The present drawing illustrates verses from Homer's Iliad in which Achilles is told the story of Meleager in the hope that it will convince him to return to the battlefield.
Oeneus, Meleager's father, King of the Aetolians, had incurred Artemis's wrath. The goddess had sent the Calydonian boar to lay waste to the land. At a memorable hunt in which all local princes participated, Meleager killed the beast which Atalanta, a young princess, had first wounded. The hero, in gratitude for her help, presented her with the trophy of the hunt, the boar's skin. This enraged the other princes, especially the brothers of Meleager's mother. A fight ensued during which Meleager killed his uncles and consequently his mother cursed him. Distraught, Meleager withdrew from the battle depriving his city, Calydon, of an essential force against the Curetes, who, guided by Artemis, had besieged the Aetolians' capital. At this key moment the elders of the city came to Meleager to plea for help.