God-hunters! Seeing Divine Footprints

Homer, Iliad 13.71–72

“For I easily recognized the prints from his feet and legs
As he was leaving. The gods are really conspicuous.”

ἴχνια γὰρ μετόπισθε ποδῶν ἠδὲ κνημάων
ῥεῖ’ ἔγνων ἀπιόντος· ἀρίγνωτοι δὲ θεοί περ·

Porphyry, Quest. Homer. 396-7

“They say it is impossible that Aphrodite changes her skin into the form of an old women and that Helen recognizes instead the goddess. The explanation is that the poen toften shows the demigods reading the forms of the gods in disguise as when Poseidon appears similar to Kalkhas and Aias says “this is not the prophet Kalkhas, for I easily recognized….”

ἀδύνατόν φασιν εἰς γραῦν μεταβαλεῖν τὴν ἰδέαν τὴν ᾿Αφροδίτην καὶ νοῆσαι τὴν ῾Ελένην τὴν τῆς θεᾶς δειρήν. λύσις· πολλαχοῦ ποιεῖται τοὺς ἡμιθέους τεκμαιρομένους τὰς τῶν θεῶν μορφάς, ὡς ὅταν ὁ Ποσειδῶν Κάλχαντι ἀπεικασθεὶς φαίνηται ὅ τε Αἴας φησίν· οὐδ’ ὅγε Κάλχας ἐστὶ θεοπρόπος· ἴχνια δὲ μετόπισθε ποδῶν ἠδὲ κνημάων ῥεῖ’ ἔγνων ἀπιόντος· ἀρίγνωτοι δὲ θεοί περ