§18.414σπόγγῳ δʼ ἀμφὶ πρόσωπα καὶ ἄμφω χεῖρʼ ἀπομόργνυ §18.415αὐχένα τε στιβαρὸν καὶ στήθεα λαχνήεντα,
With a sponge he wiped his face and both hands, and his sturdy neck and hairy chest.
§18.416δῦ δὲ χιτῶνʼ, ἕλε δὲ σκῆπτρον παχύ, βῆ δὲ θύραζε §18.417χωλεύων· ὑπὸ δʼ ἀμφίπολοι ῥώοντο ἄνακτι
He put on his tunic, grasped his thick staff, and went out the door, limping; and golden handmaids moved quickly to support their master, resembling living maidens.
§18.418χρύσειαι ζωῇσι νεήνισιν εἰοικυῖαι. §18.419τῇς ἐν μὲν νόος ἐστὶ μετὰ φρεσίν, ἐν δὲ καὶ αὐδὴ §18.420καὶ σθένος, ἀθανάτων δὲ θεῶν ἄπο ἔργα ἴσασιν.
In them is understanding in their minds, and in them is voice and strength, and from the immortal gods they know handiwork.
§18.421αἳ μὲν ὕπαιθα ἄνακτος ἐποίπνυον· αὐτὰρ ὃ ἔρρων §18.422πλησίον, ἔνθα Θέτις περ, ἐπὶ θρόνου ἷζε φαεινοῦ,
These bustled along to support their master; but he, hobbling near to where Thetis was, sat down upon a gleaming throne.
§18.423ἔν τʼ ἄρα οἱ φῦ χειρὶ ἔπος τʼ ἔφατʼ ἔκ τʼ ὀνόμαζε· §18.424τίπτε Θέτι τανύπεπλε ἱκάνεις ἡμέτερον δῶ §18.425αἰδοίη τε φίλη τε;
And he clasped her hand, and spoke to her, and addressed her: "Why, long-robed Thetis, do you come to our house, revered and beloved?
πάρος γε μὲν οὔ τι θαμίζεις.
In former times you did not use to visit us.
§18.426αὔδα ὅ τι φρονέεις· τελέσαι δέ με θυμὸς ἄνωγεν, §18.427εἰ δύναμαι τελέσαι γε καὶ εἰ τετελεσμένον ἐστίν. §18.428τὸν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα Θέτις κατὰ δάκρυ χέουσα· §18.429Ἥφαιστʼ, ἦ ἄρα δή τις, ὅσαι θεαί εἰσʼ ἐν Ὀλύμπῳ, §18.430τοσσάδʼ ἐνὶ φρεσὶν ᾗσιν ἀνέσχετο κήδεα λυγρὰ §18.431ὅσσʼ ἐμοὶ ἐκ πασέων Κρονίδης Ζεὺς ἄλγεʼ ἔδωκεν;
Speak what is in your mind; my heart bids me fulfill it, if I can fulfill it and if it is something that can be fulfilled." Then Thetis answered him, shedding tears: "Hephaestus, has any of all the goddesses that are in Olympus endured in her heart so many grievous sorrows as the griefs Cronos' son Zeus has given to me above all others?
§18.432ἐκ μέν μʼ ἀλλάων ἁλιάων ἀνδρὶ δάμασσεν §18.433Αἰακίδῃ Πηλῆϊ, καὶ ἔτλην ἀνέρος εὐνὴν §18.434πολλὰ μάλʼ οὐκ ἐθέλουσα.
Me alone of the daughters of the sea he subjected to a mortal man, to Peleus son of Aeacus, and I endured the bed of a mortal husband, much against my will.
ὃ μὲν δὴ γήραϊ λυγρῷ §18.435κεῖται ἐνὶ μεγάροις ἀρημένος, ἄλλα δέ μοι νῦν·
And he now lies in his halls worn out by grievous old age, but other sorrows are mine now.
§18.436υἱὸν ἐπεί μοι δῶκε γενέσθαί τε τραφέμεν τε §18.437ἔξοχον ἡρώων· ὃ δʼ ἀνέδραμεν ἔρνεϊ ἶσος· §18.438τὸν μὲν ἐγὼ θρέψασα φυτὸν ὣς γουνῷ ἀλωῆς §18.439νηυσὶν ἐπιπροέηκα κορωνίσιν Ἴλιον εἴσω §18.440Τρωσὶ μαχησόμενον· τὸν δʼ οὐχ ὑποδέξομαι αὖτις §18.441οἴκαδε νοστήσαντα δόμον Πηλήϊον εἴσω.
Since he gave me a son to bear and to rear, pre-eminent among heroes; and he shot up like a sapling; him I reared like a plant in a fertile hill of an orchard, and sent him forth in the curved ships to Ilium to fight with the Trojans; but I shall never welcome him back returning home to the house of Peleus.
And as long as he lives for me and sees the light of the sun, he is grieved, nor can I help him at all though I go to him.
The maiden whom the sons of the Achaeans chose out as a prize for him, her has lord Agamemnon taken back from his hands.
§18.446ἤτοι ὃ τῆς ἀχέων φρένας ἔφθιεν· αὐτὰρ Ἀχαιοὺς §18.447Τρῶες ἐπὶ πρύμνῃσιν ἐείλεον, οὐδὲ θύραζε §18.448εἴων ἐξιέναι· τὸν δὲ λίσσοντο γέροντες §18.449Ἀργείων, καὶ πολλὰ περικλυτὰ δῶρʼ ὀνόμαζον.
Verily in grief for her he was wasting his heart; but the Achaeans did the Trojans hem in at the sterns of their ships, and would not let them go forth; and the elders of the Argives entreated him, and named many glorious gifts.
§18.450ἔνθʼ αὐτὸς μὲν ἔπειτʼ ἠναίνετο λοιγὸν ἀμῦναι, §18.451αὐτὰρ ὃ Πάτροκλον περὶ μὲν τὰ ἃ τεύχεα ἕσσε, §18.452πέμπε δέ μιν πόλεμον δέ, πολὺν δʼ ἅμα λαὸν ὄπασσε.
Then he himself refused to ward off ruin, but he clothed Patroclus in his own armor, and sent him into the battle, and gave a great host to go with him.
§18.453πᾶν δʼ ἦμαρ μάρναντο περὶ Σκαιῇσι πύλῃσι· §18.454καί νύ κεν αὐτῆμαρ πόλιν ἔπραθον, εἰ μὴ Ἀπόλλων §18.455πολλὰ κακὰ ῥέξαντα Μενοιτίου ἄλκιμον υἱὸν §18.456ἔκτανʼ ἐνὶ προμάχοισι καὶ Ἕκτορι κῦδος ἔδωκε.
All day long they fought around the Scaean gates; and they would have sacked the city that very day, had not Apollo slain the valiant son of Menoetius, after he had wrought much harm, among the foremost fighters, and given glory to Hector.
§18.457τοὔνεκα νῦν τὰ σὰ γούναθʼ ἱκάνομαι, αἴ κʼ ἐθέλῃσθα §18.458υἱεῖ ἐμῷ ὠκυμόρῳ δόμεν ἀσπίδα καὶ τρυφάλειαν §18.459καὶ καλὰς κνημῖδας ἐπισφυρίοις ἀραρυίας §18.460καὶ θώρηχʼ· ὃ γὰρ ἦν οἱ ἀπώλεσε πιστὸς ἑταῖρος §18.461Τρωσὶ δαμείς· ὃ δὲ κεῖται ἐπὶ χθονὶ θυμὸν ἀχεύων. §18.462τὴν δʼ ἠμείβετʼ ἔπειτα περικλυτὸς ἀμφιγυήεις· §18.463θάρσει· μή τοι ταῦτα μετὰ φρεσὶ σῇσι μελόντων.
Therefore I now come to your knees, if you will give to my short-lived son a shield and helmet, and fair greaves fitted with ankle-guards, and a corselet; for that which he had his trusty comrade lost when slain by the Trojans; and my son lies on the ground grieving in his heart." Then the famous crook-footed god answered her: "Take courage; let not these things trouble your heart.
§18.464αἲ γάρ μιν θανάτοιο δυσηχέος ὧδε δυναίμην §18.465νόσφιν ἀποκρύψαι, ὅτε μιν μόρος αἰνὸς ἱκάνοι, §18.466ὥς οἱ τεύχεα καλὰ παρέσσεται, οἷά τις αὖτε §18.467ἀνθρώπων πολέων θαυμάσσεται, ὅς κεν ἴδηται. §18.468ὣς εἰπὼν τὴν μὲν λίπεν αὐτοῦ, βῆ δʼ ἐπὶ φύσας· §18.469τὰς δʼ ἐς πῦρ ἔτρεψε κέλευσέ τε ἐργάζεσθαι.
Would that I might be able so to hide him far from dread death, when his terrible doom comes upon him, as surely as fair armor shall be his, such as any of the multitude of men shall marvel at, whosoever shall behold it." So saying, he left her there, and went to the bellows; these he turned to the fire and bid them work.
§18.470φῦσαι δʼ ἐν χοάνοισιν ἐείκοσι πᾶσαι ἐφύσων §18.471παντοίην εὔπρηστον ἀϋτμὴν ἐξανιεῖσαι, §18.472ἄλλοτε μὲν σπεύδοντι παρέμμεναι, ἄλλοτε δʼ αὖτε, §18.473ὅππως Ἥφαιστός τʼ ἐθέλοι καὶ ἔργον ἄνοιτο.
And the bellows, twenty in all, blew upon the melting-pots, sending forth a well-blown blast of every kind, sometimes to help him when he labored hard, and sometimes again however Hephaestus willed and the work went on.
§18.474χαλκὸν δʼ ἐν πυρὶ βάλλεν ἀτειρέα κασσίτερόν τε §18.475καὶ χρυσὸν τιμῆντα καὶ ἄργυρον· αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα §18.476θῆκεν ἐν ἀκμοθέτῳ μέγαν ἄκμονα, γέντο δὲ χειρὶ §18.477ῥαιστῆρα κρατερήν, ἑτέρηφι δὲ γέντο πυράγρην.
And he cast hard bronze into the fire, and tin, and precious gold and silver; and then he set a great anvil on the anvil-block, and grasped in one hand a heavy hammer, and with the other hand he grasped the tongs.
§18.478ποίει δὲ πρώτιστα σάκος μέγα τε στιβαρόν τε
And first of all he began to make a shield, great and sturdy.