4,500 year-old gold and jade — from ancient Troy

The city at the heart of Homer’s Iliad and the Trojan War resided between myth and history until the ruins of Troy were discovered in Hisarlık, Turkey in the late 1800s.

In the beginning ages of Troy, the city served as the capital of Troad and was the residence of the king and his various family, officials and staff. The rest of the population lived as farmers outside the city, taking refuge inside a city citadel in times of conflict. The city grew over the centuries, eventually becoming home to settlers and horse-raisers, before being struck by a devastating earthquake just after 1300 B.C. There are nine 'layers' of Troy, researchers found, and during recent excavations on the layer between Troy I and Troy II, a few improbable pieces were discovered. This layer dates to about 4,500 years ago, to the Early Bronze Age.

Archaeologists uncovered a gold brooch and piece of jade. The brooch is one of only three known similar pieces in the world.

Jade and gold were luxury items exclusive to the elite at the time.

The Troy likely described by Homer was the later Troy VIIa, later destroyed by the Greeks of Agamemnon, in what was called the Trojan War.

Troy VII is often subdivided into two different phases, Troy VIIa and Troy VIIb, as a major destruction event occurred between 1220 B.C.-1180 B.C. that demarcates two very different phases. After the city of Troy VI was destroyed by an earthquake around 1300 B.C., a much different settlement developed at the site.