Among the interesting objects discovered in this excavation, I must especially mention a brilliant red terra-cotta hippopotamus, found at a depth of 23 feet. It is hollow, and has a ring on the left side, and therefore may have served as a vessel. The existence of the figure of a hippopotamus here at a depth of 23 feet is extremely remarkable, nay, astonishing; for this animal, as is well known, is not met with even in Upper Egypt, and occurs only in the rivers of the interior of Africa. It is, however, probable that hippopotami existed in Upper Egypt in ancient times; for, according to Herodotus (II. 71), they were worshipped as sacred animals at the Egyptian town of Papremis. At all events, Troy must have been commercially connected with Egypt; but even so, it is still an enigma, how the animal was so well known here as to have been made of clay in a form quite faithful to nature.
No. 160. Remarkable Terra-cotta Vessel, in the shape of a Bugle, with three feet (3 M.).
No. 160. Remarkable Terra-cotta Vessel, in the shape of a
Bugle, with three feet (3 M.).
No. 161. Terra-cotta Vessel with three feet, a handle,
and two ears (5 M.).
Of idols of marble, it is only during these few days that we have found eight, only two of which had the engraved owl’s head of the Ilian Athena. Of vases with owl’s faces, two female breasts, and two upraised arms, I have found only one, at a depth of 15 meters (49¼ feet), and at a depth of 7 meters (23 feet) the upper portion of another, upon which the stump of one of the arms may still be recognised. At a depth of 10 feet we found two vases, with two female breasts and an immense navel, which are doubtless also intended to represent the tutelary goddess of Troy. Lastly, of vase-covers with an owl’s face and helmet, the first found was at a depth of 1 meter (3¼ feet), having a double handle in the form of a coronet; another, found at a depth of 3 meters (26 feet), has a simple handle. Among the other terra-cotta vessels I must specially mention an exceedingly remarkable cup in the form of a bugle-horn with three feet, which was found at a depth of 3 meters (10 feet); also a vessel with but two feet, which, however, as is proved by the broken places on the right side, has been attached to some other vessel of a similar form and description; this double vessel had a ring on either side for suspension by strings. Of the other earthenware I can only mention a small curious vase which has three long feet, one handle, and two others in the form of ears.
The round articles of terra-cotta in the form of volcanoes and humming-tops, with symbolical decorations, were met with in great quantities, as they always are. Four sling-bullets were discovered, one of which, made of copper, was brought out from a depth of 49 feet, one of alabaster from 23 feet, and two of diorite from a depth of from 20 to 23 feet. At a depth of 4 meters (13 feet) I found a splendidly ornamented flat piece of ivory, which must evidently have been part of a musical instrument.[216] Lastly, at the depth of 1 meter (3¼ feet) there was a fragment of a female statue of fine marble, executed in a masterly style. It not improbably represents the tutelary goddess of Ilium, whose temple, as we know, stood in the Pergamus.
Simultaneously with these excavations I had 22 men working in a north-westerly direction, from the south-eastern corner of the Acropolis, in order to lay bare the Great Tower still further on that side, an operation that has become impossible to effect from my great trench. But as the hill at this point has only a very gradual slope I was compelled to make the new cutting with a considerable slope, which renders the carting-off of the débris much more troublesome, but is absolutely necessary, to enable us to reach the requisite depth of 26 feet for arriving at the Tower. At the very commencement of this cutting, at a foot below the surface, I came upon two enormous walls, each of which is 10 feet thick. The first seems to belong to the Middle Ages,[217] and consists of large blocks of Corinthian pillars joined by cement and of other marble blocks taken from ancient buildings. The second wall, which follows immediately, must certainly belong to the town-wall built by Lysimachus, which was 40 stadia long.[218] It is composed of large and beautifully hewn blocks of limestone, which are laid one upon another without any kind of cement, and which generally bear a monogram. As the letter is not always the same, and as for instance upon one stone there is a Σ, and upon another an Υ or a Δ, I presume that they are the initials of the different builders. In the first wall I found a marble slab nearly a foot thick, 32½ inches broad, and 3½ feet long, with the following inscription:—
The person praised in this inscription can by no means have been the Emperor Caligula, for in that case the title αὐτοκράτωρ would have been added. But as this word is wanting, the person meant is certainly Caius Cæsar, the son of Vipsanius Agrippa and of Julia, the daughter of Octavianus. He had a brother called Lucius. Both were adopted by Augustus, and owing to this adoption they received the title of “υἱὸς τοῦ Σεβαστοῦ,” and both were selected by Augustus as his successors. Caius Cæsar, born in the year 20 B.C., was adopted at the age of three years. He took part in the Trojan games, which Augustus instituted at the dedication of the temple of Marcellus. At the age of fifteen he was appointed Consul, and when nineteen he was made Governor of Asia. During his administration there he became involved in a war with Phraates the king of Armenia, was wounded, and died in the year 4 after Christ, on the 21st of February, at the age of 24.[219] As in the inscription he is called the kinsman, the benefactor, and the patron of Ilium, it is probable that he often came here during his administration; at all events, he took great interest in the city, and lavished favours upon it. The family of the Julii always attached great importance to their descent from Iülus (or Ascanius) the son of Æneas; and the sole political object of Virgil’s Æneid was to prove and glorify their genealogy. This explains the favours which the Julii lavished upon Ilium, and their hatred against the Greeks because they destroyed Troy, and also because they had espoused the cause of Mark Antony.
An oka of wine, which contains about two ordinary wine-bottles, last year cost 1¼ piaster (25 centimes); now it costs 2 piasters (40 centimes) the oka; but it is of a most excellent quality, and I prefer it to any French wine.
No. 162. Terra-cotta Image of a Pig, curiously marked with Stars (4 M.).
No. 162. Terra-cotta Image of a Pig, curiously marked
with Stars (4 M.).
Increased number of workmen—Further uncovering of the great buttress—Traces of a supposed small temple—Objects found on its site—Terra-cotta serpents’ heads: great importance attached to the serpent—Stone implements: hammers of a peculiar form—Copper implements: a sickle—Progress of the works at the south-east corner—Remains of an aqueduct from the Thymbrius—Large jars, used for cellars—Ruins of the Greek temple of Athena—Two important inscriptions discussed—Relations of the Greek Syrian Kings Antiochus I. and III. to Ilium.
Pergamus of Troy, March 1st, 1873.
SINCE Monday morning, the 24th of last month, I have succeeded in increasing the number of my workmen to 158, and as throughout this week we have had splendid weather, I have been able to accomplish a good stroke of work in the six days, in spite of the many hindrances and difficulties which I had at first to struggle against. Since the 1st of February I have succeeded in removing more than 11,000 cubic yards of débris from the site of the temple. To-day, at last, I have had the pleasure of uncovering a large portion of that buttress, composed of large unhewn white stones, which at one time covered the entire north-eastern corner of the declivity, whereas, in consequence of its increase in size during the course of many centuries by the ashes of the sacrificed animals, the present declivity of the hill is 131 feet distant from it to the north, and 262½ feet distant to the east. To my surprise I found that this buttress reaches to within 26 feet of the surface, and thus, as the primary soil is elsewhere always at from 46 to 52½ feet below the surface, it must have covered an isolated hill from 20 to 26 feet high, at the north-east end of the Pergamus, where at one time there doubtless stood a small temple. Of this sanctuary, however, I find nothing but red wood-ashes, mixed with the fragments of brilliant black Trojan earthenware, and an enormous number of unhewn stones, which seem to have been exposed to a fearful heat, but no trace of sculpture: the building must therefore have been very small. I have broken through the buttress of this temple-hill at a breadth of 13 feet, in order to examine the ground at its foundation. I dug it away to a depth of 5 feet, and found that it consists of the virgin soil, which is of a greenish colour. Upon the site of the small and very ancient temple, which is indicated by the buttress, I find in two places pure granular sand, which appears to extend very far down, for after excavating it to a depth of 6½ feet I did not reach the end of the stratum. Whether this hill consists entirely, or but partially, of earth and sand, I cannot say, and must leave it undecided, for I should have to remove thousands more of cubic yards of rubbish. Among the débris of the temple we found a few, but exceedingly interesting objects, for instance, the largest marble idol that has hitherto been found, which is 5¼ inches long and 3 inches broad. Further, the lid of a pot, which is divided into twelve fields by roughly engraved lines. Ten of the fields are ornamented with little stars, one with two signs of lightning, and another with six lines. There was also a small idol of terra-cotta with the owl’s head of the Ilian tutelary goddess, with two arms and long hair hanging down at the back of the head; but it is so roughly made that, for instance, the eyes of the goddess are above the eyebrows. I also found among the débris of the temple a vase with the owl’s face, two female breasts and a large navel; of the face only one eye and an ear is preserved. I must draw especial attention to the fact that both upon the vases with owls’ heads two female breasts and a navel, and upon all of the others without the owl’s face and adorned only with two female breasts and a navel, the latter is always ten times larger than the breasts. I therefore presume that the navel had some important significance, all the more so as it is frequently decorated with a cross, and in one case even with a cross and the marks of a nail at each of the four ends of the cross.[220] We also discovered among the ruins of the small and very ancient building some pretty wedges (battle-axes), and a number of very rude hammers made of diorite; besides a quantity of those small red and black terra-cotta whorls, with the usual engravings of four or five 卐, or of three, four, or five triple rising suns in the circle round the central sun, or with other extremely strange decorations.
No. 164. Terra-cotta Pot-lid, engraved with symbolical marks (6 M.).
No. 164. Terra-cotta Pot-lid, engraved with symbolical
marks (6 M.).
No. 165. A curious Terra-cotta Idol of the Ilian Athena
(7 M.).
At a depth of 7 to 8 meters (23 to 26 feet), we also came upon a number of vases having engraved decorations, and with three feet or without feet, but generally with rings at the sides and holes in the mouth for suspension by strings; also goblets in the form of a circular tube, with a long spout at the side for drinking out of, which is always connected with the other side of the tube by a handle; further, smaller or larger jars with a mouth completely bent backwards; small terra-cotta funnels; very curious little sling-bullets made of diorite, from only ¾ of an inch to above 1 inch long. The most remarkable of all the objects found this year is, however, an idol of very hard black stone above 2½ inches long and broad, discovered at a depth of 9 meters (29½ feet). The head, hands, and feet have the form of hemispheres, and the head is only recognised by several horizontal lines engraved below it, which seem to indicate necklaces. In the centre of the belly is a navel, which is as large as the head, but, instead of protruding as in the case of the vases, it is indicated by a circular depression. The back of the middle of the body is arched, and has the appearance of a shield, so that in looking at the idol one is involuntarily led to believe that it represents Mars, the god of war.
No. 167. Remarkable Trojan Idol of Black Stone (7 M.).
No. 167. Remarkable Trojan Idol of Black Stone (7 M.).
Nos. 168, 169. Heads of Horned Serpents (4 M.).
Nos. 168, 169. Heads of Horned Serpents (4 M.).
At a depth of from 4 to 7 meters (13 to 23 feet) we also met with fragments of terra-cotta serpents, whose heads are sometimes represented with horns. The latter must certainly be a very ancient and significant symbol of the greatest importance, for even now there is a superstition that the horns of serpents, by merely coming in contact with the human body, cure a number of diseases, and especially epilepsy; also that by dipping them in milk the latter is instantly turned into cheese, and other notions of the same sort. On account of the many wholesome and useful effects attributed to the horns of serpents, they are regarded as immensely valuable, and on my return here at the end of January one of my last year’s workmen was accused by a jealous comrade of having found two serpents’ horns in an urn at a depth of 52½ feet, and of having made off with them. All my assurances that there are no such things as serpents horns could not convince the men, and they still believe that their comrade has robbed me of a great treasure. The serpents’ heads not ornamented with horns generally represent the poisonous asp; above the mouth they have a number of dots, and the head and back are divided by cross lines into sections which are filled with dots.[221] These flat serpents’ heads have on the opposite side lines running longitudinally like female hair. We also found terra-cotta cones an inch and a half high, with three holes not pierced right through. At a depth of from 3¼ to 6½ feet we have discovered several more terra-cotta vases without the owl’s face, but with two female breasts and a large navel, and with two small upright handles in the form of arms. In all the strata below 13 feet we meet with quantities of implements of diorite, and quoits of granite, sometimes also of hard limestone. Hammers and wedges (battle-axes) of diorite and of green stone were also found, in most cases very prettily wrought. The hammers do not all possess a perforated hole; upon many there is only a cavity on both sides, about 1/5 to 2/5 of an inch deep.
Of metals, copper only was met with. To-day we found a copper sickle 5½ inches long; of copper weapons we have to-day for the first time found two lances at a depth of 23 feet, and an arrow-head at 4 meters (13 feet) deep. We find numbers of long, thin copper nails with a round head, or with the point only bent round. I now also find them repeatedly at a depth of from 5 to 6 meters (16½ to 20 feet), whereas since the commencement of my excavations in the year 1871, I only found two nails as far down as this.[222]
I am now also vigorously carrying forward the cutting which I made on the south-eastern corner of the Pergamus, for uncovering the eastern portion of the Great Tower as far as my last year’s cutting, to a length of 315 feet and a breadth of from 65½ to 78¾ feet. The work advances rapidly, as this excavation is near the southern declivity of the hill, and the rubbish has therefore not far to be carted off. I have made eight side passages for removing it. Experience has taught me that it is far more profitable not to have any special men for loading the wheel-barrows, but to let every workman fill his own barrow. Experience has also shown me that much precious time is lost in breaking down the earthen walls with the long iron levers driven in by a ram, and that it is much more profitable and less dangerous to the workmen always to keep the earthen walls at an angle of 55 degrees, to dig as occasion requires, and to cut away the rubbish from below with broad pickaxes. In this new excavation I find four earthen pipes, from 18¾ to 22¼ inches long, and from 6½ to 11¾ inches thick, laid together for conducting water, which was brought from a distance of 1½ German mile (about 7 English miles) from the upper Thymbrius. This river is now called the Kemar, from the Greek word καμάρα (vault), because an aqueduct of the Roman period crosses its lower course by a large arch. This aqueduct formerly supplied Ilium with drinking water from the upper portion of the river. But the Pergamus required special aqueducts, for it lies higher than the city.
In this excavation I find an immense number of large earthen wine-jars (πίθοι) from 1 to 2 meters (3¼ to 6½ feet) high, and 29½ inches across, as well as a number of fragments of Corinthian pillars and other splendidly sculptured blocks of marble. All of these marble blocks must certainly have belonged to those grand buildings whose southern wall I have already laid bare to a length of 285½ feet. It is composed of small stones joined with a great quantity of cement as hard as stone, and rests upon large well hewn blocks of limestone. The direction of this wall, and hence of the whole building, is E.S.E. by E.
Three inscriptions, which I found among its ruins, and in one of which it is said that they were set up in the “ἱερόν,” that is, in the temple, leave no doubt that this was the temple of the Ilian Athena, the “πολιοῦχος θεά,” for it is only this sanctuary that could have been called simply “τὸ ἱερόν,” on account of its size and importance, which surpassed that of all the other temples of Ilium. Moreover the position of the building, which is turned towards the rising sun, corresponds exactly with the position of the Parthenon and all the other temples of Athena. From the very commencement of my excavations I have searched for this important sanctuary, and have pulled down more than 130,000 cubic yards of débris from the most beautiful parts of the Pergamus in order to find it; and I now discover it exactly where I should have least expected to come upon it. I have sought for this new temple, which was probably built by Lysimachus, because I believed, and still believe, that in its depths I shall find the ruins of the primeval temple of Athena, and I am more likely here than anywhere to find something to throw light upon Troy. Of the inscriptions found here, as mentioned above, one is written upon a marble slab in the form of a tombstone, 5¼ feet long, 17½ inches broad, and 5¾ inches thick, and runs as follows:—
This inscription, the great historical value of which cannot be denied, seems certainly to belong to the third century B.C., judging from the subject as well as from the form of the letters, for the king Antiochus repeatedly mentioned must either be Antiochus I., surnamed Soter (281 to 260 B.C.), or Antiochus III., the Great (222 to 186). Polybius, who was born in 210 or 200 B.C., and died in 122 B.C., in his History (XXVIII. 1, and XXXI. 21) speaks indeed of a Meleager who lived in his time, and was an ambassador of Antiochus Epiphanes, who reigned from 174 to 164, and it is quite possible that this Meleager afterwards became satrap of the satrapy of the Hellespont, and that, in this office, he wrote to the Ilians the first letter of this inscription. But in the first letter of Antiochus to his satrap Meleager, he gives him the option of assigning to Aristodicides the 2000 plethra of land, either from the district bordering upon the territory of Gergis or upon that of Scepsis. The town of Gergis, however, according to Strabo, was destroyed by king Attalus I. of Pergamus, who reigned from 241 to 197 B.C., and who transplanted the inhabitants to the neighbourhood of the sources of the Caïcus in Mysia. These sources, however, as Strabo himself says, are situated very far from Mount Ida, and hence also from Ilium. Two thousand plethra of land at such a distance could not have been of any use to the Ilians; consequently, it is impossible to believe that the inscription can be speaking of the new town of Gergitha, which was rising to importance at the sources of the Caïcus. I now perfectly agree with Mr. Frank Calvert,[226] and with Consul von Hahn,[227] that the site of Gergis is indicated by the ruins of the small town and acropolis at the extreme end of the heights behind Bunarbashi, which was only a short time ago regarded by most archæologists as the site of the Homeric Troy. This site of Gergis, in a direct line between Ilium and Scepsis, the ruins of which are to be seen further away on the heights of Mount Ida, agrees perfectly with the inscription. Livy (XXXV. 43) gives an account of the visit of Antiochus III., the Great. I also find in the ‘Corpus Inscriptionum Græcarum,’ No. 3596, that the latter had a general called Meleager, who may subsequently have become satrap of the Hellespont. On the other hand, Chishull, in his ‘Antiquitates Asiaticæ,’ says that Antiochus I., Soter, on an expedition with his fleet against the King of Bithynia, stopped at the town of Sigeum, which lay near Ilium, and that the king went up to Ilium with the queen, who was his wife and sister, and with the great dignitaries and his suite. There is, indeed, nothing said of the brilliant reception which was there prepared for him, but there is an account of the reception which was arranged for him in Sigeum. The Sigeans lavished servile flattery upon him, and not only did they send ambassadors to congratulate him, but the Senate also passed a decree, in which they praised the king’s actions to the skies, and proclaimed that public prayers should be offered up to the Ilian Athena, to Apollo (who was regarded as his ancestor), to the goddess of Victory and to other deities, for his and his consort’s welfare; that the priestesses and priests, the senators and all the magistrates of the town should carry wreaths, and that all the citizens and all the strangers settled or temporarily residing in Sigeum should publicly extol the virtues and the bravery of the great king; further, that a gold equestrian statue of the king, standing on a pedestal of white marble, should be erected in the temple of Athena in Sigeum, and that it should bear the inscription: “The Sigeans have erected this statue to King Antiochus, the son of Seleucus, for the devotion he has shown to the temple, and because he is the benefactor and the saviour of the people; this mark of honour is to be proclaimed in the popular assemblies and at the public games.” However, in this wilderness it is impossible for me to find out from which ancient classic writer this episode has been taken.
It is very probable that a similar reception awaited Antiochus I. in Ilium, so that he kept the city in good remembrance. That he cherished kindly feelings towards the Ilians is proved also by the inscription No. 3595 in the ‘Corpus Inscriptionum Græcarum.’ But whether it is he or Antiochus the Great that is referred to in the inscription I do not venture to decide.
Aristodicides, of Assos, who is frequently mentioned in the inscription, is utterly unknown, and this name occurs here for the first time; the name of the place Petra also, which is mentioned several times in the inscription, is quite unknown; it must have been situated in this neighbourhood, but all my endeavours to discover it in the modern Turkish names of the localities, or by other means, have been made in vain.
The other inscription runs as follows:—