When 19th-century archaeologists began to excavate the remains of Bronze Age Greece—especially Mycenaean gold and imposing palaces—they often interpreted their discoveries through the lens of Homer’s Trojan War. Associations between archaeological finds and legendary figures such as Achilles, dazzling Helen, and wise Nestor of Pylos have endured in both scholarship and the popular imagination. Join archaeologist Bryan Burns as he surveys the legacy of stories and treasures and provides a more realistic look at Homeric society and Mycenaean Greece supported by the latest evidence.
Modern Myths about the Age of Homer
Talk
Boar’s-Tusk Helmet (detail), Mycenaean, 1520–1440 BCE. Boar’s tusk, set on a modern plaster head. Found in Tholos Tomb 2, Psari. © Hellenic Ministry of Culture – HOCRED / Archaeological Museum of Messenia, Kalamata, AMM 11943 / Image © J. Paul Getty Trust, photo: Jeff Vanderpool
About
Bryan Burns
Archaeologist
Bryan Burns is professor of classical studies at Wellesley College, where he teaches courses on the representation of myths in Greek art, interactions between regions of the ancient Mediterranean, and changing methods of archeological research. He is co-director of the Eastern Boeotia Archaeological Project and the excavations at ancient Eleon, where the Greek-Canadian team has uncovered houses and tombs spanning the Late Bronze Age (1700–1100 BCE). His book Mycenaean Greece, Mediterranean Commerce, and the Formation of Identity won the Archaeological Institute of America’s book award in 2014.
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