UC Classics says get ready for 'The Odyssey'

Jack Davis, the university's Carl W. Blegen Professor in Greek Archaeology, and Senior Research Associate Sharon Stocker sat down with Ekathimerini to discuss what new they are learning about their archaeological discoveries in Pylos, Greece, and why they are excited about the new Universal Pictures summer blockbuster starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland and Anne Hathaway.

“Part of it was filmed in Pylos, so we were able to spy on them a little bit in the making of it,“ Stocker said.

“It's going to bring a lot of recognition to Greece. And Homer's going to become a household word, which is amazing,“ Stocker said.

In 2015 Davis and Stocker discovered a warrior’s tomb that contained weapons, armor and jewelry, including a sealstone depicting mortal combat in such fine detail that Archaeology magazine hailed it as “a Bronze Age masterpiece.”

Davis and Stocker called him the “Griffin Warrior” for the scene of a mythical griffin fighting a lion carved on an ivory container. The discovery has been hailed as the most important archaeological finds in Greece of the last 50 years.

Two years later, they found princely tombs lined with gold that contained additional artifacts that are shedding light on the people, the culture and the economy of Mycenaean civilization. 

Davis was awarded the Athens Prize by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. 

And the UC Classics experts are celebrating the opening at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens of “Nestor's Pylos: A Mycenaean Kingdom Revealed“ featuring artifacts from their startling discoveries in Greece. This follows a successful show at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles last year.

Davis said they've discovered more about the long reach of Bronze Age trade routes that brought foreign objects and materials to Greece.

Featured image at top: A sealstone found in the tomb of the Griffin Warrior depicts mortal combat in exquisite detail. Photo/UC Classics