the trojan war myth as a didactic project

The Trojan War Myth as a didactic project:

Innovative proposals for the understanding of the history

Giulia DIONISIO1 | Panaiotis KRUKLIDIS1

1 University of Florence

Abstract: Educational projects and innovative learning methods are very much in demand today for the first

level education. These methods enable children to better understand school subjects, such as history,

through images, games, video and animated stories. These elements increase the interest in children and

allow a better understanding of the topics.

This poster is created to suggest a different approach to Greek mythology. The chosen period revolves

around the Trojan War and the purpose of this representation is to provide an immediate learning for children

and young people through images created to describe the setting. The suggested project, however, is also

designed for adults, providing a new type of communicative approach for scholars and experts. The poster is

also an example of museal panelling which aims at a general public.

The panel is divided into two levels: the learning designed for children (pink colored) is strongly based on the

images that are placed in relief with respect to the bottom; the part for adults, closely linked with the one for

children, is accompanied by technical explanations concerning the images implementation and their

relevance from a historical and archaeological point of view.

The available technical tools in a historical reconstruction are varied and highly innovative: an extensive

bibliographic knowledge, a range of knowledge learned in the field, the affinity with the freehand drawing and

graphics tablet and the use of 2D and 3D software are all fundamentals to the creation of the reconstructions

used in the educational and technological field.

In the selected illustrations, an important role is played by the elements that will make up the image.

Therefore, not only information will be provided by the single figure dominating the scene, but all the objects

used to produce the reconstruction will play a key role.

The two levels of the poster, besides the different color, will also have a different printing technique and will

be connected to one another by graphic elements.

Keywords: learning, Trojan War, 3D reconstruction, digital drawing, computer graphic.

Introduction

The aim of this representation is to provide a different approach to Greek mythology through a new scientific

reconstruction1 to explain it to a wider non specialist public. The chosen period develops about the Trojan

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1 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/2012/04/ricostruzioni-virtuali-archeologiche.html

International Conference on Cultural Heritage and New Technologies | Vienna | 2013

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War2, an issue already addressed by the authors (DIONISIO 2011; KRUKLIDIS 2010, 2011a, 2011b, 2012,

2013).

The presented poster wants to be a panel museum example for a general public (fig. 1). The goal of this

representation is to provide an immediate learning of this mythological and historical event for both childrens,

teens and adults through a new kind of image-based communicative approach3

Fig. 1 – A panel museum example for a general public (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

The learning through images

The panel is divided into two levels: the first designed for children and the second addressed to adults. The

children level is very important and is strongly based on images (fig. 2).

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2 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/2011/04/datazione-guerra-di-troia.html 3 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/2012/01/illustrazioni-per-il-musint.html

Dionisio | Kruklidis – The Trojan War Myth as a didactic project

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The traditional learning method, implemented in schools until a few years ago, is today increasingly

inadequate and unproductive for a constructive and long-lasting learning. The teaching based only on

textbooks is now considered a too stern and inadequate process for the different types of children's learning.

Visual instruments are of great importance in new teaching methods because the images are easier to

understand and stimulate the children mnemonic capacity. Moreover, drawings are regarded as integration

tools for children with disabilities, foreign or with specific disorders.

In this context, the poster is a prototype for a new different childish learning form because it relies almost

exclusively on the use of visual materials. Indeed, memory images, especially in children, are much more

persistent than the acoustic memory.

The Trojan War myth has been displayed through highly realistic images, developed after a careful historical,

archaeological and interpretative study of the Homeric data (fig 3). Great relevance has been given to the

use of colors and to the relief of the depictions: images are placed, indeed, on different levels compared to

the bottom surface.

Images are also accompanied by comics containing explanatory texts that introduce children to the discovery

of the images through a simple and colloquial language.

Behind the images: historical, archaeological and interpretative research of the Homeric

tale

The starting point for the images creation was to verify the truthfulness of some sources of the Trojan cycle.

It is possible, in fact, that behind the epic tale there are episodes handed down by real events or modified by

ancient storytellers. In this context, it is very important to try to interpret the thoughts of the authors and

deduce things that are not explicitly said; only after this research, with caution, it will possible to create some

reliable reconstructions.


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Fig. 2 – The Poster (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

Fig. 3 – Mycenae around 1200 B.C. (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)


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To force the author to say what he did not say explicitly, almost as by asking him a question4, it is necessary

to explore the world described by Homer, seizing all shades in stories and reading the oldest tales handed

down by bards. This is important to disentangle informations that contain an unexpected truth.

Consider the following example:

And all day long they strained at the yoke across their necks.

Now the sun dipped and the roads grew dark5.

At first sight the verses look like a poetic description of the passage of the day and the approaching of night.

In reality, these two lines contain other information: "the roads" in the plural may imply a network of

connections between two places (Pylos-Sparta in this case); the same road was subject to the passage of

horses and chariots, referring in this case to two horses and two drivers, so the road had to be at least 2 m

wide. Finally, the distance covered is a full day "by step" of the chariot.

However, one should not think of a unique reconstruction of the epic description given by the author. The

reconstruction should run on multiple platforms. Hence, the difficulty arises of taking into account more

aspects like the careful philological analysis which, in addition, should be compared with the relevant

archaeological finds. Further, to recall the appearance of each character it will be necessary to partly

embody the typical traits of his character, essential to provide an appropriate representation. One should

also always refer the various target of the public, behind the scholars of the sector.

However, it should be considered that the final representation will certainly have a new light, in counter-trend

with other, often not faithful, representations of the historical period (JASINK | KRUKLIDIS, 2012). In spite of

the valuable paintings of "archaeological style" of the past (e.g. images like Alma-Tadema, Waterhouse and

Bouguereau, examples still valid in the past), today we have some deficiencies in the educational and

historical issues. The tendency is to show the Mycenaean era, the representations of the Trojan War, only

through armor and equipment incorrectly, as if they were of the classical era, with the Achaeans more like

Hoplites, these warriors of the Bronze Age.

All the weapons mentioned during the siege of Troy have been described as bronze weapons, with the

exception of iron arrowheads used by Pandarus. In the past this description has been taken as a likely later

interpolation; today we know that bronze was the predominant metallic material and that iron was already

known in the Mycenaean era, especially in its final period.

We know from Homer, with the support from archaeological findings, that the typical equipment of a

Mycenaean warrior was: a baldric around the chest that claimed its sword on the side, a shield of

considerable size compared to those of later times, the spear always ready to hand (often two of them); the

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4 Paraphrase by the italian semiotician, essayist, philosopher, literary critic, and novelist Umberto ECO.

5 All english traslations are from the web site: http://www.poetryintranslation.com/. The phrase is mentioned several times in the text of

the Odyssey: III, 486-487; XV, 182-185/295-296.


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characters of rank were also embodied with a chariot with two horses. The care of weapons and animals

was the responsibility of the warrior6.

Fig. 4 – Full bronze armor of Telamonian Ajax (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

The organization of the army was simple, as it can be argued by combining the sources in Linear B7 and the

epic texts. Above all there was the wanax (wa-na-ka), the king, who managed the power supply; there was

an alliance of wanakes led by Agamemnon. Then there was the "light" infantry, the core of the army

supplied, as offensive weapons, with two spears, a sword and a dagger and, for defense, with helmet and

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6 Il. II, 382-384 and 388-390.

7 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/2011/12/scrittura-lineare-b.html


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shield. The "heavy" infantry, in full bronze armor8, moved the chariot along with a charioteer (fig. 4). Given

the high cost of the material for heavy equipment, this could only be for the exclusive use of an aristocratic

caste, very close to the king.

Fig. 5 – Mask of Agamemnon (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

In addition, two other considerations must be made:

1) The first is related to communication and educational history. As an example of information that “can be

accepted as true", we take the so-called "Mask of Agamemnon" discovered within the Circle A at Mycenae

(fig.5). Schliemann, led by his fervent passion, identified it as the funerary portrait of the legendary Achaean

king. Later more accurate studies proved that the beautiful mask did not belong to the Trojan War period; yet in

the collective imagination it remained as a symbol of the destiny of the glorious and tragic hero. The gold mask,

while not representing Agamemnon (fig. 6), the "lord of heroes", captures the essence of a caste of rulers in the

climax of the Mycenaean civilization. We are tempted to think that the mask pertains to an ancestor of the

Homeric hero, and this can be of help in the understanding of a remote civilization.

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8 The bronze when it is oxidized appears shiny, “golden” like gold, offering a significant visual impact.


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Fig. 6 – Agamemnon (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

2) The so-called “Agamemnon’s scepter” can be interpreted as an information that "may be true". From

Homer we know the scepter was used as a distinguishing mark of rank. Similar artifacts have been found,

with one of them from Kourion in Cyprus (tomb 40, Episkopi-Kaloriziki), of probable Aegean influence. It is of

an admirable workmanship in gold and enamel, with two soar-standing eagles, strong heraldic symbolism,

on top of the knob (fig. 7). Controversial hypotheses have been made on this object and its dating (KOUROU

1994: 204-205; KARAGHEORGHIS 2002: 235 and fir.292). The comparison with the descriptions of

Agamemnon’s scepter in Aristophanes is of interest and gives an additional clue for our reconstruction9:

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9 Aristophanes, The Birds, 508-510.


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And the authority of these birds was so mighty that whoever was the human king in a Greek city,

like, say some Agamemnon or a Menelaos, his sceptre would have a bird perched on top of it and

that way it would share whatever was presented to that king.

Fig. 7 – The scepter of Kourion in Cyprus (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)


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Images structure

Technical tools for historical reconstructions include a broad knowledge of literature, direct field experience,

the affinity with the freehand and graphics tablet drawing, 2D and 3D softwares (KRUKLIDIS 2012). Care

should be taken of all the elements that comprise the poster illustrations (Fig 8).

Fig. 8 – Thousand ships (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

The two poster levels are characterized by a different base color and are made with a different printing

technique, but they are connected by graphic elements.

Available digital solutions allow for almost real environmental display of the reconstructions which are

inserted in a surrounding that enhances the effectiveness of the teaching tool in the pure “spirit of

multimedia” (fig. 9).

Combinining the traditional drawing techniques with the use of the computer and computer graphics

produces credible virtual or static reconstructions. The research presented here is a full fusion and

interaction between digital and manual artistry techniques. The traditional approach will give a legacy of

tension, of warm signs, of expressive traces, while the digital approach will allow change of mind, unlimited

attempts, rich variation and higher performance (to learn more see KRUKLIDIS, 2012).


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Fig. 9 – Process of preparing for a cross-section of roads, bridges and drainage culverts in Argolis (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

Fig. 10 – Ideograms chariots and wheels in Linear B (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)


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Appendix: the war chariot in the Mycenaean period and in the homeric tale

The chariot was a prestige war vehicle in the Mycenaean period. From the analysis of the linear B tablets

a considerable number of chariots has been hypothesized both in Pylos and Knossos (fig. 10).

The owners of the chariots have been likely identified with the so called “followers” (e-qe-ta), probably a

group of individuals of noble birth, members of the palace and companions of the ruler. From the Pylos

tablets, we know that they are associated with certainty to the control of some coastal units along the

Messenian area, perhaps for the danger of invasion or for the raids on the coasts (CULTRARO 2006). At any

rate, the chariot had to be used by people of high-ranking, by great and noble warriors (fig. 11). Indeed, in

many representations the chariot is associated with the deities or with people that seem to belong to the

higher ranks (JANSEN 2002).

Fig. 11 – Menestheus on chariot (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)


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Also in the Homeric tale we note this peculiarity: the chariot is used by the great Achaean kings10. They had

to keep it and feed the horses (see note 3). The Homeric chariot was described in the passage of Hera's

chariot11, and in seven other places in the Iliad12: it had a cab enclosed on three sides, made up of a steam-

bent frame that probably stood at waist-height, with double chariot wheels.

In the Iliad chariots, mainly, convey the heroes to and from the battlefield, or from one part of the frontline to

another, whereupon they dismount to duel. The charioteers, meanwhile, keep the vehicle ready for, if

necessary, a rapid retreat or a prompt pursuit13. But not only that! There are some references in the Iliad

discussing fighting on the chariot. Nestor, able to drive the chariot, harangue the charioteers before the

battle. Instructs them so that it can charge in formation:

Fig. 12 – Reference at the chariot in fighting actions14 (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

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10 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/2014/01/eroi-omerici-menesteo-signore-di-atene.html

11 Il. V, 722-732.

12 Il. V, 262, 322; X, 475; XI, 535; XVI, 406; XX, 500-501; XXI, 38.

13 All citations of the Iliad. Into battle: II, 464-466; VII, 1-3; VIII, 58-59. Point-to-point: V, 239-240; XI, 527-530. Dismount to fight: IV, 419-

421; VI, 103-105; VIII, 320-322; XI, 47-49; XVI, 426-427. Retreat: V, 45-46; VIII, 157-158; XI, 595-597. Pursuit: VIII, 191-197; XVI, 377-

379; XX, 498- 501.

14 http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/chariots.htm


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Let no man be over-eager, trusting in courage and skill to break ranks and challenge the Trojans

alone, but let him not lag behind either, since that weakens the force. But no man can do wrong who

lays his chariot alongside that of a foe, and tries for a spear-thrust. Such was the courage and will of

the men of old who stormed walls and laid waste cities15.

There are other examples of this specific use in combat:

Foot-soldiers killed others as they ran; horse-drivers put horse-drivers to the sword16

Nestor's instructions to the charioteers may recall his youthful experience: the Pylians charge the Epeians in

formation, each warrior (and the young Nestor) fight from the cab of their vehicle with a spear as Achaean

warriors from their chariots:

I struck him as he came at me, with my bronze-tipped spear, and down in the dust he went. Then I

mounted his chariot, joining the charioteers in the front rank, only to find the noble Epeians scattering

in flight at the fall of their great warrior, their captain of horse. I fell on them like a fierce storm, and a

pair of warriors bit the dust beside every one of the fifty chariots I took, conquered by my spear17.

The reference to the chariot in fighting actions for Mycenaeans is attested on many seals, rings,

gravestones, and throughout the Mycenaean period (fig. 12). These scenes show quite clearly the fight from

the chariot with bow and spear. The most know example is the tomb stele from Shaft Grave V, Grave Circle

A, Mycenae (Late Helladic I, before 1500 BC). The chariot warrior, apparently armed with a thrusting spear in

the right hand and a sword in his left hand, pursues a fleeing foe. Another example is the carnelian seal from

Vapheio (dated to the 15th century BC). This is one of the few depictions that shows the spearman as well

as the driver in the chariot. The sturdy double upper-and-lower draught pole with lashed braces is very

prominently shown and the spearman is in the act of striking like in the stele from Mycenae.

Although in various representations the bow is also shown, as in the Near East, in the Aegean areas the

javelin and the spear seem the preferred weapons used from the chariot. This is also attested in the Iliad

when, for instance, Pandarus, disappointed about the effectiveness of his bow, decided to fight against

Diomedes from the chariot using the spear:

Take the reins yourself Aeneas, handle your own horses. They’ll work better for the master they know, if

we’re forced to run. For want of your voice to guide them they might startle, and jib at carrying us from the

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15 Il. IV, 293-309.

16 Il. XI, 150-151.

17 Il. XI, 742-748.


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field, leaving fierce Diomedes to close in for the kill. He’d have them then, so drive the team and your own

chariot now, while my sharp spear waits to receive him18.

In consequence, the battle scene with the chariot (fig. 13), that we have represented for educational

purposes, is plausible and therefore correct!

Fig. 13 – Battle scene (copyright: Panaiotis Kruklidis)

All images are property of the author Panaiotis Kruklidis19. Many of these are visible on his personal blog20

and website21.

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CULTRARO, M. (2006) I Micenei. Roma: Carocci Editore.

DIONISIO, G. (2011) “L’archeologia nei progetti didattici multimediali in Toscana: il percorso didattico del progetto MUSINT” in JASINK,

TUCCI, BOMBARDIERI, MUSINT. Ricerche ed esperienze di museologia interattiva. Firenze: Firenze University Press.

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FIELDS, N. (2004) “Troy c. 1700-1250 BC”. Oxford: Osprey Fortress 17.

FIELDS, N. (2006), “Bronze Age War Chariots”. Oxford: Osprey New Vanguard 119.

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HIGGINS, M. e R. (1996) A Geological Companion to Greece and the Aegean. New York: Cornell University Press.

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18 Il. V, 230-238.

19 http://issuu.com/panaiotispan/docs/cv_europass_-_pan 20 http://iltaccuinodipan.blogspot.it/ 21 http://www.panaiotiskruklidis.com/


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Imprint:

Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Cultural Heritage and New Technologies 2013 (CHNT 18, 2013)

Vienna 2014

http://www.chnt.at/proceedings-chnt-18/

ISBN 978-3-200-03676-5

Editor/Publisher: Museen der Stadt Wien – Stadtarchäologie

Editorial Team: Wolfgang Börner, Susanne Uhlirz

The editor’s office is not responsible for the linguistic correctness of the manuscripts.

Authors are responsible for the contents and copyrights of the illustrations/photographs.

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