Two-handed black burnished cup

This cup comes from the mound of Hisarlik in western Turkey, which has been identified as the site of ancient Troy. It was probably found by A.W.F. Calvert before the beginning of excavations in 1871 by the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. It dates to the twelfth century BC.

Though the identity of Hisarlik as ancient Troy is widely accepted, identifying the actual levels of the mound that date to the Trojan War of Homer's epic poem is a matter of debate. Schliemann suggested Level II of the site, with its hoards of gold and silver, was the Troy of Priam, Paris and Hector. Other scholars, however, realized that Homer's Troy should have flourished at the same time as the Mycenaean culture of the Greek mainland (about 1600-1200 BC) and so the later Level VI, with its mighty ramparts, public buildings and clear destruction level was preferred. Subsequent excavations then suggested that Level VI had been destroyed not by invaders but by an earthquake and that another level (VIIa), destroyed by fire, might be a better candidate.

Continuing excavations are shedding more light on the city's long history, but it is very unlikely that it will ever be possible to relate Homer's epic poem directly to the archaeological record but the thirteenth to twelfth centuries BC provide the most likely background for any historical event that underlay the story of the Trojan War.