Achaemenides

This article is about the mythological figure. For the ancient Persian dynasty, see Achaemenid Empire.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Achaemenides (Ἀχαιμενίδης) was a son of Adamastus of Ithaca, and one of Odysseus's crew. He was marooned on Sicily when Odysseus fled Polyphemus the Cyclops, until Aeneas arrived and took him to Italy with his company of refugee Trojans.

His character seems to have been chosen by Virgil treating the Persian-origin name Achaemenes as Greek and extracting the meaning "he who waits with affliction".

Although not mentioned in Homer's epic, Achaemenides is significant; his stranding and subsequent rescue by Aeneas's fleet make him, along with Macareus, one of two known members of Odysseus's crew to survive the return journey to Ithaca (as every ship besides the flagship was destroyed by the Laestrygonian giants, and those besides Odysseus on the last ship were drowned after his men devoured Helios's sacred cattle).

The episode also provides Virgil with an opportunity to show Aeneas' magnanimity in saving a member of Odysseus's crew, and bearing no grudge for Odysseus's major role in the destruction of Troy, Aeneas' home.

See also

• List of Greek mythological figures