Diomedes and Odysseus
The Greek hero Diomedes was also involved in some of Odysseus' shenanigans, possibly including the killing of Palamedes, the Greek who had tricked Odysseus into going to war and may have invented the alphabet. Diomedes was among the Achaean men tucked inside the belly of the great wooden horse the Greeks presented to the Trojans ostensibly as a gift to the goddess.
Diomedes and Thebes
Earlier in his life Diomedes had been involved in the second generation expedition against Thebes, making him one of the epigoni. Diomedes' parents were the Aeolian Tydeus, son of the Calydonian king Oeneus, and Deipyle. Diomedes was married to Aegialia when he left for Troy. Egged on by Aphrodite who had a grudge against Aegialia's husband, Diomedes, for the wrist injury she had sustained defending Aeneas, Aegialia was faithless and kept Diomedes from re-entering the city. So, after the Trojan War, Diomedes sailed to Libya where he was imprisoned by King Lycus. The king's daughter Callirrhoe released him. Then Diomedes -- like Theseus vis a vis Ariadne before him -- sailed away. Like Dido when Aeneas sailed away, Callirrhoe then committed suicide.
Mysterious Death of Diomedes
There are various accounts of how Diomedes died. One has Athena turning Diomedes into a god. In another, he dies from treachery. In still another, Diomedes dies of old age. He may have encountered Aeneas again in Italy.
Elsewhere on the Web:
Diomedes
Carlos Parada's page on Diomedes, his parentage, mates, offspring, legends, sources, and the men Diomedes killed in the Trojan War.Epigoni
Carlos Parada's page on the Epigoni.
