Tekmessa covering the corpse of Ajax
Tekmessa, daughter of Teuthras, king of Teuthrania in Mysia, or Teleutas, king of Phrygia. During the Trojan War, Telamonian Ajax kills Tekmessa's father and takes her captive; his reason for doing so may have been, as the 1st century BC Roman poet, Horace, wrote, that Ajax was captivated by Tekmessa's beauty. In Sophocles’ Ajax, Tekmessa unsuccessfully tries to dissuade Ajax from committing suicide. She is the first to find his corpse, which she promptly covers with her own clothing to prevent further heartache. Their infant son, Eurysakes, however, survives the incident.