Euryclea

No one recognized the long-expected hero in the miserable old beggar—no one save his aged nurse Euryclea, and his faithful old dog Argus, who died for joy at his long-lost master’s feet.

Penelope, unconscious of all this bloodshed, slept in her room, until she was gently awakened by Euryclea, who announced the return of her long-absent husband.

Thus Euryclea, who had nurtured Odysseus and reared Telemachus, was practically at the head of the domestic affairs of the palace, and her relations with Penelope were most affectionate.

Then the aged nurse Euryclea, who had tended him in his youth, is asked to wash the feet of the old man.

Closely interwoven with the plot of the Odyssey is the aged and touching figure of the faithful slave Euryclea, who by her devotion has become a member of the family she serves.