An inscription with verses from Book 14 of the Odyssey

A clay brick, inscribed with the first 13 verses from Book 14 of the Odyssey, was found in 2018. The verses describe the meeting of Odysseus with his faithful swineherd Eumaios. It was later reused as building material in a burial monument of the third Century AD in the necropolis of Fragonisi, located circa two kilometers from Olympia, the birthplace of the Olympic Games.

The brick dates from the end of the second century AD to the first half of the third century AD. It is the oldest known excerpt of these verses. Both Fragonisi and Olympia are less than 100 kilometers from Paliki, the true location of ancient Ithaka. It shows that even in that timeframe, the stories of Homer were still very much alive in the region.

Its find was considered one of the most important archaeological discoveries of that year worldwide.

The clay brick is now on display at the Archaeological Museum of Olympia.