When Did Greek Mythology End and Greek History Begin?

When did the property of Greek mythology extremity and Greek past begin? Credit: Flickr/ Ganimedes Costagravas CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 DEED

There are countless myths and legends astir ancient Greece. Of course, determination are besides countless humanities records astir it, too. So erstwhile did past Greek mythology travel to an end, being replaced by axenic history?

Many radical judge that astir of Greek mythology is acceptable successful the Mycenaean Era, specified arsenic the myths of the Trojan War and the Odyssey. After the Dark Ages that followed, Greece entered the Archaic Era, which started successful c. 750 BCE. Is this erstwhile we yet participate the epoch of Greek history, with the property of mythology having ended? In reality, things are not truthful simple.

The Mythological Founding of Taras, Italy

The Greeks had an unthinkable fig of instauration stories. Historically, they founded countless settlements crossed the Mediterranean, truthful they evidently had galore stories to tell. Much of the time, instauration stories progressive mythical elements.

One wide illustration of this is the fable of the instauration of Taranto, a Greek metropolis successful southern Italy. The past Greeks called this metropolis Taras, and they believed successful a founding fig of the aforesaid name. As Pausanias records, Taras was believed to person been the lad of the deity Poseidon and a section nymph of the country.

According to the story, helium was shipwrecked, but past his begetter sent a dolphin to prevention him and brought him ashore. Taras past founded the metropolis connected that spot.

By immoderate standard, this is perfectly a mythological account. Taras is presented arsenic the lad of a deity and a nymph, and his communicative involves fanciful activities. This is intelligibly a portion of Greek mythology, but erstwhile was it set? Significantly, the metropolis of Taras was founded successful the precocious eighth period BCE. This was wrong the Archaic Era, agelong aft the extremity of the Mycenaean Era usually associated with Greek mythology.

The Mythological Founding of Byzantium

The celebrated past Greek metropolis of Byzantium (later Constantinople) is different wide illustration of mythology overmuch aboriginal successful Greek past than astir radical would expect. A fig named Byzas allegedly founded this site, naming it aft himself.

There is simply a assortment of contradictory accusation astir Byzas, but astir of it portrays him successful thoroughly mythological terms. For example, 1 contented makes him the lad of a pistillate named Ceroessa, the girl of Zeus and Io. Another contented positions Byzas arsenic the lad of a nymph named Semystra. A 3rd contented makes him a modern of the Argonauts, the men who searched for the mythical Golden Fleece.

Yet, erstwhile did Byzas supposedly live? He allegedly founded the metropolis of Byzantium successful the twelvemonth 658 BCE. This is good wrong the Archaic Era, the epoch that we commonly presumption arsenic Greek history.

The Mythology Behind Arion of Greek History

A fig named Arion lived adjacent aboriginal successful Greek history. He was a modern of Periander, a tyrant of Corinth who ruled successful the late-seventh, early-sixth period BCE. Thus, Arion post-dated the creation of Homer’s celebrated poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey.

Some accounts marque Arion the lad of Poseidon and a nymph named Oncaea. Allegedly, helium was attacked by pirates portion astatine sea. He played his kithara to entreaty to Apollo, who past sent dolphins to assistance him. After throwing himself successful the sea, 1 of the dolphins took him to shore.

Once again, this is simply a wide illustration of mythology. It is not simply a distorted, legendary account. It makes Arion the lad of a god, and this is placed firmly successful the realm of Greek mythology. It is not simply a legend.

The Homeric Myth of Etruscan Pirates

Even aboriginal successful history, we find a story astir Etruscan pirates. This relationship comes from 1 of the Homeric Hymns. It appears to person been written successful the second portion of the sixth period BCE.

According to the story, immoderate Etruscan pirates came crossed a lad oregon young antheral connected the enactment of Greece. They seized him and took him aboard. As it happened, this lad was really the deity Dionysus successful disguise. As punishment, helium turned each but 1 of the pirates into dolphins.

This was recorded towards the extremity of the sixth period BCE, and it appears to beryllium acceptable successful that epoch too. Scholars usually recognize it to person been written successful effect to what was communal successful that era—that is, Etruscan piracy. Therefore, this is simply a mythological relationship acceptable aft the clip of specified humanities figures arsenic Pythagoras and Solon.

Greek Mythology successful the History of Alexander the Great

Remarkable arsenic it whitethorn seem, the property of Greek mythology was inactive ongoing successful the clip of Alexander the Great. In 332 BCE, Alexander engaged successful his celebrated siege of Tyre, adjacent Lebanon. Diodorus Siculus, a Greek historiographer of the archetypal period BCE, wrote an absorbing relationship astir what happened during this event.

Diodorus explains that portion the Greek soldiers were nearing the land city, ‘portents were sent by the gods.’ The historiographer explains that an tremendous sea monster leapt retired of the oversea and landed connected the causeway that the Greeks were gathering towards the city. It remained determination for immoderate clip and past managed to autumn backmost into the oversea to aquatics away.

It is wholly imaginable that this was a existent event, and that the ‘sea monster’ successful question was a whale of immoderate kind. Of course, galore mythological accounts apt person their origins successful existent events. That does not alteration the information that Diodorus’ relationship explicitly presents this lawsuit successful a mythological way.

When Greek Mythology Ended and Greek History Began

As we tin see, Greek mythology continued for many, galore centuries aft the Mycenaean Era. There is nary crushed to presume that immoderate fixed Greek story is needfully from that aboriginal play of Greek history. In fact, we proceed to spot tales that are intelligibly portion of Greek mythology done the seventh and sixth centuries BCE, and adjacent down to the 4th period BCE successful a much constricted sense.