Does Anyone Think They Know the Age of Diomedes for the Trojan War?

Historical accuracy and the age of Diomedes at the beginning of the Trojan War are topics often clouded in myth and speculation. Diomedes, from Greek mythology, is a significant but enigmatic figure, making it difficult to pinpoint his exact age. Nobody can claim with certainty based on the available sources because Diomedes was not depicted as a real person in ancient texts.

Mythical Challenges in Determining Ages

It is dangerous to treat any mythological accounts as infallibly 'correct.' The inaccuracies and varying narratives make it challenging to obtain a definitive answer. For instance, while there is a question about Diomedes' age based on the Iliad, this epic does not provide a clear starting point. Other sources, like the Tales of the Seven Against Thebes, offer more detailed accounts but still lack consistency.

An Analysis of Diomedes' Age

Given the numerous sources that provide varying information, we can attempt to piece together a plausible timeline to estimate Diomedes' age at the start of the Trojan War.

First, we have the story of Diomedes' father, Tydeus, who dies during the Battle of Thebes. According to the Bibliotheca, Diomedes, at the tender age of 4, witnessed his father's death. At this tender age, Diomedes was already considered one of the most skilled among the Epigoni, showing great promise.

Over a decade later, the Epigoni attacked Thebes, suggesting that Diomedes would have been roughly 14 years old. However, this age seems inconsistent with the detail that his grandfather passed away from grief at his son's death. This event prompted Diomedes to become king and rule wisely for five years. The exact length of his reign is unclear, but it might have been longer.

Myths and Speculation

Apart from the aforementioned accounts, there is an intriguing detail suggesting that Diomedes was a suitor for Helen. Unfortunately, the timeline between the Epigoni and the Trojan War remains uncertain. This lack of specific dates means we must tread cautiously in ascribing events to precise years.

Another point of speculation is that Diomedes was the youngest of the Greek commanders at Troy. Most sources do not provide a clear chronology of events following the Epigoni. We could make a potentially dangerous assumption that not much time passed between the two events. However, the independent development and compilation of myths by future writers complicate this assumption.

Given that Diomedes is a mythological figure, any conclusions drawn from disparate sources are likely to be somewhat meaningless. Nonetheless, if we were to make the leap of faith that the sources are compatible, despite the likelihood being low, a potential estimate for his age would be late 20s at the time of the Trojan War.

The enigmatic nature of Diomedes' age at the beginning of the Trojan War reflects the complexity and ambiguity inherent in mythological narratives. While we can make educated guesses, the true age of Diomedes remains a subject of speculation and scholarly debate.