena appears to Epeius in a dream and tells him to build.
Quintus Smyrnaeus, The Fall of Troy (Posthomerica) 14.228–328Polyxeina is sacrificedAt dawn Neoptolemus tells the Argives his father's command that Polyxeina be sacrificed at his tomb. A storm rises when they hesitate, and they lead the maiden to the tomb. Hecuba, who has dreamed of it, wails, and Neoptolemus cuts the girl's throat.

8 more passages of Quintus Smyrnaeus that name Neoptolemus

Epic Cycle (2)

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.