The Iliad · Eng

Epeius

Mortal man

Epeius (; Ancient Greek: Ἐπειός Epeiós) or Epeus was a mythological Greek soldier during the Trojan War or, in some accounts, one of the Achaean Leaders, at the head of a contingent of 30 ships from the islands of the Cyclades. He was also the architect of the Wooden Horse, by means of which the Achaeans took Troy; he was himself among those warriors who hid inside it.

Explore on the graph
Mentions
4
Connected characters
1
Books
1

Mentions in the Iliad

All · 3Book 23 · 3

A. T. Murray, Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press, 1924 · Homer, Iliad with an English Translation · CC BY-SA 3.0 US

“well-skilled in boxing, even Epeius, son of Panopeus; and he laid hold of the sturdy mule, and spake, saying: Let him draw nigh, whoso is to bear as his prize the two-handled cup: the mule I deem that none other of the Achaeans shall lead away, by worsting me with his fists, for I avow me to be the best man.”
Il. 23.665–669
“as he peered for an opening,and smote him on the cheek, nor after that, methinks, did he long stand upright, for even there did his glorious limbs sink beneath him. And as when beneath the ripple of the North Wind a fish leapeth up on the tangle-strewn sand of a shallow, and then the black wave hideth it, even so leapt up Euryalus when he was smitten. But great-souled Epeius”
Il. 23.690–694
“fare to the city; nay, this will supply them. So spake he, and thereat arose Polypoetes, staunch in fight, and the mighty strength of godlike Leonteus, and Aias, son of Telamon, and goodly Epeius. Then they took their places in order, and goodly Epeius grasped the mass,”
Il. 23.835–839

Connections

All · 1Relatives · 1
PanopeusMortal man
Father · Sources
Father · Sources
well-skilled in boxing, even Epeius, son of Panopeus; and he laid hold of the sturdy mule, and spake, saying: Let him draw nigh, whoso is to bear as his prize the two-handled cup: the mule I deem that none other of the Achaeans shall lead away, by worsting me with his fists, for I avow me to be the best man.
Il. 23.665

Il. 23.665

In art

All · 1Sculpture · 1
Relief - Musée du Louvre Antiquités grecques LL 96, Ma 697, N 1681
Relief - Musée du Louvre Antiquités grecques LL 96, Ma 697, N 1681Artist not recorded · 560 BCDepartment of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities of the Louvre · ПарижInv. Ma 697

Relief - Musée du Louvre Antiquités grecques LL 96, Ma 697, N 1681. Department of Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities of the Louvre. CC0. https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q12873506

04 / PROVENANCE

Sources and verification

The character is matched to the catalogue.

Wikidata Q278930

Reference material remains distinct from the poem’s assertions. Characters who share a name retain separate pages.