Live the Legend: Mythical Places That Actually Exist

welcome fans of oddities wonders and Mysteries when it comes to ancient mythology it can sometimes be difficult to separate fact from fiction While most myths are obviously fictional they often contain at least a grain of Truth the Ancients had to get their inspiration from somewhere for example the locations of some of the most popular myths are based on or set in real places here we have a list of mythical places that actually exist 1. Mount Olympus home of the Greek pantheon anyone with even a passing knowledge of Greek mythology will be familiar with Mount Olympus in ancient Greek religion it served as the home of the 12 Olympians the religion's major deities Olympus was described in Homer's Iliad as essentially being an ancient Acropolis a fortified Hilltop Palace complex the pals consisted of golden gates guarded by the three hooray goddesses of the seasons and palaces for each of the Olympians Zeus being the grandest of course in the real world Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece the mountain has 52 Peaks and deep Gorges with mitica's Peak supposedly acting as the home of the Gods the area surrounding the mountain has been declared an archaeological and historical site for the preservation of its Monumental and historical character found in numerous excavation sites the Greeks had a tendency to point at tall mountains and call them Olympus while Mount Olympus in Greece is usually the one most associated with the ancient gods other Peaks named Olympus can be found all over the continent Greece alone has Four Peaks called Olympus turkey has three and Cyprus has one so really map Olympus could count as all eight entries on this list and that's not even counting the nine Mount Olympus peaks in North America or the one on Mars [Music] 2. Sherwood Forest Home of Robin Hood and his merry men thanks to various Hollywood adaptations people from all over the world today are familiar with the legend of Robin Hood Robin Hood is a heroic Outlaw in English folklore he was a skilled Archer and swordsman and most Tales surrounding him feature him stealing from the rich to give to the poor in most modern retellings he is depicted as being of noble birth and having fun in the Crusades there is still a debate over whether Robin existed and what the origins of his Legends were the myths make constant references to real historical figures dating back to the 13th Century Air day there are legal records dating back to 1226 that mention a man named Robert hodd who had his possessions confiscated and became an outlaw it has also been suggested that the name Robin Hood was a moniker adopted by a group of Bandits the myths of Robin Hood usually name his base of operations as Sherwood Forest in Nottingham England this is most definitely a real place it is a national Nature Reserve covering 926 Acres 375 hectares but once covered an area of over 100 000 Acres forty thousand hectares the local municipality has done an excellent job over the years of fostering the forest connection to the popular man of Legend as such today the area is full of Robin hood-themed tourist attractions 3. Troy site of ancient Greece's greatest battle the fall of Troy is one of the cornerstones of Greek mythology in Greek literature Troy was one of the most powerful kingdoms during the Greek heroic age a period when Gods and Monsters roamed the Earth in mythology the Trojan War began when the city's Prince Paris abducted in slashed or eloped with Helen Helen was said to be ancient Greece's greatest beauty who was married to King menlo's asparta menlas convinced all the great Greek leaders who were Bound by a special oath to attack the city of Troy What followed was the greatest battle of Greek mythology the Trojan War ended when the Greeks tricked their way to the mighty City by hiding in a great wooden horse they had given to the Trojans as a supposed peace offering in actual history Troy was a real City in the region of Asia Minor which is modern day Turkey until the late 19th century Troy and the Trojan War were considered a legend however excavations in 1871 found ruins that closely matched depictions of the ancient city in myths the archaeological site at Troy consists of nine layers dating back to the early Bronze Age 3000 2500 before Christ up to the Byzantine era around 300 A.D It is believed the city of Legend relates to one of the late Bronze Age levels today the site is easy to visit and is a popular tourist attraction as well as a UNESCO world heritage site well we know for sure that Trey existed the delineations between Legend in fact are still being looked into [Music]