EVIDENCE FROM THE AEGEAN, CYPRUS, EGYPT, LEVANT, ASIA MINOR AND POSSIBLE DATING OF THE TROJAN WAR (PART II) (original) (raw)
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In the present paper, the material evidence, in LBA, both for the technological level of Minoan/Mycenaean Greece, mainland-islands-Crete, and the image emerging from the archaeological finds of the wider area of Asia Minor, Land of Hatti, Cyprus, and Egypt, are combined in order to draw conclusions regarding international relations and exchanges. This period of on the one hand prosperity with conspicuous consumption and military expansion, on the other hand as well of decline and degradation of power are considered in relation with the ability of performing overseas raids of Mycenaean Greeks. The finds of the destructions’ layers in Troy VI/VIIa are examined in order to verify whether one of these layers is compatible to the Trojan War, while an earlier dating is proposed. The results are compared with the narrative of ancient literature in order to trace compatibilities or inconsistencies to the archaeological finds.
The Trojan War: Chronological, Historical and Archaeological Evidence
2015
The Trojan War is the foundation of Greek history. If Greek historians had little doubt of its existence they remained extremely skeptical regarding its mythological origin. Archaeology has confirmed one essential point: there was indeed a general conflagration in the Greek world around 1200 BCE, the assumed period of that war, which caused the disappearance of two powerful empires: Mycenaean on one hand and Hittite with its vassals on the other hand. The inscriptions of Ramses III's year 8 describe actually a general invasion of the Mediterranean by the "Sea Peoples", but without giving any reason. A precise chronological reconstruction, based on few absolute dates, shows that the annexation of the kingdom of Cyprus (Ala!ia), closely linked to the Mycenaean world, by Hittite King Tudhaliya IV (1241-1209) played a role of detonator in the confrontation between a Greek heterogeneous confederation, consisting of pirates and privateers on one side and a set of vassal kingdoms of the Hittite empire, as Troy and Ugarit, on the other. This struggle to control a vital sea path, from Crete to Egypt, via Cyprus, which ended with a complete mutual destruction in 1185 BCE, the climax of the famous Trojan War, had begun 10 years earlier. Surprisingly, this conclusion was already that of Eratosthenes (276-193). Historical and epigraphic context shows that Homer wrote his epic shortly after Queen Elissa founded Carthage (c. 870 BCE). https://www.lulu.com/shop/gerard-gertoux/the-trojan-war-chronological-historical-and-archaeological-evidence/paperback/product-22620667.html
The regions around the northern edge of the Aegean have long been recognised as the interface between cultural influences from Southern Greece and those from SE Europe at the end of the Bronze Age. The nature of these influences and the relative date of that from each direction is only now becoming clear as the results of new excavations and research in each region, from Central Macedonia to the Troad, illuminate the character and sequence of the native cultures. Older views that the Iron Age of Macedonia, for example, was heralded by large-scale migrations from the Balkans, have given way to more moderate analyses of mutual exchange and influence. In this paper we have set out first the evidence for the relative dates of the two culture sequences at this transitional period (part I) and then new evidence for their absolute date (part II). The relative dates of the Aegean and Balkan sequences at this time have long depended on key stratigraphic correlations between pottery of Mycenaean style but „provincial“ manufacture and new pottery styles with Balkan associations – channelled ware in Macedonia and Buckelkeramik at Troy. This correlation suggested that the Iron Age in Macedonia started before the end of the Mycenaean period and that the Balkan elements, represented by the Buckelkeramik at Troy, also predated the end of that period. New evidence from Assiros and Toumba Thessalonikis in Central Macedonia and a reassessment of that from Troy VIIb2 indicates that this correlation is mistaken and that these Iron Age characteristics first appear after the end of the Mycenaean period. The absolute date of the arrival of these new wares has traditionally been related to the date of the Mycenaean LH IIIC pottery thought to be associated with them and placed in the twelfth century BC. The new correlation would, on the basis of the currently accepted absolute chronology for the end of the Greek Bronze Age and the appearance of Protogeometric pottery, place the arrival of these new wares in the second half of the eleventh century BC. New dendrochronology and wiggle-matched 14C determinations from Assiros, however, show that this accepted absolute chronology, (which is based on inference rather than any precise correlations with historical dates), places the start of the Protogeometric period 50–100 years too late. Building timbers associated with an amphora of advanced Protogeometric style have been dated with remarkable precision to 1080 +4/–7 BC and both are sealed below a new building level dated in the same way to 1070 +4/–7 BC. Since this particular style is derived from Attic Protogeometric, it is evident that the Protogeometric period in Attica started around 1100 BC or earlier. See also Dating the End of the Greek Bronze Age: A Robust Radiocarbon-Based Chronology from Assiros Toumba, Kenneth Wardle, Thomas Higham, Bernd Kromer, September 2014 http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0106672
Karadenız Uluslararası Bilimsel Dergi, 2019
ÖZ Bilim dünyasında Truva medeniyetinin kökeni üzerinden devam eden bir tartışma vardır. Bu medeniyetin kökeni hakkında tarihçiler ve arkeologlar arasındaki hâkim görüş Truvalıların Yunan kökenli olduğu yönündedir, ancak bu görüş ile ilgili kesin bir kanıt da yoktur. Buna karşılık, bu makalede Truvalıların kökenlerinin, Anadolu’da yaşamış uygarlıklardan birine kadar uzanabileceği de öne sürülmektedir. Dolayısıyla, yapılan bu araştırma, Geç dönem Tunç Çağı üzerine varolan ikincil kaynaklardan yararlanılarak eski topluluklar arasındaki etkileşimler üzerinden Truva uygarlığını tanımlamak için medeniyetler arasındaki ilişkiler incelenmektir. Bu çalışmanın ışığında yapılan değerlendirmelerle, kültürlerin toplumsal dinamiklerinin kültür ve dil sembolleriyle ifade edilişlerinin anlaşılmasında kültürlerarası iletişimin önemli bir işlevi olabileceği yönteminden yola çıkılmıştır. Truva medeniyetinin sinemada nasıl anlatıldığı ve Truva’nın literatürdeki mitolojik algısı bu makalede incelenen diğer önemli konulardır. İncelenen kaynaklar, bilim dünyasında hala geçerli bir cevabı olmayan Truvalıların kökenleri hakkında ipucu bulmamıza yardımcı olacaktır. ABSTRACT There is an ongoing debate in the scientific world about the origin of the Trojan civilization. The prevailing view amongst historians and archaeologists about the origin of this civilisation is that the Trojans were Greek, but there is still no definitive evidence regarding this argument. In contrast, it is also suggested that the origins of the Trojans may be traced to one of the Anatolian tribes discussed in this paper. The aim of this research is, therefore, to examine the range of relationships between civilisations to identify the nationality of Trojans in the context of interactions amongst ancient communities during the Late Bronze Age, as explored through secondary sources. Under the light of this study, evaluation of this argument will concentrate on how that intercultural communication can be an important function in understanding the expressions of the social dynamics of cultures with the symbols of culture and language. How Troy is depicted in cinema, and the mythological perception of Troy in literature are additional important points analysed in this paper. This information examined will help us find clues concerning the origins of the Trojans, which still remains without an acceptable answer in the scientific world.
ANTH.245: Peoples of the World, Mediterranean Area: From Prehistory to the Trojan War (lecture series by G. Mumford), 2024
ABSTRACT: This (new) lecture summarizes diverse aspects of Mycenaean trade and interactions with various surrounding and distant regions, including the Cyclades, the Dodecanese (east Aegean), Macedonia (immediately to the north), the Northern Aegean (near Macedonia), the region of Troy and the Black Sea (Northwest Anatolia), Anatolia (subdivided into Western Anatolia and inland/central Anatolia), Cyprus, Syria-Palestine (i.e., the Levant), Egypt, Italy (including mainly southern Italy, Sicily, the Aeolian Islands, and Sardinia), and an outlying discovery of two Mycenaean, LH IIIA-B sherds in southern Spain. The lecture spans mainly the Late Bronze Age through earlier Iron Age I (12th century BCE), and also examines the varying resources in the mainland (Mycenaean Greece), the options for traders/merchants and carriers facilitating contact between Greece and these regions, the shipwrecks at Uluburun, Cape Gelidonya, and Point Iria, and related aspects of East Mediterranean trade. REVISIONS: Formatting, edits, sources, and some text and images.