GREECE: Greek mythological ship sets sail again.

The Greek mythological ship upon which Jason and the Argonauts travelled in legend is preparing to set sail again after more than three thousand years, as shipbuilders in the port town of Volos have managed to create a new version of the legendary vessel. What took Jason and his 50 Argonauts three months to build in the 14th century BC, took three modern shipbuilders more than three years, after abandoning electricity and modern tools to do it just the way the ancient heroes did it back then. The modern tradesmen struggled with wooden mallets and chisels under the guidance of project director Apostolos Kourtis to make the Argo without electric tools, metal or nails, only raw wood as ships were made in ancient times. On Sunday (September 17) their labours were rewarded in Volos with the christening of the new Argo, the town where legend says Jason and the Argonauts built the original ship and sailed from to find the golden fleece in an ancient city called Colchis in what is now modern Georgia. Thousands of townspeople gathered on the shores to view the ship, as performers impersonating the Argonauts, re-enacted their perils during that famous sea voyage. A clay jug full of red wine was used to christen the ship to keep in tune with ancient Greek form. Shipbuilder Yannis Perros, who worked endless hours to see the completion of the ship without the use of modern aids, talked about the risks to those who would take the voyage in the ancient structure, saying with no metal in the ship there was no risk of nails coming loose during the journey, but rowers would have to be very careful of crashing up against protruding rocks or hitting a violent storm. Otherwise he said it was a sturdy build even without a frame. The Argo was built by bending whole trees into the hull, without a metal frame as in modern ships, and using wooden pegs to hold it together instead of nails. The test now will be whether the ship can hold up all the way to the Black Sea coast, a 2,500km journey, with no motor, no modern comforts, and only the handwork of 50 rowers. Legend has it the 28 metre ship was rowed by strong warriors such as Hercules, and helped along by the ancient Greek gods such as Athena, encountering monsters, sirens, nymphs and foes on its way to the Black Sea where, on the coast of Georgia, the fleece was guarded by a fiery dragon. Modern day rowers will have to take the oars for 10 to 15 hours a day, an unusual feat even for professional rowing athletes. Kourtis said anyone can volunteer for the trip and organisers have issued an open invitation to rowers across Europe to participate. Their endurance will be tested on the coast of Volos before the trip, which Kourtis wants to complete in two and half months, a highly ambitious time for a small ship without a motor, modern comforts and only the power of the backs of men. ''Its going to be a difficult journey for us because we are competing and comparing ourselves to ancient heroes, they accomplished difficult things, its possible we may also accomplish these things. If we can prove that we can do what they did during their daily lives then we will prove that it is humanly possible and does not need a hero," said Kourtis. Even the President of the International Rowing Federation, Denis Oswald, who was invited as a guest, said it was going to be strenuous undertaking for any rower. ''They will have to train especially for that type of rowing because of course technique is different and I am sure it needs a lot of endurance because its not the two thousand metres we are already rowing,'' said Oswald. The ship builders hope the ship will set sail within next year. The story of Jason and the Argonauts was first scribbled down by writer Apollonius Rhodius about 11 centuries after the voyage, which is said to have taken place around 1350 BC. To design the ship, the modern shipbuilders pieced together images from ancient vase paintings, wall frescoes and references to ships from around the same period, gathered from museums and libraries around the world.

ITN Source | September 23, 2006

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