Heinrich Schliemann is usually credited as the person who “discovered” Troy in the 1870s, after excavations at the mound of Hisarlik in northwestern Turkey. However, the site was first correctly identified as Troy by the British amateur archaeologist Frank Calvert, whose earlier work and guidance were crucial but long overshadowed.

Quick scoop: key points

  • The ancient city identified as Troy lies at Hisarlik in modern-day Turkey.
  • Frank Calvert pinpointed Hisarlik as the likely location of Homeric Troy and began small excavations there in the mid‑19th century.
  • Heinrich Schliemann, a wealthy German businessman and self-taught archaeologist, started large-scale digs at Hisarlik in 1870, making the discovery world famous.
  • Today, historians tend to describe Troy as “found by Calvert, revealed by Schliemann,” acknowledging that both men played major roles.

So who “really” discovered Troy?

From a strict historical-credit angle:

  • Calvert:
    • Identified Hisarlik as the best candidate for Troy based on geography and ancient texts.
* Conducted early trenches but lacked money and publicity.
  • Schliemann:
    • Used Calvert’s advice and land to mount dramatic, highly publicized excavations from 1870 onward.
* Popularized the idea that Hisarlik was Homeric Troy, even if his rough methods damaged parts of the site.

Because Schliemann’s digs were big, spectacular, and heavily publicized, his name stuck in popular memory as the man who “discovered” Troy, even though modern scholarship stresses Calvert’s prior claim.

TL;DR:

  • Schoolbook answer: Heinrich Schliemann “discovered” Troy at Hisarlik in the 1870s.
  • Nuanced answer: Frank Calvert first identified and tested the site; Schliemann then made it famous through large-scale excavation.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.