Memnon (mythology) - Memnon in Quintus of Smyrna's Posthomerica

Memnon in Quintus of Smyrna's Posthomerica

Memnon arrives at Troy in the immediate aftermath of an argument between Polydamas, Helen, and Priam that centers on whether or not the Aethiopian King will show up at all. Memnon's army is described as being too big to be counted and his arrival starts a huge banquet in his honour. As per usual the two leaders (Memnon and, in this case, Priam) end the dinner by exchanging glorious war stories, and Memnon's tales lead Priam to declare that the Aethiopian King will be Troy's saviour. Despite this, Memnon is very humble and warns that his strength will hopefully be seen in battle, although he believes it is unwise to boast at dinner. Before the next day's war, so great was the divine love towards Memnon, Zeus makes all the other Olympians promise not to interfere with the fighting. In battle, Memnon kills Nestor's son, Antilochos, after Antilochos had killed Memnon's dear comrade, Aithops. Seeking vengeance and despite his age Nestor tries to fight Memnon but the Aethiopian warrior insists it would not be just to fight such an old man, and respects Nestor so much that he refuses to fight. In this way, Memnon is seen as very similar to Achilles - both of them have strong sets of values that are looked upon favourably by the warrior culture of the time. When Memnon reaches the Greek ships, Nestor begs Achilles to fight him and avenge Antilochos, leading to the two men clashing whilst both wearing divine armour made by Hephaestus, making another parallel between the two warriors. Zeus favours both of them and makes each man tireless and huge so that the whole battlefield can watch them clash as demi-Gods. Eventually, Achilles stabs Memnon through the heart, causing his entire army to flee in terror. In honour of Memnon, the Gods collect all the drops of blood that fall from him and use them to form a huge river that on every anniversary of Memnon's death bears the stench of human flesh. The Aethiopians that stayed close to Memnon in order to bury their leader are turned into birds (which we now call Memnons) and they stay by his tomb so to remove dust that gathers on it.