Product Description

In this text, an authority on Homeric texts takes us on a tour of the main localities that Homer paints in his "Iliad" and "Odyssey". Providing numerous photographs of the terrain and quoting liberally from the two epics, J.V. Luce argues that Homer's descriptions of the ancient landscape, far from being poetic fantasies, are accurate in every detail. Luce surveys what Homer tells us about the environs of Troy and Ithaca, applying the developing science of narratology to Homeric depiction of landscape. He also incorporates information about Troy that has been obtained in the past two decades, in particular geophysical information about the alluviation of the Trojan plain and archaeological data about Troy that reveals that the fortified area of the city was ten times as large as previously supposed. Tracing the ebb and flow of the battle as described in the "Iliad", Luce shows how Homer's account is consistent with this picture of the plain. He also demonstrates that the topography of Ithaca is sketched with such accuracy that Homer must have had firsthand knowledge of the terrain. Luce's book offers a contribution for specialists and a companion for readers of Homer or visitors to the ancient sites.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #788466 in Books
• Published on: 1999-02-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 272 pages

Customer Reviews

A user-friendly argument for the identity of Homeric sites.
Amply illustrated with photos and maps, Luce's book updates the archaeological and literary arguments for the identification of sites in and around Priam's Troy and Odysseus' Ithaca. The author reviews the history of the speculations about Troy and Ithaca, following a largely chronological pattern, from earliest visits by the likes of Strabo to the often romantic but fiercely held opinions of students of Homer to the theories and excavation reports of modern, scientific archaeologists. He then adds his own first-hand observations from visits to the sites, as well as the results of his sifting through the Homeric poems and the research of other scholars. The result is a lively and readable evocation (a "celebration, indeed) of the terrain described in the epics, covering such specifics as exactly where Achilles might have chased Hector during their final duel, where Eumaeus the swineherd's hut was, where the suitors anchored in their ambush of Telemachus, and just where Andromache and Hector were standing when Hector prayed for a heroic future for his infant son. Luce hypothesizes that the poet Homer was himself a visitor to these sites, and throughout the book assumes Homer's descriptions to be factual until proven otherwise. Although I believe that the oral tradition could have provided Homer the kind of details Luce claims must have come from the poet's own visit, nevertheless I found the author's conclusions persuasive, and the getting there a terrific review of a centuries-old treasure hunt. This book offers a good basis for a visit to the Homeric sites, which is what prompted me to read it, or excellent background for students or teachers of the Homeric epics.