Thread:HiddenVale/@comment-2009398-20130302051744

I'm not talking about the Arthurian knight, but the Prince, son of Nauplius. He was a suitor of Helen and invented the consonants of the Greek alphabet (apparently), coinage, jokes, measures and dice. He was one of those who swore to support Menelaus if someone "abducted" Helen, so was Odysseus, who originally came to wed Helen, but instead wed Penelope (Helen's cousin). Odysseus knew if he went away he wouldn't return for 20 years, so he pretended to be insane, by ploughing his fields with salt.

Palamedes doubted his insanity and placed Odysseus' infant son Telemachus before the plough. Odysseus manouvered aroung the baby, thus proving he was still sane (enough not to kill his son). Odysseus took revenge at Troy by hiding gold in Palamedes' tent, and forging a letter from Priam. Palamedes was tried for treason and was stoned to death (though Nestor saw through the unfair trial). BTW, he might not be in the Illiad but he is in Hyginus' Fabulae Apolodrus' Epitome, Ovid's Metamorphoses and Virgil's Aeneid. 