Heinrich Schliemann's Discovery Of Troy

Heinrich Schliemann was a German archaeologist who was fascinated with the Iliad and the Odyssey. He had made important discoveries through his countless excavations of multiple sites, but it is unclear whether Schliemann was interested in the fame and fortune involved with treasure hunting or whether he had a passion for history and was a true archaeologist.

Schliemann was interested in the tales created by Homer and this may be what led him to discover the site of Troy. He had begun excavating at a mound located in Hisarlik, Turkey. It was here where he found the location of Troy. He had discovered seven settlements which he labelled using Roman numerals with the deepest layer being Troy I and the shallowest being Troy VII. Schliemann identified Troy II as Homeric Troy and this brought with it a new insight into the tales of Homer. Historians now knew that the stories made be Homer were not merely works of fiction, but that they were based on real events in history; this would allow them to learn more about the past and could lead to the discovery of new sites. The discovery of Troy also allowed historians to study Greek prehistory.

When Schliemann began excavating at Hisarlik, he believed that Troy would be located in one of the lower levels so he
Schliemann dismissed the rest of the archaeological team and with the help of his wife, Sophia, they excavated the treasure themselves and smuggled it out of Turkey. In one photo, Sophia can be seen wearing the ‘Jewels of Helen’. Some archaeologist believed that ‘Priam’s Treasure’ was not a single find as the included items covered a wide range of dates which led them to believe that Schliemann had grouped artefacts he had found together and claimed that he had found the ‘Treasure of Priam’. This information appears to show that Schliemann was a treasure hunter who wanted fame and fortune and was willing to lie to get