With the release of The Odyssey, the new film by Christopher Nolan, interest in the epic world described by Homer has been reignited in many countries. To mark the occasion, the Troy Museum, situated in the Turkish province of Çanakkale, is inviting enthusiasts of Homer’s history to discover an experimental reconstruction of an ancient vessel – a replica similar to the ship on which Odysseus embarked on his adventure – offering a unique insight into ancient shipbuilding techniques, seafaring traditions and the maritime culture surrounding The Odyssey.
The film adaptation of Homer’s famous poem has been a hit at the box office but has also reignited interest in the Homeric epics, the Mediterranean maritime culture and the geography in which these tales unfolded. Indeed, a cultural heritage project carried out in Turkey offers a different perspective on the naval dimension present in the poet’s narratives.
As part of the Maritime Area Exhibition of the Troy Project, the Museum of Troy in Turkey is displaying a period vessel symbolising the sea voyage narrated in the Odyssey, according to the DHA news agency; and in a public letter addressed to Christopher Nolan under the slogan “The ship you forgot is in Troy; every journey begins in Troy” it highlights the cultural heritage preserved in the museum and in the land where the story told in the epic poem actually originated: Anatolia.
Although Troy is usually associated with the Trojan War and mythological tales, the region where it is situated was considered in antiquity to be one of the Mediterranean’s main maritime centres, thanks to its strategic location between the Aegean Sea and the Dardanelles Strait. It is precisely this aspect that the Troy Project and the ship named Hippoi – a symbol of the epic journey of the Odyssey – focus on. The ship was reconstructed using a mortise-and-tenon jointing technique with mortar, without resorting to metal fastenings, just as was done in those days.
A letter addressed to Nolan reminds him that “Every journey begins in Troy”
The vessel is also notable for the distinctive figure of a horse on the bow, a feature common to ships during the era in which Homer’s epic is set and which, according to some historians, may have inspired the very legend of the Trojan Horse. Following its construction, the replica of the historic vessel was transported to the Museum of Troy – situated next to the ruins of Troy – via a special operation, and has since become one of the museum’s most significant permanent exhibits.
Subsequently, to mark the release of the film The Odyssey, a special letter was sent to director Christopher Nolan stating: “If you’re looking for the ship, it’s in Turkey, at the Troy Museum”. In short, this serves as a reminder that the journey recounted in Homer’s The Odyssey and the new film begins precisely in Troy, amongst its ruins — which can still be seen today and form part of Turkey’s historical and cultural heritage — and in the museum now built alongside them: for it was there, where the last Trojans perished, that The Odyssey and its incredible adventure began.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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