Map of Homeric Greece

The famous Catalogue of Ships (νεων κατολογος) is recorded as a part of Book II (verses 494–760, PP Il.2.494) of Homer's Iliad. It lists the names of all the allies who came with the Greeks to lay siege to Troy along with the names of their leaders and the number of ships they brought with them. It is followed by a similar, though shorter, list of the Trojans' allies. Map of Homeric Greece, coastal outline based on Map of Greece, from CIA World Factbook GIF. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Map of Homeric Greece, coastal outline based on Map of Greece, from CIA World Factbook GIF. This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Bust of Homer in the British Museum For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... The Perseus Project is a digital library project of Tufts University that assembles digital collections of humanities resources. ... Bust of Homer in the British Museum For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... The Iliad (Greek Ιλιάς, Ilias) tells part of the story of the siege of the city of Ilium, i. ... Walls of the excavated city of Troy (Turkey) Troy (Greek Τροία Troia also Ἰλιον; Latin: Troia, Ilium) is a legendary city, scene of the Trojan War, part of which is described in Homers Iliad, an epic poem in Ancient Greek, composed in the 8th or 7th century BC, but containing older... Walls of the excavated city of Troy (Turkey) Troy (Greek Τροία Troia also Ἰλιον; Latin: Troia, Ilium) is a legendary city, scene of the Trojan War, part of which is described in Homers Iliad, an epic poem in Ancient Greek, composed in the 8th or 7th century BC, but containing older...

The Catalogue provides a rare summary of the geopolitical situation in the region although its reliability is disputed. Some argue that it dates from the time of the Trojan War in the mid 13th century BC, while others contend that it dates from the time of Homer himself in the 8th century BC and is an attempt to transfer later information back five centuries. An intermediate theory is that the catalogue originated through a process of accretion during the poem's oral transmission and reflects gradual inclusion of the homelands of local sponsors by individual singers. The Trojan War was a war waged, according to legend, against the city of Troy in Asia Minor by the armies of the Achaeans, following the kidnapping (or elopement) of Helen of Sparta by Paris of Troy. ... This bronze ritual wine vessel, dating from the Shang Dynasty in the 13th century BC, is housed at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution. ... (2nd millennium BCE - 1st millennium BCE - 1st millennium) // Overview Events Assyria conquers Damascus and Samaria Nineveh destroyed (789 BCE) First recorded Olympic Games held in Greece (776 BCE) Zhou Dynasty moved its capital to Luoyang (771 BC); The Spring and Autumn Period (771-481 BCE) began. ... Oral literature corresponds in the sphere of the spoken (oral) word to literature as literature operates in the domain of the written word. ...

The Catalogue

The Catalogue lists 28 contingents accounting for a total of 1186 ships, corresponding to a force of some 100.000 to 140.000 men. It contains 50 toponyms and 150 ethnonyms.

• 1. (II.494) Boeotians: 50 ships with 120 men each
• 2. (II.511) Minyans: 30 ships
• 3. (II.517) Phocians: 40 ships
• 4. (II.527) Locrians led by Ajax the Lesser: 40 ships
• 5. (II.536) Abantes of Euboea led by Elephinor: 40 ships
• 6. (II.546) Athenians led by Menestheus: 50 ships, together with 12 ships of Salamis led by Ajax the Great
• 7. (II.559) Argives/Achaeans of Argos and Tiryns, led by Diomedes: 80 ships
• 8. (II.569) Argive forces led by Agamemnon, from Mycenae and Corinth: 100 ships
• 9. (II.581) Lacedaemonians, led by Menelaus: 60 ships
• 10. (II.591) forces from Pylos led by Nestor: 90 ships
• 11. (II.603) Arcadians led by Agapenor: 60 ships
• 12. (II.615) Elians: 40 ships
• 13. (II.625) Dulichium led by Meges: 40 ships
• 14. (II.631) Cephallenian forces of Ithaca led by Odysseus: 12 ships
• 15. (II.638) Aetolians led by Thoas : 40 ships
• 16. (II.645) Cretans led by Idomeneus: 80 ships
• 17. (II.653) Rhodians led by Tlepolemus: 9 ships
• 18. (II.671) Symians led by Nireus: 3 ships
• 19. (II.676) Nisyrians: 30 ships
• 20. (II.681) Myrmidons led by Achilles: 50 ships
• 21. (II.695) Phulacians led by Protesilaus, later by Podarces: 40 ships
• 22. (II.711) Boebians led by Eumelus: 11 ships
• 23. (II.716) Meliboeans led by Philoctetes, later by Medon: 7 ships with 50 archers each
• 24. (II.734) Oechalians led by sons of Asclepius: 30 ships
• 25. (II.738) Ormenians led by Eurypylus: 40 ships
• 26. (II.748) Lapiths led by Polypoetes and Leonteus: 40 ships
• 27. (II.756) Enienes and Perrhaebians led by Gouneus: 22 ships
• 28. (II.760) Magnetes led by Prothous: 40 ships

Boeotia (Greek Βοιωτια) was a central area of ancient Greece. ... See Minyan (disambiguation) for other meanings of the term. ... Locris was a region of ancient Greece, made up of two districts. ... Ajax (Greek: Αἴας), a Greek hero, son of Oïleus the king of Locris, called the lesser or Locrian Ajax, to distinguish him from Ajax, son of Telamon. ... Euboea or Negropont (Modern Greek: Εύβοια Evia, Ancient Greek Εúβοια Eúboia; see also List of traditional Greek place names), is the largest island of the Greek archipelago. ... The Acropolis in central Athens, one of the most important landmarks in world history. ... Menestheus, the son of Peteus, was a legendary King of Athens during the Trojan War. ... Salamis Island is the name of an island in the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, near Athens, Greece, where the Battle of Salamis was fought in 480 B.C.. Salamis, Cyprus is an ancient city on the east coast of Cyprus. ... Aias (Greek: Αίας: Of the Earth), or Ajax, son of Telamon, king of Salamis, a legendary hero of ancient Greece. ... Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnesus near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius. ... The Achaeans (also Akhaians, Greek Αχαιοί) is the collective name given to the Greek forces in Homers Iliad. ... Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnesus near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius. ... Map ot Tiryns Tiryns (in ancient greek Τίρυνς) is a Mycenaean archeological site in the Greek nomos of Argolis in the Peloponnese peninsula, some kilometres north of Nauplion. ... In Greek mythology, Diomêdês (god-like cunning) was the son of Tydeus and Deipyle and a favored hero of Athena. ... Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnesus near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius. ... The so-called Mask of Agamemnon. Discovered by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876 at Mycenae. ... Mycenae (ancient Greek: , IPA , in modern Greek: Μυκήνες ; see also List of traditional Greek place names), is an archaeological site in Greece, located about 90km south-west of Athens, in the north-eastern Peloponnese. ... Temple of Apollo at Corinth Corinth, or Korinth (Κόρινθος; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... Sparta (Greek Σπάρτη) was a city in ancient Greece, whose territory included, in Classical times, all Laconia and Messenia, and which was the most powerful state of the Peloponnesus. ... Menelaus (also transliterated as Meneláos), in Greek mythology, was a king of Sparta and son of Atreus and Aerope. ... There are also Pylos in Ilia including Pylos Ilias and Pyrgos Trifylias which are both archaeological sites Pylos (Greek Πύλος Formerly Navarino) is the name of a bay and a town on the west coast of the Peloponnese, in the district of Messenia in southern Greece. ... The word may have one of the following meanings. ... Arcadia or Arkadía (Greek Αρκαδία; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus. ... Elis, or Eleia (Greek, Modern: Ήλιδα Ilida, Ancient/Katharevousa: Ήλις, also Ilis, Doric: Άλις) is an ancient district within the modern prefecture of Ilia. ... In Greek mythology, Mégês Phyleïdês was a son of Phyleus. ... Kefalonia also known as Cephalonia, Kefallinia, or Cefalonia (Ancient Greek: Κεφαλλήνια Modern Greek: Κεφαλλονιά), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece. ... For other places named Ithaca, see Ithaca (disambiguation). ... Odysseus and the Sirens. ... The ancient Region of Aetolia, Greece This article is about the ancient Greek region Aetolia. ... Thoas, son of Andraimon, was one of the heroes who fought for the Greeks in the Trojan War. ... Greece and Crete Crete (Greek Κρήτη / Kriti) is the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean Sea. ... In Greek mythology, Idomeneus was a Cretan warrior, grandson of Minos. ... Main entrance to the medieval city of Rhodes Rhodes, Greek Ρόδος (pron. ... Tlepolemus, or Tlêpólemos, in Greek mythology was the son of Heracles by Astyochea, daughter of the King of Ephyra. ... Simi (Greek: Σύμη; also transliterated Syme or Symi) is a small but historic Greek island. ... In Greek mythology, Nireus was the name of several individuals: Nireus was a son of Poseidon and Canace. ... The Myrmidons (or Myrmidones, the name literally means ant-people) were an ancient nation of Greek mythology. ... For other uses, see Achilles (disambiguation). ... Ancient Greek kingdom, whose king was Protesilaus, the first Greek hero killed in the Trojan War. ... In Greek mythology, Protesilaus was the son of Iphicles and the leader of the Phylaceans. ... In Greek mythology, Podarces was a son of Iphicles. ... Eumelus was the name of several men in Greek mythology: A Eumelus succeeded Adrastus as the King of Pherae. ... In Greek mythology, Meliboea referred to two different people. ... In Greek mythology, Philoctetes (also Philoktêtês or Philocthetes) was the son of King Poeas of Meliboea in Thessaly. ... In Greek mythology, there were two people called Medôn. ... Asclepius (Greek also rendered Aesculapius in Latin and transliterated Asklepios) was the god of medicine and healing in ancient Greek mythology, according to which he was born a mortal but was given immortality as the constellation Ophiuchus after his death. ... In Greek mythology, Eurypylus referred to three different people. ... In Greek mythology, the Lapiths were a semi-legenday, semi-historical race, whose home was in Thessaly in the valley of the Peneus. ... In Greek mythology, Polypoites or Polypoetes (Greek: Πολυποίτης) was the name of several individuals: Polypoites was a son of Hippodamia and Pirithous. ... Magnesia (Greek: Μαγνησία Magnisia), deriving from the Macedonian tribe name Magnetes, is the name of the southeastern area of Thessaly in central Greece. ...

External links

• detailed map of Achaeans and Trojans
• list of geograpical features in the catalogue
• a weekly podcast based on the Catalogue of Ships

Literature

• Austin, J. N. H. Catalogues and the Catalogue of Ships in the Iliad, Berkeley, 1965.
• Visser, E. Homers Katalog der Schiffe, Teubner, 1997.