The Odyssey is the second most famous Western epic after the Iliad, and is considered its sequel. It tells the story of the Greek hero Odysseus (Odysseus), king of Ithaca, during his journey home from the fall of Troy, which took ten years. He was presumed dead during the Trojan War. The Odyssey also covers the story of his wife Penelope, who remained waiting for her husband and refused to marry. After his victory and before setting sail, Odysseus forgot to offer sacrifices to the gods, incurring the wrath of the sea god Poseidon. His journey was filled with obstacles. He was sentenced to ten years of exile, descending to the underworld to ask the wise men of the dead for directions home. Meanwhile, in Ithaca, nobles besieged the palace of Penelope, Odysseus's wife, and demanded that she marry one of their number. She persuaded them to wait until she finished weaving a wedding dress. The Odyssey is considered more poetic and profound than the Iliad, and is characterized by qualities of faith, nobility, and art, inspired by the spirit of the goddess of wisdom, Minerva, and Penelope, Odysseus's wife.