TWT-11
John Jenkins Designs
The Trojan army defending the great city of Troy, led by their king Priam, had assistance from a long list of allies. These included the Lycians, which was a maritime district in south western Anatolia (now Turkey). It was situated along the Mediterranean coast between Caria and Pamphylia, and extended inland to the ridge of the Taurus Mountains.
Euryplyus was the son of Telephus, King of Mysia. He was a great warrior, who led a Mysian contingent that fought alongside the Trojans against the Greeks in the Trojan War.
In a prelude to the Trojan War, the Greeks attacked Mysia, mistaking it for Troy. Eurypylus’ father Telephus was wounded by Achilles and later, when his wound continued to fester, was also healed by Achilles. According to some accounts, because of this, Telephus promised that neither he nor his familt would aid the Trojans in the coming war. Nevertheless, during the final stages of the war, between the death of Achilles, and the ruse of the Trojan horse, Eurypylus led a large Mysian force to fight on the side of Troy. Some accounts state that Priam obtained Eurypylus’ aid in the war by giving his mother Astyoche a golden vine, or by promising Eurypylus one of his daughters as a wife.
Eurypylus was a great warrior and killed many opponents, including Machaon, Nireus, and Peneleus. Neoptolemus finally killed Eurypylus, using the same spear that his father Achilles had used to both wound and heal Eurypylus’ father Telephus.
Homer has Odysseus say that Eurypylus was, next to Memnon, the most beautiful man he had ever seen, and there were nearly one hundred lines of the poem devoted to a detailed description of Eurypylus’ shield, which was adorned with depictions of the twelve labours of Hercules.
Dressed for battle, Eurypylus "seemed the War-god".