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Achilles, which rang out as the point struck it. The son of Peleus
held the shield before him with his strong hand, and he was afraid,
for he deemed that Aeneas's spear would go through it quite easily,
not reflecting that the god's glorious gifts were little likely to
yield before the blows of mortal men; and indeed Aeneas's spear did
not pierce the shield, for the layer of gold, gift of the god, stayed
the point. It went through two layers, but the god had made the shield
in five, two of bronze, the two innermost ones of tin, and one of
gold; it was in this that the spear was stayed.
Achilles in his turn threw, and struck the round shield of Aeneas
at the very edge, where the bronze was thinnest; the spear of Pelian
ash went clean through, and the shield rang under the blow; Aeneas
was afraid, and crouched backwards, holding the shield away from him;
the spear, however, flew over his back, and stuck quivering in the
ground, after having gone through both circles of the sheltering shield.
Aeneas though he had avoided the spear, stood still, blinded with
fear and grief because the weapon had gone so near him; then Achilles
sprang furiously upon him, with a cry as of death and with his keen
blade drawn, and Aeneas seized a great stone, so huge that two men,
as men now are, would be unable to lift it, but Aeneas wielded it
quite easily.
Aeneas would then have struck Achilles as he was springing towards
him, either on the helmet, or on the shield that covered him, and
Achilles would have closed with him and despatched him with his sword,
had not Neptune lord of the earthquake been quick to mark, and said
forthwith to the immortals, "Alas, I am sorry for great Aeneas, who