fl. 900s-800s B.C.

Greek poet who is widely credited with writing the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey. Homer, who was said to be blind, is thought to have lived in Smyrna or Chios and earned a living by telling stories. The Iliad recounts the story of Achilles and the Trojan War, and the Odyssey relates the mythic wanderings of Odysseus.