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[4] What the πολέμοιο τέρας, which Eris holds in her hands, may be, we cannot say. The rainbow is called a “τέρας” in l. 28 and 17.548; but when Homer personifies this it is in the form of the goddess Iris, not of a thing which can be held in the hand. Others explain it as the thunderbolt, comparing 10.8. A more likely object is the aegis of Zeus, see 5.742. A very similar and equally obscure phrase is 5.593 “Ἐνυὼ .. ἔχουσα κυδοιμόν” (see note there). This personification of the battle-spirits is characteristic of the later Epic period; see 4.440 (with note) and 37, 73 below.

The Iliad, edited, with apparatus criticus, prolegomena, notes, and appendices. Walter Leaf. London. Macmillan. 1900.

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