Troy’s place in mythological legends
Troy’s fame comes from the many mythological stories surrounding it. The Trojan War, considered one of the greatest epics of the ancient world, has been narrated and retold for three thousand years. It is a tale of love and betrayal, courage and passion, featuring unforgettable characters. At its core is a massive ten-year war ignited when a prince named Paris from across the Aegean abducted Queen Helen of Sparta. According to legend, Paris was asked to judge a beauty contest among the goddesses. Hera promised dominion over the world, Athena offered wisdom and invincibility in war, but Aphrodite tempted him with the most beautiful woman alive, Helen. Paris chose Aphrodite’s gift, and when he abducted Helen from Sparta, her husband, King Menelaus, became enraged. His fury rallied the Achaean world, and in revenge, a fleet of countless ships sailed for Troy’s shores. And so, because of Helen, “the woman for whom a thousand ships set sail,” Troy endured a ten-year siege. In the end, the war was won not by strength but through cunning. Odysseus, the clever Achaean hero, devised a plan: a giant wooden horse, hollow and filled with the bravest soldiers. Pretending to retreat, the Achaeans left the horse at Troy’s gates. Believing their enemies had fled, the Trojans brought the enormous statue inside as a trophy of victory. That night, the soldiers hidden inside emerged, opened the gates, and let the returning Achaean army inside. After ten years of proud resistance, Troy fell to deception in just one night. The city was destroyed, and the kingdom was lost forever.
However, the legends extend beyond the destruction. Among the few who survived was Aeneas, one of the noble heroes of the war. According to legend, Aeneas, the son of the goddess Aphrodite, fled the burning city with his father and young son by his side. Considered the Mediterranean’s first refugee, his escape marked the beginning of a new epic. Setting sail with his companions, Aeneas embarked on a long and dangerous journey that ultimately led him to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the people who would later form the origins of Roman civilization. In Virgil’s epic about Aeneas, the story shows Aeneas rising from the ashes of Troy, establishing a lineage that leads to Alba Longa and eventually to the founding of Rome. In this way, the defeated Trojans became the ancestors of a new nation.
One of the most fascinating continuations of the Trojan legends is undoubtedly Odysseus’s ten-year homeward journey, known as the “Odyssey.” Homer’s second major epic recounts his struggles after the war, a voyage full of obstacles, gods, and monsters. Odysseus, the clever mastermind behind the Trojan Horse that ended the war, symbolizes patience, strategy, and human resilience. His story remains relevant today, and modern cinema frequently draws inspiration from this legacy. Homer’s epic has been adapted countless times for film and TV, with some versions focusing solely on Odysseus’s adventures, while others reimagine them in contemporary settings. Now, an exciting new chapter is approaching: Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, scheduled for release in 2026, aims to bring Odysseus’s journey back to the big screen with an epic narrative.
Archaeological discoveries and the history of Troy’s excavations
The transformation of Troy from legend into material reality occurred in the second half of the 19th century. Until then, most people viewed the Trojan War as nothing more than a myth. However, an English diplomat and amateur archaeologist named Frank Calvert believed that the legendary city was buried beneath a hill called Hisarlik, near the Dardanelles. In the 1860s, on land partly owned by him, Calvert conducted small-scale soundings at Hisarlik and discovered promising artifacts. However, he lacked the financial means to expand his excavations.
In 1868, the German adventurer Heinrich Schliemann arrived, bringing Homer’s epics with him and a strong desire for fame. Welcomed by Calvert, Schliemann had the wealth and ambition to pursue the search. The two made an agreement, and in 1870 Schliemann began large-scale excavations at Hisarlik, convinced it was Troy.
By modern standards, his methods were destructive. His main goal was to uncover, as quickly as possible, the wealthy city of legend and “Priam’s Treasure.” Driven by this obsession, he dug a massive trench through the mound, measuring 80 meters long and 14 meters deep, even using dynamite, which nearly split the hill in half and tragically destroyed parts of the upper layers that truly belonged to Troy.
Even so, Schliemann soon managed to distinguish the strata of different cultures. In 1873, in a layer he believed to be Homer’s Troy, he uncovered magnificent gold and bronze objects. He called them “Priam’s Treasure” and secretly smuggled them out of Ottoman lands into Europe. The hoard included crowns, necklaces, earrings, and diadems. Schliemann adorned his young wife Sophia with the pieces and photographed her. That image, still one of the most famous in the history of archaeology, shows Sophia like a Trojan queen, draped in ancient gold.
Despite all his mistakes, Schliemann’s undertaking is seen as a pivotal moment in world history. By locating the legendary Troy, he connected mythology to a place on the map. From the artifacts discovered at Hisarlik, he announced to the world that this was “Troy,” bringing an ancient city that had only existed in books until then into the public eye.
Thanks to the excavations at Troy, archaeology first became a pursuit that the wider public followed with curiosity. Schliemann’s experiences laid the groundwork for the science of excavation. At the same time, these digs showed that archaeology was no longer just the concern of academic circles but could also have a broad social impact. The finds Schliemann uncovered demonstrated that the past could be studied not only through texts but also through tangible remains. This development strengthened archaeology as a scientific discipline and increased awareness of the importance of preserving and understanding cultural heritage. The lessons learned here helped develop excavation methods based on stratigraphy. After Schliemann, the excavations were taken over by German architect Wilhelm Dörpfeld (1893–94) and American archaeologist Carl Blegen (1932–38), who used more scientific methods and made significant discoveries about the city’s history. Dörpfeld, focusing on the upper layers that Schliemann had overlooked, brought to light the impressive fortifications of the layer he called Troy VI, suggesting that this might be the city Homer described.
In later excavations, Blegen identified 46 separate building phases, revealing Troy’s stratigraphy stretching, though with interruptions, from around 3000 BC to the Roman period. He documented that the layer known as Troy VIIa had been destroyed by war and fire, linking it to the Trojan War. For the first time, it was seriously proposed that a conflict once thought to be just a legend could also be reflected in the archaeological record. The most significant milestone of modern Troy excavations began in 1988. After nearly fifty years, an international team led by Professor Manfred Osman Korfmann of the University of Tübingen resumed work at the site. Korfmann aimed to grasp the true scale and significance of Troy by employing modern scientific methods and technology-driven research. Mainly through geophysical surveys and large-scale excavations, he demonstrated that Troy was not just a small fortress on the mound but also a vast lower city spreading into the surrounding plain. Magnetic screenings and excavations carried out in the 1990s revealed traces of extensive settlement and a ditch outside the city walls. According to Korfmann’s findings, during the Bronze Age, Troy covered an area fifteen times larger than previously believed. This indicated that Troy played a major role at the time as a strategic port city at the time, controlling trade routes around the Dardanelles. Korfmann also worked tirelessly to emphasize Troy’s significance and promote its cultural heritage. In 2001, he organized the exhibition “Troy: Dream and Reality,” which gained widespread attention across Europe and attracted nearly 800,000 visitors to view the finds from Troy.
Thanks to Korfmann’s efforts, the area surrounding Troy was designated a Historical National Park in 1996. Two years later, in 1998, Troy was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, officially recognized for its global significance. During Korfmann’s 17 years as head of excavations, Troy once again became a major focus of scholarly and public interest. His work reignited enthusiasm for the Trojan legends and sparked a tourism boom at the site. Indeed, the excavations at Troy caused a noticeable rise in visitors to the Çanakkale region. In 2018, marking the 20th anniversary of Troy’s UNESCO listing, the “Year of Troy” campaign was launched, increasing tourism to the area by nearly 50 percent.
After Korfmann died in 2005, responsibility for the excavations at Troy passed from the German team to Turkish scholars. Since 2013, the project has been led by Turkish archaeologist Professor Rüstem Aslan, who had long been involved in the work. For the first time, a Turkish team took on the scientific leadership of Troy. While excavations and research continue under Aslan’s leadership, popular publications are being produced to share Troy’s cultural heritage with a broader audience. Books like Troy for Beginners (2018), written by Aslan, aim to convey this legacy in language accessible to the general public. Under his leadership, Troy has moved beyond being merely an excavation site, evolving into a cultural showcase of Türkiye through conferences, books, and museum projects. During this process, a long-standing confusion was also cleared up. For many years, under the influence of the French language, the name “Truva” was commonly used in Turkish, while in academic literature and official promotion, the form “Troya” was adopted. The term “Truva Atı” (Trojan Horse), however, remains deeply embedded in Turkish usage.
The traces Troy has left to the present day
The characters and events of the Trojan epic have left lasting marks on our language and global culture. The most prominent among them is the “Trojan horse”. Today, the phrase is used universally, in contexts ranging from computer viruses to political intrigues. Whenever we want to describe a hidden plan or a deceitful tactic aimed at conquest from within, we refer to the legendary event from 3,000 years ago using the metaphor of the Trojan horse. It remains one of the clearest examples of how Troy’s mythological legacy continues to live on in our language.
Another well-known phrase that has entered our language from the Trojan epic is “Achilles’ heel.” According to legend, Achilles (Akhilleus) was dipped by his mother into the river of immortality as a child, but because she held him by his heel, that spot remained untouched by the water. In the Trojan War, Achilles became famous as an invincible warrior, yet he was ultimately struck in the very heel by a poisoned arrow shot by Paris of Troy and died. From this myth, the phrase “Achilles’ heel” originates, and we still use it today to describe a vulnerable point in even the strongest figures. The same story also gave rise to a lasting term in medicine. The strongest tendon in the human body, which connects the calf muscles to the heel bone, is called the “Achilles tendon.” Enabling us to walk, run, and jump, it carries the name of Troy’s legendary hero.
The fates of the characters in the legend have also influenced idioms. One example is Cassandra. The daughter of King Priam of Troy, Princess Cassandra, was granted the gift of prophecy by the god Apollo. However, when she rejected Apollo’s love, she was cursed so that no one would ever believe her true prophecies. Although Cassandra foresaw the danger hidden inside the Trojan horse and tried to warn her people, no one listened, and the disaster could not be prevented. The term “Cassandra complex,” used in modern psychology, is based on this myth. It describes a situation where a person warns others about upcoming dangers or troubles but cannot persuade them. The whole picture shows how Troy remains vividly alive among us, even after thousands of years. When we talk about a war, a ruse, or a hero, we draw on symbols borrowed from Troy. In this way, Troy continues to exist in our daily lives like a cultural dictionary.
Troy today: A heritage revived from museum to archaeovillage
Troy in the 21st century lives on not only in history books or archaeological publications but also as a tangible experience for visitors. Added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998, the Troy Archaeological Site is one of Türkiye’s most important cultural treasures. Until recently, however, the modest on-site museum and the open-air ruins were insufficient to fully convey Troy’s grandeur. In 2018, marking the 20th anniversary of Troy’s UNESCO inscription, a comprehensive promotional campaign was launched: conferences, exhibitions, and events took place throughout the year. Most importantly, the long-awaited Troy Museum finally opened its doors. Located at the entrance of the ancient city, the modern museum building was inaugurated in October 2018. Covering 3,000 square meters of exhibition space, the Troy Museum has become one of the world’s leading contemporary archaeological museums, displaying the artifacts uncovered in the region.
Its collection features numerous artifacts from Troy and surrounding regions, spanning from the Bronze Age to the Byzantine period: large stone sarcophagi, sculptures, columns engraved with scenes from the Trojan War, ancient inscriptions, along with ceramics, metal objects, jewelry, and weapons used in daily life. Inside, interactive screens, animations, and dioramas vividly depict the Trojan epic and the city’s layers. In the museum’s garden, visitors are welcomed by a giant wooden “Trojan Horse,” an interpretation of the legendary horse, whose real form remains unknown in history. Meanwhile, the massive Trojan Horse prop used in the 2004 film “Troy” is displayed in Çanakkale’s city center, having become one of the icons of the waterfront.
Another creative step in reviving Troy today has been the transformation of the nearby village of Tevfikiye into an archaeo-village. Launched as part of the “2018, Year of Troy,” the Tevfikiye archaeo-village project was realized through cooperation between the private sector and local authorities, turning the village into something of an open-air museum.
As the closest settlement to the ancient city, Tevfikiye was redesigned with themes reflecting the region’s history and mythology. Busts of Trojan heroes were placed in the village square. Walls and houses were painted with Trojan motifs, while statues of mythological figures and wooden models of the Trojan horse were installed throughout the village. The architecture and streets were arranged to evoke the atmosphere of the Trojan era. As the nearest settlement to the ancient city, Tevfikiye was redesigned with themes reflecting the area’s history and mythology. Busts of Trojan heroes were placed in the village square. Walls and houses were painted with Trojan motifs, while statues of mythological figures and wooden models of the Trojan horse were installed throughout the village. The architecture and streets were arranged to evoke the atmosphere of the Trojan era. In this way, Tevfikiye became a stop for visitors heading to the Troy Museum, where they could explore, purchase organic produce and handmade souvenirs, and experience the spirit of Troy. As a result, Tevfikiye has become a prime example in Türkiye of how archaeological heritage can be revitalized in ways that also embrace and involve the local community.
Troy holds a unique place in humanity’s collective culture. Immortalized in the language of Homer, the city tells a story that still has the power to touch the hearts of its visitors. The story of Troy is the story of humanity itself: a human epic where war and peace, destruction and hope, legend and reality are all intertwined.
