Laomedon and the Cursed Walls of Troy

The econony of war:

Aeschylus Agamemnon 440 ff (Loeb Cl. Lib.)

Look there! See Ares the god of war, the god of money changers? He stands between the hosts with his scales and measures the heavy gold against the heroes’ ashes.

--(Indicating one side of the scales)

There the spears clash and glitter before the walls of Troy.

--(Indicating the other side of the scales)

There the fire and there the bloodied corpses

--And he, the god of war barters with his scales. Bodies for urns full of ash.

--And to the grieving folk he praises with hollow words: “He was a practiced soldier!” or to another’s wife, “He fell most bravely in the slaughter!”

--Such is the stuff of whispers but the pain snakes along side by side with hatred – for the vengeful sons of Atreas.

--(As if seeing a ghost)

But there!

There all round the high walls of Troy are the dead Argives – all those “well-praised” Argives, gracing the Trojan soil, the enemy soil with their Greek tombs.

--There is a soil that hides well its defilers!

--The voice of the people is heavy with a pressing rage. It seeks an equally heavy payment. It seeks a curse from all of them.

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Laomedon 

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D5%3Asection%3D9



Iliad 21.400ff

Have you forgotten what we two suffered here at Troy, when by Zeus’ command we served proud Laomedon for a year? The wages were set, and how that king ordered us around! I built a fine wide wall round the Trojan city, to render it impregnable, while you, Apollo, were herdsman of their sleek shambling cattle, on the wooded spurs of many-ridged Ida. But when the bright season brought an end to our term, that rogue Laomedon cheated us of payment, threatening to bind our hands and feet and sell us into some distant isle. He even talked of lopping our ears off with his knife! So we went away with anger in our hearts, robbed of the wages he had promised. Now you show favour to his race, instead of seeing to it along with us that the haughty Trojans, their wives and children face utter ruin.’