batch.motif.roman-aeneid-mackail-gutenberg-l898-l978
---
record_id: batch.motif.roman-aeneid-mackail-gutenberg-l898-l978
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
passage_locator:
label: BOOK FIRST / THE COMING OF AENEAS TO CARTHAGE / BOOK SECOND / THE STORY OF
THE SACK OF TROY; lines 898-978
start: '898'
end: '978'
translation: The Aeneid of Virgil
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Sinon tells the Trojans that storms and an oracle forced the Greeks to
seek a human sacrifice for their return; he claims he was chosen and escaped.
Priam releases him and asks about the wooden horse. Sinon swears by sacred fires
and altars, recounts the theft of the Palladium and ominous signs from the goddess's
image, and falsely explains the horse as an expiatory offering made too large
to enter Troy. The narrator states that Sinon’s tears, treachery, and perjury
deceived the Trojans.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The Greeks are said to have been repeatedly prevented from leaving Troy by
sea-storms and winds.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: An oracle of Phoebus is reported to require blood for the Greek return, including
an Argive life as sacrifice.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Ulysses compels Calchas to explain the divine demand; after ten days of silence,
Calchas names Sinon for the altar.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Rites for Sinon are prepared with salted grain and chaplets, but Sinon breaks
his bonds and hides overnight in marsh sedge.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: Sinon begs for pity and says he has no hope of seeing his home, children,
or father again.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Priam orders Sinon’s bonds removed, grants him protection among the Trojans,
and asks the purpose of the wooden horse.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Sinon lifts his freed hands to heaven and invokes everlasting fires, altars,
swords, and chaplets as witnesses.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: Sinon claims that Greek success depended on Pallas's aid until Diomedes and
Ulysses stole the Palladium from its sanctuary.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:9
text: 'The stolen image is described as giving signs: flame from its eyes, sweat
over its body, and three leaps with shield and spear quivering.'
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:10
text: Sinon says Calchas interpreted the omens as requiring the Greeks to return
to Argos and bring back the divine presence they had carried away.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:11
text: Sinon explains the wooden horse as recompense for the Palladium and as expiation
for sacrilege against the goddess.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:12
text: Sinon says the horse was built too large for Troy’s gates so that it could
not be brought inside and protect the Trojans.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:13
text: The narrator states that Sinon’s wiles, craft, perjury, treachery, and tears
caused the Trojans to believe him.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Sinon
description: A Greek who presents himself as an escaped intended sacrifice and suppliant,
but is identified by the narrator as acting through wiles, craft, and perjury.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:10
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Priam
description: Trojan king who orders Sinon's bonds removed, grants him protection,
and questions him about the horse.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: The Greeks / Argives
description: The Greek army seeking return from Troy and said to require sacrifice
and divine favor.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Phoebus / Apollo
description: The god whose oracle is consulted and whose demand is reported as requiring
blood for return.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Eurypylus
description: Messenger sent to inquire of Phoebus's oracle.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Ulysses / the Ithacan
description: Greek figure said to drag Calchas forward, urge him to speak, and earlier
steal the Palladium with Diomedes.
role_refs:
- role:8
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Calchas
description: Greek soothsayer who, according to Sinon, names Sinon as sacrifice
and later interprets the omens around the Palladium and horse.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Pallas / Minerva / Tritonian
description: The goddess whose aid is said to support Greece and whose sacred image
is stolen and offended.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:9
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: The son of Tydeus / Diomedes
description: Greek figure said to join Ulysses in stealing the Palladium and killing
sentries.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Trojans / Phrygian people
description: The people who pity Sinon, hear his explanation, and are said to be
deceived by his account.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:9
- ev:10
roles:
- id: role:1
label: suppliant prisoner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Sinon begs for pity while bound and is released by Priam.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:2
label: intended sacrificial victim in his own account
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Sinon says Calchas appointed him for the altar and that sacrificial rites
were prepared for him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: deceptive narrator
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The narrator explicitly attributes the Trojans' belief to Sinon's wiles,
craft, and perjury.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: role:4
label: merciful royal questioner
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Priam orders Sinon's release and asks what the horse is for.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: departing army seeking divine favor
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The Greeks are described as trying to leave, consulting the oracle, and needing
sacrifice and divine presence.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:8
- id: role:6
label: oracular deity
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Phoebus's oracle is consulted and returns the reported demand for blood.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:7
label: oracle messenger
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Eurypylus is sent to inquire of the oracle and brings back its words.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:8
label: instigator of accusation
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The Ithacan drags Calchas forward and demands the gods' meaning.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:9
label: sacred thief
assigned_to:
- fig:6
- fig:9
basis: Ulysses and Diomedes are said to steal the Palladium from the sanctuary and
kill sentries.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:10
label: soothsayer and omen interpreter
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Calchas names the sacrifice and interprets the omens concerning Greek return
and the horse.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: role:11
label: offended divine patron
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Greek hope is said to rest on Pallas, whose sacred image is stolen and whose
mind becomes estranged.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:12
label: deceived hearers
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: The Trojans grant Sinon pity and are later described as ensnared by treachery
and forced tears.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:10
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: wooden horse
literal_form: A vast horse framed with beams, described as an offering or possible
war-engine, built too large for the city gates.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:9
- id: sym:2
label: blood sacrifice
literal_form: Blood of a slain maiden in the past and an Argive life demanded for
return; Sinon says he was appointed for the altar.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: sacrificial chaplets and salted grain
literal_form: Salted corn and chaplets prepared for the victim's temples; chaplets
also invoked by Sinon as victim's emblems.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: Palladium
literal_form: The fated holy image of Pallas stolen from her sanctuary and associated
with the goddess's divine presence.
associated_figures:
- fig:6
- fig:8
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:8
- id: sym:5
label: flaming eyes of the sacred image
literal_form: Flame shoots from the lifted eyes of the image after it is set in
the Greek camp.
associated_figures:
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: sym:6
label: everlasting fires
literal_form: Sacred fires invoked by Sinon as witnesses to his oath-like speech.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:7
label: sea-storm and return waters
literal_form: The fierce sea-tempest, gale, and seas that obstruct or must be crossed
for Greek return.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:8
- id: sym:8
label: marshy pool
literal_form: The sedge of a marshy pool where Sinon says he hid through the night.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:9
label: sacred altars and swords
literal_form: Altars and accursed swords from which Sinon says he fled and which
he invokes as witnesses.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Oracle demands blood for Greek return
summary: The Greeks, blocked by storms from leaving Troy, send Eurypylus to Phoebus's
oracle, which is reported to demand an Argive life in sacrifice for their return.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Sinon named and escapes sacrifice
summary: Ulysses compels Calchas to speak; Calchas names Sinon for the altar, but
Sinon breaks his bonds and hides in a marsh.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Priam releases and questions Sinon
summary: Moved by Sinon's tears, the Trojans spare him; Priam releases him and asks
the reason for the horse.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Sinon swears by sacred witnesses
summary: Sinon raises his freed hands and invokes fires, altars, swords, and chaplets
while claiming he may reveal Greek secrets if Troy keeps faith with him.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:6
- sym:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: Theft of the Palladium and divine signs
summary: Sinon says Ulysses and Diomedes stole the Palladium, after which the goddess
gave signs through the image's flame, sweat, and movements.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
- fig:8
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:6
label: False explanation of the wooden horse
summary: Sinon says Calchas ordered the Greeks to restore divine favor and that
the horse was made as an expiatory offering, with consequences depending on whether
Troy violates or admits it.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: scene:7
label: Trojans deceived
summary: The narrator concludes that Sinon’s craft, perjury, and tears make the
Trojans believe the story.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:10
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: human sacrifice required for safe return
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The oracle is reported to require blood and an Argive life for the Greeks'
return, and Sinon says he was selected for the altar.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The sacrifice story is embedded in Sinon's deceptive speech; the passage
later identifies him as perjured.
- id: motif:2
label: sacred theft causes loss of divine favor
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_theft
- divine_judgment
basis: Sinon says Ulysses and Diomedes stole the Palladium, after which Greek hope
ebbed and the goddess became estranged, with ominous signs from the image.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
confidence: medium
cautions: The account is attributed to Sinon, whose speech is explicitly framed
as deceptive, though the motif is present in the reported story.
- id: motif:3
label: deceptive suppliant gains trust through tears and sacred oaths
taxonomy_refs:
- trickster_boundary
basis: Sinon appears as a bound suppliant, invokes sacred witnesses, and is said
by the narrator to deceive the Trojans by wiles, perjury, treachery, and forced
tears.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:10
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy reference is broad; the passage supports deception
and boundary-crossing into Trojan trust rather than a fully developed trickster
cycle.
- id: motif:4
label: protective sacred image withheld or restored
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: Sinon claims Troy cannot fall unless the Greeks return to Argos and bring
back the divine presence carried away in ships, and that bringing the horse into
Troy would protect the city.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The motif is expressed within Sinon's false explanation and should be
reviewed against the larger narrative.
- id: motif:5
label: ominous animated cult image
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_judgment
basis: The Palladium is described as flaming, sweating, and leaping with shield
and spear after sacrilegious handling.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
confidence: medium
cautions: No specific taxonomy item for animated statue or cult image is available;
divine_judgment is an approximate family reference.
- id: motif:6
label: city-destroying stratagem disguised as sacred offering
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: The wooden horse is presented to Priam as a religious recompense for sacrilege,
while the narrator states the Trojans were deceived by Sinon’s treachery.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:9
- ev:10
confidence: medium
cautions: The selected taxonomy reference is approximate; the passage supports a
disguised offering and deception, not a reciprocal sacred exchange in a strict
sense.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; opening oracle episode
quote_or_summary: The Greeks are described as blocked by sea-tempests; Eurypylus
brings back Phoebus's oracle saying that as winds were appeased by a slain maiden,
return must be sought with blood and an Argive life.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Sinon chosen for altar
quote_or_summary: The Ithacan forces Calchas to speak; after ten days Calchas names
Sinon for the altar, rites with salted corn and chaplets are prepared, and Sinon
says he breaks his bonds and hides in marsh sedge.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Sinon's plea
quote_or_summary: Sinon pleads by heavenly powers and asks pity as an undeserving
sufferer, saying he has lost hope of seeing home, children, and father.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Priam releases Sinon
quote_or_summary: The Trojans grant Sinon life and pity; Priam orders his bonds
removed, says he shall be one of the Trojans, and asks why the vast horse was
built and whether it is propitiation or a war-engine.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Sinon's oath-like invocation
quote_or_summary: Sinon raises his freed hands and invokes everlasting fires, altars,
accursed swords, and victim's chaplets as witnesses while claiming he may break
Greek allegiance and reveal secrets.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Palladium theft
quote_or_summary: Sinon says Greek hope centered in Pallas until Diomedes and Ulysses
stole the fated Palladium, killed sentries, grasped the holy image, and touched
the goddess's chaplets with bloody hands.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; signs from the image
quote_or_summary: The image is said to emit flame from its eyes, sweat over its
body, and leap three times from the ground with shield and spear quivering.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; Calchas interprets omens
quote_or_summary: Calchas is said to prophesy that Troy cannot be overthrown until
the Greeks return to Argos and bring back the divine presence they carried overseas.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 898-978; explanation of the horse
quote_or_summary: Sinon says the image of the horse was built as recompense for
the Palladium and expiation for sacrilege, made too large to enter the gates;
violating it would ruin Troy, while drawing it into the city would empower Asia
against Greece.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: quote
locator: lines 898-978; narrator's conclusion
quote_or_summary: "“So by Sinon's wiles and craft and perjury the thing gained belief;
and we were ensnared by treachery and forced tears.”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/aeneid-mackail.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; short quotation.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is well supported by the passage. Motif labels are cautious
because much of the reported ritual and divine explanation occurs within Sinon's
explicitly deceptive speech.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage itself does not explicitly compare these events to external traditions or motif families.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:roman-aeneid-mackail-gutenberg__l898-l978
passage_sha256=ed0efae43c9fcba81c384ae54c31dbabf4d7bebba00c16b21ce71bb13a5680e3