Achilles' Astragalus

What is your Achilles heel? Do you have one? Why do we say that?

Achilles was the son of the sea-nymph Thetis and the mortal hero, Peleus. A prophecy said that Achilles could have a short glorious life that would make him famous forever, or a long life in obscurity. Achilles chose the short and glorious life. That took him to Troy to fight for the Greeks in the Trojan War. The story of his great anger about an incident at Troy was the subject of The Iliad, an epic poem that became the cornerstone of ancient Greek culture. Right across antiquity and beyond, huge numbers of additional stories and works of art explored the life of Achilles…and his death. As he was the greatest, fastest of the warriors at Troy, of course there was interest in how such a hero could die.

The Iliad does not include the death of Achilles, but it does anticipate it. There is mention of Achilles being destined to die young (Iliad, 1.417). There are also clues about what will happen: Achilles’ talking horses (yes, really!) tell him: “Your death is drawing near; and it is not we who will be the cause of it, but a great god and inexorable destiny” (Iliad, 19.408–11); Thetis had also told Achilles about his death. He recalls, “She said I should fall to Apollo and his flying weapons under the walls of the Trojan warriors,” (Iliad, 21.278). Later, the Trojan prince, Hector, adds an extra detail: “On that day when Paris and Phoebus Apollo will destroy you, noble though you be, in front of the Scaean gates!” (Iliad, 22.358).

So, from very early times, people knew that Achilles would be struck by an arrow at the Scaean Gates at Troy, brought down by the god Apollo and the Trojan prince, Paris. Vase painters began to decorate their pots with images of Achilles being killed in this way – shot by Paris, who is helped by Apollo. We see this on the vase from which this animation was made.

More and more details were added and the story tweaked as time went on. By the 1^st century CE (also known as AD), there was a new story that Thetis had dipped Achilles in the River Styx, using its magic to protect his skin and make him invulnerable, all – they said - expect for the point where he was held (see Statius, Achilleis, 1.133–34). This spot was his astragalus, his anklebone, known in Latin as the talus. From then on, we hear stories that Achilles was struck by an arrow in the only place where he could be hurt. The ankle represented the strength, speed, and capability of a warrior, so there is a symbolic, poetic quality to making that his vulnerable spot. Over time, the astragalus became mixed up with the heel, which is why it is now common to hear someone’s weakness referred to as their ‘Achilles’ heel’.  Barbara Carè has analysed representations of Achilles’ death in art and literature and how the astragalus to heel transition took place – you can find out more in her publications – listed on this page.

The vase used in the Achilles’ Astragalus animation is a red-figure pelike. Pelike shaped vases were used mostly for storing liquids; they have a wide-mouth with a rounded pear-shape belly. This one was made in Athens in around 475-450BCE. It was decorated by a prominent vase-painter now known as the Niobid Painter, who was named after a famous krater vase that he decorated with a scene of Apollo and Artemis killing the children of Niobe (Louvre G341). This pelike vase also shows Apollo shooting someone, although this time indirectly. On the left of the scene, the Trojan prince, Paris, looses an arow at the hero Achilles. Apollo stands in between them and holds out his hand to guide Paris’ arrow into Achilles. For several reasons, Apollo sided with the Trojans against the Greeks in the Trojan War; the Niobid Painter has captured that by showing Apollo causing Achilles’ death.

Prince Paris holds the short style of bow that is typical in Greek artwork. You can see a similar bow in Heracles and the Erymanthian Boar. He has placed several arrows in the ground in front of him, clearly keen to make the most of a good position. The Niobid Painter has carefully captured the particular way in which the bow is drawn back in front of the archer’s body and the archer’s precise footing. Achilles is armed for war in the panoply of a 5^th century hoplite soldier, with the distinctive large shield, crested helmet with protective cheekpieces, greaves for his shins, and a cuirass to protect his body. Spears were used in the era of the Trojan War (traditionally placed in 1200BCE), when the Iliad was composed (c.750-700BCE) and in the era when this vase was made (c.450 BCE). The Niobid Painter has shown the moment of the arrow’s flight, before it hits Achilles; the person looking at the vase is invited by the image to imagine what happens next.

The vase is now housed as part of the art collection of the Ruhr University Bochum in Germany (Kunstsammlungen, S1060). Its Beazley Archive number is 6974.

The opposite side of the vase shows two women at an altar in front of a tree pouring a libation – a liquid offering.

This animation – Achilles’ Astragalus – acts out the movement that is implied in the original vase scene, with the arrow loosed and striking Achilles. It then expands to offer some before and after to reflect research into the astragalus by Barbara Carè. A little unusually for us, the animation was made from an illustration of the vase made by Panoply’s animator Steve K Simons rather than directly from a photograph. The illustration was made to imitate the vase scene as closely as possible. The figures were then separated and pinned, ready for animation.

We see Achilles shot and killed – a story that was well-known in classical Greece. We then travel forward in time to the point at which the Romans retro-fitted the story, adding the tradition that Thetis made Achilles invulnerable in all but one spot. The dark background of the vase becomes the dark halls of Hades, where Thetis dips baby Achilles in the River Styx. You may recognise the figures used in this section of the animation. Thetis has been created from a 5^th century vase housed in the University College Dublin Classical Museum (UCD 197) and featured in The Procession; she starred again, with the specially made baby, in The Rattle. Baby Achilles wears the string of charms that was typical of 5^th century BCE babies, just as adult Achilles wears the panoply of a 5^th century soldier.

The music in Achilles Astragalus is made by Yiannis Chatzis, Paean to Apollo.

Achilles’ Astragalus was created as part of a project called Histoires d'os, or Bone Tales, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. Based at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and led by Barbara Carè, Histoires d'os researches the history of the astragalus bone.

• Create: Write a poem or create another sort of artwork representing the death of Achilles. Will you choose the moment just before he is hit, the moment itself, just after, or all three? What different impacts do the different moments have? What perspective will you show?

• PowerPoint. Explore more art and literature on the death of Achilles and his famous astragalus. (Coming soon.)

• Debate: Who is responsible? Paris loosed the arrow; Apollo guided it in. Who shot Achilles?

• Compare: This animation shows one representation of Achilles while Clash of the Dicers shows another. What are the similarities; what are the differences? What affects do those similarities and differences have on how you think about Achilles?

• Metaphor: Someone or something’s weak spot is their ‘Achilles’ heel’; think of some examples of how you could use this in a sentence.

• Science it: Watch the Histoires d’os - Pigs animation to learn more about the astragalus.

• Move it: The Achilles Tendon (also called the calcaneal tendon) is the strongest tendon in your body. It connects the calf muscle to the heel. By connecting your leg to your foot, the Achilles tendon enables you to move your foot and your ankle, to walk, jump, and to stand on your tiptoes. Take your shoe off and feel your ankle; turn your ankle as you hold it and feel the movement inside. Put your shoe back on and stand up. Try out some of the movements that the Achilles Tendon controls – stand, lunge, jump up, jump forwards, stand on your tiptoes, balance on one foot. It’s such a complex joint and we can do so many things with it!