Troy Flashcards
What are the modern representations of Troy?
- Troy (2004)
- Song of Achilles
- Museum of Troy (presentation of history)
What are the ancient representations of Troy?
- Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey
- Excavations of Hisarlik
- The wooden horse
- Pottery
What was the Bronze Age?
- Period the Trojan War was in
- Between 3500 to 1200 BC
- People learnt how to mine and smelt copper to make bronze weapons and tools
- Animal husbandry and agriculture was developed
- More food to feed a growing population
- Led to growth of towns and cities
What happened during the early bronze age?
- Golden age of art and architecture
- Cuneiform was developed (writing on clay tablets)
- Every ancient civilisation entered the Bronze Age at different times
What social structures emerged during the Bronze age?
- Hierarchy
- Centralisation of power of the elite
- Mass of the population were craftsmen and agricultural workers
What was traded during the Bronze Age around the Aegean? (Economic contribution)
- Exchange system between different political states
- Traded by kings
- Would trade silks, spices, gold, silver, copper, craftsmanship and slaves
What were the main Bronze Age civilisations?
- Near East
- Egypt
- Greece
- India
- China
What were the political contributions of the Bronze Age?
- Formation of city-states
- City states had a king/ruler
- Centralised governments to manage resources and labour
What was the strategic location of Troy?
- Located in the centre of a major trading route (Bridge between Asia and Europe)
- Also central to a sea trading route
- Located at the southern entrance to Hellespont, a narrow passageway of water linking the Black and Aegean sea.
Why was this location valuable?
- Made it a valuable military target
Who were the gods supporting the greeks?
- Athena
- Hera
- Thetis
- Poseidon
Who were the gods supporting the Trojans?
- Aphrodite
- Apollo
- Ares
- Zeus
How did Athena interfere in the war?
Intervenes in disguises to injure the Trojans or protect the greeks
How did Aphrodite interfere in the war?
Protected Paris in the war - promised Paris the most beautiful woman in the world (Helen)
How did Poseidon interfere in the war?
Gave soldiers the courage to fight
How did Apollo interfere in the war?
Infected Greek camp with a plague to help Paris kill Achilles.
How did Zeus interfere in the war?
Weighed the fates of the Greeks and Trojans on a scale
Who was Homer?
- Homer may not be a singular person
- His stories was passed down orally
- Stories woven together to create a long narrative is called the epic cycle
- Weren’t written down (could be unreliable)
What did Frank Calvert do?
- Wanted to excavate the site of Hissarlik
- Didn’t have the resources to do so
- Met with Heinrich Schliemann to discuss excavating it
What did Heinrich Schliemann do?
- Wanted to prove the truth of Homer
- Began excavating and discovered seven heavily fortified settlements which he named Troy
- Troy II had evidence of destruction so he called that Homer’s troy
What did William Dorpfeld do?
- Worked with Schliemann
- Identified Troy VI as Homer’s Troy
What did Carl Blegen do?
- Proved Troy VI was caused by earthquakes
What did Manfred Korfmann do?
- Uncovered more of the city which had not been previously discovered
- Reopened the excavation after 50 years and used new technology
What were the Linear B tablets?
- Used to record economic transactions
- Showed no evidence of Homer’s troy
Why were the Hittite records important?
- One of the Hittite records says the army was sent west to Wilusa and then north
- This indicates the location or positioning of the archaeological site of Troy
- Another letter refers to a water tunnel (Korfmann found a water tunnel in Troy)
What are the archaeological sources of Troy?
- Strong fortifications
- Pottery and artifacts were found such as Priam’s treasure
- Wells
- Urban planning
- Large houses
Describe the layers of Troy
- 9 Layers
- Thought it was 5th one but destruction was from earthquake or other natural disaster
- Most likely 7th layer as there was evidence of a 10 year siege.
What is historiography?
- The history of history
- Contributing to evidence means contributing to historiography
- Study of things led us to the understanding of Troy and how it changed overtime
- Debates on whether it was real or not
What was the treatment of Helen?
- Some blame her for being the cause of the Trojan war
- Others think it was a mixture of things (also the fault of the greek Gods, other characters
- Perception of her has changed overtime
- Had a high status
- Viewed as a victim of a patriarchal society
What was the fate of Trojan women?
- Hecuba (queen of troy) became a slave
- Polyxena (daughter of hecuba) was sacrificed on achilles grave)
What was the fate of Greek women?
- Helen: her fate varied on different accounts, she was either welcomed back or faced punishment for her role in the war
- Penelope waited 20 years for the return of her husband odysseus from the trojan war
What is the legacy of the Trojan war?
- Extends from the epic poems to influence art, literature, culture throughout history
