Update: Homer and Navigating by the Stars in Prehistory

[Minimalist]

How die we get from Homer and ships to the Picts ??

Excellent question.


The question of "what could they do" is separate from "what did they normally do." Ancient ships were small and the model of coasting from port-to-port or spending the night in a sheltered cove or bay makes the most sense. To the shipowner the ship would represent a great deal of his wealth and he would be loathe to risk it at night or in bad weather. A full moon might be an exception but even then, after sailing all day, it would require a tremendous physical exertion to keep the relatively small crews sharp. The Kyrenia type Greek cargo ships had a crew of 4 and were less than 50 feet long, not much bigger than the lifeboats on theTitanic. Why risk it?

[kbs2244]

I do not know if I agree with the idea that the ships were small and the routes always costal.
Wrecks have been found in the middle of the Mediterranean, at locations well out of sight of land.

In the highly detailed story of the Apostle Paul’s voyage to Rome that ended with his being shipwrecked on Malta it is recorded the there were 276 people on board. This was a 60 AD cargo ship, not a passenger ferry. People were a secondary profit center. To carry 278 people in addition to it's primary cargo it would have had to been well over 50 feet long.

However the Antikythera wreck 120 years earlier shows that ships in the 160 foot length range were in use.

http://www.whoi.edu/news-release/antikythera-finds

Stunning Finds from Ancient Greek Shipwreck
New Antikythera Discoveries Prove Luxury Cargo Survives

Components of the ship, including multiple lead anchors over a metre long and a bronze rigging ring with fragments of wood still attached, prove that much of the ship survives. The finds are also scattered over a much larger area than the sponge divers realized, covering 300 meters of the seafloor. This together with the huge size of the anchors and recovered hull planks proves that the Antikythera ship was much larger than previously thought, perhaps up to 50 meters long.

"The evidence shows this is the largest ancient shipwreck ever discovered," says Foley. "It's the Titanic of the ancient world."

The shipwreck dates from 70 to 60 BC and is thought to have been carrying a luxury cargo of Greek treasures from the coast of Asia Minor west to Rome. Antikythera stands in the middle of this major shipping route and the ship probably sank when a violent storm smashed it against the island's sheer cliffs.

Given that they were out of sight of land, useing the stars for navigating would make a lot of sense.

[Minimalist]

In the highly detailed story of the Apostle Paul’s voyage to Rome that ended with his being shipwrecked on Malta it is recorded the there were 276 people on board.

Oh, great. What a source for history!!!!

[kbs2244]

Compared to Homer?

[Minimalist]

Actually, the Iliad is poetry...much like your bible. Tales of the doings of gods and goddesses. In that sense very much like your bible...but certainly not "history."

[Tiompan]

Actually, the Iliad is poetry...much like your bible. Tales of the doings of gods and goddesses. In that sense very much like your bible...but certainly not "history."

Astro navigation , using the position of the sun moon and stars for navigation is not poetry ,but a technique confirmed historically .
The description of the technique in Homer makes perfect sense and is not dissimilar to that noted historically .

[kbs2244]

Thank you.

“Art” can be scientifically accurate.
Do some research on the sphere Atlas has on his shoulder.