Travels of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians. Prepare a post “Voyages of Phoenician Mariners Project on the theme of Voyages of Phoenician Mariners

Phenicia is a narrow strip of the eastern coast of the Mediterranean, bounded in the east by the Lebanese ridge.

O Phoenicians first told by Homer. From the end of the 2nd early 1st millennium BC, the Phoenicians were engaged in maritime trade, at the same time they founded settlements throughout the Mediterranean (the most significant of them is Carthage). Like all sailors of antiquity, they never voluntarily moved away from the coast beyond the limits of its visibility, never swam in winter and at night.

When the Phoenician society became slave-owning, it became more and more in need of an influx of new slaves, and this further strengthened the desire to sail to overseas countries.

So, no later than 15 centuries BC the Phoenicians began to visit Crete. Moving from there to the west, they laid the foundation for the discovery of the Central Mediterranean basin. From the islands of the Aegean Sea, the Phoenicians moved to the southern shores of the Balkan Peninsula, crossed the Otranto Strait and rounded Apulia and Calambria. Simultaneously with the Cretans, or somewhat later, they discovered the island of Sicily, and then discovered and colonized Malta in the 8th century BC. Having crossed the Strait of Tunis, they moved westward and traced nearly 2,000 km of the coastline of Northwest Africa, opening the mountainous Atlas country to the Strait of Gibraltar. Coming out to the strait, the Phoenicians for the first time got a correct idea of ​​the length of the Great Sea of ​​Sunset (3700 km).

Simultaneously with the penetration to the west, the Phoenicians began to explore the African coast and in an eastern direction. They discovered the bays of Hammamet, Small Sirte with the islands of Kerkenna and Djerba and Big Sirte.

According to ancient Greek authors, the Phoenicians were the first to enter the Atlantic Ocean. They opened the entire western coast of the Iberian Peninsula, entered the mouths of such rivers as the Guadiana, Tagus, Douro, and Minho. There is a possibility that the Phoenicians got acquainted with the shores of the Bay of Biscay up to the Brittany Peninsula.

The Phoenicians built ships for expeditions, which were organized by their neighbors, who owned the shores of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, and entered their service.

V 600 BC Egyptian pharaoh Necho ordered a group of Phoenician merchants to go to sailing around Africa... The historian Herodotus, who visited Egypt, spoke about this voyage, 150 years later, with such details that he himself considered incredible. But it is precisely these details that confirm the reliability of the event. So, to Herodotus, who did not have a modern idea of ​​the globe and the solar system, that part of the story seemed implausible, which said that when the Phoenicians circled Africa from the south, moving at the same time from east to west, they had the sun on the right side, then is in the north. For us, it is clear that it is this circumstance that confirms that the Phoenicians really crossed the equator, sailed through the waters of the Southern Hemisphere and circled Africa from the south. They circled Africa for three years, which is quite plausible, given the capabilities of the navigational equipment of that time, as well as the fact that they stopped for 2-3 months every year to sow and collect bread.

Carthage was founded by the Phoenicians around 850 BC, the greatest trading center of the time. In 500 BC, Carthage, having emerged as a Phoenician colony, began to look for a colony itself. To this end, the Carthaginians organized a large naval expedition led by the Carthaginian admiral Hannon... He led a flotilla of 60 ships, on which there were 30 thousand colonists.

Along the way, Gannon founded cities and in each of them left a part of people and ships.

This journey of the Carthaginians was reflected in the "Periplus" (description of the voyage) of the naval commander Gannon, from which we learned that, having passed through the Strait of Gibraltar, they followed the Atlantic coast of Africa for two days, founding cities along the route. We skirted Cape Zeleny and soon entered the mouth of the Gambia River. A few days later, the travelers reached what they called the Western Horn (probably Byssagos Bay), then the South Horn (now Sherborough Bay in Sierra Leone) and finally landed on the coast of what is now Liberia.

Thus, Gannon reached Equatorial Africa. As far as is known, he was the first Mediterranean inhabitant to visit and describe West Africa.

The results of his outstanding voyage were used only to a minimal extent: the Carthaginian traders followed him on the way to Kerna and organized the "Golden Road" (gold trade) with the deep regions of West Africa.

The Carthaginians are also credited with the discovery of the Azores, but in the literary monuments there is no indication of their visit to these islands. But in 1749, the Swede Johan Podolin reported on the discovery on the island of Carpet of a treasure of ancient coins, among which were Carthaginian ones.

Simultaneously with Hannon, another navigator of Carthage - Gimilkon- made a great voyage along the western coasts of Europe and, apparently, reached the southwestern tip of England (the Scylli Islands).

Thus, Phoenicians and Carthaginians were the first peoples of antiquity to swim in the open sea and ocean without a compass. Undoubtedly, their voyages should have enriched the Phoenicians with a lot of information about the physical properties of the ocean, but nothing from their area of ​​knowledge has come down to us. Apparently, they were of the opinion that the Atlantic and Indian oceans form one continuous water surface.

>> History: Phenicia - the land of sailors

Phenicia - the land of sailors

1. Conquerors of the sea.

About four thousand years ago, they settled on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea tribes, which the ancient Greeks called the Phoenicians, and their country Phenicia. It is assumed that Phoenicia means purple. The Phoenicians extracted a bright dye from sea mollusks - purple, which they used to dye fabrics. Purple was considered the color of kings.

The Phoenicians became famous as the best navigators of the Ancient World. They knew how to build durable ships that were not afraid of storms and storms. In the holds of these ships were chained rowing slaves. Phoenician ships sailed throughout the Mediterranean Sea, even out into the Atlantic Ocean, reaching the northern lands of Europe and the western shores of Africa. They were the first in the world to make about 600 BC. NS. sea ​​voyage around all of Africa. The Phoenicians used the art of sailing not only for good purposes. Among them were sea robbers, pirates who robbed other people's ships.

2. Merchants and city builders.

Phoenician merchants led a lively and very profitable trade all over the Mediterranean. Together with the merchants, the Phoenician cities also grew rich. Even the rulers of other states borrowed from the Phoenicians. The Phoenicians were respected creditors in the ancient world. At the same time, they did not hesitate to extract wealth by any means. Rumor called the Phoenicians greedy and cunning, capable of deceiving people.

The Phoenicians were not only fearless seafarers, successful traders, but also excellent city builders. Their cities Ugarit, Tire, Sidon, Byblos were located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea in places convenient for ships to dock. These were port cities with well-equipped harbors and powerful fortifications. Magnificent palaces were erected in them.

Skilled artisans lived in Phoenician cities. They knew how to produce and dye fabrics. Fabrics dyed with purple were especially prized. Jewelers made exquisite jewelry from gold, silver and precious stones, which the local wealthy and foreigners willingly bought. Carvers created expressive figurines and ivory products.

Phoenician craftsmen invented transparent glass by smelting it in special furnaces from a mixture of white sand and soda. From this glass were blown vessels for incense, vases. The glass mass was used to create the famous Phoenician masks. Such masks were used to cover the faces of the deceased during burial.

The city of Byblos maintained trade links with Egypt. In this city, the Greeks bought Egyptian writing material - papyrus (in Greek byblos). Hence the name of the holy book of Christians Bible meaning "books" as well as the word "library".

In places convenient for life, where their ships reached, the Phoenicians established colonies. A colony is a settlement based on foreign territory. The most famous Phoenician colony was Carthage, founded in northern Africa in the 9-8 centuries BC. NS. immigrants from the city of Tire. Gradually Carthage turned into the richest city, which became the center of a powerful state. Not only other Phoenician colonial cities obeyed him, but also some peoples living in Africa and Spain.

At the beginning of the 13th-12th century BC. NS. the "Sea Peoples" began to attack the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. They seized the lands south of the Phoenician cities. They were the Philistines.

From the name of these peoples came the name of the country they conquered - Palestine... Phenicia and Palestine had a complicated relationship. There were wars and reconciliations between them, negotiations and trade were conducted.

3. Gods of the Phoenicians.

The Phoenicians worshiped the god Baal. His name means "master, lord". He was considered the god of thunder and lightning, storm, war, but also the patron saint of the state. The Phoenicians brought human sacrifices to their gods: babies were thrown into the open mouth of a huge idol, in which a fire was burning.

The main goddess of the Phoenicians, Astarte, was similar to the ancient Babylonian goddess Ishtar. Astarte is the goddess of love, fertility and war.

During the excavations of the Phoenician city of Mozia, a ritual cemetery was discovered, where hundreds of clay vessels with the burnt remains of sacrificed babies were buried. Above the burials, small steles were erected with images of the Phoenician gods, to whom these sacrifices were made.

4. Phoenician alphabet.

Initially, the inhabitants of Phenicia adopted the cuneiform script from the peoples of Mesopotamia, adapting it to their language. But the cunning Phoenicians over time simplified cuneiform to keep trading records and settlements. There were 22 consonants in the Phoenician language. So they came up with 22 letter signs. The Phoenicians did not indicate vowels in writing. The lines were written not from left to right, as we did, but from right to left.

The Phoenicians arranged the letters in a certain order. The result is an alphabet. The first letter of the alphabet was aleph, or a; the second is "bet" or "b". "Aleph" originally meant "bull's head" and "beta" meant "house". The ancient Greeks borrowed the alphabet from the Phoenicians, who also introduced letters for vowel sounds. The Romans borrowed the alphabet from the Greeks. The Slavic and then Russian alphabet was built on the basis of the Greek alphabet. Thus, having learned to read and write, we find ourselves in direct connection with the ancient Phoenicians.

We probably owe the Phoenicians the name of our continent - Europe. That was the name, according to the myth of the ancient Greeks, the daughter of the Phoenician king. Once young Europe was playing on the seashore. God Zeus, delighted with her beauty, took the form of a white bull and bowed before the girl, inviting her to ride. Europa climbed onto the back of the affectionate animal, but suddenly the bull rushed into the sea and swam swiftly from the shore. He sailed to the island of Crete, where Europe became the wife of Zeus and bore him three sons. Part of the Western Mediterranean was named after Europe, and then the entire continent. The abduction of Europa has become one of the favorite subjects artists .

IN AND. Ukolova, L.P. Marinovich, History, grade 5
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About 4000 years ago, tribes first appeared in the Mediterranean, namely its eastern part, which in Ancient Greece were given a special name - the Phoenicians. They went down in history primarily as the most famous navigators of the past.

Name history

It is known that the name of the country - Phenicia - literally sounds like a beautiful adjective - "Purple". And this analogy arose for a reason: the tribes obtained a bright dye for fabrics - purple - which was fixed as the color of the kings. But there is also a second meaning - "Fenechu", which means shipbuilders. It is also justified: the Phoenicians knew how to create ships so strong that they were not afraid of even the strongest sea storms and storms. Swimming was provided by slave rowers arranged in two rows. Having laid the foundations of shipbuilding, these brave people were considered the inventors of the first galleys - multi-tiered rowboats.

Endangered and Carthage

The Phoenician colonies occupied almost the entire coast of the Mediterranean Sea; they also included part of the Atlantic coast and North Africa. Many trading cities were founded there, in particular, Carthage, which had an advantageous geographical position and became the largest trade center with other countries, as well as the protection of the Phoenician colonies during the aggravated struggle with the Greeks and Tartessites.

Travels of famous sailors

The tribes known as talented traders, clever lenders and resourceful city builders also gained fame as the best navigators, who were known not only to Ancient Phenicia, but the whole world. They sailed in the Mediterranean and Atlantic, off the northern lands of Europe and the western African coasts, were the first to travel around the entire African continent, which lasted 2.5 years. This truly grandiose undertaking took place on behalf of the Egyptian king in the 7th century BC, a millennium before Vasco da Gama, proved that the sea surrounds Africa on all sides, excluding the junction with Asia.

There was also a report about the sun, which was on the right, and not on the left, because the travelers were in the other hemisphere of the Earth, which almost for the first time gave reason to assume about the unique shape of the planet - a ball, although at that time it was difficult to believe in it. There were also rare and inaccessible at that time expeditions to the south through the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, this is even mentioned in the Bible. Moreover, these sailors were the first to see the shores of modern Great Britain and brought tin and Baltic amber there.

Around 500 BC NS. the Phoenician fleet sailed west through the Strait of Gibraltar and, establishing several small colonies on the Moroccan coast, sailed a little further south, reaching the Gulf of Guinea. The voyages of the Phoenician sailors are weighty expanded ancient geographical knowledge, despite the fact that many discoveries the Phoenicians kept in secret - and history confirms this: until the 15th century, almost no one risked sailing along the western part of the African continent.

Other achievements of the Phoenicians: some interesting facts

It's safe to say that so many discoveries in antiquity were not made by any other people. And, even despite the fact that by no means in all cases it is the Phoenicians who are the authors of inventions, it was they who introduced them into life, thereby changing the course of civilization:

• created the alphabet, who began a triumphant journey around the world, supplanting almost all other forms of writing; it is interesting that all the letters of the alphabet, the number of which numbered more than two dozen, were consonants;
• the first in the world have thought of keeping the fish from spoiling with the help of salt, supplying products to the farthest countries; by the way, it was salt, which at that time was valued without exaggeration as worth its weight in gold, that the Phoenicians owe their outstanding wealth;
• began to extract paint from mollusks, which became a symbol of royal luxury, and this achievement happened by chance: a dog accidentally gnawed the shell;
• again the first in the world began to produce glass in furnaces from ordinary sand and soda; masks were made from the resulting glass, which covered the faces of the then deceased;
• they brought grapes and olives to North Africa, which then ended up in Spain, where they are still grown, they bought papyrus from the Egyptians and invented war machines.

Thus, the legacy of this civilization had a tremendous impact on the further development of mankind.

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MUNICIPAL BUDGETARY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

"NOVOSELOVSK SECONDARY EDUCATIONAL SCHOOL"

RAZDOLNENSKY DISTRICT OF THE REPUBLIC OF CRIMEA

Travels of the Phoenician sailors

Prepared by:

primary teacher

classes

MBOU "Novoselovskaya

school"

Olga Nezboretskaya

Vasilevna

smt. Novoselovskoe - 2016

FINICIAN SEA TRAVELS

The most famous voyage was made by the Phoenician seafarers during the time of the mighty and vain Egyptian Pharaoh Necho (reigned from 610 to 592 BC).

He summoned the best and most experienced sailors Byblos, Tire and Sidon and instructed them to sail around Africa. If they never turned back, having the shore all the time on their right hand, they would find themselves again in Egypt, Pharaoh promised them great rewards. If they got intimidated and turned the steering wheel, he threatened them with severe punishment.

Phoenician cities

Three Phoenician ships, perfectly equipped, filled with food supplies necessary for long voyage, with the best oarsmen left the city of Sais. They moved along the Nile branches, then along a wide canal, dug back in the days of Queen Hatshepsut and now - 900 years later - cleared and deepened on the orders of Neho, entered the green waters of the Arabian Gulf (as the Red Sea was called).

At first, the path went along the deserted rocky shores inhabited by wild troglodytes (inhabitants of the caves), but on the fortieth day the hospitable shores of Punta appeared. Swarthy half-naked Puntians fled to the shore and took the Phoenician sailors to their village, located on the swampy coast on stilts. Phoenicians, after a hearty offered by the hospitable hosts, laid out their goods: amber , golden bowls, purple cloth and sharp iron daggers, until then unknown to the Puntians. In exchange, the natives offered them tame monkeys, greyhound hunting dogs and long-horned bulls. But the Phoenicians asked for small balls of dry myrrh, the fragrant resin of a tree that grows only in Punta and neighboring Arabia. They knew that the Egyptian priests would pay them generously for these balls. The gods of Egypt love the fragrant smoke that swirls from braziers, on which fragrant myrrh heats up and melts.

Phoenician sea routes

Moving on, the Phoenicians swam along the coast, inhabited by black, snub-nosed, fat-lipped people. They walked almost completely naked. Only a narrow belt hung around the waist, and from it hung leopard tails and large shells. Black people were distrustful of foreigners and did not allow them to land. Drawing their bows, they threatened with sharp arrows or threw stones, raising columns of spray around the ships. However, once the Phoenicians managed to get off to a completely empty shore. On the sandbank lay piles of dazzling white elephant tusks and several leopard skins nearby. There was not a soul to be seen around. The oldest of the Phoenician merchants explained what was the matter: “The locals want to exchange their booty for our goods, but they are afraid of us. We must take their offerings and put our gifts in place. We'll have to sail here again sometime. If we act honestly, the inhabitants will trust us and always bring ivory to this place. "

The young merchants obeyed the old man and, having loaded 120 of the best fangs on the ships, replaced heaps of colorful cheap beads, Egyptian earthenware vessels and small bronze hatchets.

First Galley - multi-tiered rowboat

The voyage continued. Every day the air became more and more heated. The heat was becoming unbearable. The Phoenicians threw off their woolen cloaks and remained in light linen shirts, but this did not help either. On the thirteenth month of the voyage, a miracle happened. The sun at noon deviated not to the south, as it was supposed to, but to the north. Even the old people had never seen anything like it and, sighing, said: “The God Baal was angry and went to the north. He will disappear from us completely into the Underworld and the whole world will plunge into darkness. " But the days passed, and nothing terrible happened. The sailors were accustomed to a strange phenomenon (the Phoenicians reached the southern hemisphere, and the equator was in the north). One thing upset them: in their homeland, no one would believe them when they told that they saw the sun at noon on the north side.

The reserves were soon depleted. I had to make a long landing, shoot wild and sow some barley and wheat on the marshy shore. Under the hot southern rays, the grains quickly sprouted, and after three months they had already managed to take off an abundant harvest.

The Libyan country seemed endless. For the second year already the Phoenicians sailed, and there was no end in sight of the journey. But then came a joyful day. The coast began to turn to the west, and the sailors realized that this was the southern outskirts of Libya. Soon they sailed to the north and realized that they were approaching, albeit slowly, to the house, skirting Libya from the direction of sunset. At noon, the daylight again began to deviate to the south, and the sailors breathed freely. The hardest part was over.

Now the ships have entered a deep bay. In the depths there was a small island full of some wild people covered with thick fur. The guide, who has been to distant southern countries more than once, called them gorillas. Several Phoenicians - experienced hunters - with spears in their hands chased the monsters, but they fled, clinging to the rocks and defending themselves with stones. Managed to capture only three hairy and muscular ... They could not speak and only bellowed angrily, biting and scratching. There was no way to bring them to the coast. I had to kill them and strip their skins. The Phoenician sailors argued for a long time whether they were people or animals. And we couldn't solve it.

A new phenomenon soon attracted the attention of the Phoenicians. A high mountain appeared in the distance, from the top of which a column of flame was beating. Fiery streams poured into the sea, and whole clouds of ash were carried by the wind in all directions and reached the ships. "This is the chariot of the gods," said the guide, prayerfully hands and uttering incantations in an undertone, - woe to the one who approaches her. "

A new island appeared. The sailors disembarked to stock up on fresh water from the stream. Some went deep into the dense forest. Huge branchy trees were buried in greenery. Their trunks were varied and scented. The stream flowed into a salt lake, in the middle of which there was another island. The travelers did not meet a single person during the day, only the chirping of countless birds and the roar of lions broke the silence. But a black southern night fell, and suddenly thousands of lights blazed up in the middle of the forest and sounds were heard , cymbals and tympans and wild guttural cries. The travelers in fear fled to the shore, and the soothsayers ordered them to leave the island.

Having sailed past the mouth of an unknown river full of crocodiles and hippos, the Phoenicians saw in the distance a coastal village. The huts made from tree trunks were covered with palm leaves. Residents, pouring out onto the shore, spoke in a familiar language, welcoming the arriving guests.

Carthage

They were colonists from Carthage, a large Phoenician city located on the northern coast of Libya.

After spending 10 days with their compatriots, the sailors set off again and, passing between the two pointed pillars of Melkart, entered the familiar Upper Sea. The further path was no longer dangerous. The sailors rested for a long time in noisy Carthage, visiting friends and acquaintances, selling ivory, ebony, golden sand and animal skins in the market - everything that they managed to get along the way.

Sales on the market, everything that the Phoenicians got along the way

A month later, the Phoenician sailors were already sailing to the coast of Egypt. Their journey lasted three years, Pharaoh Necho did not even think to see them alive and, rewarding them with generous gifts, noticed that not a single traveler had ever climbed so far, and many centuries would have passed until there were other such daredevils to dare to go around huge Libya and return through the pillars of Melqart.

The location of Phenicia was not suitable for agriculture, but contributed to the development of other areas. One of these, which brought world fame to the Phoenicians, is shipbuilding. Navigation would not have been possible without him.

The main material for the construction of ships was the Lebanese cedar, which grew on the territory of Phenicia. The wood was of excellent quality, which made the ships very strong and resistant to heavy storms. In addition, the Phoenicians were the first of the ancient peoples to apply new principles in shipbuilding:

• the body was made up of thick boards, the edges of which were fastened with large oak spikes;
• the transverse ribs of the body were covered with plating;
• great attention was paid to the quality of the keel (the ships were not flat-bottomed);
• the cargo compartments were fenced off.

From the 12th century BC NS. Phoenicians created capacious merchant ships with good carrying capacity. On the sides, fencing lattices were fixed to protect the cargo, at the stern - two large oars for maneuvers. A straight sail (usually purple in color) was attached to a mast equipped with yards. The rowers were often slaves.

The Phoenicians built strong shelters for ships along their shores, protecting ships during storms.

Rice. 1. Phoenician merchant ship.

The Phoenicians are considered the creators of the trireme. This is a military (combat) ship with three rows of oars, common in the Mediterranean from the 8th century BC. NS. The oars were staggered, and the rows were one above the other. The ships could reach 40 meters in length and were supplied with an iron ram (less often a wooden one).

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The Phoenician fleet was actively used by the Egyptian rulers in their conquests, since the triremes were very maneuverable.

Rice. 2. Phoenician trireme.

Achievements of sailors

Initially, the Phoenicians used ships for fishing. Later, the main goal of navigation was the development of trade: it was necessary to sell their goods and acquire others as cheaply as possible for their own use and for sale. Phoenician products made of metal, ebony, ivory and valuable fabrics, especially purple in color (such paint in Phenicia was made from shellfish), were very popular.

The state had free access to the Mediterranean Sea, and high-quality ships made it possible to explore the Atlantic Ocean. Therefore, Phoenician sailors were given the opportunity to explore different directions. They sailed the entire Mediterranean Sea, on the islands of which they founded their colonies (Sicily, Malta, Sardinia, Cyprus, Crete); reached the Atlantic coast of England, Spain and the Canary Islands.

The most famous navigator is considered to be Gannon. He led a trireme expedition to the shores of Africa. At the request of the Egyptian ruler Necho ΙΙ in the 6th century BC. NS. the Phoenicians entered the Red Sea, then reached the Strait of Gibraltar and returned to Egypt, thus bypassing the entire coast of Africa. This journey lasted about three years.