Bret Devereaux

Hom. Il. 22.294-95––Δηΐφοβον δ᾽ ἐκάλει λευκάσπιδα μακρὸν ἀΰσας / ᾔτεέ μιν δόρυ μακρόν: ὃ δ᾽ οὔ τί οἱ ἐγγύθεν ἦεν ("he kept calling on Deïphobos of the white shield, crying out far and wide; he asked him for a long spear––but he was not near him")––is heartbreaking.

Sorry, I know this isn’t your point, but I have a bunch of questions. Why does leukaspida end with an alpha in this instance? Do we have any idea why he’s of the white shield? (I’m asking because of the pezhetairoi corps later on, curious if there’s a through line). Pls + thanks

Your spidey sense is well calibrated: it's a Homeric hapax, although D.'s shield was referred to already at 13.156-66. The adjective is third declension, with the component "aspis" ending "-ida" in the accusative singular. Commentators think the "white" part draws our...