The Land of the Dead is near the homes of the Cimmerians, who live "shrouded in mist and cloud" (11.17), never seeing the sun. Odysseus follows Circe's instructions, digging a trench at the site prescribed and pouring libations of milk, honey, mellow wine, and pure water. He ceremoniously sprinkles barley and then sacrifices a ram and a ewe, the dark blood flowing into the trench to attract the dead.
First to approach is Elpenor, one of Odysseus' men who died just before the crew left Circe's home. Elpenor had spent the last night in a drunken stupor on Circe's roofs, breaking his neck as he fell off when he arose at dawn. Because of the urgency of Odysseus' journey to the Land of the Dead, Elpenor was left unburied, and his spirit requests proper rites when the Greeks return to Aeaea. Others are drawn to the blood: Odysseus' mother, Anticleia; Tiresias the prophet; and old comrades Agamemnon and Achilles, among others.
