Source-groundedThe Iliad
All locations

Location · Individual

Spercheius

Published entity metadata

Read-only identity and editorial metadata.

Canonical name
Spercheius
Disambiguator
None
Kind
Location
Scope
Individual
Parent location
None
Editorial note
Explicitly a river; the passage also personifies Spercheius as the god with whom Polydora mated.

Aliases

0

No aliases recorded.

Present entities

Phase 6 currently covers 24 processed books.

1
AchillesCharacter1 observation
·Hypothetical

Peleus’s unfulfilled vow envisioned Achilles returning and sacrificing at the springs of Spercheius.

See evidence text
“Achilles then bethought him of another matter. He went a space away from the pyre, and cut off the yellow lock which he had let grow for the river Spercheius. He looked all sorrowfully out upon the dark sea, and said, ‘Spercheius, in vain did my father Peleus vow to you that when I returned home to my loved native land I should cut off this lock and offer you a holy hecatomb; fifty she-goats was I to sacrifice to you there at your springs”

Claims

2
·Direct

Spercheius is an ever-flowing river streaming from heaven; Polydora bears Menesthius to him as the god with whom she mated.

See evidence text
“Menesthius of the gleaming corslet, son to the river Spercheius that streams from heaven, was captain of the first company. Fair Polydora daughter of Peleus bore him to ever-flowing Spercheius—a woman mated with a god”
·Reported

Achilles described Spercheius as having springs, a grove, and an altar fragrant with burnt offerings, where Peleus had vowed fifty she-goats.

See evidence text
“‘Spercheius, in vain did my father Peleus vow to you that when I returned home to my loved native land I should cut off this lock and offer you a holy hecatomb; fifty she-goats was I to sacrifice to you there at your springs, where is your grove and your altar fragrant with burnt-offerings.”

Additional evidence

Evidence records not already represented by a claim.

2
·Direct
“Fair Polydora daughter of Peleus bore him to ever-flowing Spercheius—a woman mated with a god”
·Direct
“the river Spercheius”

Passage preview

Book 16 · Passage 9

Fifty ships had noble Achilles brought to Troy, and in each there was a crew of fifty oarsmen. Over these he set five captains whom he could trust, while he was himself commander over them all. Menesthius of the gleaming corslet, son to the river Spercheius that streams from heaven, was captain of the first company. Fair Polydora daughter of Peleus bore him to ever-flowing Spercheius—a woman mated with a god—but he was called son of Borus son of Perieres, with whom his mother was living as his wedded wife, and who gave great wealth to gain her. The second company was led by noble Eudorus, son to an unwedded woman. Polymele, daughter of Phylas the graceful dancer, bore him; the mighty slayer of Argos was enamoured of her as he saw her among the singing women at a dance held in honour of Diana the rushing huntress of the golden arrows; he therefore—Mercury, giver of all good—went with her into an upper chamber, and lay with her in secret, whereon she bore him a noble son Eudorus, singularly fleet of foot and in fight valiant. When Ilithuia goddess of the pains of child-birth brought him to the light of day, and he saw the face of the sun, mighty Echecles son of Actor took the mother to wife, and gave great wealth to gain her, but her father Phylas brought the child up, and took care of him, doting as fondly upon him as though he were his own son. The third company was led by Pisander son of Maemalus, the finest spearman among all the Myrmidons next to Achilles’ own comrade Patroclus. The old knight Phoenix was captain of the fourth company, and Alcimedon, noble son of Laerceus of the fifth.