Troy, Greek Troia, also called Ilios or Ilion, Latin Troia, Troja, or Ilium, ancient city in northwestern Anatolia that holds an enduring place in both literature and archaeology. The legend of the Trojan War is the most notable theme from ancient Greek literature and forms the basis of Homer’s Iliad. Although the actual nature and size of the historical settlement remain matters of scholarly debate, the ruins of Troy at Hisarlık, Turkey, are a key archaeological site whose many layers illustrate the gradual development of civilization in northwestern Asia Minor.
Geography
Ancient Troy commanded a strategic point at the southern entrance to the Dardanelles (Hellespont), a narrow strait linking the Black Sea with the Aegean Sea via the Sea of Marmara. The city also commanded a land route that ran north along the west Anatolian coast and crossed the narrowest point of the Dardanelles to the European shore. In theory, Troy would have been able to use its site astride these two lines of communication to exact tolls from trading vessels and other travelers using them; the actual extent to which this took place, however, remains unclear.
The Troad (Greek Troias; “Land of Troy”) is the district formed by the northwestern projection of Asia Minor into the Aegean Sea. The present-day ruins of Troy itself occupy the western end of a low descending ridge in the extreme northwest corner of the Troad. Less than 4 miles (6 km) to the west, across the plain of the Scamander (Küçük Menderes) River, is the Aegean Sea, and toward the north are the narrows of the Dardanelles.
Archaeology
The search for Troy at Hisarlık
The approximate location of Troy was well known from references in works by ancient Greek and Latin authors. But the exact site of the city remained unidentified until modern times. A large mound, known locally as Hisarlık, had long been understood to hold the ruins of a city named Ilion or Ilium that had flourished in Hellenistic and Roman times. In 1822 Charles Maclaren suggested that this was the site of Homeric Troy, but for the next 50 years his suggestion received little attention from Classical scholars, most of whom regarded the Trojan legend as a mere fictional creation based on myth, not history. The German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann deserves full credit for adopting Maclaren’s identification and demonstrating to the world that it was correct. In seven major and two minor campaigns between 1870 and 1890, Schliemann conducted excavations on a large scale mainly in the central area of the Hisarlık mound, where he exposed the remains of a walled citadel. After Schliemann’s death in 1890, the excavations were continued (1893–94) by his colleague Wilhelm Dörpfeld and later (1932–38) by an expedition from the University of Cincinnati headed by Carl W. Blegen. After a lapse of some 50 years, excavations resumed (1988–2005) under the leadership of University of Tübingen archaeologist Manfred Korfmann and continued after his death.
Questions of Troy’s physical size, population, and stature as a trade entrepôt and regional power became subjects of intense scholarly dispute following the resumption of excavations at Hisarlık in the late 1980s. Although Homeric Troy was described as a wealthy and populous city, by this time some scholars had come to accept the probability of a lesser Troy a relatively minor settlement, perhaps a princely seat. Beginning in 1988, Korfmann’s team investigated the terrain surrounding the citadel site in search of wider settlement. Korfmann’s findings at Hisarlık, drawn from geomagnetic surveying and isolated excavations, led him to conclude in favour of a greater Troy that is, a settlement of some size and prosperity. His presentation of this perspective in a 2001 exhibition, accompanied by a controversial model reconstruction of the city, sparked especially intense scholarly debate over the city’s true nature.
Trojan War
Helen of Troy
Troy,
We went late in the day because of the time it took to drive from Istanbul and cross by ferry to Lapseki, but that made the light more beautiful on the stone ruins. It was our first stop on a 10-day tour and I was, frankly, overwhelmed with the size and the remarkablly deep history of the site. I would…
In comparison to other historical sites it is not well developed or displayed. The location in particlular for those doing a day tour from Istanbul is a 6 hours road trip each way with 1 hour in site. For younger children the wooden horse on site is an attraction but overall I found the experience a loss of one day…
A guided tour strongly suggested to take in all the history of this very interesting tour. If you are interested in the history of this era, then this is well worth the visit.
Well laid out site of what was once Troy. It takes 30-45 minutes to walk through the site. The gift shop is quite nice, clean bathrooms, friendly staff. The views are beautiful of the countryside and we were lucky enough to chance upon a herder and his goats and sheep. It may be a bit run down in areas, but…
Our tour guide made this site a marvelous experience.The history here was very moving. Spend at least two hours to feel the experience..One has to climb into the horse and see the views!
Troy archeological site.
Don't make a special trip.
Overall satisfaction score (0-10). 6.0
This site is not more than a few stone walls and a lot of imagination. If you are in the area and want to take a picture with the replica horse visit the site, but if you are faraway and have to make…
This place is amazing for it's real history and location. Homer's story may or may not be true but the reality in this historical site is the layers upon layers of multiple civilizations uncovered and still being uncovered. For history buffs it is a real delight. Being able to visualize it's strategic location along the Dardenelles helps one understand how…
You can feel the different atmosphere during visiting this site. This site is very impressive because everything you see is exactly like was found. I got into Trojan House and see the view from it. The ideal time to come here is in the morning. It's very hot here if you come in the afternoon. Use a comfortable shoes and…
You'd be crazy not to add the ancient city of Troy to your Turkey itinerary. There's still a lot of excavation to do at this archaeological site but that's the exciting part of walking through these places, not knowing what lies directly under your feet!
Troy is a multi layered site which makes it a little difficult to visualise what it looked like 4000 years ago. It is so old though, that it has to be on the must do list!