[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":25},["ShallowReactive",2],{"zoom:p2ch1z3:en":3},{"period":4,"chapter":15,"zoom":18},{"id":5,"title":6,"titleEn":6,"titleEs":7,"range":8,"rangeEn":8,"rangeEs":9,"cover":10},"p2","Antiquity","Antigüedad","≈ 600 BC → 51 BC","≈ 600 a. C. → 51 a. C.",{"fileName":11,"filePageUrl":12,"imageUrl":13,"sourceLabel":14},"Alise-Sainte-Reine statue Vercingetorix par Millet.jpg","https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alise-Sainte-Reine%20statue%20Vercingetorix%20par%20Millet.jpg","/assets/p2-antiquite-cover.png","Wikimedia Commons",{"id":16,"title":17},"p2ch1","Marseille and the Phocaeans",{"id":19,"title":20,"chapterId":16,"html":21,"hasEn":22,"isFallback":23,"seoDescription":24},"p2ch1z3","Pytheas: the Marseille explorer of the frozen seas","\u003Cp>Long before the great navigators of the Renaissance, a man from Marseille carried out one of the most daring journeys of Antiquity. His name was \u003Cstrong>Pytheas\u003C/strong>.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>🌊 A journey into the unknown\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>Around \u003Cstrong>325 BCE\u003C/strong>, Pytheas—sailor, astronomer, and mathematician—set sail from the port of Massalia. His goal? To discover the origins of \u003Cstrong>tin\u003C/strong> (essential for making bronze) and \u003Cstrong>amber\u003C/strong>, two precious materials arriving from the North.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>He passed through the Pillars of Heracles (the Strait of Gibraltar), then controlled by the Carthaginians, and ventured into the Atlantic Ocean.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>🧊 Thule and the “frozen sea”\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>Pytheas sailed along the coasts of Gaul and Spain, circumnavigated Great Britain (which he called \u003Cem>Prettanike\u003C/em>), and pushed even further north.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>He claimed to have reached a mysterious land called \u003Cstrong>Thule\u003C/strong>, located six days of sailing north of Scotland (likely Iceland or Norway). There, he described astonishing phenomena for a man from the Mediterranean:\u003C/p>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>The midnight sun\u003C/strong>: In summer, the sun barely sets\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>The \u003Cstrong>“lung of the sea”\u003C/strong>: A strange mixture of water and ice forming a slushy, semi-solid sea (sea ice)\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>🔭 A genius of astronomy\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>Pytheas was not only a navigator. Using an instrument called a \u003Cstrong>gnomon\u003C/strong> (a vertical stick), he calculated the latitude of Marseille with remarkable accuracy. He was also the first to understand that \u003Cstrong>tides are linked to the cycles of the Moon\u003C/strong>.\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>📜 A story long doubted\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cp>Upon his return, Pytheas wrote a book: \u003Cem>On the Ocean\u003C/em>. Unfortunately, his accounts were so extraordinary that many ancient historians (such as Strabo) dismissed him as a liar.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>It would take centuries for modern science to confirm his observations. Today, Pytheas is recognized as one of the greatest scientists and explorers in history.\u003C/p>\n\u003Cp>\u003Cimg src=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Pyth%C3%A9as.jpg?width=256\" alt=\"Statue of Pytheas\">\u003Cbr>\n\u003Cem>Statue of Pytheas on the façade of the Palais de la Bourse in Marseille.\u003C/em>\u003C/p>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>🧠 Key takeaways\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>First explorer of the \u003Cstrong>North Atlantic\u003C/strong> and \u003Cstrong>Britain\u003C/strong>\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>Discovery of Iceland (\u003Cstrong>Thule\u003C/strong>) and sea ice\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>First to explain the link between the \u003Cstrong>Moon and tides\u003C/strong>\u003C/li>\n\u003Cli>A legendary figure of Marseille’s scientific genius\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n\u003Chr>\n\u003Ch2>📸 Image credits\u003C/h2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Statue of Pytheas — Rvalette, \u003Ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\">CC BY-SA 3.0\u003C/a>, via Wikimedia Commons\u003C/li>\n\u003C/ul>\n",true,false,"Long before the great navigators of the Renaissance, a man from Marseille carried out one of the most daring journeys of Antiquity. His name was Pytheas .",1778543112164]