Achilles slays Hector at Otira Gorge

Hector, a prince and warrior of Troy, challenges Achilles to a duel only to die at his hands. Angered by the atrocities committed by the Trojans, Achilles later refuses to observe the usual customs afforded to the dead, instead desecrating the body of his foe by dragging it behind his chariot.

Otira Gorge, as represented by Petrus van der Velden, provides the dramatic backdrop for the duel. Maguire writes that ‘it seemed to me that the ultimate struggle between Achilles and his combatant, Hector, was enhanced by being located in an area that already presented so many external dangers.’ (Southern Myths, 2005)

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