Antinous was the first to fall to the Bow of Eurytus when Odysseus strung the great bow during the contest. The arrow that killed Antinous proved the weapon that none of the suitors could string.
In Homer's Odyssey (21.359-379), Eumaeus carried the Bow of Eurytus to the disguised Odysseus in the hall despite the suitors' protests, enabling the slaughter that followed.
The Bow of Eurytus was the famed weapon of the master archer Eurytus of Oechalia. It passed through his son Iphitus to Odysseus, who used it to slay the suitors. Homer's Odyssey (21.31-35) traces its provenance.
Iphitus, son of Eurytus, gave the Bow of Eurytus to Odysseus as a guest-gift when they met in Messene. Homer's Odyssey (21.31-41) records this transfer of the legendary weapon.
Odysseus kept the Bow of Eurytus at home in Ithaca rather than taking it to Troy. He used it to slay the suitors in Homer's Odyssey (21-22), the only man able to string the great weapon.
Penelope devised the final test for the suitors, declaring she would marry whoever could string the great Bow of Eurytus and shoot an arrow through twelve axe-heads — a feat only Odysseus could accomplish.
In Homer's Odyssey (21.124-129), Telemachus attempted to string the Bow of Eurytus three times and nearly succeeded on the fourth attempt before Odysseus signaled him to stop.
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