Schliemann's Trench (sometimes referred to as Schliemann's Great Trench)Cline (2018), p. 28. is the name commonly given to a gash cut into the side of

Hisarlik Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destination, and was ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, between 1871 and 1890 by

Heinrich Schliemann Johann Ludwig Heinrich Julius Schliemann (; 6 January 1822 – 26 December 1890) was a German businessman and an influential amateur archaeologist. He was an advocate of the historicity of places mentioned in the works of Homer and an archaeolo ...

in his quest to find the ruins of

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

. By digging this trench, Schliemann destroyed a large portion of the site.

Excavation of the trench

In OctoberNovember 1871,

"officially" began excavating the site by digging into the northern side of

.Easton (2014), p. 4345. Schliemann returned to the site in April 1872 with

battering ram A battering ram is a siege engine that originated in ancient times and was designed to break open the masonry walls of fortifications or splinter their wooden gates. In its simplest form, a battering ram is just a large, heavy log carried ...

s and

windlass The windlass is an apparatus for moving heavy weights. Typically, a windlass consists of a horizontal cylinder (barrel), which is rotated by the turn of a crank or belt. A winch is affixed to one or both ends, and a cable or rope is wound arou ...

es, excavating a wide area between the trench he had dug in 1871 and trenches dug earlier by

Frank Calvert Frank Calvert (1828–1908) was an English immigrant who was a consular official in the eastern Mediterranean region and an amateur archaeologist. He began exploratory excavations on the mound at Hisarlık (the site of the ancient city of Troy) ...

. Around this time, Schliemann also widened his north–south trench, extending it clear through the southern end of the hill. In the middle of this north–south trench, Schliemann dug further down until he hit bedrock, uncovering in the process the remnants of two separate citadel (walls IIb and IIc), which he believed were the "Tower of Ilion".Easton (2014), p. 45. In February 1873, Schliemann continued excavations in the north-eastern part of Hisarlik and started new excavations on the hill's southeast side. During this season, Schliemann discovered the southwestern part of Troy II's citadel walls as well as Gate FM, its associated ramp, and buildings that Schliemann believed to be the remnants of Priam's palace.Easton (2014), pp. 4748. Schliemann would return to the site in 1878 and 1879 (during which he focused most of his attention on clearing the middle of the hill and deepening his north–south trench), 1882 (during which, among other things, he continued to deepen the north–south trench), and 1890 (when he focused most of his attention on excavating the exposed parts of the Troy II citadel).Easton (2014), p. 63. After Schliemann's excavations ceased, the deep north–south trench became a notable feature of the site, and it is still visible to this day. The trench is often cited as an example of Schliemann's inexperience, for in digging through Hisarlik until he hit bedrock, Schliemann destroyed much of the site, thus "mak nga hugely complex site even more so".Huler (2010), p. 55.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Coord, 39, 57, 28, N, 26, 14, 17, E, display=title 1890 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Buildings and structures completed in 1890 Troy Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Archaeological sites in the Marmara region Heinrich Schliemann Earth structures