Ancient Troy: City and Legend

The name Troy refers to both a legendary place and a real-life archaeological site. In the legend, the city of Troy was besieged for 10 years before it was finally conquered by a Greek army led by King Agamemnon. According to Homer's "Iliad", the cause of this "Trojan War" was the kidnapping of Queen Helen from Sparta. The kidnapping was carried out by Paris, the son of Priam, king of Troy. Throughout the Iliad, the gods continually intervene to support characters on both sides of the conflict.

Troy also refers to a real ancient city on the northwest coast of Turkey, believed by many to be the Trojans discussed in the legend since ancient times. Whether the Trojan War actually happened, and whether the site in northwest Turkey is the same Trojan, is a matter of debate. The modern Turkish name for the site is Hisarlik.

The idea that the city was conquered by Troy dates back at least 2,700 years, when the ancient Greeks were colonizing Turkey's west coast. In the 19th century, when Heinrich Schliemann, a German businessman and early archaeologist, conducted a series of excavations at Hisalik and discovered treasures that he claimed came from King Primm, this The idea is once again gaining widespread attention. The Legend of Troy

The Trojan War is thought to have occurred at the end of the Bronze Age. That was around 1200 BC or before. It happened during a period when what we call the Mycenaean civilization was flourishing in Greece. They built great palaces and developed a writing system.

The earliest record of the war comes from Homer, who lived around the 8th century BC, a few centuries after the event. They appear not to have been recorded until later, probably in the 6th century BC, when a tyrant named Peisistratus ruled Athens.

Homer's "Iliad" is set in the 10th year of the siege of Troy and tells a series of events that appear to have taken place over several weeks. The story makes it clear that the siege had taken its toll on the Greek army sent to rescue Helen. The poem reads: "The firewood on our ships is rotten, the cables are broken, and in the distance are our wives and children." The war has essentially become a stalemate, and the Greeks are unable to capture the city, and Troy Man could not drive them back to the sea. We “the sons of the Achaeans (Greeks) outnumbered the Trojans—those who lived in the cities; but they were outnumbered by companions from other cities, brandishing spears to help them,” Iliad road.

Several key events occur in the poem, including the duel between Menelos, or Menelos, the king of Sparta and Helen's husband, against Paris. The winner should get Helen as a prize and end the war. However, the gods intervened to break up the duel before it could end and the war could continue.

Another important duel occurs near the end of the poem between Achilles (or Achilles) and Hector (or Hector), a great Trojan warrior. The Trojans knew he was no match for the Greek warriors and initially he ran three times around Troy with Achillius chasing him. Finally, the gods forced him to face the Greek warriors, and he was killed.

Contrary to popular belief, "The Iliad" does not end with the destruction of Troy, but with a temporary truce after which fighting may continue. Another Homeric epic, The Odyssey, was written after the city was destroyed and features the Greek hero Odysseus trying to get home. That poem briefly mentions how the Greeks captured the city of Troy using the famous "Trojan Horse," a gift of hidden warriors.

"What a marvelous thing it was that that warrior forged and endured all this in the carved horse, where all our Algav chiefs sat, bearing the death of the Trojans and Destiny!” reads part of the poem (translated by A.T. Murray via Perseus Digital Library). The origins of the city

The ruins of Hisarlik in northwest Turkey have been identified as Trojans since ancient times. Archaeological research shows that it was inhabited for nearly 4,000 years, starting around 3000 BC. After one city was destroyed, a new one would be built on top of it, forming an artificial mound called a "tell."

"There wasn't a single Trojan; there were at least 10, layered on top of each other," University of Amsterdam researcher Gert Jan van Weijingard writes in Troy: The City, Homer and Turkey ” (University of Amsterdam, 2013),

Van Wijngaarden points out that archaeologists had to dig deeper to find the remains of the first settlement, which could be seen as a “raw stone A small city surrounded by a fortified wall. Outside the largest gate is a stone with an image of a face, perhaps a god welcoming visitors to the new city.

Troy took off some time after 2550 B.C., and the city "was greatly enlarged and equipped with a massive defensive wall of stone and rectangular clay bricks," writes Van Wiengaard. .

He noted that on the settlement's fort there were "Megaron"-style houses, which included "an elongated room with a fireplace and an open front yard."

When Heinrich Schlie When Mann excavated this level of Troy in 1873, he discovered a treasure he believed belonged to King Purlian. "Weapons, gold, silver, silver, copper and bronze vessels, gold jewelry (including thousands of gold rings) and a host of other items made of precious materials were apparently found close to the building designated by Schliemann as the royal palace. The outside of the city walls was exposed, University of Queensland researcher Trevor Bryce wrote in his book Trojans and Their Neighbors (Routledge, 2006):

Some researchers speculate that the treasure Not found in the same cache, but treasures from across the site, Schliemann collected the treasure over several weeks. In the decades that followed, it became clear that these treasures were still thousands of years old for Priam. Schuttstock) Homer's Troy?

The city of Troy mentioned by Homer may belong to two other phases between about 1700 and 1190 BC. Its defenses were formidable.

"The walls, covered with mud-brick parapets, once reached a height of nine meters (30 feet). Several watchtowers were built on these walls, the most imposing of which was the northeastern fortress, which served to strengthen the defenses of the castle and command a commanding view over the plains of Troy," he wrote.

The city's The exact scale is disputed, according to archaeologist Manfred Korfmann, who led the excavation of the site in Troy: From Homer's Iliad to the Hollywood Epic (Blackwell Publishing, 2007) wrote that work on the site showed that there was a "lower city" beyond the castle, bringing its total area to about 30 hectares (74 acres)

"This Troy." The city has a large residential area under a strong fortress. As far as we know today, the castle is unparalleled in its region and in the whole of southeastern Europe," he writes in the book chapter. The extent of the residential area is a subject of debate among scholars, with some arguing that Kolfmann was taller Estimating its extent.

A key question is how the city was identified as Homer's Troy. Cracks in its walls indicate that it suffered an earthquake around 1300 BC, which may have followed. "There were also some signs of fire and slingshots at the destruction level (suggesting) the possibility that there might have been some fighting," van Wijngaard wrote. Still, an earthquake seemed to have caused the most damage. Furthermore, he noted that the city was rebuilt after its destruction, by the same builders as before, not by a foreign Greek army. ”

Problems arose again with the idea that it was carried out by Greek troops when the city was attacked in 1190 BC. By this time, the Greek Mycenaean civilization had collapsed and its vast palaces had become In ruins. In addition, at Troy archaeologists have found ceramic and bronze axes from southeastern Europe, suggesting that people may have moved into the city from there later in AD. Abandoned around 1000 BC, it was reoccupied when Homer lived in the 8th century BC. The Greeks called the reoccupied city "Ilion", ,

, "The new immigrants had nothing to do with it. Doubtfully, the place they prepared to occupy was the setting for the legendary Trojan War," Bryce writes. Later, its residents used this to attract political support and ancient tourists,

In the first few years For centuries, Ilium was a modest settlement. While many scholars believe that the people who resettled Troy after 1,000 BC were Greek colonists, this idea was recently challenged in 2014 by a group of scholars in Oxford. A research report published in the Journal of Archeology shows that the amphora discovered in Troy and thought to have been imported from Greece were actually made locally. Most of the other pottery found in Troy after 1000 BC were also made locally, not Imported from Greece. This led the team to believe that many of the people who reoccupied Troy may not have been Greek colonists, but people who already lived in the area where they worshiped Xerxes, the Persian king during his conquest of Greece. On the way, stop to pay tribute to Troy, which, in particular, would have been done by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC, giving it a special status within the empire. Strabo, who lived about 2,000 years ago, wrote:

"It is said that the current Ilian city was once just a village with the Temple of Athena, a small and cheap temple. ".

When "Alexander, after his victory at the Granicus, went up there, he decorated the temple with votive offerings, gave the village the title of city, and ordered those in charge to improve it with buildings, he declared it free and exempted it from tribute ; Later, after the Persians were overthrown, he wrote a friendly letter to the place, promising to build it into a great city... (Translated by H.L. Jones via Perseus Digital Library)

The special status of Troy would continue into the Roman period. The Romans believed that Aeneas, one of the heroes of Troy, was the ancestor of Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. Dow, the city's residents capitalized on this myth and became "a popular destination for pilgrims and tourists." He noted that during this phase of Troy's existence, when it became a popular tourist location, the city became more popular than before. Much larger at any time, including when the Trojan War was said to have taken place. However, with the advent of the Middle Ages, Troy declined and by the 13th century the city had been reduced to a modest agricultural community. DNA research reveals the story of a woman who died from an infection during pregnancy 800 years ago. Today, Troy is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular destination for tourists in Turkey.

Troy is. Building a new museum, Turkey's government has filed a request to repatriate artifacts illegally removed from Troy in the 20th century, calling for their return to Turkey. C. Brian Rose, a professor of archeology at the University of Pennsylvania, said research shows a collection of gold jewelry from the Penn Museum. Taken from Troy in the 20th century, the jewels were returned to Turkey after lengthy negotiations, according to a 2017 article published in the Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archeology and Heritage Research, Was there a Trojan War?

The big question for researchers is, was there a Trojan War? If there was, was this really Troy?

Unfortunately, the only written evidence found at Troy is The remains of the Greek occupation of the 8th century BC are a seal written in a language called Luwian, which may have been brought to Troy from elsewhere in Turkey

Scholars note that legend has it. The topography of Troy mentioned in the book seems to roughly match the topography of the city in real life, and, as mentioned earlier, people as far back as Homer's time also believed that this was Troy.

But the archaeological remains. Still poses questions. The city of Troy was apparently destroyed by earthquakes during the Trojan War and may have later hosted people from southeastern Europe rather than Greece.

These questions have left researchers with a mystery in this series. Among the views, there is the view that there was indeed a war, and that, as the poet described it, "Blythe was sent." Since then we have experienced varying degrees of skepticism and agnosticism, to the other extreme, where tradition has been completely dismissed.

Colfman, a modern Hissaric digger, believed that the story of the Trojan War contained some truth. He wrote: "In the light of our present state of knowledge, the Iliad The story told in "Probably contains a kernel of historical truth, or, in other words, a historical background."

"Any future discussion of the historicity of the Trojan War will only make sense if they ask what exactly this core or substrate of our understanding is.