Hellespont

The ancient Greek name for the Dardanelles Strait which separates European Turkey from Asian Turkey; the narrow waterway connects the Sea of Marmara to the Aegean Sea; approximately 37 miles (60 kilometers) long and up to 4 miles (6.5 kilometers) wide.

The name literally means Helle’s Sea because it was named after the maiden, Helle, when she fell from the back of the flying ram with the Golden Fleece and drowned in the sea below; Helle and her brother, Phrixus, were attempting to escape the evil plotting of their stepmother, Ino, when Helle fell from the ram and drowned.

The Hellespont also claimed the lives of the two young lovers, Leander and Hero; the city of Abydos was on the Asian side of the Hellespont and the city of Sestos was on the Greek side; each night, Leander would swim from Abydos to Sestos in order to meet the beautiful priestess of Aphrodite (goddess of Love), Hero; Leander would swim the channel with the lights of Sestos to guide him; one night Leander lost his way in a storm and drowned before he could reach the shore; Hero was so distraught that she threw herself in the sea where she also perished in the cruel water.

The Persian army of Xerxes built a 4,077 foot pontoon bridge across the Hellespont during the Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BCE; in order to span the channel, a series of boats were lashed side-to-side and planks were laid across the boats from one shore to the other; when violent winds broke the bridge to pieces, Xerxes had men with whips pronounce curses and deliver three hundred lashes on the water; he lowered a yoke into the water to symbolize his domination and finally branded the water with hot irons; the men who had been responsible for the bridge’s construction were beheaded; after he had calmed down, Xerxes repented and made offerings to the water spirits of the Hellespont so that he might be forgiven for his act of irreverence; to appease the waterway, he burned incense, poured libations, offered myrtle branches, a golden cup and bowl and also a sword; whether Xerxes did these things to appease the Hellespont or as a tribute to the sun god of Greece is not clear, regardless, the bridge was completed and the troops marched safely across.

The name of the Hellespont was changed to Dardanelles in honor of ancestor of the Trojans, Dardanos (Dardanus).