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While there have been many studies devoted to the major heroes and heroines of Homeric epic, among them Achilles, Odysseus, and Helen, the figure of Menelaus has remained notably overlooked in this strand of scholarship. Menelaus in the Archaic Period is the first book-length study of the
Homeric character, taking a multidisciplinary approach to his depiction in archaic Greek poetry, art, and cult through detailed analysis of ancient literary, visual, and material evidence. The volume is divided into two parts, the first of which examines the portrayal of Menelaus in the Homeric poems as a unique 'personality' with an integral role to play in each narrative, as depicted through typical patterns of speech and action and through intertextual allusion. The second part
explores his representation both in other poetry of the archaic period - including lyric poetry and Simonides' 'Plataea elegy ' - and also archaic art and local Sparta cult, drawing on the literary, archaeological, and inscriptional evidence for the cult of Menelaus with Helen at Therapne. The
depiction of Menelaus in archaic art is a particular focal point: Chapter 4 provides a methodology for the interpretation of heroic narrative on archaic Greek vases through iconography and inscriptions and establishes his conventional visual 'identity' on black figure Athenian vases, while an
annotated catalogue of images details those that fall outside the 'norm'. Menelaus emerges from this comprehensive study as a unique and likeable character whose relationship with Helen was a popular theme in both epic poetry and vase painting, but one whose portrayal evinced a significant narrative
range, with an array of continuities and differences in how he was represented by the Greeks, not only within the archaic period but also in comparison to classical Athens.
List of contents
- Introduction: Methods and Terms
- The 'Homeric Question'
- Orality, Traditional Referentiality, and Neoanalysis
- Homeric Intertextuality and Methodologies of Allusion
- Theories of Homeric Character Depiction
- Overview of Part I: Homer
- Overview of Part II: Votaries, Painters, and Poets
- Part I. Homer
- 1: The Iliad
- The Language of Menelaus
- The Story of Menelaus
- 2: The Odyssey
- Introduction: Menelaus Returned Home
- Pylos
- Sparta
- Proteus and the Apotheosis of Menelaus
- The Departure of Telemachus
- Envoi
- Part II. Votaries, Painters, and Poets
- 3: Why Menelaus? Alcman, Sappho, Stesichorus, [Hesiod], and the Cycle
- Alcman
- 'Cyclic' Epic Fragments: Cypria
- Little Iliad; Ilioupersis
- Nostoi
- The Hesiodic Catalogue of Women
- Sappho frr. 16 17
- Stesichorus: Helen, Palinode, Ilioupersis, Nostoi
- Conclusion
- 4: Menelaus in Archaic Art
- Introduction: Heroic Narrative in Archaic Art
- Menelaus and Helen
- Menelaus without Helen
- Naming Menelaus a Hero in Archaic Art
- 5: The Cult of Menelaus and Helen at Therapne
- Introduction
- Literary Testimonia to the Cult of Menelaus
- Material Evidence for the Cult of Menelaus and Helen at Therapne
- Inscriptions and the Cult of Menelaus
- 6: Menelaus *E*ü*uß¿¿¿: Simonides and the End of the Story
- Simonides' 'Plataea Elegy'
- Conclusion: The End of the Story
- Endmatter
- Appendix: Menelaus Genealogy
About the author
Anna R. Stelow is a researcher in ancient Greek literature at the University of Virginia. Her interests include Homer and archaic Greek poetry and heroic narrative in archaic Greek art.
Summary
While there have been many studies devoted to the heroes of Homeric epic, the figure of Menelaus has remained notably overlooked. This volume is the first book-length study of the Homeric character, taking a multidisciplinary approach to his depiction in the archaic Greek world through detailed analysis of literary, visual, and material evidence.
Additional text
By rescuing Menelaus from relative obscurity, Stelow has given the world a truly revelatory insight into the works of Homer, which is quite a task considering the plethora of books written about it. With a thorough 30-page bibliography and extensive footnotes, this is a landmark study which will surely be appreciated by the only Achaean hero in Homer's poems who is still alive somewhere.
