Troy
Trip Start
May 20, 2008
1
4
73
Trip End
Sep 15, 2008
Troy,
Turkish Aegean Coast,
Turkey
Sunday, May 25, 2008
We had Captain Ali again today as guide for our excursion to the ancient city of Troy. Without a guide Troy would be meaningless since most of the ruins lack any explanation. Captain Ali explained that there were at least 7 different cities built one on top of the other at the Troy site. This has complicated excavation since to reach older ruins you have to dig through other ruins. The different cities were the result of the city getting conquered and destroyed before being rebuilt by the conquering force in their style and plan. It was interesting comparing the different building materials and styles of the different cities.
The first city of Troy existed during the early Bronze Age around 3000 BC. Over the centuries leadership of Troy went from the Mycenaeans to the Achaeans to the Greeks to the Romans to the Byzantines before disappearing by 1462
2/3 of Troy still to be excavated
. The town was subject to frequent devastating earthquakes and the silting up of their harbor which contributed to the city losing influence.Troy was positioned to guard the entrance to the Dardanelles originally but is now not near the water. It is estimated that only a third of Troy has been excavated with much left to be discovered. Troy's ruins were originally discovered by a Californian in the 1800's but many of the artifacts disappeared during WW2 only to be recently rediscovered in Russia and now on display at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow. There is now an ongoing ownership dispute.
The ruins at Troy are not as impressive as those at Ephesus or other Turkish sites but the ruins at Troy are much older. Among the highlights are the former city walls and the Roman Odeon where concerts were held. The foundations of many buildings as well as street plans were visible too. There is a large Trojan horse at the entrance to the park which you can climb for some good photo opportunities. An exhibit there showed the different Trojan cities overlaid on one another which really helped me visualize the differences among them. Troy was interesting and worth our short visit.
