Source-groundedThe Odyssey
All entities

Character · Individual

Dolius

Published entity metadata

Read-only identity and editorial metadata.

Canonical name
Dolius
Disambiguator
None
Kind
Character
Scope
Individual
Editorial note
No editorial note published.

Aliases

1

old Dolius

Descriptive reference · Direct

Location presence

Phase 6 currently covers 24 processed books.

0

No presence observations in the processed scope.

Claims

4
·Reported

Dolius is Penelope’s old gardener, given to her by her father at marriage.

See evidence text
“old Dolius, who was given me by my father on my marriage, and who is my gardener”
·Direct

Dolius returns from work with his sons, stands astonished on recognizing Ulysses, and is good-naturedly urged to join dinner.

See evidence text
“old Dolius and his sons left their work and came up, for their mother, the Sicel woman who looked after Laertes now that he was growing old, had been to fetch them. When they saw Ulysses and were certain it was he, they stood there lost in astonishment; but Ulysses scolded them good naturedly and said, ‘Sit down to your dinner, old man, and never mind about your surprise; we have been wanting to begin for some time and have been waiting for you”
·Direct

Dolius clasps and kisses Ulysses’s hand, welcomes his heaven-restored return, and asks whether Penelope knows.

See evidence text
“Dolius put out both his hands and went up to Ulysses. ‘Sir,’ said he, seizing his master’s hand and kissing it at the wrist, ‘we have long been wishing you home: and now heaven has restored you to us after we had given up hoping. All hail, therefore, and may the gods prosper you. {187} But tell me, does Penelope already know of your return, or shall we send some one to tell her”
·Direct

Grey-haired Dolius arms himself as a warrior by necessity alongside Laertes.

See evidence text
“Laertes also and Dolius did the same—warriors by necessity in spite of their grey hair”

Additional evidence

Evidence records not already represented by a claim.

4
·Reported
“call old Dolius”
·Direct
“Melanthius son of Dolius”
·Reported
“Melanthius the son of Dolius”
·Direct
“he did not see Dolius”

Passage preview

Book 4 · Passage 65

‘My dears, heaven has been pleased to try me with more affliction than any other woman of my age and country. First I lost my brave and lion-hearted husband, who had every good quality under heaven, and whose name was great over all Hellas and middle Argos, and now my darling son is at the mercy of the winds and waves, without my having heard one word about his leaving home. You hussies, there was not one of you would so much as think of giving me a call out of my bed, though you all of you very well knew when he was starting. If I had known he meant taking this voyage, he would have had to give it up, no matter how much he was bent upon it, or leave me a corpse behind him—one or other. Now, however, go some of you and call old Dolius, who was given me by my father on my marriage, and who is my gardener. Bid him go at once and tell everything to Laertes, who may be able to hit on some plan for enlisting public sympathy on our side, as against those who are trying to exterminate his own race and that of Ulysses.’