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Wandering Rocks
In Greek mythology, the Planctae (, ''Planktai'', "Wanderers"), also known as Wandering Rocks, were a group of rocks, between which the sea was mercilessly violent. The ''Argo'' (led by Jason) was the only ship to navigate them successfully (with divine help from Hera, Thetis, and the Nereids). Jason chose to brave the Planctae instead of braving Scylla and Charybdis. In the ''Odyssey'' of Homer, the sorceress Circe tells Odysseus of the "Wandering Rocks" or "Roving Rocks" that have only been successfully passed by the ''Argo'' when ''homeward'' bound. These rocks smash ships and the remaining timbers are scattered by the sea or destroyed by flames. The rocks lie on one of two potential routes to Ithaca; the alternative, which is taken by Odysseus, leads to Scylla and Charybdis. Furthermore, in the ''Argonautica'', it was Hera, for her love of Jason, who sped the ''Argo'' through the Symplegades safely. The rocks also appear on the journey in the ''Argonautica'' by Apollonius ...
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Greek Mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories concern the ancient Greek religion's view of the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, nature of the world; the lives and activities of List of Greek deities, deities, Greek hero cult, heroes, and List of Greek mythological creatures, mythological creatures; and the origins and significance of the ancient Greeks' cult (religious practice), cult and ritual practices. Modern scholars study the myths to shed light on the religious and political institutions of ancient Greece, and to better understand the nature of mythmaking itself. The Greek myths were initially propagated in an oral tradition, oral-poetic tradition most likely by Minoan civilization, Minoan and Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean singers starting in the 18th century&n ...
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Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea (, ; or , ; , ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including Basilicata, Calabria, Sicily, and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania (and western Apulia, Italy) to the north, and the west coast of Greece, including the Peloponnese. All major islands in the sea, which are located in the east of the sea, belong to Greece. They are collectively named the Ionian Islands, the main ones being Corfu, Kefalonia, Zakynthos, Lefkada, and Ithaca. There are ferry routes between Patras and Igoumenitsa, Greece, and Brindisi and Ancona, Italy, that cross the east and north of the Ionian Sea, and from Piraeus westward. Calypso Deep, the deepest point in the Mediterranean at , is in the Ionian Sea, at . The sea is one of the most seismically active areas in the world. Etymology The name ''Ionian'' comes from the Greek word . Its etymology is unknown. Ancient G ...
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Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the northwest and the Po Valley. The countries with coasts on the Adriatic are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Italy, Montenegro, and Slovenia. The Adriatic contains more than 1,300 islands, mostly located along its eastern coast. It is divided into three basins, the northern being the shallowest and the southern being the deepest, with a maximum depth of . The prevailing currents flow counterclockwise from the Strait of Otranto. Tidal movements in the Adriatic are slight, although acqua alta, larger amplitudes occur occasionally. The Adriatic's salinity is lower than the Mediterranean's because it collects a third of the fresh water flowing into the Mediterranean, acting as a dilution basin. The surface water temperatures ...
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Lefkada
Lefkada (, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas (Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greece, Greek list of islands of Greece, island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Greece, connected to the mainland by a long causeway and Pontoon bridge, floating bridge. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Lefkada (city), Lefkada. It is situated on the northern part of the island, approximately 25 minutes by automobile away from Aktion National Airport. The island is part of the Lefkada (regional unit), regional unit of Lefkada. Geography Lefkada measures from north to south, and from east to west. The area of the island is about , the area of the municipality (including the islands Kalamos (island), Kalamos, Kastos and several smaller islets) is . Its highest point is the mountain Stavrota, at above mean sea level, above sea level, situated in the middle of the island. ...
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Tim Severin
Timothy Severin (25 September 1940 – 18 December 2020) was a British explorer, historian, and writer. Severin was noted for his work in retracing the legendary journeys of historical figures. Severin was awarded both the Founder's Medal of the Royal Geographical Society and the Livingstone Medal of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society. He received the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his 1982 book ''The Sindbad Voyage''. Personal life and career He was born Giles Timothy Watkins in 1940 to Maurice and Inge Watkins in Jorhat, Assam, India, where his father managed a tea plantation. Educated in England from age 7, he attended Tonbridge School and studied geography and history at Keble College, Oxford. He adopted the name Severin to honour his maternal grandmother, who cared for him in his youth. Severin married twice. His first wife was Dorothy Sherman, a specialist in medieval Spanish literature; that marriage ended in divorce. He later married Dee Pieters. Sev ...
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Siren (mythology)
In Greek mythology, sirens () are female humanlike beings with alluring voices; they appear in a scene in the ''Odyssey'' in which Odysseus saves his crew's lives. Roman poets place them on some small islands called Sirenum scopuli. In some later, rationalized traditions, the literal geography of the "flowery" island of Anthemoessa, or Anthemusa, is fixed: sometimes on Cape Pelorum and at others in the islands known as the Sirenuse, near Paestum, or in Capreae. All such locations were surrounded by cliffs and rocks. Sirens continued to be used as a symbol of the dangerous temptation embodied by women regularly throughout Christian art of the medieval era. "Siren" can also be used as a slang term for a woman considered both very attractive and dangerous. Nomenclature The etymology of the name is contested. Robert S. P. Beekes has suggested a Pre-Greek origin. Others connect the name to σειρά (''seirá'', "rope, cord") and εἴρω (''eírō'', "to tie, join, faste ...
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Mount Etna
Mount Etna, or simply Etna ( or ; , or ; ; or ), is an active stratovolcano on the east coast of Sicily, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Catania, between the cities of Messina, Italy, Messina and Catania. It is located above the Convergent boundary, convergent plate margin between the African Plate and the Eurasian Plate. It is one of the tallest active volcanoes in Europe, and the tallest peak in Italy south of the Alps with a current height (September 2024) of , though this varies with summit eruptions. For instance, in 2021 the southeastern crater reached a height of , but was then surpassed by the Voragine crater after the summer 2024 eruptions. Etna covers an area of with a basal circumference of . This makes it by far the largest of the three volcanism in Italy, active volcanoes in Italy, being about two and a half times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. Only Teide, Mount Teide on Tenerife in the Canary Islands surpasses it in the whole of the Euro ...
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Sicily
Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4.7 million inhabitants, including 1.2 million in and around the capital city of Palermo, it is both the largest and most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea. Sicily is named after the Sicels, who inhabited the eastern part of the island during the Iron Age. Sicily has a rich and unique culture in #Art and architecture, arts, Music of Sicily, music, #Literature, literature, Sicilian cuisine, cuisine, and Sicilian Baroque, architecture. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, and one of the most active in the world, currently high. The island has a typical Mediterranean climate. It is separated from Calabria by the Strait of Messina. It is one of the five Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with s ...
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Straits Of Messina
The Strait of Messina (; ) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily ( Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria ( Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Sea to the north with the Ionian Sea to the south, within the central Mediterranean. At its narrowest point, between Torre Faro and Villa San Giovanni, it is wide. At the city of Messina, it is wide. The strait's maximum depth is about . The strait has strong tidal currents that create a unique marine ecosystem. The rock in the town of Scilla, Calabria at the north of the strait and a natural whirlpool in the northern portion of the strait have been linked to the Greek legend of Scylla and Charybdis. In some circumstances, the mirage of Fata Morgana can be observed when looking at Sicily from Calabria. With its bottleneck shape, it is also a compulsory point of transit in the migration of many bird species. In 1957, a 220  kV overhead power line was built across the Strait of Mes ...
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Geography Of The Odyssey
The locations mentioned in the narratives of Odysseus's adventures have long been debated. Events in the main sequence of the ''Odyssey'' take place in the Peloponnese and in what are now called the Ionian Islands (Ithaca (island), Ithaca and its neighbours). There are also incidental mentions of Troy and its house, Phoenicia, Egypt, and Crete, which hint at a geographical knowledge equal to, or perhaps slightly more extensive than that of the ''Iliad''. The places visited by Odysseus in his journey have been variously identified with locations in Greece, Italy, Tunisia, the Maltese archipelago, and the Iberian peninsula. However, scholars both ancient and modern are divided whether any of the places visited by Odysseus (after Ismara, Ismaros and before his return to Homer's Ithaca, Ithaca) were real. Many ancient writers came down squarely on the skeptical side; Strabo reported what the great geographer Eratosthenes had said in the late 3rd century BC: "You will find the scene of ...
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