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THE HEROON of ODYSSEUS in ITHACA RECONSIDERED Abstract 1 THE HEROON OF ODYSSEUS IN ITHACA RECONSIDERED Abstract* School of Homer, a site which The aim of this paper is to reconsider “seems to be a promising the view expressed by the late Prof. candidate”2 Αt the same time H.G.Buchholz in the honorary volume he maintained that the admittedly Δώρον for Prof. S.Iakovidis in 2009, that the Heroon of Odysseus or rare Bronze Age finds (Early Oδυσσείον is situated at the site of the Helladic and Middle Helladic School of Homer in North Ithaca. My pottery) in this area, “are no suggestion is, however, based on argument in favour of Homer!” earlier archaeological data (of the It must be stressed that the aim British School at Athens from the of this paper is not to 1930’s ) and my recent excavations on the island (1994-2011),is that this underestimate in any way the heroon was not at this place but most valuable work and great probably near the well-known cave at contribution to Aegean Polis. At the site of the School of archaeology of the eminent Homer , where a prehistoric acropolis, scholar and my close friend architectural remains and a Mycenaean Buchholz nor to deny the underground spring and workshops were recognized , I suggest that it was possibility that his hypothesis and the place of the Homeric palace of theory may be to some extent Odysseus. right, but to reconsider his It was Professor H.- suggestion in the light of and on G.Buchholz who published in the basis of the archaeological 2009 a paper in the honorary data already known to him from volume “Δώρον» for Professor the pre-War British excavations S.Iakοvidis 1 suggesting that the and those deriving from our Heroon of Odysseus recent excavation project in the (Οδυσσείον), the existence of island of Ithaca (Pl.. 1a) and which is known only from an especially at the site of the inscription of the Hellenistic School of Homer. It is worth period (208 B.C.) cannot have noting that some of the most been the cave on the shore at the important came to light during Polis bay (Louizos cave), but the three last digging seasons most probably at the site of the (2009-2011) and therefore after Buchholz’s paper was written * Preliminary version of this paper was Before entering into the main presented at the 2nd Religious Seminar at the discussion, it seems advisable to Swedish Archaeological Institute in November remind ourselves that there is a 2015 in Athens. I thank the organizer of the seminar Dr Jenny Wallensten , Assistant general agreement about the use Director of the Institute, for her kind invitation of the Polis cave as a sanctuary, to this Seminar and all the participants for their constractive discussion and comments. Also, I warmly thank my friend Dr. C.MacDonald for reading and improving my English text. 2 Buchholz 2009,133; See also, Heurtley 1935, 1 Buchholz 2009, 127-142 410 n. 1 2 a cult place for offerings3 The Benton produced a rich stratified problem is the location and deposit of pottery and votive identification of the Heroon of offerings ranging from the Odysseus or Odysseion Most Bronze Age to the 1st century scholars suggest that most A.D.. Of exceptional interest and probably was at the sea-shore importance are Late Mycenaean sanctuary at Polis bay (Pl.. 1b-c) pottery of local style (Fig. 2a), connected with performances the well-known fragment of a called Οδύσσεια the only terracotta mask of the 1st or 2nd dissidents being so far Rigsby “ it century B.C., inscribed ΕΥΧΉΝ was certainly not the cave at ΟΔΥΣΣΕΙ, (Pl.. 2b)showing an Polis”4 and more recently association with Odysseus, and Buchholz, whose theory that it the most remarkable of all the lay at the site of School of Homer votive objects, the twelve bronze has some weaknesses. tripods (Pl.. 2c-d) of the 9th-8th What I intend to do is to cent. B.C. , their number, present briefly the main points of together with one found the available archaeological previously by Louizos, evidence first from the Polis corresponding to those given to cave and second from the Odysseus by Alkinoos and his School of Homer. Before fellow-rulers (Od. Θ 387ff.) considering the evidence of the For the Polis cave used as a Polis cave a brief description of it sanctuary and its probable is desirable. The cave, known as identification with the Heroon of “Cave of the Tripods”, or “cave Odysseus-Οδυσσείον , it is worth of the Nymphs” or “Louizos mentioning and quoting the late cave” is a Karstic formation just Sylvia Benton, excavator of the at the edge of the sea and on the cave (1930 and 1932) western side of the bay, which is acknowledged expert and leading the natural access by sea from authority for the archaeology of the west to the northern Ithaca Ithaca:“ The most imposing The coastal plain around it was dedications are the bronze until recently a marshy land but tripod-cauldrons…. There are may have been drier in pieces of at least twelve tripods prehistoric times, as the sea level and there is the tripod said to was lower. Excavation by have been found by Louizos. How can we account for the 3 Benton 1934,45ff., 1938, 1ff, 44 (1949) presence of all these elaborate 307ff., .Heurtley 1943, 11.; .Stubbings 1962, 418-19.; Cook 1953, 113; Lorimer 1950, tripods in a little sea-side shrine? 499;.Desborough 1964, 108, idem 1972, 88; I suggest that they may be Hägg 1968, 51; .Hope Simpson &.Dickinson 1979,186; .Rutkowski 1986, 210; dedications to Odysseus possibly .Μαζαράκης-Αινιάν 2000, 58-60, 193; by victors at the Odysseia, like Αλεξίου 2009, 25 the tripods found at Olympia, 4 .Rigsby 1996, 215 n.61 3 Argos, Delphi and Delos The Buchholz maintains that there masks denote a period of is not enough space for a stadiun popularity of the shrine , and an at Polis or “we may well expect a indirect commentary is supplied place of limited space where by the Magnesian inscription , contests could be performed”7 which records the answer of the and believes, based only on Ithacesians to an invitation to the Vollgraff,’s report for a “tessère games of Artemis Leukophrryene de theater”8 that the only suitable instituted in 206 B.C. They invite place “is a very small theatre the Magnesians to their games, within the area of the School of the Odysseia, and order that the Homer, cut in the natural rock”9. inscription be set up in the Without excluding the possibility Odysseion , perhaps this very that he is right, I must note that shrine the games no doubt held the morphology of the site is not in the small plain outside.” , and suitable for a civic assembly and “The shrine at Polis was of at athletic or other performances least local importance in (αγώνες), being rather steep and Mycenaean, Geometric Archaic sloping downhill. Furthermore, and Hellenistic times and it is no such a theatre has been reasonable to connect this recognized during our importance with the Odyssey”5. excavations at this site nor did Her view is supported and Buchholz ever show or suggest strengthened by the words of it to us during his two years Prof, Heurtley, also a well-known participation and personal help excavator and specialist on the and advice in the project. Ithacesian archaeology : “The Therefore, its drawing and existence of a small town in location in fig. 4 of his paper is Mycenaean times stretching hypothetical and not yet round the head of the (Polis) bay archaeologically documented. On is thus sufficiently well attested” the other hand Benton’s10 and “ There is some reason for suggestion that “the games no thinking that the long hollow that doubt (were) held in the small lies at the foot of the slopes plain outside” the Polis cave- overlooking the bay of Polis is sanctuary, seems to be , in my the site of a stadium”6 opinion and on the basis of the already mentioned associated cultic and votive finds, most 5 Benton 1934, 45ff, ; 39 idem 1938,1ff.; idem probable and persuasive. 1949, 307ff. For possible connection of the tripods found at Polis with thοse given as gifts to Odysseus by Alkinoos and his fellow-rulers mentioned by Homer in the Odysey ((θ 387ff, and ν 13-14) see also, Stubbings 1962,.419 and 7 Buchholz 2009,131 Mazarakis-Ainian 2000, 58; .Luce, 1998, 8 Vollgaff, 1905, 168 no. 19 226-7. 9 Buchholz 2009,131 6 Heurtley 1939—1940 10, 11. 10 Benton 1934-35, 54 4 Turning to the second place, 3, 9, 6, 8, 23) (Pl. 3b) - dated that at School of Homer (Pl.. from late Middle Helladic to LH 3a), which according to IIIC periods were revealed east Buchholz “seems to be a of the architectural remains promising candidate”11 for the shown in fig.3b of the Buchholz Heroon of Odysseus, the paper. It is rather similar in type archaeological facts appear as construction and dimensions follows. First, we were able to (ca.21.50X11,20m). to those of recognize there a prehistoric Mycenae, Tiryns and Pylos acropolis with partly preserved (Pl.3c-d). However, one would walls the construction of which not expect anything on the scale , typifies the Cyclopean technique. luxury and finds of the i.e. large boulders, hammer metropolitan Mycenaean centres. dressed and stacked in irregular The primitive simplicity of courses, with smaller stones construction of this megaron, inserted into the interstices for most probably corresponding to stability , and a complex of Odysseus palace, would explain buildings arranged on two the wonder of Telemachos when terraces and dating from the he beheld the magnificence of Bronze Age to Late Hellenistic the palace of Menelaos at Sparta and Roman periods.
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