The Troy I settlement, first discovered by Heinrich Schliemann, sits just above the bedrock, the top of the earth's crust. Therefore archaeologists assume that even though there were people living just a few miles from Troy, no one had decided to build a real town at that exact location until around 2700 BCE.

Several older villages near Troy were studied by Schliemann, Carl Blegen and the current excavators. Two of the villages contained real evidence of early human settlement: Hanay Tepe and Kumtepe. Both belong to the period before the Bronze Age, called the Neolithic, or New Stone Age. During the Neolithic farming and pottery-making were in full swing. The practice of religion required some organization, but society was simply ordered compared to the Bronze Age, when the evidence suggests greater specialization of tasks

(priest, trader, ruler, craftsman, farmer, etc.) and perhaps greater difference between rich and poor. During the Neolithic period chipped stone was used more often for tools than metal. During the Bronze Age, metal tools were used more often. After any catastrophic destruction (earthquake, war, fire, plague) the people of Troy who survived usually rebuilt right away. Survivors, or victors, were in such a big hurry to rebuild that they did not bother to cart away the remains of the destroyed city. They would level things off a little, and just build on top! This explains why, after nearly 2000 years of occupation, the city was built up by about 30 feet.

During some periods, such as Troy IV and Troy VII, they also did not have a good garbage removal system. When the streets got too trashy, they would just pave over, rather than clean up! Sometimes the owners of a house even had to put in a new entrance door from the street. That's how fast the street

level was rising due to Trojan sloppiness!

Archaeologists are very happy about these habits. When we sift through all the stuff that some ancient people discarded, we can find out quite a lot about them: what they ate, what they made or imported, what they did not value. But 30 feet of material to move does mean a lot of work for investigators.

Earthquakes are a constant threat in the Mediterranean region and Troy did not escape that threat. In the late Bronze Age, the builders of the great Troy VI fortification wall seemed to have understood that if they placed the wall on bedrock, it would have a better chance of surviving an earthquake. Of course, according to the legends, that wall was built by Heracles, who certainly knew what he was doing! After the time of Alexander the Great, there were more smart builders who would make sure their building rested on firm footing, not 2500 years' worth of human mess.