Trojan Fortifications and Homeric Epic
Zoe Smith Classics, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Class of 2022
The mystery surrounding the Trojan War has engrossed some of the most prominent scholars within Classical Academia. With all of the fantastical depictions presented in the Homeric epic, it is easy to dismiss the actuality of such a war. However, there are still some specific similarities between the text and the archaeological remains of Troy VI. The goal of this essay is to examine the Trojan fortifications in both the text and in the archaeological record. In looking at the walls of Troy, one will find definite similarities between the textual description and the remains. These similarities therefore suggest that the authors of the Homeric tradition had some type of contact with the site of Troy itself, and thus the oral stories of the Late Bronze Age might hold more factual truth than is currently commonly accepted by scholars.
The reality versus the fantasy of the famed Troy will forever remain indistinguishable to the modern scholar. However, that does not mean that all elements surrounding the city’s epic tale are untrue. In fact, many elements of the story hold true. More specifically, attributes found in the epics that are also found in the archaeological record provide authenticity to the reality of the text. If certain obscure details are included in the text and these elements are found in Late Bronze Age Troy, then it is likely that the authors of this story must have had some type of experience with the city. Considering the similarities of Troy’s fortification walls in the Homeric Tradition and the archaeological evidence found in Bronze Age Troy VI, one can argue that the original authors of Homeric Epics had direct experience or at least firsthand knowledge of the fortification walls at Troy VI, thus proving that the epic was composed within living memory of the Late Bronze Age.
It is first important to note that for the purpose of this paper, Homer is not considered the original author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Rather, it will be assumed that the epics come from a long line of oral tradition that originated in the Bronze Age, and that were later written down in the Archaic period. In other words, it is not argued that Homer himself had been to Troy and observed the fortifications, but it is argued that the original creators had to have had some type of firsthand knowledge of Troy VI. Since there are authentic details of Trojan fortifications found in the text, the creators of the epic tradition must have lived in or near the period of Troy VI in order to include this information in the epic.
The angled construction of Troy VI’s fortification walls is perhaps the most discernible feature that is mentioned in the Iliad. The archaeological remains of these walls show that they were made of squared limestone blocks that encircled the citadel. Mudbrick breastwork was thought to be added on top of these limestone blocks, creating walls close to nine meters high.1 Besides the impressive height, the angled slope at which the walls were constructed add to the uniqueness of these structures. During this period, larger fortified settlements in Greece, like Tiryns, Mycenae, and Glas, favored the Mycenaean style of Cyclopean Masonry.2 This type of stonework used large limestone boulders stacked closely together to form straight walls perpendicular to the ground (Fig. 1). The angled walls at Troy resemble walls seen throughout Anatolia, like the Yerkapi rampart in Hattusa. These walls are built at such an angle that individuals could easily scale up the limestone bases (Fig. 2). Homer mentions that “three times Patroclus climbed up the angle of the lofty wall.”3 Logically, Patroclus could easily scale up the angled limestone bases of the fortifications, especially if he had the momentum of a victorious warrior running towards the final enemy in battle. However, the mudbrick superstructure would prove much more difficult and might have led to his continual failure in reaching the top. Carl Blegen notes that there were stones that “were not close fitting” that allowed for his workmen to easily climb up the walls of the citadel.4 The gaps in the stone socle of Troy’s wall would have made it incredibly easy for Patroclus to climb until reaching the mudbrick superstructure, but the straight angled walls found in Greece would have proved impossible to even attempt to climb.
The authors of the Homeric Tradition therefore had to have had some type of knowledge or insight into Eastern fortification constructions during this period. Scaling Cyclopean walls would have been near impossible, for the clearance between stones was minimal and gaps were filled with smaller stones. If the authors of the Iliad were only familiar with this type of fortification style, then the inclusion of Patroclus’s ascent would have looked a lot different. At this point in the narrative, Patroclus has no divine help. He has just killed Sarpedon, thus incurring the wrath of Zeus. He is also continually pushed down by Apollo in his attempts to climb the fortifications. He is not a semi-divine being, nor does he have help from any god. These factors imply that Patroclus had to climb the walls with only a mortal ability. Climbing the Cyclopean style walls found in Greece would have been near impossible, but the angled walls found in Troy would have been much more feasible.
While the angled design of the walls can be attributed to the Anatolian region, the weak points noted in the Iliad relate solely to the fortifications at Troy. In Andromache’s plea to Hector, she mentions this weak section of wall as “where the city is most open to attack and where the wall may be mounted.”5 In 1893, German archaeologist, Wilhelm Dorpfeld, uncovered the three hundred yards of walls belonging to Troy VI. He found that the circuit walls of the city had been modernized by builders except in one inferior section of construction located on the westen side.6 This detail found in the archaeological remains matches almost perfectly to the description found in the text. The presence of this description proves that the creators of the Homeric tradition were associated with the remains of Troy VI. This instance does not prove that the Trojan War did in fact occur; rather, it proves that some aspects of the myth were in fact true. This epic could not have originated a long time after the fall of the Bronze Age for these small details noted in the text would not have been known by the later Greek world. Instead, the creators of the oral tradition must have had direct insight into the weakness of Troy’s fortification walls either from firsthand experience or via description by a certain individual with a comprehensive knowledge of the fortification walls.
Another noteworthy attribute of the fortifications of Troy VI is the south gate. There were five gateways that provided access into the citadel, the most prominent of which is the south gate. This gate is considered to be the main gate of the Late Bronze age period. It was 3.3 meters wide and protected by a large tower.7 Similarly, the “great tower of Ilios” was a large tower protecting the southern Scaean gate.8 This gate provided access to the citadel from the battlefield and vice versa. The tower of Ilios overlooked the southern plains of Troy and created a platform of which the inhabitants of the citadel could observe the fighting. This is the place where Andromache escapes in order to find Hector, and where Priam and Helen overlook the Greek warriors. The position of the gate and tower found in the archaeological remains of Troy VI would provide this inland view of the fighting. The modern day northeastern plain at Troy would have actually been a bay with surrounding marshy areas during the Late Bronze Age. The northern bay, which was closer to the Aegean, would not have been the optimal place to anchor the Greek ships, for the fighting between the Greeks and the Trojans would have taken place in the marshy lowlands north of the citadel. Instead each side would attempt to remain on higher dry ground, south of the fortifications. The Greek ships would then anchor in the southern region of the bay, which was located south of Troy next to drier plains. Due to the citadel’s high position, it would be easy to see the Greek encampments which would have been positioned towards the dry land that lays before the southern gate of Troy (Fig. 3). Again, the knowledge that the main gate and protecting tower overlooked the majority of the fighting suggests that the authors of the Homeric tradition had insight into a firsthand account of a siege description from Troy VI. Although the epic does not detail the position of Troy in relation to the bay, it is still worth noting that the Scaean gate and tower oversaw the action below. The archaeological features of the south gate and tower match the description found in Homer, while the relation of the southern gate to the battlefield matches the topography observed at Troy.
The inclusion of such specific attributes suggest that the authors of the tradition had some insight into the siege and fortification descriptions about Troy VI. More broadly, the inclusion of such attributes would mean that the authors lived within living memory of Troy VI, for details this specific would not be included in the narrative if Troy VI had been long buried. The inclusion of the angled walls suggests that the authors had to have some idea of how Late Bronze Age Anatolian fortifications were constructed. More specifically, they have to know that there were weak points in the fortifications and where they were located. The creators also had to understand where the fighting and action took place in relation to the main gate, watchtower, and citadel. These similarities could not have occurred by mere coincidence. There had to be some type of firsthand knowledge used in order to incorporate these points; thus, the authors of the text had to have lived during this period. Any information this specific would have been easily forgotten if not related shortly after the destruction of Troy. These few features prove that at least some aspects of the Iliad ring true. Only further excavations will tell what other aspects of Homeric Epic also prove correct.