Editing Troy (section)

== Archaeological site ==
[[Image:Plan Troy-Hisarlik-en.svg|thumb|325px|right|Schematic of the site.<ref>This "Archeological plan of the Hisarlik citadel" was created by user Bibi Saint-Pol and contributed to Commons in 2007.</ref>{{efn|1: Gate
2: City Wall
3: Megarons
4: FN Gate
5: FO Gate
6: FM Gate and Ramp
7: FJ Gate
8: City Wall
9: Megarons
10: City Wall
11: VI. S Gate
12: VI. H Tower
13: VI. R Gate
14: VI. G Tower
15: Well-Cistern
16: VI. T Dardanos Gate
17: VI. I Tower
18: VI. U Gate
19: VI. A House
20: VI. M Palace-Storage House
21: Pillar House
22: VI. F House with columns
23: VI. C House
24: VI. E House
25: VII. Storage
26: Temple of Athena
27: [[Propylaeum]]
28: Outer Court Wall
29: Inner Court Wall
30: Holy Place
31: Water Work
32: [[Bouleuterion]]
33: Odeon
34: Bath}}]]

The archaeological site of Troy consists of the hill of Hisarlık and the fields below it to the south. The hill is a [[tell (archaeology)|tell]], composed of [[Stratigraphy (archaeology)|strata]] containing the remains left behind by more than three millennia of human occupation.

The primary divisions among layers are designated with [[Roman numeral]]s, Troy&nbsp;I representing the oldest layer and Troy&nbsp;IX representing the most recent. Sublayers are distinguished with lowercase letters (e.g. VIIa and VIIb) and further subdivisions with numbers (e.g. VIIb1 and VIIb2). An additional major layer known as Troy&nbsp;0 predates the layers which were initially given Roman numeral designations.

The layers have been given [[relative dating|relative dates]] by comparing artifacts found in them to those found at other sites. However, precise [[absolute dating|absolute dates]] are not always possible due to limitations in the accuracy of [[Carbon-14 dating|C{{sub|14}} dating]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Jak |last=Yakar |year=1979 |title=Troy and Anatolia early Bronze Age chronology |journal=Anatolian Studies |volume=29 |page=52 |doi=10.2307/3642730 |jstor=3642730 |s2cid=162340023 }}</ref>

:{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;"
|+
! Layer || Dates || Period{{efn|The periodization of the Western Anatolian Bronze Age differs from divisions used in other areas.}}
|-
| Troy 0 || 3600–3000 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| [[Neolithic]] and [[Early Bronze Age]]
|-
| Troy I || 3000–2550 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Early Bronze Age
|-
| Troy II || 2500–2300 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Early Bronze Age
|-
| Troy III || 2300–2200 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Early Bronze Age
|-
| Troy IV || 2200–2000 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Early Bronze Age
|-
| Troy V || 2000–1750 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Early Bronze Age
|-
| Troy VI || 1750–1300 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| [[Middle Bronze Age]] and [[Late Bronze Age]]
|-
| [[Troy VII]]a || 1300–1180 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Late Bronze Age
|-
| Troy VIIb || 1180–950 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| Late Bronze Age and [[Greek Dark Ages|Dark Age]]
|-
| Troy VIII || 950–85 BC 
|style="text-align:left;"| [[Classical Greece|Classical]] and [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]]
|-
| Troy IX || 85 BC–500 AD 
|style="text-align:left;"| [[Roman Empire|Roman]]
|}

=== Troy 0 ===

Troy&nbsp;0 is a pre-Bronze Age layer known from limited finds of pottery shards and wooden beams. It is tentatively dated to {{circa|3600–3500 BC}} but little is known about it.<ref>{{cite web | title=Ancient city of Troy likely founded 600&nbsp;years earlier than thought | website=Daily Sabah History | location=Istanbul | date=9 January 2019 | url=https://www.dailysabah.com/history/2019/08/21/ancient-city-of-troy-likely-founded-600-years-earlier-than-thought | access-date=23 January 2020 | archive-date=16 December 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191216032454/https://www.dailysabah.com/history/2019/08/21/ancient-city-of-troy-likely-founded-600-years-earlier-than-thought | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title=In Search of Troy| website=Smithsonian Magazine| date=March 2022| url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/in-search-of-troy-180979553/| author=Joshua Hammer| access-date=26 February 2023| archive-date=26 February 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230226224045/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/in-search-of-troy-180979553/| url-status=live}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=These are good media sources, but scholarly sources would be better.|date=February 2023}}

=== Troy I ===

[[File:Turkey-2941_(2216425111).jpg|thumb|left|300px|Troy&nbsp;I's fortifications were the most elaborate in northwestern Anatolia at the time.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.troyexcavations.com/savunma-duvari/?l=en |title=The Fortification Wall |date=2023 |website=Troy Excavations |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-date=28 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228021939/https://www.troyexcavations.com/savunma-duvari/?l=en |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Rose-2013 />{{rp|style=ama|pp=9–12}}]]

Troy I was founded around 3000 BC on what was then the eastern shore of a shallow lagoon. It was significantly smaller than later settlements at the site, with a citadel covering less than 1 [[hectare|ha]]. However, it stood out from its neighbours in particular for its massive limestone fortifications which were regularly renovated and strengthened. Defensive architecture would continue to be a distinctive characteristic in later periods, reflecting perennial security concerns at the vulnerable coastal site.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Jablonka |first=Peter |year=2012 |title=Troy |editor-last=Cline |editor-first=Eric |encyclopedia=The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean |pages=849–861 |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199873609.013.0063|isbn=978-0199873609 }}</ref><ref name=Rose-2013>{{cite book |last=Rose |first=Charles Brian |year=2013 |title=The Archaeology of Greek and Roman Troy |publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-76207-6}}</ref>{{rp|style=ama|pp=9–12}}

Residents lived in attached houses made of stone and mudbrick. Some houses had a [[megaron]] layout, among which one room is notably larger than the others. Although the city plan is not entirely clear from its limited remains, the houses appear to have been oriented in parallel to the southern walls. Artifacts from this era include dark colored handmade pottery, objects made of copper, as well as a monumental stone [[stele]] with a relief depicting an armed warrior.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>

Troy I was founded as part of a consolidation of settlement in the area. Its founders came from nearby towns such as [[Kumtepe]] and [[Gülpınar, Ayvacık|Gülpınar]], which had been part of an earlier network that had cultural and economic ties to the eastern Aegean and southeastern Europe. Troy itself appears to have maintained these connections, showing similarities to sites in [[Thessaly]] and southeastern Europe, as well as Aegean sites such as [[Poliochni]] in [[Lemnos]] and [[Loutropoli Thermis|Thermi]] in [[Lesbos]]. Despite some connections to Anatolian sites including [[Bademağacı]], it did not yet have the close ties with central Anatolia seen later.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>

Troy I was destroyed by fire around 2550 BC.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>

=== Troy II ===
Troy&nbsp;II was built around 2550&nbsp;BC. Although there is no evidence of a cultural break after the previous settlement, the new city had a very different character. It was twice the size of the preceding city, featuring a lower town as well as an expanded citadel divided into two precincts. These precincts, divided by [[colonnade]]s, suggest growing [[social stratification|socio-political stratification]] in Trojan society. At the center were large [[megaron|megaron-style]] buildings around a [[courtyard]] which was likely used for public events. One of these buildings, Megaron IIA, is the biggest known building of its kind in the Aegean-Anatolian region.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=11–19}}

The citadel was protected by massive stone walls and towers topped with mudbrick superstructures. It was accessed through two ramps, one of which is well preserved and attracts attention from modern day tourists. Because the city was not large enough to require two gates for practical purposes, some archaeologists have speculated that one of the gates was intended for ceremonial processions. The lower city was protected by a wooden [[palisade]] unlike any other known in that era. It was a complex structure nearly 3 meters wide, with interior [[buttress]]es and columns and beams secured in notches cut into the bedrock.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=11–19}}

[[Potter's wheel|Wheel-made pottery]] appears at the site for the first time, along with caches of treasures that attest to Trojan participation in networks of aristocratic competition. These items were made from [[amber]] imported from the [[Baltic region]], [[carnelian]] imported from [[India]], and [[lapis]] imported from [[Afghanistan]]. Some of these items are strikingly similar to those found at sites such as Poliochni and [[Ur]], leading some scholars to speculate that they may have been made by itinerant jewelers who worked routes covering much of the Ancient Near East.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=11–19}}

Troy&nbsp;II was destroyed twice. After the first destruction, the citadel was rebuilt with a dense cluster of small houses on an irregular plan. The final destruction took place around 2300&nbsp;BC. While some scholars have linked this destruction to a broader crisis that affected other Near Eastern sites, there is no definitive evidence for the city having been destroyed by an attack.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Neer-2012>{{cite book |title=Greek Art and Archaeology |last=Neer |first=Richard T. |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2012 |isbn=9780500288771 |place=New York |page=21}}</ref><ref name=Rose-2013/>

Troy&nbsp;II is notable for having been misidentified as Homeric Troy, during initial excavations, because of its massive architecture, treasure hoards, and catastrophic destruction. In particular Schliemann saw Homer's description of Troy's Scaean Gate reflected in Troy&nbsp;II's imposing western gate. However, later excavations demonstrated that the site was a thousand years too old to have coexisted with [[Mycenaean Greek]]s.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Neer-2012/><ref>{{harvnb|Schliemann|1881|pp=75, 277}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Schliemann |first=Heinrich |year=1968 |title=Troy and its Remains |publisher=Benjamin Blom}}</ref>

{{Gallery
| title        =Troy&nbsp;II
| align        = left
| state        = collapsed
| mode         = packed
| File:Troy_II.jpg
 | alt1=
 | Southwest ramp of Troy&nbsp;II.
| File:Troya_3.jpg
 | alt2=
 | Side view of southwest ramp.
| File:Troy_(Ilion),_Turkey_(7446526244).jpg
 | alt3=
 | Troy&nbsp;II walls with modern reconstructed mudbrick<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.troyexcavations.com/kale-duvari/?l=en |title=Citadel Wall |date=2023 |website=Troy Excavations |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-date=28 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228021936/https://www.troyexcavations.com/kale-duvari/?l=en |url-status=live }}</ref>
| File:Turkey-2937_(2217216354).jpg
 | alt4=
 | Troy&nbsp;II fortifications with modern reconstructed mudbrick
}}
{{clear}}

=== Troy III-V===

[[File:Layers of Troy.JPG|thumb|350px|right|"[[Schliemann's Trench]]". Layers are marked with Roman numerals.]]

Troy continued to be occupied between 2300&nbsp;BC and 1750&nbsp;BC. However, little is known about these several layers due to [[Schliemann]]'s careless excavation practices. In order to fully excavate the citadel of Troy&nbsp;II, he destroyed most remains from this period without first [[Archaeological excavation#Recording|documenting]] them. These settlements appear to have been smaller and poorer than previous ones, though this interpretation could be merely the result of gaps in the surviving evidence. The settlements included a dense residential neighborhood in the citadel. Walls from Troy&nbsp;II may have been reused as part of Troy&nbsp;III (c. 2350/2300-2200/2150 BC). 

====Middle Bronze Age====
Troy&nbsp;IV (c. 2000-1820 BC) sees the introduction of domed ovens. By the period of Troy&nbsp;V (c. 1820-1750 BC), the city had once again expanded outside the citadel to the west. In Troy&nbsp;V, artifacts include Anatolian-style "red-cross bowls" as well as imported [[Minoan]] objects.<ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/> They would trade with other cities around them.

=== Troy VI–VII ===
{{main|Late Bronze Age Troy}}

Troy&nbsp;VI–VII was a major [[Late Bronze Age]] city consisting of a steep fortified citadel and a sprawling lower town below it. It was a thriving coastal city with a considerable population, equal in size to second-tier [[Hittites|Hittite]] settlements. It had a distinct Northwest Anatolian culture and extensive foreign contacts, including with [[Mycenaean Greece]], and its position at the mouth of the [[Dardanelles]] has been argued to have given it the function of regional capital, its status protected by treaties.<ref>{{harvnb| Latacz |2004|p=48}}</ref> Aspects of its architecture are consistent with the ''Iliad''<nowiki/>'s description of mythic Troy, and several of its sublayers (VIh and VIIa) show potential signs of violent destruction. Thus, these sublayers are among the candidates for a potential historical setting of those myths.<ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|p=59}}

Troy&nbsp;VI and VII were given separate labels by early excavators, but current research has shown that the first several sublayers of Troy&nbsp;VII were in fact continuations of the earlier city. Although some scholars have proposed revising the nomenclature to reflect this consensus, the original terms are typically used to avoid confusion.<ref>{{harvnb|Korfmann|2013|p=60}}</ref><ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|p=198}}

==== Troy VI ====

Troy&nbsp;VI existed from around 1750&nbsp;BC to 1300&nbsp;BC. Its citadel was divided into a series of rising terraces, of which only the outermost is reasonably well-preserved. On this terrace, archaeologists have found the remains of freestanding multistory houses where Trojan elites would have lived. These houses lacked ground-floor windows, and their stone exterior walls mirrored the architecture of the citadel fortifications. However, they otherwise display an eclectic mix of architectural styles, some following the classic [[megaron]] design, others even having irregular floorplans. Some of these houses show potential Aegean influence, one in particular resembling the megaron at [[Midea (Argolid)|Midea]] in the [[Argolid]]. Archaeologists believe there may have been a royal palace on the highest terrace, but most Bronze Age remains from the top of the hill were cleared away by classical era building projects.<ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 58–59}}<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=20, 24}}

[[File:Troy (Ilion), Turkey (7446656654).jpg|thumb|left|Artist's representation of House VI M, part of the palatial complex]]

The citadel was enclosed by a massive wall whose limestone base is visible to modern day visitors. These walls were periodically renovated, expanding from an initial width of {{convert|1.2|to|5|m|ft}} around 1400 BC. During the Bronze Age they would have been overlaid with wood and mudbrick superstructures, reaching a height over {{convert|9|m|ft}}. The walls were built in a "sawtooth" style made of {{convert|7|-|10|m|ft}} segments which joined at shallow angles. This characteristic is common in the walls of [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean]] citadels, though at Troy it is also found in other buildings, suggesting that it may have been decorative. The walls also have a notable slope, similar to those at other sites including [[Hattusa]]. However, the walls differ from contemporary Aegean and Anatolian sites both in their lack of figural sculpture and in their [[masonry]]. While Troy VI's walls were made entirely of close-fitting [[ashlar]]s, contemporary sites typically used ashlars around a [[rubble masonry|rubble core]].<ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 58–59}}<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name="Jablonka-2012-Cline" /><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=20–21}}

Troy VI's walls were overlooked by several rectangular watchtowers, which would also have provided a clear view of Trojan plain and the sea beyond it. The citadel was accessed by five gates, which led into paved and drained cobblestone streets. Some of these gates featured enormous pillars which serve no structural purpose and have been interpreted as religious symbols. The halls were built in ''[[megaron]]'' style, resembling [[Mycenaean architecture]].<ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 58–59}}<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref>{{cite journal |last=Knight |first=W.F.J. |date=1934|title=The pillars at the south gate of Troy&nbsp;VI |journal=The Journal of Hellenic Studies |volume=54 |issue=2 |page=210 |doi=10.2307/626868 |issn=0075-4269 |jstor=626868|s2cid=162416526 }}</ref><ref name="Jablonka-2012-Cline" /><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=20–21, 24}}

The lower town was built to the south of the citadel, covering an area of roughly 30&nbsp;hectares. Remains of a dense neighborhood have been found just outside the citadel walls, and traces of Bronze Age occupation have been found further away. These include huts, stone paving, threshing floors, pithoi, and waste left behind by Bronze Age industry such as [[murex]] shells associated with the manufacture of purple dye. The extent of the lower town is evidenced by a defensive ditch cut 1-2 into the bedrock. A wall or palisade may have stood several meters behind the ditch, as in the outer defenses of other cities such as [[Kadesh (Syria)|Qadesh]] and [[Carchemish]]. However, material evidence for such a wall is limited to postholes and cuts in the bedrock.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Korfmann-2003>{{harvnb|Korfmann|2003|pp=29–30}}</ref><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=22–23}}

The lower city was only discovered in the late 1980s, earlier excavators having assumed that Troy&nbsp;VI occupied only the hill of Hisarlık. Its discovery led to a dramatic reassessment of Troy&nbsp;VI, showing that it was over 16&nbsp;times larger than had been assumed, and thus a major city with a large population rather than a mere aristocratic residence. However, only 2–3% of the lower city had been excavated as of 2013, and few architectural features are likely to exist. Almost 2m of the surface has eroded, likely removing much of the evidence that hadn't already decomposed, been built over, or [[spolia|reused in later construction]].<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Korfmann-2003/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 61–64}}<ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=22–23}}

The material culture of Troy&nbsp;VI appears to belong to a distinct Northwest Anatolian cultural group, with influences from the Aegean and the Balkans. The primary local pottery styles were wheel-made Tan Ware and Anatolian Gray Ware. Both styles were offshoots of an earlier [[Middle Helladic]] tradition related to [[Minyan ware|Minyan Ware]]. The earliest gray ware at Troy was made in Aegean shapes, though by 1700 BC it had been replaced by Anatolian shapes. Foreign pottery found at the site includes Minoan, Mycenaean, Cypriot, and Levantine items. Local potters also made their own imitations of foreign styles, including Gray Ware and Tan Ware pots made in Mycenaean-style shapes, particularly after 1500 BC. Although the city appears to have been within the Hittite sphere of influence, no Hittite artifacts have been found in Troy&nbsp;VI. Also notably absent are sculptures and wall paintings, otherwise common features of Bronze Age cities. Troy&nbsp;VI is also notable for its architectural innovations as well as its cultural developments, which included the first evidence of horses at the site.<ref>Pavúk, Peter. (2005) "''[https://www.academia.edu/9645702/Aegeans_and_Anatolians_A_Trojan_Perspective_FULLTEXT Aegeans and Anatolians: A Trojan Perspective] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227213727/https://www.academia.edu/9645702/Aegeans_and_Anatolians_A_Trojan_Perspective_FULLTEXT |date=27 February 2023 }}''." In: Laffineur, Robert; Greco, Emanuele. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=s2R2PgAACAAJ Emporia: Aegeans in the Central and Eastern Mediterranean] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318155305/https://books.google.com/books?id=s2R2PgAACAAJ |date=18 March 2023 }}'', Peeters Publishers & Booksellers. pp. 269–279.</ref><ref name="Jablonka-2012-Cline" /><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=25}}<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Korfmann-2003/>

The [[Trojan language|language spoken in Troy&nbsp;VI]] is unknown. One candidate is [[Luwian language|Luwian]], an [[Anatolian language]] believed to have been spoken in the general area. Potential evidence comes from a biconvex seal inscribed with the name of a person using [[Luwian hieroglyph|Anatolian hieroglyph]]s often used to write Luwian. However, available evidence is not sufficient to establish that Luwian was actually spoken by the city's population, and a number of alternatives, such as [[Trojan language#Greek|Greek]] and [[Trojan language#Lemnian-Etruscan|Lemnian-Etruscan]], have been proposed. Hittite documents found at [[Hattusa]] suggest that literacy existed at Troy and that the city may have had a written archive. The ''Alaksandu Treaty'' required King [[Alaksandu]] to read its text publicly three times a year, while the ''[[Milawata letter]]'' mentions that the deposed King [[Walmu]] was still in possession of wooden investiture tablets. The archive would likely have been housed in the citadel's innermost precinct, whose remains were pushed over the northern side of the hill during 3rd century construction. Despite attempts to sift through the rubble, no documents have been found.<ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 117–122}}<ref name = "watkins">{{cite conference |first=C. |last=Watkins |author-link=Calvert Watkins |orig-date=October 1984 |publication-date=1986 |title=The language of the Trojans |book-title=Troy and the Trojan War |conference=Troy and the Trojan War: A symposium held at Bryn Mawr College |editor-first=Machteld J. |editor-last=Mellink |series=Bryn Mawr Commentaries |place=Bryn Mawr, PA |publisher=[[Bryn Mawr College]] |url=https://repository.brynmawr.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=bmc_books}}
</ref><ref name ="Yakubovich">{{cite thesis |last=Yakubovich |first=Ilya |year=2008 |title=Sociolinguistics of the Luvian language |degree=PhD |at=section&nbsp;3.6 |publisher=[[University of Chicago]] |url=https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/yakubovich_diss_2008.pdf |access-date=19 September 2021 |archive-date=11 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210811025841/https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/yakubovich_diss_2008.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|pp=34–35}}

Troy&nbsp;VI was destroyed around 1300&nbsp;BC, corresponding with the sublayer known as Troy&nbsp;VIh. Damage in the Troy&nbsp;VIh layer includes extensive collapsed masonry and [[subsidence]] in the southeast of the citadel, indicative of an [[earthquake]]. Alternative hypotheses include an internal uprising as well as a foreign attack, though the city was not burned and no victims were found in the debris.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 64–66}}<ref name=Rose-2013/>{{rp|style=ama|p=30}}

{{Gallery
| title        =Troy&nbsp;VI–VII citadel walls
| align        =left
| state        = collapsed
| mode         = packed
| File:Troja-an-Stadtmauer.jpg
 | alt1=
 | Troy&nbsp;VI East Gate and Troy VI houses on the terrace immediately above.
| File:Troya_9.jpg
 | alt2=
 | Tower at the East Gate Complex
| File:Troy walls VII and IX.jpg
 | alt3= 
 | East Gate cul de sac (Troy&nbsp;IX walls on the right)
| File:Troy_(Ilion),_Turkey_(7446473680).jpg
 | alt4= 
 |Wall segment near the East Gate
| File:Troya_6.jpg
 | alt5= 
 | Side view of wall
| File:Turkey-2956_(2217219986).jpg
 | alt6= 
 | South Gate
| File:troy6 pillar.jpg
 | alt7= 
 | Non-structural pillar at the South Gate
}}
{{clear}}

==== Troy VIIa ====

Troy&nbsp;VIIa was the final layer of the Late Bronze Age city. It was built soon after the destruction of Troy&nbsp;VI, seemingly by its previous inhabitants. The builders reused many of the earlier city's surviving structures, notably its citadel wall, which they renovated with additional stone towers and mudbrick breastworks. Numerous small houses were added inside the citadel, filling in formerly open areas. New houses were also built in the lower city, whose area appears to have been greater in Troy&nbsp;VIIa than in Troy&nbsp;VI. In many of these houses, archaeologists found enormous storage jars called [[pithos|pithoi]] buried in the ground. Troy&nbsp;VIIa seems to have been built by survivors of Troy&nbsp;VI's destruction, as evidenced by continuity in material culture. However, the character of the city appears to have changed, the citadel growing crowded and foreign imports declining.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|p= 59}}

The city was destroyed around 1180&nbsp;BC, roughly contemporary with the [[Late Bronze Age collapse]] but subsequent to the [[Mycenaean Greece#Collapse or Postpalatial Bronze Age (c. 1200–1050 BC)|destruction of the Mycenaean palaces]]. The [[destruction layer]] shows evidence of enemy attack, including scorch marks.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|p= 59}}

==== Troy VIIb ====

[[File:Troy (Ilion), Turkey (7446237818).jpg|thumb|300px|Anatolian Grey Ware]]

After the destruction of Troy&nbsp;VIIa around 1180 BC, the city was rebuilt as Troy&nbsp;VIIb. Older structures were again reused, including Troy&nbsp;VI's citadel walls. Its first phase, Troy&nbsp;VIIb1, appears to be largely a continuation of Troy&nbsp;VIIa. Residents continued using wheel-made Grey Ware pottery alongside a new handmade style sometimes known as "barbarian ware". Imported Mycenaean-style pottery attests to some continuing foreign trade. However, the city's population appears to have dropped, and rebuilding seems to be confined to the citadel.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 66–67}}

One of the most striking finds from Troy&nbsp;VIIb1 is a bronze biconvex  [[hieroglyphic Luwian]] seal giving the name of a woman on one side and the name of a man who worked as a scribe on the other.<ref>J. D. Hawkins/D. F. Easton, "A Hieroglyphic Seal from Troy", Studia Troica 6, pp. 111–118, 1996</ref> The seal is important since it is the only example of preclassical writing found at the site, and provides potential evidence that Troy&nbsp;VIIb1 had a [[Luwian language|Luwian]]-speaking population. However, the find is puzzling since palace bureaucracies had largely disappeared by this era. Proposed explanations include the possibility that it belonged to an itinerant freelance scribe and alternatively that it dates from an earlier era than its find context would suggest.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|p= 118}}

Troy&nbsp;VIIb2 is marked by dramatic cultural changes including walls made of upright stones and a handmade knobbed pottery style known as ''Buckelkeramik''. These practices, which existed alongside older local traditions, have been argued to reflect immigrant populations arriving from southwest Europe. These newcomers may have shared an origin with the [[Phrygians]] who initiated similar cultural shifts at sites such as [[Gordion]]. This layer was destroyed around 1050 BC after an apparent earthquake.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 66–67}}<ref name=Rose-2013 />{{rp|style=ama|pp=38–40}}

Troy&nbsp;VIIb3 dates from the [[Protogeometric]] era. No new builds were constructed, so its existence is known primarily from artifacts found in the West Sanctuary and terraces on south side of mound. These areas were excavated in the 1990s, surprising the archaeologists who had assumed that the site was abandoned until the Archaic Era. Locally made neck-handled [[amphora]]s shows that Troy still had a pottery industry, possibly associated with a wine or oil industry. The style of these pots shows stylistic similarities to other North Aegean sites, suggesting cultural contact. (Because other artifacts do not show these links, archaeologists believe that Greek settlement of Troy did not begin until later.) Both the Troy VI walls and the Troy VIIa Terrace House were reused for worship and communal feasting, as evidenced by animal bones, pottery assemblages, and traces of burned incense. Strikingly, the Terrace House was not renovated when it was adopted as a cult center and thus must have been used in a ruined state, potentially suggesting that the occupants of Troy VIIb3 were deliberately re-engaging with their past.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/><ref name=Bryce-2005/>{{rp|style=ama|pp= 66–67}}<ref name=Rose-2013 />{{rp|style=ama|pp=45–50}}

Troy&nbsp;VIIb was destroyed by fire around 950&nbsp;BC. However, some houses in the citadel were left intact and the site continued to be occupied, if only sparsely.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/>

=== Troy VIII–IX ===

Troy&nbsp;VIII was founded during the [[Greek Dark Ages]] and lasted until the [[Roman Greece|Roman era]]. Though the site had never been entirely abandoned, its redevelopment as a major city was spurred by Greek immigrants who began building around 700&nbsp;BC. During the [[Archaic Greece|Archaic period]], the city's defenses once again included the reused citadel wall of Troy&nbsp;VI. Later on, the walls became tourist attractions and sites of worship. Other remains of the Bronze Age city were destroyed by the Greeks' building projects, notably the peak of the citadel where the Troy&nbsp;VI palace is likely to have stood. By the [[classical Greece|classical era]], the city had numerous temples, a theater, among other public buildings, and was once again expanding to the south of the citadel. Troy&nbsp;VIII was destroyed in 85&nbsp;BC, and subsequently rebuilt as Troy&nbsp;IX. A series of earthquakes devastated the city around 500&nbsp;AD, though finds from the Late Byzantine era attest to continued habitation at a small scale.<ref name=Jablonka-2011-Steadman-McMahon/><ref name=Jablonka-2012-Cline/>

{{Gallery
| title        = Troy&nbsp;VIII–IX
| align        = left
| state        = collapsed
| mode         = packed
| File:Troy_%28Ilion%29%2C_Turkey_%287446501008%29.jpg
 | alt1=
 | Troy&nbsp;VIII Temple of Athena, built over the ruins of the Bronze Age palatial complex
| File:Hadrianic_Odeon_in_Troy_IX_(Ilion),_Turkey.jpg
 | alt2=
 | Troy&nbsp;IX [[Odeon (building)|Odeon]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.troyexcavations.com/kucuk-tiyatro-ve-meclis-binasi/?l=en |title=The Odeion And The Bouleuterion |date=2023 |website=Troy Excavations |access-date=15 March 2023 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326025338/https://www.troyexcavations.com/kucuk-tiyatro-ve-meclis-binasi/?l=en |url-status=live }}</ref> 
| File:Troy_(Ilion),_Turkey_(7446699076).jpg
 | alt3=
 | Troy&nbsp;IX [[Roman bath]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.troyexcavations.com/hamam/?l=en |title=The Bath |date=2023 |website=Troy Excavations |access-date=15 March 2023 |archive-date=15 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315190512/https://www.troyexcavations.com/hamam/?l=en |url-status=live }}</ref>  
}}
{{clear}}