Chapter 5 Homer's Mycenae

Greece is the source of much Western learning.After staying in Athens, I looked around again and again, thinking that how many desk sermons and study discussions in the world have gained authority by virtue of this place, but everything here is unpretentious and unpretentious. Passers-by here don’t ask us to put on Platonic flakes, scholars here don’t ask us to narrate world events according to Herodotus’ History, and young people here don’t put on airs as if they were born with it descendants. Looking back at the beginning of Greece, almost all scholars were in the dust.They traveled, they discovered, they pondered, they corrected, and only then did they form a lively Greek civilization.Herodotus has roamed long distances since he was thirty, reaching Babylon in the east, Sicily in the west, Luxor in the south, and the Black Sea in the north, and participated in various cultural activities of the Athens city-state for a long time. ", what aroused my interest even more is the philosopher Democritus, the route he took in his life basically coincides with our investigation this time.From Greece to Egypt, Babylon, Persia, India.The funds he roamed were the inheritance left by his father.When he returned to Greece, his father’s inheritance was basically exhausted. At that time, the city-state he was in would punish his children for squandering their father’s inheritance. It is said that he defended himself in court with his just completed academic book "The Great World", and finally Convince the judge and avoid punishment.

In court, Democritus discussed the relationship between travel and investigations and his own academic achievements. It must be very brilliant. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the chance to read it, but we have recorded such a passage of his: Among my contemporaries I have roamed the greater part of the globe, explored the furthest things; seen the most lands and countries; heard the most lectures of learned men; sketched geometrical figures and proved them No one surpassed me, not even the so-called land surveyors in Egypt. The philosopher's self-report actually describes the portraits of scholars in each cultural prosperity period.I often think that if these scholars know that thousands of years later, some people who call themselves scholars will avoid the vast adventures of life and bury their heads in the lines that are as subtle as the tip of a needle.It is precisely because of this idea that the focus of our investigation this time is not libraries, research institutes, universities, and museums, but the site of civilization sites, so we often have to leave the city to go to the wild.

The center of Greek civilization is Athens, but to understand it in depth, you must first make a splash and look at its background soil.Then, of course, go to the Peloponnese first.Anyone with a little knowledge of world history will know the name of this peninsula, because the city-state of Athens declined in the Peloponnesian War that broke out in the middle and late fifth century BC.The Peloponnese Peninsula has a vast territory and backward ecology. Among them, the Spartans are more warlike and conservative in politics, which really dragged down a developed, progressive, and prosperous Athens.

This is the tragedy that all civilizations cannot get rid of.Civilization is called civilization because it is compared with its surrounding ecology. Therefore, it is destined to be neighbors with barbarism and ignorance.If the two parties belong to different political forces, there will be wars from time to time; if the two parties belong to the same political range, there will be internal friction every day.The struggle between the Spartans and the Athenians in the Peloponnese was basically an internal struggle, and they could not be driven away or escaped, until they evened each other and both sides suffered losses.

However, beyond the general knowledge of world history, the early cradle of Greek civilization was also in the Peloponnese, especially Mycenae.The prosperity of Mycenae was a thousand years earlier than that of Greece. It was a wild and martial civilization, but it also silently nourished Greece. People's impression of Mycenae is probably obtained from Homer's epic, right?The indescribable beauty Helen was snatched from Mycenae by the Trojans, which actually caused a ten-year war.There was a meeting of the Senate, and the gray-haired elders felt that it was not worth fighting for a woman for ten years. Unexpectedly, Helen appeared in front of them at this moment, and all the participants were amazed.In the end, as is known, the Mycenaeans won by tricking the Trojans.However, the victor was brutally killed by the usurper just after his triumphant return. It was originally thought to be a legend, but it was partially confirmed by the excavation of a German archaeologist in the 1880s.

This is the way to go.It should be noted how amazing the Mycenae were at that time. They fought against the Trojans for a Helen, and they led the Greek coalition forces! Searching for Mycenae on the desolate Peloponnese Peninsula could not do without the help of a local guide. I found one, and upon asking, her name was also Helen.But our Helen is old and stocky, speaking sleepy-nosed English and puffing.Her chauffeur was a brawny man with thinning hair and a deep, Socrates-like face. Helen and Socrates took us across the knife-cut Corinth Canal and into the hilly peninsula.I saw green trees all over the field, sparsely populated, and occasionally saw a small village, there were always a few simple stone huts with signs for rent, but there seemed to be no business.

The road was too long, the sun was already westward, the car finally stopped, and when I looked up, I saw an ancient theater built by the side of the mountain.Of course I am interested in the ancient theater, but we have seen several along the way, and Helen said that there is a more beautiful one ahead.This made us alert, and quickly asked: What about Mycenae? Where is Mycenae? Helen shook her head and said: Mycenae has already passed, it doesn't look good there at all.She actually changed our course on her own initiative.It was later learned that she had received many tourist groups from the east, and she was unwilling to climb the mountain when she arrived in Mycenae, and only looked at the foot of the mountain. She felt that it was not interesting, so she quietly canceled it.Of course we don't agree.She had to ask Socrates to turn the car around and drive back.

The ruins of Mycenae are a royal city 3,300 years ago, occupying an entire small stone hill.From a distance, you can only see the decayed city wall on the hillside. Most tourists think that they can see everything at a glance, so they don’t want to climb any more. In fact, its first charm lies in the road, and the road is also the best proof of this royal city as a war base.The road is very secret, and I only found it when I approached it, and I was deeply amazed at its wideness that hides and hides.I took the lead to climb the mountain along the road, and when I turned suddenly, I saw a mountain gate piled up by huge rocks. Looking up, it was extremely majestic.Under the lintel of the mountain gate are reliefs of two lionesses. This is the lion gate that we have seen in many picture books before.

To receive the momentum of the ages in the sudden, and to encounter the masterpieces in the world in the solitude, I have to stop to adjust my breathing. There are deep recessed mortars between the horizontal and vertical stone frames of the mountain gate, and there are rut marks of chariots entering and exiting on the underground stone. When you stand at the gate, you will immediately see the atmosphere of dense battle clouds and noisy chariots and horses. After entering the mountain gate and turning upwards, there are two royal family cemeteries. After archaeological excavation, many empty spaces are left layer upon layer.That is to say, the first sight of this royal city is the tomb. This pattern is very different from Chinese civilization, but it accurately reflects the honor structure of a militaristic dynasty.

In addition to using troops abroad, the Mycenaean dynasty was also keen on court murders. It is surprising that the corpses found by archaeologists in the tomb, such as two babies and three female corpses wrapped in gold leaf, were actually It can prove that many of the cruel stories in Homer's epic poems are not fiction. A tomb involves a series of stories, and the singing of the blind poet soothes countless dead souls.This is Homer's Mycenae. Climbing up from the cemetery, the stone ladder becomes more and more mysterious, circling around like entering a three-dimensional snake formation.Back then, countless defensive ingenuities were buried here, only waiting for the enemy soldiers who entered the city to pay a heavy price.Finally reached the top of the mountain, that is the palace, and now only the flat base is left.At present, the mountains and rivers are vast, and the rulers of the past were planning their offensive and war strategies here.

Due to the militarism, a large number of masks and weapons made of bronze were left in the royal city of Mycenae.In addition to being collected by the museum, part of it is also displayed on the hillside.This kind of craft is refined by the war, and it is regulated by the war. After a war is over, it communicates and integrates through a large number of captured craftsmen. However, too many battles, too many killings, and finally even the upper city was reduced to a fortress.It is a dry tragedy that the once mighty Mycenae appear so cramped and monotonous compared with the ruins of other civilizations. Homer picked up the ancient songs from the bloody hills of Mycenae, and then, together with other songs, paved the way for Greek civilization spiritually and literaryly.Therefore, the best attribution of Mycenae should be Homer, and then through Homer, it should be attributed to Greek civilization. September 30, 1999, Peloponnese Peninsula, Greece, overnight at King in Navria｜Minos Travel