ὡς ἄρα φωνήσας, εἰρύσσατο φάσγανον ὀξὺ.
τό οἱ ὑπο λαπάρην τέτατο μέγα τε στιβαρόν τε:
οίμησεν δὲ ἀλεὶς. ὥς τ' αἰετὸς ὑψιπετήεις:
ὅς τ' εἶσιν πεδίον δὲ διὰ νεφέων ἐρεβεννῶν.
ἁρπάξων ἢ ἄρν' αμαλὴν. ἢ πτῶκα λαγωὸν.
ὡς Ἕκτωρ οίμησε τινάσσων φάσγανον ὀξύ:
ὡρμήθη δ' Ἀχιλεὺς, μένεος δ' ἐμπλήσατο θυμὸν
ἀγρίου. πρόσθεν δὲ σάκος στέρνοιο κάλυψε
καλὸν, δαιδάλεον. κόρυθι δ' ἐπένευε φαεινῇ:
τετραφάλῳ: καλαὶ δὲ περισσείοντο ἔθειραι.
χρύσεαι. ἃς Ἥφαιστος ί̈ει λόφον. ἀμφι θαμειάς:
οἷος δ' ἀστὴρ εῖσι μετ' ἄστρασι; νυκτὸς ἀμολγῷ.
ἕσπερος. ὃς κάλλιστος ἐν οὐρανῷ ἵ̈σταται ἀστὴρ.
ὡς αἰχμῆς ἀπέλαμπ' εὐήκεος. ἣν ὰρ Ἀχιλλεὺς
πάλλεν δεξιτερῇ. φρονέων κακὸν Ἕκτορι δίῳ.
εἰσορόων χρόα καλὸν. ὅπῃ είξειε μάλιστα:
τοῦ δε καὶ ἄλλο. τόσον μὲν ἔχε χρόα χάλκεα τεύχη.
καλὰ, τὰ Πατρόκλοιο βίην ἐνάριξε κατακτὰς.
φαίνετο δ' ᾗ κληῗδες ἀπ' ὤμων. αὐχέν' ἔχουσι
λαυκανίην: ἵνα τε ψυχῆς ὤκιστος ὄλεθρος:
τῇ ῥ' ἐπι οἷ, μεμαῶτ' ἔλασ' ἔγχεϊ δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς:
ἀντικρὺ δ' ἁπαλοῖο δι' αὐχένος ἤλυθ' ἀκωκή.
So saying, he drew his sharp sword that hung beside his flank, a great sword and a mighty, and gathering himself together swooped like an eagle of lofty flight that darteth to the plain through the dark clouds to seize a tender lamb or a cowering hare; even so Hector swooped, brandishing his sharp sword. And Achilles rushed upon him, his beart ful of savage wrath, and before his breast he made a covering of his shield, fair and richly-dight, and tossed his bright four-horned helm; and fair about it waved the plumes wrought of gold, that Hephaestus had set thick about the crest. As a star goeth forth amid stars in the darkness of night, the star of evening, that is set in heaven as the fairest of all; even so went forth a gleam from the keen spear that Achilles poised in his right hand, as he devised evil for goodly Hector, looking the while upon his fair flesh to find where it was most open to a blow. Now all the rest of his flesh was covered by the armour of bronze, the goodly armour that he had stripped from mighty Patroclus when he slew him; but there was an opening where the collar bones part the neck and shoulders, even the gullet, where destruction of life cometh most speedily; even there, as he rushed upon him, goodly Achilles let drive with his spear; and clean out through the tender neck went the point.
