Black Ships and Sea Raiders

The Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Context of Odysseus’ Second Cretan Lie

Jeffrey P. Emanuel

• Publisher: Lexington Books
• Year: 2017
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781978753945
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: European History

The end of the Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean was a time of social, political, and economic upheaval – conditions reflected, in many ways, in the world of Homer's Odyssey. Jeffrey P. Emanuel examines the Odyssey's Second Cretan Lie (xiv 191 – 359) in the context of this watershed transition, with particular emphasis on raiding, warfare, maritime technology and tactics, and the evidence for the so-called 'Sea Peoples' who have been connected to the events of this period. He focuses in particular on the hero's description of his frequent raiding activities and on his subsequent sojourn in the land of the pharaohs, and connections between Odysseus' false narrative and the historical experiences of one particular Sea Peoples group: the 'Sherden of the Sea.'

Table of contents

• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter One. Epic, Oral Tradition, and Archaeology
• Chapter Two. Structure and Methodology
• Chapter Three. Raiders, Traders, and Sea Peoples in the Late Bronze Age and Beyond
• Chapter Four. Mycenae, Aḫḫiyawa, and the Collapse of the Late Bronze Age Order
• Chapter Five. The Sea Peoples and the Egyptian Records
• Chapter Six. The Changing Face of War and Society
• Chapter Seven. Hedgehog Helmets, Sea Peoples, and Ship-to-Ship Combat
• Chapter Eight. Mariners and Their Ships: Vessel Types, Capacity, and Rigging
• Chapter Nine. Αἴγυπτόνδε: Life, Prosperity, and Health in the Land of the Pharaohs
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author