The Atlantis Keystone

by Caroline Väljemark

  For a brief moment Erik speculated that Paul perhaps instead could be talking about the Torpa treasure; the chest housing the other half of the tablet but he quickly decided that didn’t make any sense either. Finally he gave up trying to understand and just read for the pleasure of it.

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  Paul was the first one to come back that afternoon. Erik had spent a wonderful day by the pool, swimming occasionally in the cool water and reading the book about Ahmose. He had only just got off the phone to get the final arrangements for his client meeting in Athens when Paul came in, smiling widely and appearing to be excited by something. By then Erik had put the book back on the shelf just as he had found it.

  “I assume you’ve had a good day by the look on your face”, Erik said as Paul walked past him.

  Paul hesitated as if not wishing to give anything away. “Er yes. One of my colleagues called this afternoon, a professor at Athens University. She wants me to come over to Athens to discuss a small object with almost undecipherable Linear B writing that was found in Mycenae this week. It sounds too interesting to miss in my view – and besides, she is always a good laugh. I will only be away for a couple of days”.

  Erik didn’t know what to say. The story about the Linear B item was blatantly a lie, Erik decided. He felt childish even thinking the thought but his intuition told him that Paul was going there to try to locate the treasure which he, according to the note in the book, supposed was hidden there. The story of the Linear B item could have been a cover up to conceal his real reason for the trip. Erik wondered whether Paul had told Emma about his suspicion about the ‘treasure’. He decided to ask her later that evening, or at least see whether it appeared as if she knew.

  “Sounds great. As you know, I’m flying over there tomorrow so I guess we can keep each other company.” He could see from Paul’s poorly disguised look of horror that he had forgotten about Erik’s meeting. “Athens is actually one of the few European capitals where I’ve never been”, he managed to say with what he hoped was a straight face. “I presume you will be flying as well, rather than going by boat?”

  “Oh yes, it’s so much quicker but nowhere near as nice of course!” What followed was a conversation about sailing, a passion which they both appeared to share. Erik turned on the television and they watched football until Emma showed up an hour later. They were focussed on the game and didn’t even look up when Emma sat down on the sofa.

  “You both look extremely excited to see me”, Emma said with not a little sarcasm. “You almost managed to say hello!” She sat down.

  “Well, it’s near the end of the game, only three minutes to go,” Paul uttered, still staring at the screen. Erik didn’t really care about the game but thought it best to keep watching anyway out of courtesy so that his disinterest wouldn’t be revealed to Paul. When it had ended Paul turned the telly off and turned towards Emma, grinning, waiting for her to say something.

  “Now that we can finally speak, how was your day?” she asked.

  “Well, Paul has some news”, Erik said quickly, waiting for Paul to explain.

  “Yes, I had some good news today. It looks like there might be an early Linear B text to look at from Mycenae. They’re having some problems with the translation and I’m going to Athens for a couple of days.” Emma looked puzzled and a little disappointed but mumbled a “Sounds great. So you’ll both be going to Athens…”

  Unusually, Paul went to bed early that night and Erik got a chance to spend some time alone with Emma. They sat on the sofa, watching some Greek programme about whales which Erik didn’t understand a word of. Laura and Ball had gone to Santorini, due to return to Crete soon.

  “So, how was your day?” Erik asked to break the ice, as he realised that she had never got a chance to tell them earlier. She turned down the volume and turned towards him.

  “Well, thanks for asking, it was ok.” She paused. “I have to admit that it feels like I’m wasting time spending all my days in that office, doing dirty work for free. It is good for my dissertation but I have to say that I’m not getting any closer to deciphering Linear A, as I was hoping. Too bad you’re both going away, leaving me here all alone!” She smiled as she said it.

  “Why don’t you join us? Sounds like you could do with a break.” He was hoping she would say yes. His heart jumped at the thought.

  “I would have liked to but unfortunately I have promised to continue my pointless translation exercise. I can’t let Paul down now. He’s made promises on my behalf.” Erik tried his hardest not to look too disappointed. He stared at the muted telly as he considered his response. He decided to reveal his thoughts on the matter.

  “Why can’t he do it himself? Why does he need you to do his legwork?”

  “He’s an Oxford professor. His research work is far more important than that. Besides, he’s right that it’s good practice for me and it might raise my profile among other linguists internationally. All the texts which I’ve translated bear my name after all.”

  “Well, there’s no cause for him to leave you to be his slave while he travels to Athens to catch up with old friends.”

  “What do you mean? The reason he’s going over there is to look at the Linear B object. Although, I have to say that I’m surprised that he’s bothering with Linear B, given that it’s unlikely to take us any further with Linear A, unless it’s from some sort of transitional period, in which case it could be very interesting. I haven’t spoken to him about it but I’m sure he has a good reason to go over there. Paul’s always very careful not to waste any time.”

  This response made Erik sure that Emma didn’t know about Paul’s ‘treasure’ theory, or whatever it was. He felt stupid to ask her whether he had mentioned anything about it to her. Talking about a treasure sounded so juvenile and Emma was so defensive about Paul that he felt it was not his place to talk behind Paul’s back about notes he had made in a book which Erik was probably not meant to read. Still, he was eager to find out what Paul was up to in Athens. Paul’s behaviour had been a bit strange ever since they arrived on Crete – he appeared somewhat distracted and kept disappearing, spending a lot of time in Heraklion. He would love to find out more about Paul’s intentions and what he knew about the tablet – Erik was sure that he was hiding something.

  “By the way, I doubt whether you’d see a lot of Paul while you’re there – he’s bound to spend most of his time at the University. And I’m sure you would want to walk around and see all the ancient Greek remains, the archaeological museum and everything else after your meeting.” Her response had been completely indifferent. She clearly had no feelings for him whatsoever. He felt a sting of disappointment.

  “Yes, of course. Maybe I can meet this professor friend of his though. Apparently she was supposed to be a good laugh according to Paul.” He had added the last bit in the hope that it would make her at least a little bit angry with Paul but unfortunately it didn’t have the intended effect.

  “Oh, when Paul says someone is a great laugh it’s not in the sense that you or I think – she’s probably one of those professors who loves to debate; just like Paul himself. He’d stay up all night and debate if you let him. That’s his definition of fun!”

  For a second Erik considered telling Emma about the book, playing on his ignorance for the topic, but decided against it. She wouldn’t understand, even if there was a treasure hidden in Athens which Paul had set out to find. Or would she? It didn’t matter – he had to go to Athens anyway.

  ELEVEN

  Athens, February 2006

  I vote for traditional Greek”, Paul proclaimed as they walked down the fashionable shopping street in central Athens. The shops were still open, even though it was past eight. Erik and Paul were accompanied by his colleague, Professor Mary Brown who had spent the last two years at Athens University lecturing on ancient history. She was certainly not the professor type; extremely chatty and bubbly, taller than average, thin, in her early forties. With her curly dar
k hair and freckles she didn’t look her age. Although she was a respected professor, she looked more like a nanny. For some reason she blushed as Paul presented Erik to her earlier that day, or maybe he had imagined it. She had immediately suggested, contrary to Paul’s plans Erik thought, that he join them for a meal that evening. It had been a long day, flying over to Athens from Crete, checking in at the hotel and preparing for the meeting the next day but Erik was keen to accept the invitation. He would only stay for a couple of days.

  “I would love to”, Erik agreed. “Where do you suggest, Professor Brown?”

  “Please, call me Mary! I know this place a little bit off the beaten track towards the Parthenon, a bit up the hill. It has excellent Moussaka, one of my favourites in fact”. They all agreed and Erik was glad to find that the walk was only five minutes, as he had had an early lunch and was ravenous. They managed to get a table on the terrace with a lovely view of the surrounding city lights twinkling in the chilly night air. The restaurant wasn’t fancy but it was very cosy with traditional blue and white decoration and glowing candles on all the tables. It was surprisingly busy for a Tuesday night, suggesting that it served good food.

  “So I hear that you have a strong connection to the famous Torpa tablet,” Mary asked after they had ordered their food.

  “Yes, I’m sure Paul has told you the whole unfortunate story about the break-in”.

  “No, he hasn’t! Would you mind filling me in?” Erik was surprised that Paul had neglected to tell her but then again, he wasn’t sure how close they were.

  Paul responded: “Yes, I was going to tell you that unfortunately our search for the other half of the tablet ended in disappointment when someone stole the chest in which we suspected the tablet was hidden. Now we don’t know whether the chest in fact housed the tablet or not. The police have had no luck in their investigation so far and who knows whether they ever will.”

  “That’s terrible news! I know how badly you wanted to find that half tablet but I got the impression from Professor Palaikastro that you had taken a step further in your deciphering work, that you had discovered something?” Paul hesitated as if he was trying to formulate his answer in his mind before speaking.

  “Well, I wouldn’t call it a breakthrough but I did see a connection the other week; something which made me realise that we’re not that far away from discovering which language group Linear A relates to. But I would hate to bore you both with the detail over dinner. I’ll tell you more about it tomorrow Mary but I should warn you that my theory is not fully formulated yet. I’m certainly not going to make my findings public until I’m absolutely sure but I would like to discuss it with you. When I told professor Palaikastro he said you would be a good person to talk to.” Erik got the distinct impression that Paul was hiding something important. Mary seemed to have sensed the same thing and tried to ease the tension:

  “That’s understandable but great news though. If you do succeed in deciphering Linear A you’ll most certainly find a place in the history books, and who knows what we’ll find out about the Minoans. That would be exciting indeed!”

  “I won’t exactly be the new ‘Champollion’”, Paul laughed, “but it’s certainly been my dream for a number of years to be able to decipher Linear A. I wouldn’t get my hopes up though. Until we find that other half tablet we can’t be sure – and even with the whole tablet it’s bound to be a struggle”.

  Erik guessed that Paul was trying his best to change the topic but he took the opportunity to let it hover over the Torpa tablet: “What about the text on the tablet though Paul, have you had any more thoughts on your Crete-Egypt theory?” He asked innocently. Mary seemed surprised.

  “Remember we discussed this a few years ago and I always maintained that there was something more to the text of the tablet than we thought but you rightly pointed out its similarity to the Tempest Stele,” she said with an amused tone of voice. “I didn’t know you were interested in the actual contents of the tablet; you were always more focussed on the tablet’s function as a key stone and deciphering Linear A rather than the mention of Tetisheri and the tempest.”

  “Well, when one spends a lot of time trying to decipher a text, one can’t help but read the text”, Paul said with a forced smile and then fell abruptly silent, as if he regretted saying it. Erik was stunned. Why would Paul spend a lot of time reading the half tablet – it was useless as a key stone without the other half? For the first time a suspicion formed in Erik’s mind. Paul could have had something to do with the break-in and the theft of the chest. He could have found the tablet and commenced his deciphering work on the basis of the tablet in its entirety. That would explain why he had made progress in his deciphering work; because he had the keystone to hand. It wasn’t out of the question that the other half of the tablet had also revealed something about a treasure. Erik’s mind was racing. But Paul wasn’t even in the country when the tablet was stolen. There was no way that Paul could actually have conducted the break-in. But he could have hired someone else. Erik knew that his imagination was running away with him and his general opinion about Paul was possibly tainted by his sudden jealousy of him and Emma but judging by Paul’s comments this evening, it sort of made sense.

  Mary, who remained unmoved and didn’t appear to have had any similar thoughts, said: “I know, I don’t know how much time I’ve spent reading that half tablet and how many times I’ve concluded that it doesn’t say anything new.” Erik was glad that he had read up on Ahmose – he now understood more of the conversation.

  “Let’s exchange theories on the tablet tomorrow when our brains are fresher and not affected by wine”, Paul said to Mary without looking in Erik’s direction. Erik knew that tomorrow’s discussion would not include him. It would likely take place at the University. He suddenly wished he could listen in during that conversation, as he suspected that Paul might want to share his theory about the treasure with her.

  “Fair enough. So what are you up to tomorrow, Erik,” Mary asked with a big smile. Erik returned her beam.

  “I have a client meeting in the morning so I probably shouldn’t drink too much tonight,” he said with a dry laugh. “And then sightseeing is the plan.” What followed was a long conversation on what to see in Athens, which lasted pretty much through the whole of their starters and what turned out to be magnificent Moussaka.

  It had been a lovely evening. As they departed, Paul and Erik to separate hotels and Mary to her flat near the University, Mary kissed Erik gently on each cheek and said: “I certainly hope I’ll see you again before you leave Athens. Paul, I’m sure you agree that we should all meet up again tomorrow night?”

  “Of course, sounds like an excellent idea,” Paul said with little conviction.

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  It was afternoon. Erik had had the client meeting in the morning. It had gone well. Over lunch they had come to an agreement that Erik’s firm would help with the legal aspects of the client’s impending migration of his computer graphics business from Sweden to Cyprus. It was a reasonably sizeable engagement and Erik was very pleased with himself. After a quick gratifying phone call to his boss, he decided to do some sightseeing. As he walked around among impressive outdoor displays of ancient Greek wonders, the sun was shining and he whistled happily. He wanted to see as much of central Athens as possible in the limited amount of time he had at his disposal. He browsed the main sights around the Acropolis and the Parthenon in a few hours without entering any of the enclosed areas. By the time he reached the archaeological museum entrance, his feet were sore from blisters and it was already half past four. Knowing that the recommended time to explore the museum was two days, he realised that he would not do it justice by rushing but he nevertheless decided to enter just to be able to say he had been there. He had only got to the second room, perusing some glass-encased Mycenaean jewellery, when he heard familiar voices from a few shelves down. To his surprise, it was Paul and Mary. They were admiring the so called ‘Mask of Agame
mnon’. Erik could even hear what they were saying. Rather than going up to them to say hello, he decided to take this ‘fly-on-the-wall’ opportunity and remain an anonymous bystander, pretending to take an interest in some nearby signet rings. Why on earth were they there, he wondered.

  “I see what you mean”, Mary said to Paul. “The timing is certainly right, around 1600-1550 BC. Everyone knows that the ‘mask of Agamemnon’ is not actually connected to the legendary Mycenaean leader Agamemnon who was around much later, in around about the 1200s BC. Your theory does make sense. How else would the Mycenaeans have been able to get hold of all this gold, silver and bronze at this time – they were simply not advanced enough then, as far as we know.”

  “Yes, and look at this one here,” Paul said as they walked over to another display unit. Erik had to do a quick diversionary manoeuvre to avoid being seen. He knew that he was easy to spot in a crowd, with his height and blonde hair. Paul continued:

  “You can clearly see that these goods originate from both Egypt and Crete – their style is unmistakable. It’s also easy to see that the Mycenaeans themselves must have melted down some of the gold to make these new, less sophisticated, objects.” He signalled in the direction of the gold mask and some jewellery nearby. “The description of ‘gold, silver, and bronze’ seems to fit and with the timing and everything else, it does make sense.”

  Could it be? Erik thought. ‘THE TREASURE IS IN ATHENS’. The treasure which Paul had been referring to in the book must have been this museum collection. He was hit by mild disappointment, having imagined a secret buried treasure. He vaguely remembered reading on the posters at the entrance that the collection was the so called Mycenaean shaft graves. And yes, he recalled, they were from the 16th century BC, discovered on mainland Greece, in Mycenae. Of course, he recalled, the Mycenaeans had only really started their quest to conquer parts of the Mediterranean two hundred years later, making the lavish and rich graves a bit of a mystery, as it contained items which could only have been crafted by a much more advanced civilisation. Scientists or historians had not managed to find an explanation to why all that gold had been hidden in forgotten graves on mainland Greece, which at that time was far from civilised. That was obviously the question which Paul’s theory appeared to have an answer to but Erik guessed that it was more to it than that.