For centuries, the name Thule has conjured images of a mysterious, frozen land at the northernmost point of the Earth. It’s a place that has captured the imaginations of explorers, poets, and even occultists, becoming a legend in its own right. But what exactly is Thule, and where did the story come from?
The tale begins in the 4th century BCE with a Greek explorer named Pytheas. He claimed to have sailed to a mysterious, icy island north of Scotland, a land he named Thule. His descriptions of a place shrouded in fog and surrounded by a frozen sea sparked a debate that has lasted over two millennia.
Many of Pytheas’s fellow explorers were skeptical, questioning whether such a place could even exist. However, the legend of Thule persisted, growing richer with each retelling. Over time, Thule became a symbol of the unknown, representing the ultimate northern frontier.
Today, most historians and geographers believe that Pytheas’s original discovery was likely either Norway or Iceland.
While the exact location remains a subject of historical debate, the enduring myth of Thule proves that the human fascination with the world’s most remote and mysterious places is a journey that never truly ends.
