Where was Homer's Ithaca?

For thousands of years people thought that Troy was imaginary. Then the archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann excavated it in the 1870s. It is south-west of Istanbul and its location matches Homer’s description in the Iliad precisely. Other cities that Homer described have also been discovered: Knossos in Crete, Mycenae south of Corinth; and in 2005 Ajax’s palace was located on Salamis, near Athens. So could Homer’s Ithaca also be a real location? And can modern geology combined with classical research and satellite technology help us to locate it?

The Geological Society of London is the world's oldest national scientific and professional society for Earth scientists and is this year celebrating its 200th birthday, marked by a series of public events.

The Burlington House Lectures represent a new joint interdisciplinary initiative organised in conjunction with the Royal Academy and the five learned societies that occupy this historic building. These are the Geological Society, the Linnean Society, the Royal Astronomical Society, the Society of Antiquaries and the Royal Society of Chemistry.

On Monday October 29 the authors of Odysseus Unbound will present their proposal and the latest discoveries from the island of Cephalonia. 

Entrance is free but by ticket only.  Tickets are available from Jayne Phenton at the email address below.

Timetable

• 1730 Tea,
• 1800 lecture,
• 1900-2000 Drinks (sponsored by FUGRO) and book signing

Venue

• The Geological Society of London (Piccadilly Entrance) 

Speakers

• Robert Bittlestone FGS
  
• Prof. James Diggle (University of Cambridge),
  
• Prof. John Underhill FGS (University of Edinburgh).