<P> Homer's description of the shield is the first known example of ekphrasis in ancient Greek poetry; ekphrasis is a rhetorical figure in which a detailed (textual) description is given of a (visual) work of art . Besides providing narrative exposition, it can add deeper meaning to an artwork by reflecting on the process of its creation, in turn allowing the audience to envision artwork that they can't see . </P> <P> The passage in which Homer describes the creation of the shield has actually influenced many later poems, including the Shield of Heracles once attributed to Hesiod . Virgil's description of the shield of Aeneas in Book Eight of the Aeneid is clearly modeled on Homer . The poem The Shield of Achilles (1952) by W.H. Auden reimagines Homer's description in 20th century terms . Of other significance, this passage is recognized as the first example of cosmological mapping in the history of Greece . </P> <P> Homer gives a detailed description of the imagery which decorates the new shield . Starting from the shield's centre and moving outward, circle layer by circle layer, the shield is laid out as follows: </P> <Ol> <Li> The Earth, sky and sea, the sun, the moon and the constellations (484--89) </Li> <Li> "Two beautiful cities full of people": in one a wedding and a law case are taking place (490--508); the other city is besieged by one feuding army and the shield shows an ambush and a battle (509--40). </Li> <Li> A field being ploughed for the third time (541--49). </Li> <Li> A king's estate where the harvest is being reaped (550--60). </Li> <Li> A vineyard with grape pickers (561--72). </Li> <Li> A "herd of straight - horned cattle"; the lead bull has been attacked by a pair of savage lions which the herdsmen and their dogs are trying to beat off (573--86). </Li> <Li> A picture of a sheep farm (587--89). </Li> <Li> A dancing - floor where young men and women are dancing (590--606). </Li> <Li> The great stream of Ocean (607--609). </Li> </Ol>

What can we learn from ancient greek culture just by looking at achilles' shield