Finding the Walls of Troy, by Susan Heuck, Allen Lane, $35, University
of California Press, ISBN 0520208684
MENTION Troy, and the name Heinrich Schliemann automatically comes to the
minds of many of us. But 鈥淭roy and Frank Calvert鈥� are not yet such a cosy
twosome. Just who is this Frank?
In Finding the Walls of Troy, Susan Heuck unmasks the mysterious Mr
Calvert as the man who first discovered the site of ancient Troy long before
Schliemann. And while she鈥檚 busy restoring the fortunes of this little known
Englishman, she sheds welcome light on the archaeology of Troy.
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Calvert belonged to an old Levantine English family who had lived and owned
land in the Dardanelles area of northwestern Turkey since the 1830s. Heuck
paints an intriguing picture of the Calverts: they had served as British
consuls, entertained scholars and dignitaries, and purchased large estates in
the region. When Calvert arrived at the family estate around 1845, he stepped
ashore into an archaeologically rich area. It was also a 鈥渓andscape of the
European imagination鈥�, associated not just with the Trojan War but also with
Jason and the Argonauts, and Alexander the Great. This myth-laden land was
partly owned by his family, and he soon acquired a familiarity with it that has
never been equalled.
So Calvert acted as guide to visiting lords, princes and scholars. He showed
them the family鈥檚 unique and growing collection of local antiquities. He also
became expert in archaeology at an exciting time for it, when major
archaeological advances such as Henry Layard鈥檚 excavations at Nineveh in
Mesopotamia were being made. By 1859, he had read and digested the books of
Layard and others, and had perfected his own archaeological method.
Calvert had a curious eye and meticulous approach: he spotted differences in
topography, excavated pithos graves, identified types of pottery, and recognised
variations in the treatment of the dead. His reputation, based on his published
excavation results, grew apace. His Dardenelles house was described at a meeting
of the Archaeological Society in Berlin as 鈥渢he headquarters of all Trojan
谤别蝉别补谤肠丑鈥�.
By 1863, Calvert鈥檚 skill at excavation enabled him to demolish earlier
theories about the location of Troy. At Pinarbasi, he revealed that the burial
mounds of Achilles and the other Trojan heroes were heaps of stony refuse from
quarries. And, in the same year, he identified the large mound, or tell, at
Hisarlik as the probable site of Troy. Half the mound lay on his family鈥檚
land.
Things had gone smoothly up to this point. Poised to dig at
Hisarlik鈥攁nd make his name forever鈥� financial disaster and scandal
struck Calvert and his family. Virtually overnight, his money and status
disappeared. His archaeological ambitions were thwarted, and the British Museum
in London rejected his request for funds.
Calvert鈥檚 fortunes might eventually have recovered enough for him to
investigate Hisarlik more fully. But it was not to be. The second blow鈥攖he
arrival of Schliemann鈥攚as decisive. Schliemann, a German businessman,
wound up in the area in the summer of 1868 at the tail end of a Grand Tour. He
began digging holes at several sites which, unknown to him, Calvert had already
proved could never have been Homer鈥檚 Troy. Calvert, ever hospitable, invited the
German traveller to dinner. But this was a grave mistake. Calvert promptly
revealed his identification of Hisarl铆k as the site of Troy鈥攁nd all
was lost.
Schliemann backdated his own letters and diary entries systematically,
belittled Calvert, and played up his own image as an archaeologist and
visionary. Within months of leaving Turkey he had published a book setting forth
鈥渉is鈥� discoveries.
Calvert had given away his life鈥檚 work for nothing. Yet he continued to
counsel Schliemann, offering his expert knowledge and advice on excavation
methods, and he let the German keep half the artefacts found on his side of the
site.
Meanwhile, Schliemann simply went on his duplicitous and deceitful way. Not
until 1873 did Calvert defend himself in a newspaper by revealing the truth
about Schliemann鈥檚 鈥渁chievements鈥�. And by then it was too late. A year later
Schliemann discovered what he called Priam鈥檚 Treasure, and successfully
smuggling the gold to Athens.
This is a fascinating story, well told. Heuck has unpicked the myths and
restored something like the truth to one of archaeology鈥檚 most famous episodes.
But will 鈥淐alvert and Troy鈥� ever enter the common consciousness? Only time will
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