A replica of the Argo, a mythical Greek ship believed to have sailed 3,000 years on a heroic quest from Greece to modern-day Georgia, set sail Sunday from the port of Volos on a trial run.
Built with Bronze Age tools to the specifications of a Mycenaean-era vessel, the 28.5 meter (93 foot) wooden ship sailed into the waters of the Pagasitic Gulf - the legendary expedition's original starting point - after a four-year construction period.
According to Greek legend, the expedition headed by Jason and featuring some 50 other heroes - including Hercules and Peleus, the father of Achilles - sailed to the Black Sea kingdom of Colchis on a mission to retrieve the Golden Fleece, the skin of a divine ram.
Equipped with a ram of its own, the 14th century BC ship was of similar design to the vessels that later carried the Greek armies of the Trojan War described in Homer's "Iliad", organizers said. |
