The image of the jars from which Zeus bestows evils and blessings to mortals (Iliad 24. 527) has been distorted by a mistranslation, constantly repeated over time, which dates back at least to the first Latin translation of the Iliad by Leonzio Pilato. According to this translation, the two ‘pithoi’ stand on the threshold of Zeus (as if ἐν Διὸς οὐδῷ), rather than embedded into the floor of his palace, as the expression κατακείαται ἐν Διὸς οὔδει clearly indicates. The essay reconstructs the long history of this misunderstanding, which reaches to the present day and obscures the interesting connections between the two ‘pithoi’ – storage jars for cereals or liquids, one filled with good, the other with evil fates – and the complementary Homeric allegory of Zeus who is for men the dispenser (ταμίης) of battle.

Due vasi sulla soglia di Zeus?

Maria Serena Mirto
2019-01-01

Abstract

The image of the jars from which Zeus bestows evils and blessings to mortals (Iliad 24. 527) has been distorted by a mistranslation, constantly repeated over time, which dates back at least to the first Latin translation of the Iliad by Leonzio Pilato. According to this translation, the two ‘pithoi’ stand on the threshold of Zeus (as if ἐν Διὸς οὐδῷ), rather than embedded into the floor of his palace, as the expression κατακείαται ἐν Διὸς οὔδει clearly indicates. The essay reconstructs the long history of this misunderstanding, which reaches to the present day and obscures the interesting connections between the two ‘pithoi’ – storage jars for cereals or liquids, one filled with good, the other with evil fates – and the complementary Homeric allegory of Zeus who is for men the dispenser (ταμίης) of battle.
2019
Mirto, MARIA SERENA
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11568/1004200
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