ATLANTIC TROY
HOMER, ODYSSEUS ON THE ATLANTIC
English translation of preface and Introduction Troy from
Homer Odyssey, Odysseus' wanderings across the Atlantic Ocean by Gerard Janssen
(original title: Homeros Odyssee: De zwerftochten van Odysseus op de Atlantische Oceaan, vertaling Gerard Janssen, 2018 Leeuwarden, NL, isbn 9789076792286)
Preface This is the first edition of a translation and commentary on Homer's Odyssey, based on the so-called “Atlantic Theory”, that has been developed from the 19th century up to now by the ideas of De Grave, Cailleux, Gideon and Wilkens who, being not satisfied with the traditional interpretation of Homer , scrupulously scrutinized all geographical, meteorological, nautical and cultural details of Ilias and Odyssey and looked for incongruities in the traditional paradigm that places both poems in the Mediterranean, makes Troy a town in Turkey and sees Achaeans as Greeks. The outcome of their investigations was that the old ideas are based on beliefs and dogmas instead of on rational arguments. They proved that: -Troy could not have stood in Turkey; -Achaeans, Danans, Argaeans are not the same as Greeks; -Odysseus could never have been wandering for ten years in the Mediterranean.
On the basis of these conclusions, the authors looked for the right setting and the correct geography of Homer, using all kinds of arguments and secondary evidence. Thereby we have to consider that as far as the Bronze Age, Homeric backgrounds and the search for the real scene are concerned nothing is certain. Meanings of simple Homeric words are uncertain, let alone religious ideas and rites. Archaeology can help us a little, as far as the material part of Bronze Age is concerned, but falls short in explaining philosophical, social and religious backgrounds. Therefore this edition has no intention to settle any truth or create a new dogma but will try to find possible solutions, based on a cohesive theory about culture, religion, and history applicable to all details of Homer's texts. For example, the words ambrosia and nektar, which are used for the food of the gods and of the horses of Poseidon, have never been well explained. We don't know what this food was like: one cannot find it in museums. However, Cailleux developed a coherent theory about the primordial Gallo-German religion, giving a central place to concepts of mummification, rebirth, and reincarnation that can be traced down everywhere in Homer. People used tar and amber for mummification. So, are these materials somehow connected with the words ambrosia and nektar, derived from nek-tar = corpse tar? We know from recent discoveries that tar was already known in the Stone Age, produced by heated beech bark, while amber has been found in big quantities along the shores of the Baltic and the North Sea. Of course, this is only a theory and other solutions are possible, but so far is this the only logical and valid theory ever produced.
Apart from a new geographical setting, the Atlantic Theory gives us a deeper insight into the real meaning of the Odyssey. The Atlantic authors discovered several layers in the story, of which the first, the superficial one, is the myth itself with all kinds of extravagant creatures like nymphs, gods, giants, cannibals, magic veils etc.1 The second layer is less obvious and only understandable for experienced seafarers, who can take advantage from the mass of hidden nautical hints concerning ports of call, wind directions, distances, currents, dangers, courses. To call the Odyssey a kind of “pilot” for the Atlantic is is a little overdrawn, but following closely the courses and distances mentioned by Homer and drawing them in a sea chart, we can easily situate a large part of Odysseus' wanderings on the Atlantic. This is an impossible operation for the Mediterranean because these waters are too small for the mentioned distances. The third and deepest layer is the story of the initiation of the apprentice Odysseus in the religion of Kirke, his nearly-dead experience at the Acheron, his ordeals, and en his resurrection as the newly born king of Ithaka.
Celts All Atlantic authors use the name Celts or Proto-Celts for the inhabitants of the regions because Homer himself calls the “very famous” mother of the Celts by name, Galathea (XVIII,45). Some archaeologists say, however, that this name cannot be used before the Halstatt period (800-500 BC) for the Bronze Age civilisation, while others like to call all Bronze Age urnfield cultures Celtic. To avoid this kind of difficulties I use the name Gallo-German for the civilization of Western and Northern Europe, starting from the Neolithic onwards. Cailleux and Wilkens draw attention to the enormous technical knowledge the Gallo-Germans possessed in the field of shipbuilding, weaponry, battle cars, roads, agricultural instruments, salt exploitation, mining etc., of which several elements are mentioned passingly and as a matter of fact by Homer but bear witness of a very well developed society. This is our western civilization of millennia ago. The Homeric heroes are our ancestors.
Abbreviations for the books of Th. Cailleux:
OC Origine celtique de la civilisation de tous les peuples PH Poésies d' Homère PA Pays Atlantiques, decrit pas Homère Citations of Homer: Roman cyphers = Ilias, e.g. XX,345; Arabic cyphers = Odyssey, e.g. 13,34.
TROY: AN INTRODUCTION
Why Hissarlik is not Troy
