Giresun Island and Time Travel tourism, Turkey

Giresun Island in Turkey is the only island of the Eastern Black Sea which is both an archaeological and a natural protected area.
It is a region of migration, movements, myths and legends. Many groups of people have moved in here and created communities together with the local population, often as a part of a big empire – Greeks, Miletians, Persians, Pontus’, Romans, Byzantines, Trebizonds’, Ottomans, republic of Turkey. Around 800 B.C. several Scythian groups and Sakas (nomads) lived in a vast area in Central Asia and Central Anatolia and moved to the coast. At this time the story of Hercules and the Argonauts and the search for the Golden Fur was developed. One of Hercules’ adventures is connected to a small island with man-eating birds, Giresun Island.

Scenario: 800 BC, Giresun Island, Hercules and the Golden Fur
Many Sakas have left their land in Central Anatolia and after several weeks and months they have reached the coast and start to settle. But a couple of days the rumors started. The Argonauts are coming. They have been seen on the island. Everybody has heard the story about the Argonauts and Hercules and their search for the Golden Fur. Can the Golden Fur be on the island? A fortune? A treasure? We have to look and see.

Key questions:

Dreams, hopes and happiness
What/where is my fortune, my happiness, my dreams, my treasure, my promised land?
What is our common fortune? Hopes for the future and comfort together?

The purpose of using the Time Travel method is to make a program that will be interesting and knowledgeable for tourist groups and to give students in school a learning experience on the history of Giresun Island and one of the legends connected to it.

Hale Cerkezoglu Altundas
Giresun municipality and museum

Last updated: 2013-12-03 10:22:33