"Makaria at Bosphorus / Black Sea mouth" by Rob Hursonis licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Black Sea was known as Euxine Sea (Inhospitable) and later, Pantos Euxeinos (Graeco Roman, meaning hospitable), and many more, depending on geography. According to sailors, the sea appeared to be black during overcast, rainy days. The name may also be derived from cardinal directions symbolic color representing North; black. 

The Black Sea is the largest inland body of water—it is bordered by Ukraine, Russia, Georgia, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Romania. It is famous for having the largest meromictic basin (a body of water where the lower and upper layers of water rarely mix), so the lower half is anoxic, meaning there is no oxygen on the bottom half of the sea. The temperature and nutrient differences between the upper and lower halves of the sea mean there are two entirely different ecosystems between them. There is saline at the bottom of the basin running from the Mediterranean Sea, and Aegean Sea (exclusively through Bosphorus and Dardanelles Strait). The top of the lake receives excessive freshwater input from multiple large rivers and rainfall. The complex water chemistry and slow mixing of water, means it takes about 2,500 years for the water to be recycled. The anoxic zones are considered to be biologically dead; only microscopic bacteria can survive, but the top half of the sea supports more complex marine life. 

As you can imagine there are many rumors about the Black Sea, making its reputation rather spooky. In Greek mythology there several legends, as well as Turkish lore, and more. Scientists discovered the oldest sunken ship in The Black Sea, a Greek merchant ship, believed to be about 2,400 years old. Scientists believe there are about 65 sunken ships at the bottom. Due to the lack of oxygen at the bottom of the sea, deterioration is extremely slow. The Black Sea has also been a major resource for trade for its surrounding countries. 

The Black Sea is mentioned once in Frankenstein, when Victor is on the route to catch The Creature, where he sees The Creature enter onto a vessel on the Mediterranean Sea on a path to the Black Sea, but he evades Victor. For Shelley, the Black Sea would have been a nod to her reference to Prometheus in the second half of the title, where Prometheus is punished by Zeus for stealing fire, which represent knowledge, for humans. Zeus chains prometheus to a rock in Caucasus, near the Black Sea. Due to the rumors, and ominous appearance of the sea, it represents a crucial point in Victor's desperation to gain revenge on The Creature, and death due to it's deadly lower atmosphere. The theme of punishment from Prometheus feels heavily linked to Victor's inevitable end. 

"Shipwreck Found in Black Sea Is 'world's Oldest Intact'." BBC, 23 Oct. 2018, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-4595113. Accessed 28 Feb. 2025.

"Ocean Color Image Gallery." Earth Data, oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/782/. Accessed 28 Feb. 2025.

Karatay, Osman. "On the Origins of the Name for the ‘Black Sea’." Journal of Historical Geography, Volume 37, Issue 1, 2011, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0305748810001040. Accessed 28 Feb. 2025.

Goncharov, Vladimir Petrovich, Kosarev, Aleksey Nilovich, Fomin, Luch Mikhaylovich. "Black Sea". Encyclopedia Britannica, 3 Mar. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/place/Black-Sea. Accessed 3 March 2025.

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Edited by Michael Bérubé, New York, W. W. Norton & Company, 1818.