The gods make love, Patroclus has his hour: How Homer Became Great Art – The Iliad

Agamemnon wants to set sail. Odysseus says No. Hera seduces Zeus into sleep on Mount Ida, so Poseidon, unseen, can empower the Greeks. Ajax wounds Hector. Zeus wakes up and helps the Trojans storm the Greek wall again. Achilles still refuses to fight. He lets Patroclus wear his armour. Patroclus’s heroism over-extends him. He is killed.

In this series on Homer’s Iliad, we will explore how artists have interpreted this extraordinary poem; its charmed life in the midst of battle and a god’s eye view of the action, the city, the plain, the fields and mountains. The Greek ships at anchor, and the cast of thousands in the legendary city of Troy.