[gothic-l] Tracing the Heruli

[Егоров Владимир]

Hi, Troels!

You needn't "substantiate the relative expression "big".
The Dexippos' attestation (exaggerated indeed) did not
relate to the Bosporan realm specifically. Yes,
the joint army of the Goths (Visigoths included) and
Heruls was really big enough in 268 AD. The joint
enterprise used probably ships from several Greek
settlements along the Black sea shores, not only
Bosporan ones. As we know, the Goths started building
ships themselves at the end of the 3rd century.

I also don't see reasons to raise objections to
the George's opinion that the Heruls were consisting
that time of several peoples. Moreover, the Heruls
always seemed to consist of several significantly
different categories. At least they divided themselves
by groups, which drifted apart in diverse directions,
during all their history.

Let's not forget that the first connection between
Scandinavia (the Baltic sea) and territories adjacent
to the Black sea was established not later than in
the 2nd century by the Goths. The path along Vistula
and Dniester + South Bug is accepted by most of
contemporaneous archaeologist. This does not contradict
to Jordanes. Some connections should have been
maintained within the Hermanaticus' power
(remember, Hermanaricus conquered both the Heruls and
Aesti). But I meant something another, an opposite
"river path" from the Black (or Azov) sea to the Baltic
sea, a path, which was passed first by St. Andrew
according to old Russian chronicles. This circum-European
path started in the Black sea, passed some rivers on
the Russian plain, Baltic sea, Atlantic, Mediterranean,
and finished then in Rome. Besides St. Andrew, the Herul
pirates, apprentices of the Bosporan seamen and "rivermen",
were able to pass that path. In particular, I suspect them
as having provoked later the Viking age in Scandinavia.

Vladimir


You are a member of the Gothic-L list.  To unsubscribe, send a blank email to <gothic-l-unsubscribe at egroups.com>.

Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/