Hellenic shipping through the centuries: ''The robot ships of Phaeakes''
Saturday, 12 April 2008
The roots of the Hellenic shipping activity go very far through the centuries. Some of them are the homeric poems and the orphic hymns. Today there are many automations in the modern vessels, but the question is what really happened in the past? it is very interesting to see what the grand poet Homer said about that, 3,000 years ago. The King of Phaeakon, Alkenoos, offered philoxenia in his palace to the ship wrecked Ulysees, and was asking him questions about his country in order to arrange for his repatriation. He also spoke with enthusiasm about the very advanced technology of the vessels and crafts of The Phaeacians.
Let's have a look in the book 8 of Odyssey verse 555-566*: 'Tell me your country, neighborhood and city, so that my ship can have their course in mind for. There are no Phaeacian ships with steer men, nor any steering oars, like all other ships. Our ships can understand the thoughts of men, and know all cities and the fertile fields of men, and cross the sea at highest speed, concealed by mist and cloud, and have no fear that they might suffer damage or destructions."
Someone might say that all of the above are pure mythology and nonsense which were created by the fantasy of the poet maker. There is also the other view which says that mythology is a real history codified, but not written.
Homer described real things and not fantasies. Concrete proof of this is the discovery of Ancient Troy, with the thesaurus of the king Priamos by the great archeologist Sleeman.
Homer talks about ships without steermen (captain) and steer oars; ships which understand the thoughts and the logic of people; ships which know all the cities and lands. And finally ships that are able to navigate through cloudy seas with safety.
Let’s suppose that everyone will agree that the mentioned ships and crafts look like robots, which have special mechanisms of propulsion, advanced computerized system able to understand and execute the thoughts of people. GPS (global position system), able to identify all lands and cities globally, or even ifr (instrument flying roots)
systems, and ils (instrumental landing systems) for landing or flying under cloudy conditions.
All the above would be more impressing, if we clarify that the said crafts could cover the distance between the land of Phaeakes (Florida, U.S.A.) and Hellas with return (about 11,700 miles) in one day. More for that we will say next time.
IDOMENEAS SARRIS, Msc.
*Sources
1) “11000 years Thalassocracy of Hellines” by Costas Doukas
2) “Wine colour sea” by Henrietta Mertz
3) “Homer's Odyssey by Denison Bengham Hull
4) “Odyssey” by Costas Doukas
