LAOCOON

Laocoon, a priest to either Apollo or Poseidon, figured prominently in the fall of Troy as the voice of caution whose efforts were frustrated by both Greek cunning and the intervention of two serpents. Laocoon’s origins are unclear—he was either the son of the Trojan king Priam or the son of Antenor, one of Priam’s confidantes who betrayed the Trojans during the war.

Laocoon met his horrific fate during the last days of the Trojan War. Roman poet Virgil (70-19 BCE) retold the priest’s story in his epic poem Aeneid. After nearly 10 years of fighting, the Greeks built an enormous wooden horse and placed inside its hollow belly their fiercest warriors. They then rolled the horse up to the gates of Troy, and the armies retreated to their ships, appearing to sail away, presumably to Greece. However, they only sailed out of view of the Trojans, behind an island called Tenedos. Upon seeing the horse, Laocoon immediately warned the gathering crowd by saying that he feared the Greeks, even when they were bearing gifts. According to Greek writer Apollodorus (fl. 140 BCE), Laocoon suggested that there could be armed men within, waiting to lay waste to the city. For a few moments the Trojans were convinced by the priest’s words, and they debated how to dispose of the horse. Laocoon even hurled his spear into the horse’s belly, and the hollow boom from within would have heightened the Trojans’ suspicions had a Greek named Sinon not appeared before them.