When Homer’s Iliad was first written down in the 8th century BCE, the story of the Trojan war was already an old one. From existing oral tradition, audiences knew the tales of the long siege, the epic duels outside the city walls, and the cunning trick that finally won the war. In the end, the magnificent city was burned to the ground, never to rise again. But had it ever existed?
荷馬於西元前八世紀 首次寫下《伊利亞德》時 特洛伊戰爭的故事早已流傳久遠 聽眾從當時已存在的口述傳統 得知此城長期受圍困的傳說 城外英雄式的決鬥 以及最終贏得戰爭的詭詐計謀 最後,這座偉大的城市被燒毀殆盡 永無翻身之日 但是這座城真的存在過嗎?
By the time the field of archaeology began to take shape in the 19th century, many were skeptical, considering the epic to be pure fiction, a founding myth imagining a bygone heroic era. But some scholars believed that behind the superhuman feats and divine miracles there must have been a grain of historical truth - a war that was really fought, and a place where it happened.
考古學於 19 世紀開始成形時 很多人心存懷疑 認為這部史詩完全虛構 只不過是一個開國神話 想像過去的英雄時代 但是有些學者相信 超人類的技藝和各式的神蹟背後 一定存在著某種程度的史實 或許是某場真正打過的戰役 或許是此場戰役發生的地點
Frank Calvert was one such believer. He had spent his youth traveling and learning about ancient civilizations before accompanying his brother Frederick on a diplomatic mission to the northwest Anatolian region of Çanakkale. It was here that Homer described the Greek encampment at the mouth of the Scamander river. And it was here that fate brought Frank into contact with a journalist and geologist named Charles Maclaren.
法蘭克.卡爾維特就是這樣的學者 他幼年時經常旅行,學習古代文明 之後他陪同兄長 弗雷德里克參加外交使團 到位於安那托利亞西北區的恰納卡萊 這裡正是荷馬描述希臘紮營的 斯卡曼德洛斯河口 也正是這裡,命運引領法蘭克 與一位記者兼地質學家 查爾斯.麥克賴倫相遇
Locals and travelers had long speculated that Troy might’ve stood on one of the surrounding hilltops. But Maclaren had been one of the first to publish a detailed topographical study of the area. He believed he had found the site – a 32-meter mound known by the name Hisarlık, derived from the Turkish word for “fortress.” Soon after meeting with him in 1847, the Calverts bought 2,000 acres of farmland that included part of the hill. Before they could explore any further, the Crimean War broke out and forestalled their archaeological ambitions for several years.
當地人與遊客早就懷疑 特洛伊城可能曾佇立在周圍某山頂上 但是麥克賴倫是第一個 發表當地詳細地形圖的人 他認為他找到了該城遺跡 一座名為希沙利克的 32 公尺小山崗 這個名字從土耳其語的堡壘演變而來 卡爾維特兄弟在 1847 年與他見面後 就買了附近 2000 英畝的農地 包括這個小山崗的一部分 就在他們想進一步探究之際 克里米亞戰爭爆發 因而阻止了他們考古的雄心好多年
After the war’s end, Frank Calvert began to survey the site, but lacked the funds for a full excavation. This was where the wealthy German businessman and amateur archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann came in. At Calvert’s invitation,
戰爭結束後 法蘭克.卡爾維特開始調查這個地點 但是沒有經費全面開挖 此時德國富商 兼業餘考古學家 海因里希.施里曼登場 受卡爾維特之邀
Schliemann visited the grounds in 1868, and decided to excavate. Eager to find the ancient city, Schliemann tore massive trenches all the way to the base of the hill. There, he uncovered a hoard of precious artifacts, jewelry, and metalwork, including two diadems and a copper shield. Schliemann took full credit for the discovery, announcing that he had found Troy and the treasure of its king Priam. But the real treasure was elsewhere. When later archaeologists studied the site, they realized that the mound consisted of no less than nine cities, each built atop the ruins of the last. The layer Schliemann had uncovered dated back to the Mycenaean Age, more than 1,000 years too early for Homer.
施里曼於 1868 年視察了 這片地區並決定開挖 他急於找到這座古城 所以把巨大的壕溝一擘到底 從山頭直到山腳 他在那裡發現了一堆的珍貴文物 珠寶 及金屬製品 包括兩頂王冠及一面銅盾 施里曼把發現的功勞全攬在身上 宣布他找到了特洛伊 及其王普里阿摩斯的寶物 但是真正的寶物還在別處 之後的考古學家細查此地 他們意識到這座山崗 其實至少有九個城市 每一個都建築在舊址之上,層層堆疊 施里曼發掘出的那一層 可以回溯至邁錫尼文明 比荷馬還早一千年,太早了
But inside the mound was indeed evidence for a city that had thrived during the Bronze Age, with charred stone, broken arrowheads, and damaged human skeletons suggesting a violent end. It was Troy VII, contained in the middle layers and now ravaged for a second time by Schliemann’s careless excavation. The settlement, spanning some 200,000 square meters and home to as many as 10,000 people, thrived until around 1180 BCE. Its position at the southern entrance of the Dardanelles strait would’ve made a formidable strategic location for both defense and trade. Most importantly, there are the remains of a massive fortification wall – perhaps the very same one from which Priam and Hector once watched the Greeks approach.
但在山崗內部的確有證據顯示 某座城市曾興盛於青銅時代 燒焦的石頭 斷掉的箭頭 以及受損的人類骨骸 都暗示著暴力的結局 這就是「特洛伊 Ⅶ」 被包在中間幾層 因為施里曼粗暴的挖掘 而再度受到摧殘 這片聚落佔地約二十萬平方公尺 多達一萬人以之為家 一度興盛,直到西元前 1180 年 它位於達達尼爾海峽南面的入口 具防禦及貿易的強大戰略地位 最重要的是 有很大面的防禦城牆遺跡 或許就是這一面牆 普里阿摩斯與赫克托爾 看著希臘人逼近
Of course, it’s difficult to be certain that these ruins are the true remains of ancient Troy, and scholars still dispute whether the Trojan War as described by Homer ever happened. Yet the evidence is strong enough that UNESCO has labelled Hisarlık the archeological site of Troy. Regardless of its identity, thanks to persistence, a bit of faith, and a lot of research, archaeologists are bringing the long-buried secrets of an ancient, lost city to light.
當然,很難證明 這些遺跡真的是古代特洛伊的遺址 而且學者仍在爭論 荷馬描述的特洛伊戰爭是否為真 然而證據確鑿 聯合國教育、科學與文化組織 已將希沙利克列為特洛伊的考古遺址 無論其身分如何 因著堅持 一點信心 及很多研究 考古學家才能揭示隱藏已久的秘密 讓傳說中古老、消失的城市重見光明