(JO) MARCHANT, DECODING THE HEAVENS -- By Homer's time... bronze was... melted down and used again and again over generations. A dagger... might become beads or a bangle, then be sold and recycled into a cooking pot..., then reincarnated as a chariot wheel... or a spearhead.
By Homer's time, around the eighth century BC, Greek civilisation was pulling itself out of the darkness, with the rediscovery of old skills and the rise of city states such as Athens and Sparta. By this time craftsmen had worked out how to add carbon to iron to make steel, which is much harder than wrought iron. But bronze was still prized — objects made of it were never discarded, but melted down and used again and again over generations. A dagger that lost its point might become beads or a bangle, then be sold and recycled into a cooking pot or a bedstead suitable for a royal household, then reincarnated as a chariot wheel or a statue, a knife, an axe or a spearhead.
| A. | Device with moving parts; means to an end | MECHANISM |
| B. | Greek island, site of a wrecked ship carrying an ancient orrery | ANTIKYTHERA |
| C. | Utilizes good hops in hoops | REBOUNDS |
| D. | Tool for forcing an opening | CROWBAR |
| E. | Guessing game with a stick figure | HANGMAN |
| F. | Mixed, as the articles in this puzzle's quote | ALLOYED |
| G. | Tyros, novices, greenhorns | NEWBIES |
| H. | Salty things you may break into | TEARS |
| I. | What a comedy duo's foil should be | DEADPAN |
| J. | Epithet of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (2 wds.) | ELCID |
| K. | Lawn game for lobbers | CORNHOLE |
| L. | Sheer fabric for an evening gown | ORGANZA |
| M. | Nerd, wimp, dork, poindexter | DWEEB |
| N. | Heyday for some forgers? (2 wds.) | IRONAGE |
| O. | Indian greeting said with a bow and hands pressed together | NAMASTE |
| P. | Inspector with a dog named Brain | GADGET |
| Q. | Spot good for a paleontologist, not so much for a mastodon (2 wds.) | TARPIT |
| R. | Days of the week or Disney dwarfs | HEBDOMAD |
| S. | Urged, prodded, spurred, goaded (2 wds.) | EGGEDON |
| T. | Nice sweatshirt for a drizzly day | HOODIE |
| U. | Not kidding around, serious | EARNEST |
| V. | Beating like a smitten lover's heart | ATHROB |
| W. | Alternative spelling; mutation | VARIANT |
| X. | Kind of cake named for an English town | ECCLES |
| Y. | Faultfinder who gets on your nerves | NOODGE |
| Z. | Tuscan province or its capital | SIENA |