Achilles sacrificing to Zeus from the Ambrosian Iliad

Achilles sacrificing to Zeus from the Ambrosian Iliad

Achilles sacrificing to Zeus from the Ambrosian Iliad (Biblioteca Ambrosiana, Cod. F. 205 Inf.) fol. 42v, late 5th – early 6th century, Roman, Alexandria, ink on parchment, Milan, Biblioteca Ambrosiana.

The Ambrosian Iliad, also called the Ilias Picta, is the oldest (and only ancient) surviving illustrated manuscript of Homer’s Iliad. Along with the Vatican Vergil (see Module 1) and the Vergilius Romanus, it is one of three extant examples of illustrated ancient secular texts. There are a total of 52 illustrations and the text is written in Greek. It was most likely made in Alexandria in Egypt and is the work of several artists. The illustrations were cut out of the original codex in the 11th century and inserted into a different manuscript of Homeric texts. Cardinal Frederico Borromeo purchased the manuscript in 1608 and it has remained in the collection of the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan since then. Subsequent interventions in the early 19th century damaged the miniatures in an attempt to make the text more legible. This illustration depicts Achilles, dressed as a priest, making a sacrifice to Zeus to secure Patroclus’s safe return (Book XVI, lines 220-252).

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Biblioteca Ambrosiana