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Abstract
Book description:
This lavish set of books contains the most complete collection of raw material for reconstructing the history of the Achaemenid Persian Empire to date.
Studying Achaemenid history has been difficult in the past because original sources include texts from hugely disparate origins, many different languages and various periods in history; the risk is to rely too heavily on biased and often inaccurate Greek and Roman sources.
Amelie Kuhrt presents here an unprecedented collection of key texts to form a balanced representation of all aspects of the Empire, in translations from their original Greek, Old Persian, Akkadian, Hebrew, Aramaic, Egyptian or Latin.
Kuhrt selects from classical writers, the Old Testament, royal inscriptions, administrative documents and Babylonian historical writing, as well as the evidence of monuments, artefacts and archaeological sites. All material is accompanied by a detailed introduction to the sources and guidelines to their interpretation.
A truly monumental achievement, this collection will prove to be a major resource for any student of Persian history, from undergraduate level to the advanced scholar.
... In 552 BC, the Persians rose up against Media's rule, forming an independent state that would confront Medea. The Persian king, Cyrus the Great, crawled into the empire of Medea and occupied its capital, Ecbatana, in 549 BC (Kuhrt, 2013). Cyrus later invaded the Lydia Empire in Anatolia and the modern Babylonian Empire in Mesopotamia, declared himself king and was the founder of the first great empires to be known as Persia. ...
... 7 Pierre Briant (2002) salienta que são poucos os eventos na História do Império Persa Aquemênida que foram capazes de levantar tantas questões quanto ao curto período em que Cambises II sai de cena e Dario I ascende ao poder. compiladas pela Amélie Kuhrt (2007), como Pierre Briant (2002), no item 10 do seu capítulo 2 intitulado Usurpação de Bardiya, nos apresenta uma narrativa um tanto quanto diferente acerca do episódio que levou à ascensão de Dario, bem como seus antecedentes. Nesta versão apresentado por Briant, Bardiya não é morto por seu irmão, mas é "compensado" por Ciro II, seu pai, após nomear Cambises como seu sucessor, com um vasto distrito na Ásia Central, além de ter sido isento de impostos, no qual atuaria como um sátrapa. ...
Após a ascensão ao trono por Dario I, ocorre uma série de revoltas em todo o Império Persa Aquemênida (550 – 330 AEC), isso porque Dario era visto como um usurpador e assassino. Depois de sufocar a maioria das revoltas, o monarca se concentrou no projeto de reorganização imperial, onde houve uma reforma que tangenciou diversos aspectos, desde questões econômicas e administrativas, até a reorganização das satrapias. Em suma, Dario realizou uma série de contribuições para o império e para registrar tais ações, o “Rei dos reis” decidiu deixar gravado os seus feitos na fonte a ser analisada, isto é, a Inscrição de Behistun. Tendo isso em vista, o propósito do presente artigo é analisar a relação entre a escrita, levando em conta o caráter multilíngue e pluriétnico do império, e o poder, ressaltando que as fontes persas têm um caráter propagandístico e também uma busca por legitimação.
... This used to be the traditional narrative in Egyptology for art and text of the Persian Period, and more broadly all of Egypt's Late Period. Recent scholarship, including (Kuhrt 2007; Agut-Labordère 2016; Wasmuth 2017; Colburn 2020; Wasmuth and Creasman 2020), challenge and successfully refute this notion, and my perspectives on this matter are greatly indebtted to their (re)interpretations of Achaemenid material in Egypt. ...
This paper aims to highlight examples of artistic motifs common throughout Egyptian history but augmented in novel ways during the 27th Dynasty, a time when Egypt was part of the Achaemenid empire and ruled by Persian kings. These kings represented themselves as traditional pharaohs within Egypt’s borders and utilized longstanding Egyptian artistic motifs in their monumental constructions. These motifs, however, were manipulated in subtle ways to send targeted messages to audience(s) of this art. Art historians tend to situate visual styles and motifs within the longue durée of artistic tradition and pick a singular, official, and centralized perspective to narrate the history and reception of that art. In the case of Egypt, this perspective is often that of the king, and there is an assumption that there was a monolithic message sent to his people. But we are not dealing with a homogenous people; a diverse population would have had varied reactions to and interpretations of this visual signaling. By highlighting both the augmentation of traditional motifs undertaken by the Achaemenid administration and the multiplicity of perspectives they held for their audience(s), we can better understand ancient art as being dynamic in function and interpretation, rather than as a static snapshot of carbon-copied royal authority.
Although Auramazdā was the supreme god of the Persian pantheon since Darius (I) came to power, the exact position of this god before his reign is uncertain due to the lack of sources. The possibility that other deities occupied this position before the arrival of the Achaemenids is a possibility. One of them is the Elamite god Humban, who might have been of great importance in the aspirations of the Teispid dynasty given his prominence in the Neo-Elamite period and his continued worship in Persia even during the reign of Darius. Indeed, the concept of kitin, associated with divine protection and royal authority, which was linked to his figure in the Neo-Elamite period, could have been a major influence on the emerging Achaemenid royal ideology
The obvious religious connections, both of the tomb and of the paradises, are evident and have usually been linked to the zoroastrian tradition. However, associations with the Mesopotamian and especially elamite world have rarely been invoked in this context. Given our growing knowledge about the importance of the Elamite civilization in the genesis of the Persian people, the possibility of an indigenous tradition is increasing: husa («forest», «grove») and siyan husame («grove-temple») could have been models for the Persian paradises that, in addition to their practical use, continued to be core of the royal ideology as had been the previous ones in the elamite culture. The cultic activities attested to the Elamite groves could certainly have contributed to the sacrifices in the Persian paradises and in the construction of Cyrus' tomb in one of these.
Marek Jan Olbrycht, The Road Network in the Arsakid State, n: Anabasis. Studia Classica et Orientalia 12-13 (2021-2022) [ = Cities, Trade, and Roads: From the Mediterranean to Iran and the Indus Valley, edited by Marek Jan Olbrycht, Sabine Müller, Rzeszów 2024], pp. 186-232
Anadolu coğrafyasında İÖ 13 – İÖ 12 yüzyıllarda yaşanan Ege göçlerinin neticesinde var olan Hitit Krallığının hâkimiyeti sona ermiştir. Göç yoluyla Anadolu’ya gelen yeni kavimlerden olan Frigler, Denizli ve çevresine hâkim olmayı başarmıştır. Ancak Kimmer istilası ile birlikte Frigler yıkılmış ve Lidya krallığı kurulmuştur. Lidya Krallığı Friglerin hâkim olduğu yerlerin hepsine hâkim olmuş ve daha geniş sınırlara ulaşmıştır. Anadolu’da Lidya hâkimiyetinin yaşandığı dönemde Ahameniş günümüz İran coğrafyasında Ahameniş Krallığı kurulmuş ve yayılmacı politikaları neticesinde Anadolu coğrafyasını ele geçirmiştir. Denizli ve çevresi İÖ 5 ve İÖ 3 yüzyıllarda Ahameniş (Pers) hâkimiyetinde kalarak Denizli ve çevresi Sardeis satraplığının sınırları içinde kalmıştır. Ahameniş hâkimiyetinin zayıflamaya başladığı dönemlerde Makedon krallığının gücünü arttırmaya başlamıştır. Makedon Kralı Büyük İskender, yapmış olduğu Asya seferi neticesinde Ahameniş Krallığını yıkarak Anadolu coğrafyasının büyük çoğunluğunu ele geçirmiştir. İskenderin seferi neticesinde Denizli ve çevresi Makedon hâkimiyetine girmiştir. Bu çalışma Pers Kralı Kyros’un Anadolu’yu fethinden Makedon Kralı Büyük İskender’in Asya seferine kadar olan süre zarfında Denizli ve çevresinde yaşanan siyasi olaylar hakkında bilgi vermeyi amaçlamaktadır.
At arabaları insanoğlu tarafından tarih boyunca çeşitli amaçlarla kullanılmış ve savaş arabaları bu amaçlardan birini teşkil etmiştir. Lakin Bronz Çağı zarfında askerî hususta görev almaya başlamışlardır. Zamanla da orduların temelini meydana getirmeleri ile birlikte, birçok medeniyette izlerine rastlanabilmiştir. Çalışmamızda savaş arabası kullanan tüm medeniyetleri incelemek zor olacağı için Eski Mısır, Hitit, Myken, Eski Yunan, Pers, Roma, Eski Çin ve Eski Türk gibi uygarlıklar üzerinde durduk. Temel amacımız ise savaş arabalarının gelişimini Prehistorik Çağlar’dan Ortaçağ’a kadar incelemektir. İkincil amacımız da Şehnâme’deki tasvirlerini minyatür sanatı çerçevesinde gözden geçirmektir. Savaş arabalarına sahip olan medeniyetler kendi coğrafi koşulları ve savaş stratejilerine göre makinelerini tasarlamışlardır. Ancak herhangi bir savaş arabası aks, tekerlek, sepet, direk, boyunduruk ve bağlantı bölümleri gibi ortak tamamlayıcı unsurlar barındırmak zorundaydı. Savaş aracını meydana getiren bu parçaların aynı zamanda farklı görevleri de bulunurdu. Bu araçlar muharebelerde genellikle piyadelerin saflarını dağıtmak amaçlı kullanılmıştır. Belirtilen hususta Bronz Çağı boyunca önemli yararlar sağlamalarına karşın, zamanla saf dışı kalmaya başlamışlardır. Nitekim işaret edilen durumun en büyük sebebi, süvari birliklerinin ortaya çıkmasıdır. Süvariler savaş arabalarına kıyasla daha hızlı ve kullanışlı oldukları için önem kazanmışlardır. Fakat bu çercevede araçların Eskiçağ ve Ortaçağ boyunca tamamen ortadan kalktığı da düşünülmemelidir. Şehnâme İran’ın milli kahramanlık destanlarından biri olup hem tarihsel hemde mitolojik konuları aktarmaktadır. Ek olarak İsfendiyâr ile Simurg mücadelesinde dikenli bir savaş arabası da yer almaktadır. Bu hikayede İsfendiyâr arabasının üzerindeki dikenler yardımıyla Simurg’un canını almış ve belirtilen mücadele birçok minyatürde tasvir edilmiştir.
Este artículo trata del entorno medioambiental de Persépolis durante el periodo aqueménida (ss.VI-IV a.C.). Además de sus funciones simbólicas y administrativas como lugar central central, Persépolis fue el resultado de un proyecto de desarrollo a gran escala que abarcó al menos una docena de kilómetros cuadrados y se llevó a cabo en etapas sucesivas, que dejó amplios espacios para las actividades agrícolas, como atestiguan los Archivos de la Fortificación. Tras una revisión del entorno geográfico regional, los datos centrados en las propiedades de los suelos y la hidrografía proporcionan una imagen más precisa del paisaje natural de Persépolis. Las instalaciones hidráulicas, conocidas gracias a los trabajos arqueológicos parecen estar adaptadas a las propiedades de los suelos y adecuadas para el desarrollo de la agricultura intensiva. Los estudios de las condiciones hidrográficas muestran que el cauce del río Pulvar, que atraviesa la region, habría estado menos encajado en la llanura aluvial que en época moderna, con consecuencias para la disponibilidad de agua en Persépolis y en la historia de su ocupación.
Pers-Makedon savaşları tarihsel açıdan özellikle Küçük Asya’nın ve Yakın Doğu’nun yaklaşık iki yüzyıldır devam eden yönetimin el değiştirdiği ve yeni kaderinin belirlendiği savaşlar olarak ön plana çıkmaktadır. Granikos Savaşı, Büyük İskender’e Küçük Asya’yı kazandıran; İssos Savaşı Yakın Doğu’nun kapısını açan; Gaugamela Savaşı ise Pers İmparatorluğunu fiilen bitirmesine neden olan gelişmelerdir. Bu savaşlarda; Persler, yapılan muharebelerde donanım ve disiplin açısından çok zayıf kalmış ve bu nedenle de büyük mağlubiyetler gelmiştir. Standart Pers askeri donanımında yakın dövüş için geliştirilmiş bir zırh olmayınca kol, boyun ve yüz yaralanmaları ölümcül seviyelerde oluşmuştur. Yine benzer şekilde hasırdan meydana gelen kalkanlar, Makedonların uzun mızraklarına karşı çok yetersiz kalarak bütün darbeyi piyadenin almasına yol açmıştır. Bu nedenle, rakipler arasında kıyaslanınca teçhizatlarda meydana gelen bu dengesizlik sonucunda da yenilgi kaçınılmaz son olmuştur. Bu makalede, Persler ve Makedonlar arasında yapılmış Granikos, İssos ve Gaugamela Savaşları’nın nedenleri, gelişim süreçleri ve sonuçları üzerinde durulmakla birlikte; Perslerin çöküş sürecini etkileyen askeri faktörler üzerinde bu savaşlar kapsamında analizler yapılmıştır.
Bu makalede; Antik kaynaklarda Persler hakkındaki bilgilere ilk olarak ne zaman ve nasıl yer verildiği ile Perslerden bahsedilen kaynaklarda nasıl bir Pers imajının çizildiği konularına yer verilmiştir. Bu doğrultuda, özellikle Pers yazıtları ve Batılı kaynaklar (Yunanlar başta olmak üzere) eleştirel bakış açılarıyla ve birbirleriyle kıyaslanarak ele alınmıştır. Ayrıca, bir Pers tarihi kaynakçası oluşturabilmek ve Pers tarihyazımında olan bazı metodolojik konulara değinmek de makalenin başlıca hedefleridir. Persler ve Yunanlar birbirlerinin kültürlerini ve toplumsal yapılarını tanımada önemli fırsatlar elde etmiştir. İç içe geçmiş bu tarih ve kültür ekseni, birbirini iyi tanıyan iki ezeli rakip yaratmıştır. Bu etkileşim sonucunda; birçok Yunan tarihçi, Pers hükümdarlarının zenginliklerine ve yaşam tarzlarına hayran kalmıştı. Bu bakış açısının getirmiş olduğu tasvirlerde, Pers kralları; sürekli saray entrikalarıyla uğraşan, ahlâki yozlaşmanın içinde yer alan, Batılı, cesur, müthiş ve kusursuz kralların karşısında, cesareti olmayan, eşcinsel tavırlara sahip bir şekilde gösterilmişti. Kuşkusuz, buradaki en temel amaç; Yunanlar’ın başarılarını yüceltmek, Persler’i ise “ötekileştirmek”ti
Few writings have shaped the world as much as the Book of Isaiah. Its lyricism, imagery, theology, and ethics are all deeply ingrained into us, and into Judeo-Christian culture more generally. It has been a cultural touchstone from the time when it was formed, and it influenced later Biblical authors as well. The Book of Isaiah is also a complex work of literature, dense with poetry, rhetoric, and theology, and richly intertwined with ancient history. For all these reasons, it is a challenge to read well. The Cambridge Companion to Isaiah serves as an up-to-date and reliable guide to this biblical book. Including diverse perspectives from leading scholars all over the world, it approaches Isaiah from a wide range of methodological approaches. It also introduces the worlds in which the book was produced, the way it was formed, and the impacts it has had on contemporary and later audiences in an accessible way.
Akhaimenid yazıtları, genel olarak birbirini tekrar eden bir şekilde yazılmıştır: Giriş bölümünde; kral, kendini, soyunu ve bütün unvanlarını sıralar, gelişme bölümünde; yazıtın ne amaçla oluşturulduğu belirtilir ve sonuç kısmında da kral, ülkesinin ile yazıtının korunması için tanrısına dua eder. Bunlar, kralların başarılı savaşlarının ve fetihlerinin anlatılması sırasında “propaganda” amacıyla kullanılmıştır. Hükümdar, bu yazıtlarda daima kendini Tanrı Ahuramazda’nın yeryüzündeki vekili olarak yansıtmakta, hatta onun tarafından seçildiğini söyleyerek iktidarını meşrulaştırma yoluna gitmektedir. Dolayısıyla, bu durum kraliyet ideolojisinin somutlaştırılmış şekli olarak rahatlıkla tanımlanabilir. II. Artakserkses döneminden itibaren yazıtlarda Tanrı Ahuramazda’nın desteğinin yanı sıra Anahita ve Mithra’nın da metinlerde isimlerinin geçtiği görülmektedir. Bu doğrultuda, Persler’in gittikleri bölgelerdeki tanrıları benimseyerek, onların desteğini unvanlarına eklemesinin de meşruiyetlerini güçlendirmeye yönelik hareketler olduğu söylenebilir. Bu doğrultuda Perslerin iktidar inşasında Assur, Babil, Med ve Elam medeniyetlerinden büyük oranda etkilendiği ve mevcut durumunu da geliştirerek kendi yönetim biçimlerini oluşturdukları tespit edilmektedir.
Revolts against the Persian Great Kings remain a largely contentious issue in Achaemenid studies, several aspects of which are however left unexplored. One such example is the question of the role of the Persian sovereign himself in this conflict: Was he actively implicated or did he adopt a more passive stance? This study aims to provide an answer to this question by systematically examining in a chronological order all the attested rebellions that have broken out in opposition to the incumbent Persian sovereign. Although on the surface level the attitude of the Achaemenid monarchs greatly varied, through this study a more coherent picture emerges, as it gradually becomes clear that the policy of the Persian sovereigns when facing an internal threat to their authority depended on the objective of the rebel themselves: Secession from the empire and the formation of an independent state or usurpation of the imperial throne.
This article examines how and why the Ptolemies, soon after they succeeded Alexander in Egypt, orchestrated the return of Egyptian statues supposedly stolen by the Persians, drawing on the cultural memory of different population groups: Egyptians and Graeco-Macedonians. First, it argues that the Ptolemies invested energy in searching for Egyptian objects and gods’ statues in the Levant, which they distributed among the temples, though some may have been newly fabricated statues. Second, the study aims to reconstruct what the Ptolemies knew about earlier Greek and Near Eastern traditions of seizing and returning statues, which mixed elements of truth with topoi. This reconstruction serves to explain how meaningful it was to Egyptians and Graeco-Macedonians to bring back statues after each campaign. Finally, comparing the tale of Bentresh, the account of Sarapis’ origin by Tacitus and the Ptolemaic stelae, the article suggests that these narratives highlighted Egypt as the centre of the world with the most powerful ruler, a claim appealing to all its inhabitants.
This contribution provides an overview of the urban processes that took place in the ancient region of Gandhara at the beginning of the so-called Early Historic period, from about the sixth–fifth centuries BCE, with a brief preamble on the proto-urban phase. The mid-late second century BCE, marked by the (re)foundation of cities and the remarkable financial investment of the Indo-Greeks in cities and urban resources, is here taken as watershed in the urban history of Gandhara. The early urban history of Gandhara is narrated by foregrounding the notion of edge as tie and interface. The attempt is to highlight, on the one hand, how the relationality entailed in exchanges and tensions between the macro-regions of South Asia and the Iranian Highland structured the transformations of the urban and urbanity and, on the other hand, how Gandhara, the edge, progressively gained centrality and agency on the functioning of the bordering areas and in reconfiguring the wider socio-cultural and economic network.
The volume Wine Cultures. Gandhāra and Beyond represents the primary outcome of the MALIWI project (SPIN Ca’ Foscari 2021) directed by Claudia Antonetti. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, this work seeks to explore the production techniques, social functions, and cultural significance of intoxicating drinks with particular reference to wine – an extraordinary beverage that has been intertwined with human history for millennia. This volume gathers contributions by scholars interested in studying wine and drinking culture in Gandhāra and neighbouring regions, including Ancient Assyria, Arachosia, and present-day India. The topic is explored from three fundamental perspectives, employing a diverse range of sources, including literary and historical texts, as well as linguistic, iconographic, archaeological, and anthropological evidence.
Descriptions of Ancient Persian male homoeroticism come mainly from Classical sources, which, however, seem to present divergent testimonies regarding this practice. Some authors apparently provide proof for its widespread acceptance, whereas others, particularly later authors, emphasized its prohibition. Considering the many difficulties involved in the reconstruction of Persian history through the eyes of classical Greeks and Romans, this article aims to provide a brief overview of the subject, with some clues to the question of the origin, form, and tolerance of same-sex love in Achaemenid Persia. We agree that homoerotic practices were attested and likely accepted at some level in Achaemenid Persia. However, we believe that the evidence available to us is not enough to obtain a full understanding of this phenomenon. It is also stressed that not every Greek or Roman reference to Persian male homoeroticism should be taken at face value, as some are distorted and fictitious or lack firsthand knowledge. Finally, we briefly address the image of eunuchs as sexual partners of Achaemenid kings.
The king’s condition in Dan 4 has invited significant discussion. Proposed interpretations of the king’s condition in Dan 4 include various medical diagnoses, imagery from the underworld, primitive uncivilized behavior, or imagery associated with divine displeasure and affliction. The current study argues, however, that the key to interpreting these images should be found in the passage’s connection to one of the most prominent rituals of royal legitimation in ancient Mesopotamia, the akītu -festival. The akītu -festival celebrated the divine legitimation of the king through a ritual of 1) the king’s loss of royal status before it is returned; 2) a decree of destiny; and 3) a dramatic exit and re-entry into the city as a symbol of exit and re-entry into the ordered world. It is within the narrative arc of this festival that the animalian imagery of Dan 4 finds its most compelling explanation.
The article examines the role of the orders of Darius I and Xerxes in the functioning of the legal system in the Achaemenid Persian Empire. It is concluded that along with local political and legal traditions, royal decrees, commands and instructions that came from the king himself and his office served as tools of socio-political and economic regulation in the Achaemenid empire. The Achaemenid trilingual royal inscriptions are analysed as the main source of information on this subject. These texts contain references to king’s orders, and the terminological analysis, covering the corresponding vocabulary of inscriptions in the main three languages (Old Persian, Elamite and Akkadian), allows us to come to some conclusions regarding the functioning of the Achaemenid legal system as a whole. It can be asserted that royal orders mentioned there can be divided into three groups (royal decrees, royal commands and proclamations). In the Achaemenid royal inscriptions orders given by the king to his military commanders or his army can be considered as commands, while decrees do not have any specific addressee and are of more general nature. If one speaks about a special type of royal commands, such as proclamations, these are addressed to the entire population of the Achaemenid Empire.
Questo lavoro analizza la rappresentazione dell’invocazione di Dario nei Persianidi Eschilo. Prendendo in esame alcune questioni linguistiche e gli aspetti relativi alla messa in scena del rito di invocazione, si vuole mostrare che il poeta enfatizza l’estraneità rispetto agli spettatori dei costumi persiani a cui allude sulla scena. Allo stesso tempo Eschilo non rinuncia a guidare la ricezione del pubblico, dal momento che ricorrendo al patrimonio di conoscenze condiviso dagli spettatori chiarisce che il defunto invocato presenta tratti insieme umani e divini. Si ritiene dunque che attraverso una commistione di elementi greci più facilmente interpretabili dagli spettatori il poeta intende rendere più comprensibili per questi ultimi le forme di pensiero edi civiltà persiane, compiendo un’operazione di mediazione.
This article provides an overview of the sources on Pharaonic seafaring
on the Red Sea, discusses the complexities involved in interpreting the varied
sources and reassesses their informational value. The main focus lies on the period
of about 1,500 years, from the attestation of the earliest secured sources around
2500 BCE to the end of the New Kingdom, when the evidence for voyages on the Red
Sea becomes scarce. The Graeco-Roman period, in which the organization of seafaring
fundamentally changes as Egypt becomes a member of a more global trade network,
falls beyond the scope of this contribution (see however the contributions of
Reinard and Droß-Krüpe in this volume). After a brief historical overview (chap. 3),
the individual source categories are presented, beginning with the harbors on the
Red Sea coast with their well-preserved infrastructure and artifacts (chap. 4). Of
particular interest among these finds are the ship parts, which are considered in
more detail in the next chapter (5) together with further written and visual evidence.
The methodological problems associated with analyzing pictorial representations
are subsequently discussed. The final chapter (6) explains various aspects
relating to the operation of an expedition on the Red Sea.
Bu maqola Taxor viloyati gidronimlari tasnifiga bag‘ishlangan. Bu ilmiy ishda, mazkur hudud gidronimlari onomastik-morfologik va leksik-semantik xususiyatlariga ko‘ra taniflangan. Suv obyektlari nomlarining paydo bo‘lishi va ularning boshqa onomastik birliklar (oykonimlar, agroonimlar, dromonimlar ...)ning shakllanishiga asos bo‘lishi masalasi ham ko‘tarilgan. Shuningdek, bu maqolada gidronimlarning xalq tarixini, kelib chiqishini o‘rganishdagi roli haqida ham to‘xtanilgan.
Zborník príspevkov z klasickej filológie, latinskej medievalistiky a neolatinistiky Je to už jedenásť rokov, čo Katedra klasickej filológie Filozofickej fakulty Univerzity Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach otvorila po prvý raz bránu svojej pomyselnej pestrej záhrady. Vtedy poskytol zborník Hortus Graeco-Latinus Cassoviensis priestor prezentovať výsledky práce zo všetkých odborov vied o antickom staroveku, latinskej medievalistiky a neolatinistiky kolegom zo Slovenska. O päť rokov neskôr už „záhradu“ obohatili aj kolegovia z Čiech a Moravy a tentoraz, pri jej v poradí štvrtom otvorení, ju svojimi prácami poctili aj kolegovia z Grécka a Nemecka. Pestrosť ostala naďalej jej charakteristickou črtou. V zborníku sa predstavujú práce z antických dejín, z lingvistiky klasických jazykov, z antickej i stredovekej literatúry, antickej filozofie, z dejín antickej medicíny či neolatinistiky a nechýbajú ani príspevky venujúce sa vyučovaniu klasických jazykov. Navyše zborník vychádza ako výstup dvoch zdanlivo nesúrodých projektov VEGA realizovaných na katedre: č. 1/0109/21 Poemata de se ipso Gregora z Nazianzu a č. 1/0255/22 Medicus poeta. Novolatinská literatúra lekárskych autorov spätých so Slovenskom. Zdanie však klame, pretože Gregor z Nazianzu, hoci cirkevný otec, písal aj poéziu, v jeho diele sa nachádzajú početné alúzie z lekárskeho prostredia, mal brata lekára. Celé jeho dielo sa vyznačuje pestrosťou spracúvaných tém. V dielach lekárov básnikov zas nie sú ničím výnimočným odkazy na Bibliu. Ako sa navzájom rôznia a súčasne prelínajú projekty, rôznia a prelínajú sa aj témy jednotlivých príspevkov.
Adını ilk defa Perslerle girmiş olduğu mücadele duyduğumuz Massagetler, günümüz coğrafi yerleştirmelerine göre; Türkmenistan, Kazakistan ve Özbekistan’ın bulunmuş olduğu coğrafyada yaşayan, Pers Kralı II. Kyros ile girmiş oldukları savaşı kazanan ve Pers kralları döneminde de hâkimiyet altına alınamamış göçebe ve güçlü bir halktır. Kökenleri konusunda çok fazla tartışmanın olduğu bozkır coğrafyasının kadim topluluğu Massagetler günümüzde de gizemini korumaktadır. Kraliçeleri olan Tomris’in Pers Kralı II. Kyros’u öldürmesi ve Perslerin hiçbir zaman bu halkı hâkimiyetleri altına alamaması bu anlamda önemli görülmektedir. Massagetler, Hazar Denizi’nin doğusu ile Aral Gölü’nün bulunduğu uçsuz bozkır coğrafyasında yaşayan göçebe bir halktır. Bu yüzdendir ki Massagetler ile ilgili olan bilgilerimiz sınırlıdır. Tarihi kaynaklar, çivi yazılı metinler ve arkeolojik kazı çalışmalarından anlamaya çalıştığımız Massagetler, İskit/Saka ya bağlı güçlü ve kalabalık bir boydur. Massagetlerin yaşam tarzları, savaş taktikleri İskitlerle/Sakalarla büyük benzerlik taşımaktadır. Kökenleri konusunda Slav, İran ve Ural/Altay gibi birçok tartışma ve önerinin olduğu Massagetlerin, Ural/Altay kökenli olduğu Türk oldukları anlaşılmaktadır. Ayrıca Massagetlerin kraliçesi Tomris’in, diplomasi yoluyla sulhu araması sonrasında özgürlükleri için verdiği askeri mücadele, dönemini aşarak binlerce yıl sonra günümüz kadınlarının toplumda almış olduğu rolün öncüsü olduğu görülmüştür. Bu çalışmada, günümüz Türkistan coğrafyasında hâkimiyet kurmuş ve egemenlik altına alınamamış Sakaların bir kolu ve Türk topluluklarıyla bağlantılı olan Massagetlerin yaşam tarzı, kültürü ve kökeni ele alınmış ve açıklanmıştır.
Pers (Akhaimenid) İmparatoru I. Darius'u (MÖ. 522-486), çivi yazılı metinler, antik kaynaklar ve arkeolojik veriler ışığında ele almaktadır.
Nova knjiga dr Srđana Koraća, višeg naučnog saradnika Instituta za političke studije, donosi rezultate multidisciplinarnog naučnog istraživanja posvećenog identifikaciji raznorodne prirode neformalnih praksi u organizaciji i radu birokratije, i to u vremenskom rasponu od prvih civilizacija pa zaklјučno sa 19. vekom. Autor identifikuje i analizira vremenski postojano i civilizacijski univerzalno prisustvo „čvorišta” u kojima su elastične neformalne prakse „utisnute” u formalni „oklop” birokratske organizacije. U tom poduhvatu, dr Korać koristi teorijsko-analitički instrumentarijum političke antropologije i političkih nauka, kako bi rasvetlio činioce i procese koji su uticali na oblikovanje strukturnih obeležja birokratije kao političke institucije i društvene grupe. Za razliku od inače kod nas retkih studija o birokratiji, autor ulogu birokrate u političkom poretku, kao svojevrsnog posrednika između odluka vrha političke vlasti i krajnjih ishoda zvanične (državne) politike, sagledava u totalitetu onoga što je normirano i onoga što je stvarno.
Autor nastoji da postigne tri istraživačka cilјa:
- da rasvetli univerzalnu prirodu neformalnih obrazaca postupanja činovnika u obavlјanju poverenih državnih dužnosti;
- da ukaže na normativna i institucionalna rešenja koja su vladari osmišlјavali i primenjivali radi delotvorne kontrole nad državnim aparatom i činovništvom kao esnafom;
- da rasvetli uzajamnu isprepletanost neformalnih birokratskih praksi sa širim društvenim i kulturnim kontekstom.
Korać zagovara tezu da se brojne razlike u političkom i vrednosnom konstituisanju upravnih aparata iz pojedinih civilizacija, odnosno država, i istorijskih razdoblјa mogu apstrahovati, te da se, shodno modelu dijadičke razmene, težište analize može premestiti sa države kao sociopolitičkog i institucionalnog makro-plana analize na mikro-plan svakodnevnih praksi činovništva, tačnije u polјe međudejstva sa vrhom vlasti, rukovodiocima, kolegama i sa ostalim članovima političke zajednice (tj. sa onima kojima se vlada). Autor smatra da je iz empirijskog obilјa tih pojedinačnih saznajnih „mikro-planova” moguće izdignuti se na nivo kontinuiteta i univerzalnosti izazova, problema i moralnih dilema sa kojima se u svom radu suočavaju i današnji javni službenici. Reč je o problemima sa kojima se svaki činovnik suočava uronjen u složenu mrežu hijerarhičnih socijalnih interakcija kroz koju se odigrava proces preraspodele društvene moći sprovođenjem odluka vrhovnog političkog autoriteta.
Uvid u nepromenlјiva svojstva birokratije može da pruži naznake u pogledu budućnosti njene društvene uloge u političkom životu 21. veka, u kojem se naziru odstupanja od demokratskog ideala sa potencijalnim dugoročnim posledicama u vidu oživlјavanja pojedinih neformalnih praksi iz ranijih istorijskih razdoblјa.
In the Greek world, power was based on charismatic aretē, excellence. For that reason, rulers had to prove their charismatic qualities in order to rule. However, maintaining charismatic rule over generations was difficult, especially as the successor had to show himself to be more charismatic than his predecessor. In this chapter, we will consider the rule of the Deinomenids in late sixth- and early fifth-century Sicily. We will see how power was established through the charismatic activities of the older brother (Gelon), and how the younger brother (Hieron) then had to assert his position in relation to his elder brother. Drawing on Graeber and Sahlins’ model of the metaperosn, this chapter will argue that in the dynastic succession between the Deinomenids, Hieron struggled to maintain charismatic legitimacy, which meant that power was lost, and the dynasty was overthrown.
The aim of this paper is to review the inaccessibility of the Near Eastern kings in Greek sources as a tool of power: inaccessibility, in fact, was considered by the Greeks an essential feature in order to rule over Asia; nonetheless, it is important to note that Greek sources on the one hand emphasize the importance and the political use of this tool and, on the other hand, reflect on the weakness of power built through the king’s inaccessibility.
The article explores the cultural and political interaction between the Anatolian kingdoms and the elites of the Greek poleis on the Anatolian coast, with special attention to Archaic Ephesos for which relatively good evidence for the relations with Lydia is available. It demonstrates how the neighbouring hegemonic monarchies provided imitable examples for the Greek elite leaders and offered real opportunities for claiming, legitimating and entrenching their power. This shows, on the one hand, how the elites on the fringes of an empire could profit from imperial power, how the mild influence of an empire shaped the internal order of the communities in its sphere of influence by promoting the position of the local leaders. On the other hand, this sheds light on the strategies used by empires for attaining control of strategically important points on their outskirts.
The names of Gordios and Gyges can be interpreted from a new perspective centred on Mount Ida. They are both associated with magic, the first with the knot and the second with the ring. It is probably an old historical prejudice that prohibits looking at these two kings and their monarchies from a perspective that is not entirely European, but could well be Anatolian.
Isaiah 49:12 mentions “the land of Sinim .” Gesenius and most nineteenth-century scholars identified this place with China, but virtually all scholars today identify it instead with Aswan (Syene) in southern Egypt. It is argued here, based on the literary context, the wording “the land of [plural gentilic],” and the phonetics of Sinim , that the term means China.
In the study of Xenophon’s reception in Byzantium, that has begun some years ago, there are still aspects to discover, even from the most worked and recognized authors. Among them is Photius of Constantinople, author of the Bibliotheca that contains an important amount of information about Antiquity that has not arrived or has been preserved in a fragmentary way. Due to its monumentality and large number of direct references to the reviewed texts, attention to allusions has been scarce, even to those from the classical period. Thus, this paper seeks to demonstrate the existence of two allusions to Xenophon in the Bibliotheca (cods. 57, 15b; 72, 37a), so far not located, by comparing their linguistic and thematic elements. With this is expected to shed new light on the presence of the Athenian in such a significant work.
some remarks on the Battle of cunaxa (401 Bc) Kilka uwag na temat bitwy pod Kunaksą (401 r. przed Chr.) aBstract The present article deals with the Battle of Cunaxa fought in 401 BC between the forces of the Achaemenid Great King Artaxerxes II (404-359) and his younger brother Cyrus. The battle is chiefly shown from the perspective of Greek soldiers, fighting on Cyrus' side, and the majority of studies devoted to it is focused on them. The perspective is determined by sources we have, especially Anabasis of Xenophon, our primarily informer. The aim of the article is to investigate the King's forces in the Battle of Cunaxa, and to focus on some aspects of this engagement that have not been addressed or satisfactorily analyzed in the studies to date. Particular attention is given to the composition and armament of the King's army. The results will allow us to see a fuller picture of the Battle of Cunaxa and comprehend it better.
This study aims to compare some images of beardless attendants in monumental reliefs from the Achaemenid (c. 550-330 BCE) and Neo-Assyrian (c. 911-612 BCE) empires, which we consider relevant sources for the study of court eunuchs and cultural conceptions about castrati. We argue that such comparisons are possible since eunuchism was a long-standing institution in the Ancient Near East, as shown by several analogies with the Assyrian evidence. We also argue that scholars have downplayed the importance of court eunuchs due to gender/sex assumptions based on Western and modern perspectives that consider eunuchism incompatible with high-ranking social standing. With these theoretical considerations in mind, we finally sketch some possible analytical proposals to explore the images of beardless attendants in Persia and Assyria.
KEYWORDS:
Achaemenid Empire; Neo-Assyrian Empire; Eunuchs; Gender; Monumental Reliefs
Devido à possibilidade de reis próximo-orientais terem diversas esposas e concubinas, muitos historiadores projetam acriticamente a noção islâmica de “harém” sobre as realidades do Antigo Oriente Próximo. No entanto, em razão de anacronismos, da carga orientalista do termo e de pressupostos equivocados quanto à homogeneidade da categoria de “mulheres palacianas”, tal prática foi alvo de severas críticas. A proposta desse artigo é demonstrar como discussões teóricas muito parecidas quanto ao “harém” e à segregação feminina se desenvolveram na Assiriologia (com foco no caso do Império Neoassírio) e nos Estudos Aquemênidas, por vezes com resultados distintos. Argumenta-se que, em razão de sua continuidade na longa duração, os Impérios Neoassírio e Aquemênida devem ser estudados de forma comparativa, e que suas respectivas áreas de estudo têm muito a ganhar com um olhar diacrônico sobre a questão das mulheres reais.nder Studies; Assyriology; Achaemenids.
This paper argues that the many languages allegedly spoken by Cleopatra VII (Plutarch, Life of Antony 27.2-4) were part of a court ritual and should be understood in the context of imperial ideology and rhetoric. They can be read as a blueprint of Cleopatra's (imagined) empire, a blueprint which consists of regions that were claimed by the Ptolemies more often: the Red Sea, Nubia, Egypt, Nabataea, and the Levant, with the addition of the former Seleucid Upper Satrapies, yet to be conquered by Mark Antony, which Cleopatra, because of her Seleucid ancestry, could claim as her inheritance. This rhetoric stands in a Near Eastern and Egyptian tradition of summing up the peoples that constitute the world empire, and emphasizing control over faraway lands. Another important conclusion to be drawn from Plutarch's list of languages, is that African populations to the south of Egypt, too, featured prominently in Cleopatra's imperial rhetoric-something that our Mediterranean-focused narrative sources, as well as most modern historians, are usually not very interested in. 1 Mijn dankbaarheid gaat uit naar de twee redacteurs van Lampas, die verscheidene suggesties deden voor de verbetering van mijn argumentatie. Voor de spijkerschriftteksten waarnaar in dit artikel wordt verwezen worden de volgende afkortingen gebruikt: BCHP = Van der Spek, Pirngruber en Finkel (eds, te verschijnen), Babylonian Chronicles of the Hellenistic Period (beschikbaar online via www.livius.org); BM = British Museum, Londen; DN = Inscriptie van Darius I te Naqš-e Rostam; DPg = Inscriptie van Darius I, Persepolis (Babylonische versie); DS = Drietalige inscriptie van Darius I, Susa; XPa = Inscriptie van Xerxes, Persepolis (Oud-Perzische versie). LAMPAS 56.2 (2023) 153-175 https://doi.org/10.5117/LAM2023.2.004.stro © Rolf Strootman
Cyrus II, the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, conquered Sardis in 546 BC, abolished the Lydian Kingdom and brought Anatolia under his rule. The Achaemenids ruled Anatolia under the satrapal system established by Cyrus II and systematised by Darius I. Since many peoples with regional and cultural differences lived in the areas they included under their rule, some administrative differences can be observed among the satrapies. Five of the satrapies included in the Persian lists are wholly or partly located in present-day Anatolia. Although many studies have been carried out on the satrapies of western and central Anatolia using ancient sources, there is still much that is unknown about the satrapy of Armina/Armenia, which administered the eastern coasts and inland areas of the Black Sea and the administrative practices. This article aims to determine how the Achaemenid Empire, through the satrapy of Armina/Armenia, established an administrative order in the eastern Black Sea region known in antiquity as Pontos and Colchis. Using ancient and modern sources on the eastern Black Sea, a region rich in geographical features, underground and surface resources, and ethnic diversity in antiquity, has been tried to reveal the perspective of the Achaemenid central administration towards these lands. The administrative status of the region in the Aḫamenid period was evaluated, taking into account both the satrap system and the characteristics of the eastern Black Sea region. It has been observed that the people living in the Eastern Black Sea region generally maintained their lives in an independent structure, except for accepting the Achaemenid upper administration and sending taxes, gifts and soldiers when necessary.
The Achaemenid rule is often perceived by modern scholars as religiously tolerant and nonintrusive, mainly due to the biblical narrative and the Cyrus decree. However, even if the Achaemenids did not impose their beliefs and religious ideology on their subordinates, Achaemenid and Zoroastrian influences seem to have seeped into the religion and cultic practices of peoples under their hegemony. In the southern Levant, dramatic changes to Phoenician cult practices occurred during the Persian period, some of which are consistent with principles of the Zoroastrian faith. Although written sources suggest the Achaemenids did interfere with the cultic practices of various peoples, it seems unlikely that they forced their system of beliefs on the Phoenicians, with whom they maintained good relations. It is, however, more than possible that as part of those warm relations, certain Zoroastrian ideas diffused into Phoenician society bringing about changes to the Phoenicians’ cultic practices.
In this volume, Alexander Nagel investigates the use of polychromy in the art and architecture of ancient Iran. Focusing on Persepolis, he explores the topic within the context of the modern historiography of Achaemenid art and the scientific investigation of a range of works and monuments in Iran and in museums around the world. Nagel's study contextualizes scholarly efforts to retrieve aspects of ancient polychromies in Western Asia and interrogates current debates about the contemporary use of color in the architecture and sculpture in the ancient Mediterranean world, especially in North Africa and the eastern Mediterranean. Bringing a multi-disciplinary perspective to the topic, Nagel also highlights the important role of theory, methodology, and conservation studies in the process of reconstructing polychromy in ancient monuments. A celebration of the work of painters, artisans, craftsmen and -women of Iran's past, his volume suggests frameworks through which historical and contemporary research play a dynamic role in the reconstruction of ancient technological knowledge.
Dans cet article, l'auteur demontre que l'immense cite de l'Age du Fer edifiee a Kerkenes Dag est une fondation imperiale. Il s'interroge alors sur les raisons de la fondation d'une nouvelle cite fortifiee a cet endroit et sur l'identite de ses fondateurs. D'apres l'etude d'Herodote et les donnees de nouvelles fouilles archeologiques, il montre qu'il pourrrait s'agir de la cite de Pteria, construite par les Medes apres la fin de la guerre contre la Lydie (585 av. J.-C.) et restee inachevee a sa destruction en 545 av. J.-C. par Cresus
Much of the work that is attempted in the field of early Iranian historical geography is by necessity hypothetical, since there are no explicit descriptions of the spatial nature of political control in Iran before the accounts of Greek writers of the 5th century B.C. and later. The actual geography of Iran is however so precisely delimited that careful study of available accounts, when linked with a knowledge of the local topography of any area under investigation, will allow the student to suggest reconstructions for the scenes of various actions. In this case, I shall propose a possible geographical framework for a sequence of events that is recorded in the inscription of Darius I at Behistun, and which has not been satisfactorily localized before. Tentative as it is, the reconstruction seems to clarify a passage that dealt with events of the greatest importance for subsequent Achaemenid history.
The author fives the main results of the excavations in Daskyleion of which she is the Director since 1987. The strata and findings are shown and analyzed within a chronological range from the Bronze Age to the (poorly represented) Roman period. The Phrygian, Lydian and Achaemenid settlements succeed one another - not to forget the still living magnificent bird-paradise described by Xenophon in the Hellenika.
Until recently, the scholarly debate on 'West-Asiatic' literary elements in Greek texts was heavily determined by an ideological controversy on the existence and extent of Oriental influences on Greek culture. Now that M. West's The East Face of Helicon has paved the way for a more objective approach, attention should also be paid to texts from the Hellenistic and later periods that have thus far received little attention. One of these is the Epistula de Mirabilibus in the Greek Alexander Romance. Like other Greek texts, this letter contains a number of motives that link it to the Mesopotamian traditions surrounding Gilgameš and other heroes like Etana. Oral traditions must have been at interplay here, a factor that has not found full appreciation as yet. The Epistula de Mirabilibus is unique, however, in that it also echoes the pessimistic attitude towards human mortality from the Gilgameš-epic. Thus, the two texts are united in an unparallelled way: Alexander is truly the Greek manifestation of Gilgameš.
Kerkenes Daǧ, in the mountains of central Anatolia, is a vast fortified urban site that has plausibly been identified as the great city of Pteria described by Herodotus. The site seems to have been an important early sixth-century B.C.E. power base in the western reaches of the expansionist Median state centered in northwestern Iran. Test excavations in 1996 exposed an ivory furniture panel carved in relief, with gilding and amber insets. The partially preserved relief shows a frieze of five animals, alternating male and female, framed at top with a bead-and-reel and at bottom with a meander. It is almost all that has so far been retrieved of the ornamental apparatus of this impressive foundation. Due to the notorious dearth of excavated works of art that can be associated with the Medes, the intrinsic significance of the panel as a remarkable unicum is enhanced by the emblematic status it must assume in controversies over the nature of Kerkenes itself (within polarized debates on the nature of the Median state) and the nature of Median visual culture. The technique, style, and iconography of the panel suggest a complex system of traditions informing its inspiration and production - with comparative material for various features emerging from the Scythian Caucasus and central Asia, Iran, and Greater Mesopotamia, and the spheres of central and western Anatolia and the Levant. Ultimately, a Lydian/western Anatolian technical tradition richly informed by a representational tradition of deep resonance in Iran, Mesopotamia, and Transcaucasia is posited for the piece. Its discovery at Kerkenes highlights issues of luxury production and gift exchange in the sociopolitically fluid environment across early first-millennium western and central Asia; it emphasizes, moreover, the importance of developing nuanced frameworks for defining "Median art".
I must begin with an explanation of my reasons for writing this paper. I have for some years been interested in modern attempts to reconstruct ancient campaigns and battles”especially those between Greece and Persia”in fact, most of the arguments I am using tonight were first written down in a rather different form in 1913. But I should not have thought it worth while to read them to this Society had not Admiral Custance's book, his lectures, his address to this Society and the discussion which followed it made me feel that this subject is still one of fairly general interest, that we are still far from arriving at certainty with regard to the history of ancient fights, and that it may be worth while to raise some general questions such as, “How far it really is possible to reconstruct ancient battles with any finality” and “how far the methods of attempting to do so usually followed by modern writers really are the soundest methods to employ”. © 1964, The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies. All rights reserved.
Arkesilas III succeeded to the throne of Cyrene after the royal power had been considerably curtailed. In the reign of the previous king, Battos III, Demonax of Mantineia had carried out a tribal reorganisation and constitutional reform which was, according to Herodotus, democratic. But since the leading opponents of Arkesilas III were the nobility, it is likely that the reforms of Demonax were supported, or at least acquiesced in, by the aristocrats. As Chamoux argues, the system of tribes created by Demonax will not have diminished the local influence of the aristocratic landowners, although the more recent colonists who arrived from all parts of Greece in the reign of Battos II were given a place in the new constitution. The arrangements of Kleisthenes a generation later at Athens provide both a comparison and a contrast. He added the Athenian δῆμος to his aristocratic faction for political reasons, just as the Cyrenaean nobility accepted Demonax, and similarly the democracy of 508/7 was principally a tribal reform. But, at Athens, after the fall of the tyranny, there was a pressure towards democracy which could not have existed at Cyrene a generation earlier, and it was precisely because he had to break down the local influence of the nobility that Kleisthenes devised the system of trittues , which is not paralleled at Cyrene. The Demonax reform resulted in constitutional power for the landowning class at the expense of the monarchy.
In this study I propose two hypotheses about the palace of Assurnasirpal II at Nimrud: first, that the relief decoration of Assurnasirpal's palace expresses a four-fold Assyrian ideology of military success, service to the gods, divine protection, and Assyrian prosperity; and second, that the subject of the decoration in each suite of rooms was influenced by the function of that suite. In order to test these hypotheses, I draw on two theoretical approaches to understanding the meaning of architecture: Trigger's principle of monumental architecture as conspicuous consumption, and Rapoport's phenomenon of the redundancy of cues in the architecture of complex societies. I conclude that the subjects of the reliefs may be identified with considerable confidence, that the architectural evidence and relief subjects reinforce one another in suggesting specific functions for each suite of rooms, and that relief carving served as an expression of conspicuous consumption by being carved in conspicuous locations.
The newly deciphered Aramaic text-the longest nonliterary text discovered so far-is an erased customs account on 11 surviving fragments of the fifth century B. C. E. Aḥiqar scroll from Elephantine. The customs were collected from Ionian and Phoenician ships and handed over to the royal treasury. The text records the dates (day and month) of the ships' arrivals and departures during one sailing season of ten months. Arranging the scroll fragments according to the dates enabled the reconstruction of most of the fragmentary and missing columns of the customs account as well as the rearrangement of the columns of the Aḥiqar proverbs. Information from the customs account concerning the maritime trade includes the kinds of ships sailing to and from Egypt and the kinds of goods they carried, as well as the system of duty collection and royal accountancy in Egypt in the early Persian period.
The purpose of this paper is to interpret settlement geography in the Persepolis region using archaeological and historical sources. Ceramic and other dating criteria are discussed and it is argued that the settlement system existed from a date soon after the end of Cyrus' reign until Alexander's conquest. Archaeological sites described include 39 habitation sites, irrigation works, and a paved road. The settlement system is reconstructed by estimating the number of sites not yet recorded and it is argued that the sedentary population did not exceed 44,000. Descriptions by Classical authors are summarized and geographical implications of the Persepolis Fortification texts are explored, expanding a line of analysis initiated by Richard Hallock. Analysis reveals a five-level settlement hierarchy, arranged in districts around Persepolis, that accords well with the archaeological record. Arguments are advanced for the location of several named places, particularly Matezziš, which is identified with sites in the plain adjacent to Persepolis. Land use patterns and economic organization in the valley are tentatively reconstructed, with the implication that some districts emphasize field crop production and others pastoral production.
The Inscribed Pillar of Xanthos is the most elaborate example of the Lycian pillar tombs. It is important for its reliefs preserved in London and Istanbul but particularly for the long historical inscription in Lycian which covers the south, east, and half of the north side of the pillar shaft. This is followed on the north side by a Greek epigram and a moderately long inscription on the remainder of the north and the whole west side in Lycian B or Milyan. The date of the pillar is generally placed around 400 B.C. This is based on the style of the reliefs of the upper burial chamber and on the analysis of the historical inscription.
The name of the author of the pillar appeared three times in the inscriptions – twice in the Lycian historical inscription (south side or
a
lines 1 and 29/30) and once in the Greek epigram (north side or
c
line 24, epigram line 5). Yet in the Lycian the name is missing entirely in both cases and in the Greek only the last two letters are preserved: [ … ]ις. The fact that he is called in the Lycian and Greek the son of Harpagos does not help identify him because this Harpagos is otherwise known only from two inscriptions, one still unpublished. Recently it has been argued by Laroche that the author of the inscription cannot be the formerly favoured Kherẽi (χerẽi) because the space for the name must have contained six letters. Bousquet has also shown that a plausible restoration of the name of the author of the inscription in the Greek epigram is [Gerg]is, the Greek equivalent of Kheriga (χeriga).
It has been known from textual sources for some time that besides clay tablets, the traditional writing material in the Ancient Near East, wooden writing-boards were also used by the scribes.
M. San Nicolò first drew attention to the fact that writing-boards were widely employed in temple and palace administration in Mesopotamia in the first millennium B.C. and the textual evidence gathered by him was soon to be confirmed archaeologically by the discovery of several such writing-boards at Nimrud. Equally, the existence of wooden writing material in Hittite context has long been established, but no example has ever been found. It is generally thought that private and economic records which are almost totally lacking in the archives at Boǧazköy must have been written on perishable material.
The elusive nature of wooden writing-boards manifests itself not only archaeologically by the unlikelihood of their survival but also by the fact that, as a rule, they deserved little mention in the cuneiform texts. Consequently, the quantity of wooden writing material that may have been in use and did not survive is impossible to gauge. Similarly, it would be unwarranted to deduce that centres whose archives have not contributed to the subject, were unfamiliar with writing on wood.
Modern scholarship has produced a large volume of literature on the Phrygian goddess Kybele. The image of the Great Mother-Goddess, both on European and on Anatolian soil, has long attracted scholarly attention. Besides works that have become classics (Graillot 1912; Vermaseren 1977), I will list just a few more recent studies (Naumann 1983; Borgeaud 1996; Işık 1999; Roller 1999). The representations of Kybele are gathered in the eight volume Corpus by M J Vermaseren (most valuable for the present study being volumes 1 and 2: Vermaseren 1982; 1987). Numerous articles are devoted to different aspects of Kybele's figure and cult. All contributions to the subject must take into consideration the recent exhaustive study on the Mother cult in Phrygia, Greece and Rome by L E Roller (1999). The present paper aims at offering another point of view on some disputable questions and at introducing new comparative material.
A lead sling bullet inscribed with the name of Tissaphernes forms the subject of the present article. Like other such missiles, the bullet is almond-shaped; it is 36 mm. long, 22 mm. thick, and weighs 40·423 g. (Plate V a ). It was reportedly found at Julia Gordus (the modern Gördes) in Lydia and is now in a private collection. As far as I can determine, the object is unique. By its inscription, it raises questions of some historical interest and illustrates the major changes in the technology of Greek warfare in the period after the Peloponnesian War.
Sling bullets were called in Greek μολυβδίς or μολύβδαινα from the material or σφϵνδόνη from the weapon. They were projected from a sling, σφϵνδόνη , by a slinger, σφϵνδονήτης . The sling, originally a weapon of hunters and shepherds, has a long history. It was known to the Egyptians, Assyrians, Phoenicians, and Etruscans; everyone is familiar with the story of its use by David against Goliath.
To designate collaborating with Persia, the Greeks employed the verb Μηδίζω ‘side with the Medes’ or the noun Μηδισμός ‘leaning toward the Medes, Medism’, both derived from Μῆδος . Since this seemingly inappropriate terminology has attracted only limited consideration, a thorough discussion of its usage in Greek literature may help to clarify Greek relations with the Achaemenid empire throughout the classical period. After a brief preliminary discussion I consider the more problematic aspects of this terminus technicus .
It may be observed initially that such terms characterized the political relationships within the Greek world, and were encouraged by the struggle of each polis to maintain its independence and preserve its distinctive cultural qualities. For example, such terms as ‘Atticizing’ (Thuc. iii 62.2, 64.5) and ‘Laconizing’ (X. Hell. iv 4.2) arise during the contention for leadership in the Greek world in the late fifth and early fourth centuries.
For over 2000 years views of the Persian empire founded by Cyrus c. 550 B.C. and conquered by Alexander in the space of ten years between 334 and 323 have been constructed on the basis of Greek literary sources (in which I would include historical works, such as Herodotus' histories) and some sections of the Old Testament. Despite the fundamental ‘honesty’ of Herodotus' account, the fact that the focus of his history centered on the Greco-Persian conflict of 480/79 and aimed to explain the unexpected Persian defeat which had such enormous repercussions for Greek political and cultural development, means that his work serves to commemorate for us the ineffectiveness of the Achaemenid style of imperialism and to emphasize its ultimate failure. A failure epitomized at the very end of Herodotus' work (9.122), where Cyrus, the wise ‘father’ of the empire, is made to utter a prophetic warning about the enfeebling dangers of successful imperial expansion particularly when connected with the system of ‘oriental despotism’. The implication, given the detailed descriptions of Xerxes and the huge Persian army's defeat at the hands of a small number of Greeks, is that by the time of the Persian wars the rulers of the empire had lost their former rugged strength and had been seduced by the soft life offered them by the countries they had defeated: the conquerors had been taken captive by their victims and emasculated.
When Mardonius sailed along the coast of Asia and arrived in Ionia, something happened that will seem very wondrous to those Greeks who find it impossible to accept that Otanes proposed to the seven Persians that Persia ought to have a democratic government: for Mardonius suppressed all the Ionian tyrannies and established democracies in the cities. (Herodotus 6.43.3)
The shadow of Hecataeus, magni nominis umbra if ever there was one, constantly obstructs our attempts to assess and understand Herodotus' principles, objectives and achievements. Perplexing and elusive as the details of Hecataeus' work may be, no-one disputes his importance as an intermediary between catalogue-poetry such as we associate with Hesiod, with its clear subordination of geography to genealogy, and the more sophisticated method of synthesising knowledge about the oikoumene demonstrated by Herodotus; some have even argued that the great Milesian has a better claim than Herodotus to the title of pater historiae .
A major contention of our book Hellenism in the East was that the most profitable way for making progress in understanding the Achaemenid and Seleucid empires was to try to evaluate, sensitively, the very disparate types of evidence within their own social and cultural contexts, however difficult this might be in practice. In the case of the Antiochus I cylinder we are confronted by an inscribed object whose significance lies as much in its physical form as in the content of the text it bears. These aspects are inextricably intertwined as part of a tradition specific to Mesopotamian culture—object and text combined are the physical representation of a major, longstanding, sociopolitical institution for which a mass of earlier evidence exists. It is all too understandable that Greco-Roman scholars, who have been the primary students of the hellenistic world, should find it hard to know how to approach such material emanating from an unfamiliar cultural milieu. Yet, for once, this text is not fragmentary—it is a long, well-preserved document, easy to read and readily accessible in translation which in itself demonstrates an acknowledgment by hellenistic historians of the potential importance of this non-Greek text for understanding Seleucid history.
The remarks below on UET 4 193 aim to correct the published accounts of that text in response to inquiries about its chronological implications. The long epigraphic comments are necessary to explain what might otherwise seem to readers unfamiliar with cuneiform script to be a suspiciously sharp discrepancy in interpretation. I take the occasion to append comments on two other ‘ghost facts’, a term meant as an analogy to ‘ghost words’.
The royal house of Pontus claimed to be descended from the cream of the old Persian nobility, the Seven Families, and to have received its lands as the gift of Darius I. The claim is first attested by Polybius (although in its essence it may go back to Hieronymus of Cardia), and it became common currency in the reign of Mithridates Eupator. Since Théodore Reinach wrote his magisterial history of the Pontic kingdom, the royal pretensions of the regime have been dismissed as apocryphal.
A partir de la relation des incidents vecus par Alexandre le Grand, l'auteur de cet article tente de reconstituer l'itineraire qu'il emprunta pendant l'hiver 331-330 av. J.-C. a partir de Suse dans l'intention de reduire les Ouxiens, et de proteger ainsi cette voie de communications avant de s'aventurer a travers les montagnes en direction de Persepolis.
This article addresses the problem of veracity in ancient historiography. It contests some recent views that the criteria of truth in historical writing were comparable to the standards of forensic rhetoric. Against this I contend that the historians of antiquity did follow their sources with commendable fidelity, superimposing a layer of comment but not adding independent material. To illustrate the point I examine the techniques of the Alexander historian, Q. Curtius Rufus, comparing his treatment of events with a range of other sources that reflect the same tradition. The results can be paralleled in early modern historiography, in the dispute between J. G. Droysen and K. W. Krüger on the character of Callisthenes of Olynthus. Both operate with the same material, but give it different "spins" according to their political perspectives. There is error and hyperbole, but no deliberate fiction. © 2003 by The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
A partir de fragments de relief decouverts lors des fouilles de 1899 et 1913/14 a Babylone, l'auteur tente de reconstituer un monument qui representait Darius I et se trouvait sur la voie processionnelle, juste un peu avant la porte d'Ishtar. L'auteur rapproche ces fragments du relief de Bisutūn dont il semble s'inspirer.
As in earlier times, Sippar was an important city in the Neo-Babylonian period and we know that in addition to the great Ebabbara, the temple of the sun god Šamaš, there was a royal residence and a royal governor.1 However, whilst the Ebabbara has been excavated extensively and vast archives recovered, the site of the palace has not been identified and no published texts are known to come from it; and it is well-known that practically nothing has been found of the central state archives that must have existed in Babylon. Thus, we are able to investigate relations between temple and palace, but regarding other spheres of royal interests in and around Sippar we are able to say much less.
Le present article traite de la localisation de Parsua nomme sur deux fragments d'inscriptions de l'epoque d'Assurbanipal. Une analyse du texte montre que ce lieu etait alors deja assimile au Fārs. L'auteur s'interesse egalement a l'apparition des Perses dans le Fārs et l'analyse non comme la migration d'un peuple homogene, mais comme le resultat d'un processus d'ethnogenese engage au plus tard sous Assurbanipal.
Un sceau frequemment utilise dans la conclusion des transactions des archives des fortifications de Persepolis a ete identifie sur une tablette achemenide. Le but du present article est d'une part de rapprocher ce sceau des archives PFS 7, soulevant la question de l'origine de la tablette MDP 11 308, d'autre part de mettre en relation le texte et le sceau de cette tablette avec ceux des archives de Persepolis, puis d'etudier le cadre administratif dans lequel ces documents furent etablis.