The first thing to realize about the Trojan War was that it was very long, lasting twenty years by some accounts. Everybody was pretty sick of the war, and everybody was looking for an end to it so they could get back to their usual city-state business. 

The second thing to realize is that the walls around Troy were very high and very strong. The Greeks had been trying to get over that wall forever. No dice. And the Trojans had been trying to get rid of the Greeks trying to get over that wall forever. No dice. So year after year they fought. And year after year, neither side won.

But one very war-weary day, the Greek general Odysseus unleashed the sneaky: “Let’s pretend to sail away,” he suggested. “We’ll leave a gift for Troy, a gift to announce the end of the war, a wooden horse with 30 men hidden inside. At night, these men can sneak out and open up the gates of Troy!” (Back in the day, this was the way things were done. When you capitulated, you supplied a gift).

The Greeks thought it was a brilliant disguise of an idea, so they had their best artists build a magnificently majestic horse. When it was ready, the Greeks brought the wooden mobile monument as close to Troy’s city gates as they could get without being shot full of arrows.

When the Trojans saw the Greeks sailing away, they flipped out. Were the Greeks giving up the clash? Had the Trojans won the war? By the Gods, it appeared so! So the Trojans dragged the horse inside their city and closed the gates.

Some people wanted to burn the horse, which would have been no bueno for the Greek soldiers hidden inside. But the Trojan design snobs (and ancestors of Jonathan Adler enthusiasts) said, “NO! It’s too beautiful! We’ll keep it forever!” And so while the Trojans slept soundly, hungover from all their victory-dancing, the hidden Greek warriors climbed out and tore s—- up.

Ah, overconfidence and gullibility, such a tender trap that’ll get you every time. But in short, it was a gift that ended one of the longest wars in history.