Il porto perfetto dei Greci: dall’Odissea all’Atlantide di Platone all’Utopia di More (passando per il Pireo e la Siracusa di Dionisio I)

According to Greeks in the archaic or classical age, a ‘perfect harbour’ must have these characteristics: a narrow entrance, rocks or walls all around, a basically circular shape. In fact, thanks to these features a perfect port offers ships shelter from the sea waves and from the winds, hinders any enemy aggression, and gives sufficient space for maneuver. In the Odyssey this topographic scheme shapes the harbour of the aestrygonians, the dual harbours of Scheria (whose topography requires discussion), the harbour of Forkys in Ithaca (we can imagine these features also in the Goat Island: Hom. Od. IX 136 ff.): every perfect harbour fulfills a precise narrative function, but, notwithstanding, they exhibit the same features. These features can be detected in Plato’s Atlantis and in the Piraeus too, and in some interventions implemented by dionysius I on the Syracusan harbour. Finally, it is significant to note that a similar topographical scheme can be found in the ‘ideal harbour’ created by Thomas More for Utopia, a work inspired by a profound knowledge of the texts of the classical age.