αὐτοκτόνα δῶρα → gifts that bring death

spiros

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αὐτοκτόνα δῶρα → gifts that bring death
The word αὐτοκτόνα as a neuter plural nominative of the adjective αὐτοκτόνος ("fatal") is hapax legomenon, attested only in the last two lines of a poem by Leontius, a Byzantine epigrammatist of the sixth century,
οὕτως ἐξ ἐχθρῶν αὐτοκτόνα πέμπετο δῶρα,
 ἐν χάριτος προφάσει μοῖραν ἔχοντα μόρου (Greek Anthology 7.152.7f.)
— "Thus (mutual) gifts that bring death were bestowed by enemies,
      gifts that brought the lot of death in the name of a favor."
The reference is to the duel between Hector and Ajax (Iliad 7.43–305) which ends in Apollo's intervention and the exchange of gifts by the two warriors, Hector giving Ajax the sword with which Ajax would kill himself, and Ajax giving Hector the girdle by which Achilles would drag Hector's body around the walls of Troy.
« Last Edit: 13 Jan, 2020, 01:43:29 by billberg23 »


 

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