Since ancient times, adventurers have been attracted by historical artifacts. Such things possessed beauty and personality, carried the magical properties that endowed their owner. Risking their lives, people went in search of treasures to the farthest corners of the world for the chance to become the owner of the desired instance. One of these artifacts is the Achilles shield, which will be discussed in this article.
What it is?
The description of the shield of Achilles occupies a special place in Homer's work "Iliad", which tells about the last tragic months of the Trojan civilization. One of the most significant figures in the work is Achilles. In the text, a large section is reserved for his shield, which was unique in significance, beauty and mysticism. It was he who was supposed to bring victory to Achilles and his people in a ten-year war with the Trojans. And brought it.
Hero of the Trojan War Achilles (Achilles). Mythology
Achilles was born as a result of the marriage of the king of the Myrmidon Peleus and the sea goddess Thetis.
The goddess knew that fate had prepared her son the opportunity to play an important role in the history of the Greeks in the capture of the city of Troy. That people will remember him for a long time as a brave, courageous, glorious young man, equal in strength to whom he will not be in the world for a long time. But she also knew about the sad end of his life under the walls of Troy.
By all means, the mother tried to protect the child from the inevitable ending. The fetis was rubbed with ambrosia, kept on fire, bathed in the waters of the underground river Styx at night. All these actions promised him immortality and protection, and only the heel of the child, for which the mother held the child above the water, remained defenseless. Subsequently, this will play a fatal role in the life of Achilles.
Having received the disapproval of her husband for acting with the child, Thetis was forced to leave her husband's house and hide in the sea element of Nereus’s father forever. Achilles was handed over by his father to the centaur Chiron, who fed him with the brains and internal organs of bears and lions.
While still very young, the future hero was killing ferocious animals, in running he was superior to the fastest-legged animals, and he masterfully possessed weapons and healing. His power and strength were unsurpassed. The mother watched the life of her son, rejoiced at his successes and was always there to help Achilles in difficult situations and protect him from any danger. Her help and participation was needed when the young hero was left without his armor during the siege of Troy. The father handed the armor, the spear from Chiron and the immortal horses from Poseidon to Achilles, when he himself could no longer participate in the long-term Trojan war.
Achilles, having cordially provided these things to his friend Patroclus at the battle of Troy, was left without uniforms. Thetis for new armor for her son went up the mountain to the god Hephaestus. He could not refuse the beautiful goddess a request and in one night forged a shield for the hero.
Hephaestus was a blacksmith or artist?
And Hephaestus threw copper, tin, silver and precious gold into the fire. Of the five sheets of copper stacked together, the master forged a large, round and slightly convex shield for Achilles. Three rims surround it, and paintings of tin, silver and precious gold adorn it. What did Hephaestus depict on the shield of Achilles?
The sky is spread in a semicircle above, and in the center of the weapon is an elevation (hill), which symbolizes the earth: it is in the center of everything. What could be more important? Around depicted pictures of people's lives. Two cities symbolizing joy and sadness, good and evil. One city inspired thoughts of fun, people celebrated weddings on the streets of the city, young men played various musical instruments, and beautifully dressed girls escorted them with looks and smiles. The second city is besieged by enemies and people in an struggle for life ambush the enemy. The gods of war, Ares and Athena Pallas, help the inhabitants of the city by observing what is happening from above, and on earth, the God of death and enmity is looking for prey among the valiant warriors who are fiercely opposing the enemy.
The shield also depicts a city court in the form of a national assembly. Elders with staves in their hands express their opinions on various disputes of city residents who come to them with their problems every day. The gold award awaits that old man who will judge correctly and with honor.
What is still shown on the shield of Achilles? Hephaestus pictured and fields. Plowmen work for plows. On the outskirts of the field, tired wine cups and cool shade await tired workers. Depicted by a craftsman and harvesting wheat. Some people reap bread, the second knits it, and children collect ears of corn. The field owner is happy to see how a rich harvest is being harvested. Separately depicted are people preparing food for field workers. Some cut cattle for cooking meat on fire, others bake bread. Nearby, the image shows the grape harvest. Girls and men carry ripe grapes in baskets. A beautiful man plays the lyre, and around him people lead a cheerful round dance.
The following image shows a herd of rare bulls of gold and silver color, which go to the river to get drunk with water. Lions attack cattle and tear to pieces the body of one of the poor animals. Shepherds want to help, make attempts to drive away the lions with the help of dogs, but they feel fear of the animal king and only bark at them. In the neighborhood, grazing sheep, animal buildings, and modest huts of shepherds are shown.
What is the brightest on the shield of Achilles? Another image shows dancing handsome young men and beautiful girls in a round dance and villagers looking with joy at these dances. The oceans surrounds all these pictures from the life of people. It is located on a shield with a beautiful border, representing a white strip. Hephaestus completes the full picture on the Hephaestus shield with the image of the starry sky with numerous constellations - Orion, Pleiades, Hyades and Ursa Major.
Universe on one shield
All worldly life is depicted on the shield of Achilles. It includes joys in the form of holidays, and the loss from the war, and the simple life of people with daily routine work in the fields, and holidays with young men and women in love dancing in happiness.
All this is adorned by the sea and the heavens with our constant luminaries of day and night - the Sun, which shines unquenchably for us every day, and the Moon, which controls the World Ocean. People also play a huge role in stars, many fates depend on their location. People look at them and are guided by them. The whole Universe is imprinted on the shield of Achilles, and in the center of everything is the earthly firmament. It is to her that man owes his life, his kind. This shield can safely be called the greatest work of art. He was unique. Up to this point, there has not been such a masterpiece in humans or in gods.
Victory and death
With this shield, the young warrior Achilles brought victory to Troy to his people, as the astrologer prophesied even before the birth of the hero. But here, under the walls of the defeated city, Achilles said goodbye to life in a battle with his enemy Paris. He hit him with a quick arrow in the heel, the same one that was never dipped into the waters of the Styx River. Immobilized Achilles could not dodge the second arrow of the enemy, and she pierced his chest mortally. As the soothsayer promised, Troy was defeated, the hero's age was short-lived, but bright. Legends and songs were composed by people in his honor. Temples and statues were created for the offerings of the laity.
The magical properties of the shield of Achilles
The golden mirror disk carried incredible magical properties. He made the owner omnipotent over people and events in life. With his help, Achilles could navigate anywhere, find any desired settlement or any other place on earth and in heaven. People obeyed the power of his master and his will. He carried the attraction of glory, power and all the riches of life. For its owner, money and gold flowed like water.
The shield of Achilles (photo of interpretation is given in the article) is endowed with such power that it is able to show a person who has looked into it any event in life, whether it be the past, present or future. But not every shield obeys and shows visions. A person must possess certain high spiritual qualities and inner strength.
The disappearance of the shield and the discovery of Troy
After the death of Achilles, the shield was taken away by the gods to Olympus, since they believed that people were not worthy of its mystical qualities. Over time, the gods could not share the artifact of such power among themselves, and since then the shield has disappeared forever.
For a long time, historians and archaeologists searched for confirmation of the existence of a Trojan civilization in the past, its hero Achilles and the magic shield, which was second to none. The German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann managed to find and unearth the ruined city of Troy in 1873. Subsequently, Henry tried to find the grave of Achilles himself, in order to find the famous shield, which gives power, but the search was unsuccessful. The shield was not found. Hitler also made attempts to find this artifact, but the whereabouts of the shield is unknown to this day.
The meaning of tattoos
From ancient times, people applied drawings to their bodies for various purposes. The patterns on the body carry information about belonging to tribes, peoples, about the situation in society, about family status and the presence of children. With the advent of civilization, many designations were abolished, and tattoos became part of the life of many young urban people. The versatility of the pictures, forms, volumes that people depict on their bodies is striking. Each of them is unique in its own way and carries its own special designation, mission and influence on fate.
Magic shield on the body
What will bring us the image of the magic shield of the Greek hero Achilles on his body?
It is recommended to apply Achilles shield tattoo on your body with a strong spirit to people who are able to fend for themselves. Then such a tattoo will become an ally in any undertakings and deeds. The drawing will protect a person from the many misfortunes and hardships that fate can prepare for him. The owner will endow with confidence and perseverance, determination and pressure. Will tell you the right direction in life situations. Or maybe it will give wealth to its owner ...