This painting, attributed to the Italian artist Antonio da Vendri (16th century), draws inspiration from the ancient Greek mythological tale of the Judgment of Paris. Prince Paris of Troy’s judgment would be the catalyst that would lead to the legendary Trojan War. Curiously, despite the pivotal causal nature of the Judgment of Paris incident, the poet Homer (flourished c. 700 BCE) only made the faintest reference to the event, vaguely alluding to the myth in the final pages of The Iliad. Namely, Homer alleged that Paris’ actions during the Judgment tale left a certain group of deities embittered and wrathful, and their anger extended to the Trojans, in general. Homer wrote, “[Troy held] no appeal for Hera, Poseidon, or grey-eyed Athene. These hated sacred Ilium and Priam and his people just as much now as when Paris first committed that act of blind folly at the judgment in his shepherd’s hut, when he humiliated Hera and Athene by preferring Aphrodite—whose reward was his fatal lust for women” (Homer, The Iliad, Book 24, approximately lines 27-30).
So what did Paris do? In the poetic epics of Homer, the reader learns no more, and is only left with the sentiment that he spurned Hera and Athene (or Athena) by siding with Aphrodite, who promised him a lusty reward. Yet, there is much more to the tale, including mischief from the goddess of discord, Eris, and a fateful beauty contest of the Greek goddesses, each willing to bribe the judge to achieve victory. Paris (also known by the names or epithets of Alexandros or Alexander) was the one who was selected to do the judging in the story. For a fuller ancient telling of the myth, one must turn to later mythographers, such as the scholar known as Pseudo-Apollodorus (c. 1st and 2nd century). On the Judgment of Paris (or Alexander), he wrote:
“Eris threw an apple in front of Hera, Athene, and Aphrodite as a prize for the most beautiful, and Zeus instructed Hermes to take them to Alexander of Mount Ida, to be judged by him for their beauty. They promised to give Alexander gifts; Hera promised him universal dominion if she were preferred above all other women, while Athene offered victory in war, and Aphrodite the hand of Helen. He decided in favour of Aphrodite, and sailed to Sparta…” (Apollodorus, Library, Epitome 3.2).
Paris, therefore, was put in the precarious position of deciding which powerful goddess was the fairest of them all, their prize being Eris’ coveted apple and, no doubt, a sense of pride. Hera and Athena tried to bribe the judge with various forms of power, whereas Aphrodite bought the winning vote by promising Paris that she would aid him in seducing Helen, the most beautiful woman on earth. In keeping with the multi-meaning title of the myth, it is safe to say that Paris’ Judgment proved poor and shortsighted. Paris decided in favor of Aphrodite and accepted her assistance in pursuing Helen, disregarding the fact that Helen was already married to the well-connected King Menelaus of Sparta. And the rest, as they say, is history—or, in this case, legend. Paris’ subsequent abduction of Helen would lead to the Trojan War, in which Menelaus’ allied Greek coalition waged war upon Paris’ family and their kingdom, leading to the destruction of Troy.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Sources:
- Apollodorus, The Library of Greek Mythology, translated by Robin Hard. New York, Oxford University Press, 1997.
- The Iliad by Homer, translated by E. V. Rieu and edited/introduced by Peter Jones. New York: Penguin Classics, 2014.
- https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/20027293
