1.
Greek language
–
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any living language, spanning 34 centuries of written records and its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the major part of its history, other systems, such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary, were used previously. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic and many other writing systems. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, during antiquity, Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and many places beyond. It would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire, the language is spoken by at least 13.2 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Albania, Turkey, and the Greek diaspora. Greek roots are used to coin new words for other languages, Greek. Greek has been spoken in the Balkan peninsula since around the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest written evidence is a Linear B clay tablet found in Messenia that dates to between 1450 and 1350 BC, making Greek the worlds oldest recorded living language. Among the Indo-European languages, its date of earliest written attestation is matched only by the now extinct Anatolian languages, the Greek language is conventionally divided into the following periods, Proto-Greek, the unrecorded but assumed last ancestor of all known varieties of Greek. The unity of Proto-Greek would have ended as Hellenic migrants entered the Greek peninsula sometime in the Neolithic era or the Bronze Age, Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Mycenaean civilisation. It is recorded in the Linear B script on tablets dating from the 15th century BC onwards, Ancient Greek, in its various dialects, the language of the Archaic and Classical periods of the ancient Greek civilisation. It was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, after the Roman conquest of Greece, an unofficial bilingualism of Greek and Latin was established in the city of Rome and Koine Greek became a first or second language in the Roman Empire. The origin of Christianity can also be traced through Koine Greek, Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, the continuation of Koine Greek in Byzantine Greece, up to the demise of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Much of the written Greek that was used as the language of the Byzantine Empire was an eclectic middle-ground variety based on the tradition of written Koine. Modern Greek, Stemming from Medieval Greek, Modern Greek usages can be traced in the Byzantine period and it is the language used by the modern Greeks, and, apart from Standard Modern Greek, there are several dialects of it. In the modern era, the Greek language entered a state of diglossia, the historical unity and continuing identity between the various stages of the Greek language is often emphasised. Greek speakers today still tend to regard literary works of ancient Greek as part of their own rather than a foreign language and it is also often stated that the historical changes have been relatively slight compared with some other languages. According to one estimation, Homeric Greek is probably closer to demotic than 12-century Middle English is to modern spoken English, Greek is spoken by about 13 million people, mainly in Greece, Albania and Cyprus, but also worldwide by the large Greek diaspora. Greek is the language of Greece, where it is spoken by almost the entire population
Greek language
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Idealized portrayal of
Homer
Greek language
–
regions where Greek is the official language
Greek language
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Greek language road sign, A27 Motorway, Greece
2.
Egyptian language
–
The language spoken in ancient Egypt was a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. The earliest known complete sentence in the Egyptian language has been dated to about 2690 BCE, making it one of the oldest recorded languages known. Egyptian was spoken until the seventeenth century in the form of Coptic. The national language of modern Egypt is Egyptian Arabic, which gradually replaced Coptic as the language of life in the centuries after the Muslim conquest of Egypt. Coptic is still used as the language of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. It has several hundred fluent speakers today, the Egyptian language belongs to the Afroasiatic language family. Of the other Afroasiatic branches, Egyptian shows its greatest affinities with Semitic, in Egyptian, the Proto-Afroasiatic voiced consonants */d z ð/ developed into pharyngeal ⟨ꜥ⟩ /ʕ/, e. g. Eg. Afroasiatic */l/ merged with Egyptian ⟨n⟩, ⟨r⟩, ⟨ꜣ⟩, and ⟨j⟩ in the dialect on which the language was based. Original */k g ḳ/ palatalize to ⟨ṯ j ḏ⟩ in some environments and are preserved as ⟨k g q⟩ in others, Egyptian has many biradical and perhaps monoradical roots, in contrast to the Semitic preference for triradical roots. Egyptian probably is more archaic in this regard, whereas Semitic likely underwent later regularizations converting roots into the triradical pattern, scholars group the Egyptian language into six major chronological divisions, Archaic Egyptian language Old Egyptian language Middle Egyptian language, characterizing Middle Kingdom. Demotic Coptic The earliest Egyptian glyphs date back to around 3300 BC and these early texts are generally lumped together under the general term Archaic Egyptian. They record names, titles and labels, but a few of them show morphological and syntactic features familiar from later, more complete, Old Egyptian is dated from the oldest known complete sentence, found in the tomb of Seth-Peribsen and dated to around 2690 BCE. It reads, dmḏ. n. f t3wj n z3. f nswt-bjt pr-jb. snj He has united the Two Lands for his son, extensive texts appear from about 2600 BCE. Demotic first appears about 650 BCE and survived as a written language until the fifth century CE and it probably survived in the Egyptian countryside as a spoken language for several centuries after that. Bohairic Coptic is still used by the Coptic Churches, Old, Middle, and Late Egyptian were all written using hieroglyphs and hieratic. Demotic was written using a script derived from hieratic, its appearance is similar to modern Arabic script and is also written from right to left. Coptic is written using the Coptic alphabet, a form of the Greek alphabet with a number of symbols borrowed from Demotic for sounds that did not occur in ancient Greek. Arabic became the language of Egypts political administration soon after the early Muslim conquests in the seventh century, today, Coptic survives as the sacred language of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria and the Coptic Catholic Church
Egyptian language
–
Seal impression from the tomb of
Seth-Peribsen, containing the oldest known complete sentence in Egyptian
Egyptian language
–
Ebers Papyrus detailing treatment of
asthma
Egyptian language
–
3rd-century Coptic inscription
3.
Ptolemy IV
–
Ptolemy IV Philopator, son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, was the fourth Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt. The decline of the Ptolemaic dynasty began under the reign of Ptolemy IV, among the children of Ptolemy IV Philopator and his sister-wife Arsinoe III of Egypt was Ptolemy V Epiphanes, who married Cleopatra I Syra, daughter of Antiochus III the Great and Laodice III. Philopator was devoted to orgiastic forms of religion and literary dilettantism and he built a temple to Homer and composed a tragedy, to which his favourite Agathocles added a commentary. He married his sister Arsinoë III, but continued to be ruled by his mistress Agathoclea, in late c.210 BC, Agathoclea may have given birth to a son from her affair with Ptolemy IV, who may have died shortly after his birth. Ptolemy is said to have built a giant ship known as the tessarakonteres and this showpiece galley was described by Callixenus of Rhodes, writing in the 3rd century BC, and quoted by Athenaeus in the 2nd century AD. Plutarch also mentions that Ptolemy Philopator owned this immense vessel in his Life of Demetrios, the current theory is that Ptolemys ship was an oversized catamaran galley, measuring 128 m. Ptolemy IV is a major antagonist of the apocryphal 3 Maccabees, Ptolemy IVs reign was also marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the reigns of Ptolemy III, Ptolemy IV and Ptolemy V, as well as late Imperial Rome, chronicles of the Pharaohs, the reign-by-reign record of the rulers and dynasties of ancient Egypt. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
Ptolemy IV
–
Gold octadrachm issued by Ptolemy IV Philopator,
British Museum
Ptolemy IV
–
Mediterranean in 218 BC.
4.
Ptolemaic dynasty
–
Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 to 30 BC. They were the last dynasty of ancient Egypt, Ptolemy, one of the seven somatophylakes who served as Alexander the Greats generals and deputies, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexanders death in 323 BC. In 305 BC, he declared himself Ptolemy I, later known as Sōter Saviour, the Egyptians soon accepted the Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. Ptolemys family ruled Egypt until the Roman conquest of 30 BC, all the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy. Ptolemaic queens regnant, some of whom were the sisters of their husbands, were usually called Cleopatra, Arsinoe or Berenice. The most famous member of the line was the last queen, Cleopatra VII and her apparent suicide at the conquest by Rome marked the end of Ptolemaic rule in Egypt. Dates in brackets represent the dates of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. They frequently ruled jointly with their wives, who were also their sisters. Of these, one of the last and most famous was Cleopatra, several systems exist for numbering the later rulers, the one used here is the one most widely used by modern scholars. Arsinoe IV, in opposition to Cleopatra Ptolemy Keraunos - eldest son of Ptolemy I Soter, Ptolemy Apion - son of Ptolemy VIII Physcon. Ptolemy Philadelphus - son of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII, Ptolemy of Mauretania - son of King Juba II of Numidia and Mauretania and Cleopatra Selene II, daughter of Cleopatra VII and Mark Antony. Contemporaries describe a number of the Ptolemaic dynasty members as extremely obese, whilst sculptures and coins reveal prominent eyes, familial Graves disease could explain the swollen necks and eye prominence, although this is unlikely to occur in the presence of morbid obesity. A. Lampela, Rome and the Ptolemies of Egypt, the development of their political relations 273-80 B. C. J. G. Manning, The Last Pharaohs, Egypt Under the Ptolemies, 305-30 BC. Livius. org, Ptolemies — by Jona Lendering
Ptolemaic dynasty
–
Ptolemy I Soter.
Ptolemaic dynasty
–
Ptolemy II
Ptolemaic dynasty
–
Ptolemy V
Ptolemaic dynasty
–
Ptolemy VI
5.
Ancient Egypt
–
Ancient Egypt was a civilization of ancient Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. It is one of six civilizations to arise independently, Egyptian civilization followed prehistoric Egypt and coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh Narmer. In the aftermath of Alexander the Greats death, one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter and this Greek Ptolemaic Kingdom ruled Egypt until 30 BC, when, under Cleopatra, it fell to the Roman Empire and became a Roman province. The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River valley for agriculture, the predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which supported a more dense population, and social development and culture. Its art and architecture were widely copied, and its antiquities carried off to far corners of the world and its monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of travelers and writers for centuries. The Nile has been the lifeline of its region for much of human history, nomadic modern human hunter-gatherers began living in the Nile valley through the end of the Middle Pleistocene some 120,000 years ago. By the late Paleolithic period, the climate of Northern Africa became increasingly hot and dry. In Predynastic and Early Dynastic times, the Egyptian climate was less arid than it is today. Large regions of Egypt were covered in treed savanna and traversed by herds of grazing ungulates, foliage and fauna were far more prolific in all environs and the Nile region supported large populations of waterfowl. Hunting would have been common for Egyptians, and this is also the period when many animals were first domesticated. The largest of these cultures in upper Egypt was the Badari, which probably originated in the Western Desert, it was known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools. The Badari was followed by the Amratian and Gerzeh cultures, which brought a number of technological improvements, as early as the Naqada I Period, predynastic Egyptians imported obsidian from Ethiopia, used to shape blades and other objects from flakes. In Naqada II times, early evidence exists of contact with the Near East, particularly Canaan, establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada III leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile. They also traded with Nubia to the south, the oases of the desert to the west. Royal Nubian burials at Qustul produced artifacts bearing the oldest-known examples of Egyptian dynastic symbols, such as the crown of Egypt. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used well into the Roman Period to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines. During the last predynastic phase, the Naqada culture began using written symbols that eventually were developed into a system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language. The Early Dynastic Period was approximately contemporary to the early Sumerian-Akkadian civilisation of Mesopotamia, the third-century BC Egyptian priest Manetho grouped the long line of pharaohs from Menes to his own time into 30 dynasties, a system still used today
Ancient Egypt
–
The
Great Sphinx and the
pyramids of Giza are among the most recognizable symbols of the civilization of ancient Egypt.
Ancient Egypt
–
A typical Naqada II jar decorated with gazelles. (Predynastic Period)
Ancient Egypt
–
The
Narmer Palette depicts the unification of the Two Lands.
6.
Egyptian chronology
–
The majority of Egyptologists agree on the outline and many details of the chronology of Ancient Egypt. Scholarly consensus on the outline of the conventional chronology current in Egyptology has not fluctuated much over the last 100 years. For the Old Kingdom, consensus fluctuates by as much as a few centuries and this is illustrated by comparing the chronology as given by two Egyptologists, the first writing in 1906, the second in 2000. The disparities between the two sets of result from additional discoveries and refined understanding of the still very incomplete source evidence. For example, Breasted adds a ruler in the Twentieth dynasty that further research showed did not exist, following Manetho, Breasted also believed all the dynasties were sequential, whereas it is now known that several existed at the same time. These revisions have resulted in a lowering of the chronology by up to 400 years at the beginning of Dynasty I. The backbone of Egyptian chronology are the years as recorded in Ancient Egyptian king lists. In addition, some Egyptian dynasties may have overlapped, with different pharaohs ruling in different regions at the same time, not knowing whether monarchies were simultaneous or sequential results in widely differing chronological interpretations. However, further research has shown that these censuses were taken in consecutive years. The sed festival was celebrated on the thirtieth anniversary of the Pharaohs ascension. However, once again, this may not be the practice in all cases. In the early days of Egyptology, the compilation of regnal periods may also have been hampered due to bias on the part of the Egyptologists. This was most pervasive before the mid 19th century, when Manethos figures were recognized as conflicting with biblical chronology based on Old Testament references to Egypt, in the 20th century, such biblical bias has mostly been confined to alternative chronologies outside of scholarly mainstream. A useful way to work around these gaps in knowledge is to find chronological synchronisms, over the past decades, a number of these have been found, although they are of varying degrees of usefulness and reliability. While this does not fix a person or event to a specific year, another example are blocks from the Old Kingdom bearing the names of several kings, which were reused in the construction of Middle Kingdom pyramid-temples at Lisht in the structures of Amenemhat I. The poor documentation of these finds in the Serapeum also compounds the difficulties in using these records. The best known of these is the Sothic cycle, and careful study of this led Richard A. Parker to argue that the dates of the Twelfth dynasty could be fixed with absolute precision. More recent research has eroded this confidence, questioning many of the assumptions used with the Sothic Cycle and this is useful especially for the Early Dynastic period, where Egyptological consensus has only been possible within a range of about three or four centuries
Egyptian chronology
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Astronomical ceiling from the tomb of
Seti I showing stars and constellations used in calendar calculations
Egyptian chronology
–
'Diagonal star table' from the
11th Dynasty coffin lid; found at
Asyut, Egypt.
Roemer- und Pelizaeus-Museum Hildesheim
7.
Ptolemy II
–
Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 to 246 BCE. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice and he had two half-brothers, Ptolemy Keraunos and Meleager, who both became kings of Macedonia, and who both died in the Gallic invasion of 280–279 BCE. Ptolemy was first married to Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, who was the mother of his children, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II. During Ptolemys reign, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height and he promoted the Museum and Library of Alexandria, and he erected a commemorative stele, the Great Mendes Stela. Ptolemy II began his reign as co-regent with his father Ptolemy I from c.285 BCE to c.283 BCE, Egypt was involved in several wars during his reign. Magas of Cyrene opened war on his half-brother, and the Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter, desiring Coele-Syria with Judea, two or three years of war followed. The Ptolemaic sphere of power extended over the Cyclades to Samothrace, in 275/4 BC, Ptolemaic forces invaded Nubia and annexed the Triakontaschoinos. In 270 BCE Ptolemy hired 4,000 Gallic mercenaries. ”The victory won by Antigonus II Gonatas, king of Macedonia, Ptolemy was of a delicate constitution. Elias Joseph Bickermann gives the date of his death as January 29, Ptolemys first wife, Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, was the mother of his legitimate children, Ptolemy III Euergetes, his successor. Lysimachus Berenice Phernopherus, married Antiochus II Theos, king of Syria, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II, the widow of Lysimachus — an Egyptian custom—which brought him her Aegean possessions. Ptolemy deified his parents and his sister-wife after their deaths, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height under Ptolemy II. Although an enthusiast for Hellenic culture, he also adopted Egyptian religious concepts, callimachus, keeper of the library, Theocritus, and a host of lesser poets, glorified the Ptolemaic family. Ptolemy himself was eager to increase the library and to scientific research. The tradition preserved in the pseudepigraphical Letter of Aristeas which connects the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek with his patronage is probably overdrawn, pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap. 21 He is also mentioned in the Edicts of Ashoka as a recipient of the Buddhist proselytism of Ashoka, Alexandrian Pleiad Library of Alexandria Ptolemaic period - period of Egyptian history during the Ptolemaic dynasty. Ptolemais - towns and cities named after members of the Ptolemaic dynasty, list of people whose parent committed suicide Mookerji, Radha Kumud, Chandragupta Maurya and his times, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0433-3 Clayton, Peter A. Chronicles of the Pharaohs, the record of the rulers. The Foreign Policy of Ptolemy II, in McKechnie, Paul R. Guillaume, Philippe
Ptolemy II
–
A bust depicting Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II
–
Ptolemy II Philadelphus (front), and his sister/wife
Arsinoe II
Ptolemy II
–
This granite statue depicts Ptolemy II in the traditional canon of
ancient Egyptian art.
Walters Art Museum,
Baltimore.
Ptolemy II
–
"
Cameo Gonzaga ", Hermitage
8.
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
–
The royal titulary or royal protocol of an Egyptian pharaoh is the standard naming convention taken by the kings of Ancient Egypt. It symbolises worldly power and holy might and also acts as a sort of mission statement for the reign of a monarch. The full titulary, consisting of five names, did not come into standard usage until the Middle Kingdom, the Horus name is the oldest form of the pharaohs name, originating in the Predynastic Period. Many of the oldest-known Egyptian pharaohs were known only by this title, the Horus name was usually written in a serekh, a representation of a palace façade. The name of the pharaoh was written in hieroglyphs inside this representation of a palace, typically an image of the falcon God Horus was perched on top of or beside it. At least one Egyptian ruler, the 2nd dynasty Seth-Peribsen, used an image of the god Seth instead of Horus and he was succeeded by Khasekhemwy, who placed the symbols of both Seth and Horus above his name. Thereafter, the image of Horus always appeared alongside the name of the pharaoh, by the time of the New Kingdom the Horus name was often written without the enclosing serekh. The name is first definitively used by the First Dynasty pharaoh Semerkhet and this particular name was not typically framed by a cartouche or serekh, but always begins with the hieroglyphs of a vulture and cobra resting upon two baskets, the dual noun nebty. Also known as the Golden Horus Name, this form of the name typically featured the image of a Horus falcon perched above or beside the hieroglyph for gold. The meaning of this title has been disputed. One belief is that it represents the triumph of Horus over his uncle Seth, Gold also was strongly associated in the ancient Egyptian mind with eternity, so this may have been intended to convey the pharaohs eternal Horus name. Similar to the Nebty name, this particular name typically was not framed by a cartouche or serekh, the pharaohs throne name, the first of the two names written inside a cartouche, and usually accompanied the title nsw-bity. The term nsw-bity It has been suggested that the Berber term for strong man, the epithet neb tawy, Lord of the Two Lands, referring to valley and delta regions of Egypt, often occurs as well. This was the name given at birth and it was first introduced to the set of royal titles in the Fourth Dynasty and emphasizes the kings role as a representative of the solar god Ra. For women who became pharaoh, the title was interpreted as daughter also. Modern historians typically refer to the ancient kings of Egypt by this name, Middle Egyptian, An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt, Cairo, London, and New York, The American University in Cairo Press and Thames and Hudson. The Great Name, Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary, Egyptian Grammar, Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
–
Serekh containing the name of
Djet and an association with
Wadjet, on display at the
Louvre
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
–
Praenomen of the
Cartouche of
Thutmose II preceded by Sedge and Bee symbols, Temple of
Hatshepsut,
Luxor
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
–
In the
Middle Kingdom, the full titulary was sometimes written in a single cartouche, as in this example from
Senusret I, from
Beni Hasan.
Ancient Egyptian royal titulary
–
Royal titulary
9.
Berenice II of Egypt
–
Berenice II was the daughter of Magas of Cyrene and Queen Apama II, and the wife of Ptolemy III Euergetes, the third ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. In about 249 BC, she was married to Demetrius the Fair, however, after coming to Cyrene he became the lover of her mother Apama. In a dramatic event, she had him killed in Apamas bedroom and she had no children with Demetrius. Their children were, Ptolemy IV Philopator, Magas, Lysimachus, Alexander, Arsinoe III, Berenice is said to have participated in the Nemean Games and to have competed in Olympic games at some unknown date. Soon after her husbands death she was murdered at the instigation of her son Ptolemy IV, with whom she was probably associated in the government. Nevertheless, a decree “issued delineating the cult for the newly deified queen Berenike II…specified that men and women singers were to sing all day in front of the statue of Berenike. ”During her husbands absence on an expedition to Syria, she dedicated her hair to Aphrodite for his safe return, and placed it in the temple of the goddess at Zephyrium. The hair having by some unknown means disappeared, Conon of Samos explained the phenomenon in courtly phrase, by saying that it had carried to the heavens. The name Coma Berenices or Berenices hair, applied to a constellation, callimachus celebrated the transformation in a poem, of which only a few lines remain, but there is a fine translation of it by Catullus. The city of Euesperides was refounded by her and received her name, the asteroid 653 Berenike, discovered in 1907, is also named after Queen Berenice. The House of Ptolemy, Ch.3
Berenice II of Egypt
–
Berenice II
Berenice II of Egypt
–
Queen Berenice II of Egypt
10.
Ptolemy IV Philopator
–
Ptolemy IV Philopator, son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, was the fourth Pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt. The decline of the Ptolemaic dynasty began under the reign of Ptolemy IV, among the children of Ptolemy IV Philopator and his sister-wife Arsinoe III of Egypt was Ptolemy V Epiphanes, who married Cleopatra I Syra, daughter of Antiochus III the Great and Laodice III. Philopator was devoted to orgiastic forms of religion and literary dilettantism and he built a temple to Homer and composed a tragedy, to which his favourite Agathocles added a commentary. He married his sister Arsinoë III, but continued to be ruled by his mistress Agathoclea, in late c.210 BC, Agathoclea may have given birth to a son from her affair with Ptolemy IV, who may have died shortly after his birth. Ptolemy is said to have built a giant ship known as the tessarakonteres and this showpiece galley was described by Callixenus of Rhodes, writing in the 3rd century BC, and quoted by Athenaeus in the 2nd century AD. Plutarch also mentions that Ptolemy Philopator owned this immense vessel in his Life of Demetrios, the current theory is that Ptolemys ship was an oversized catamaran galley, measuring 128 m. Ptolemy IV is a major antagonist of the apocryphal 3 Maccabees, Ptolemy IVs reign was also marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the reigns of Ptolemy III, Ptolemy IV and Ptolemy V, as well as late Imperial Rome, chronicles of the Pharaohs, the reign-by-reign record of the rulers and dynasties of ancient Egypt. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
Ptolemy IV Philopator
–
Gold octadrachm issued by Ptolemy IV Philopator,
British Museum
Ptolemy IV Philopator
–
Mediterranean in 218 BC.
11.
Arsinoe III
–
Arsinoe III Philopator was Queen of Egypt. She was a daughter of Ptolemy III and Berenice II, between late October and early November 220 BC she was married to her brother, Ptolemy IV. She took active part in the government of the country, at least in the measure that it was tolerated by the all-powerful minister Sosibius, in 217 BC, she accompanied Ptolemy IV at the Battle of Raphia. When the battle went poorly, she appeared before the troops and she also promised two minas of gold to each of them if they won the battle, which they did. She was the mother of Ptolemy V, in summer,204 BC she was murdered in a palace coup, shortly after the death of her husband. Eratosthenes wrote a manuscript called the Arsinoe, which is lost and it is quoted by many ancient scholars
Arsinoe III
–
Arsinoe III Thea Philopator
12.
Egypt
–
Egypt, officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia by a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt is a Mediterranean country bordered by the Gaza Strip and Israel to the northeast, the Gulf of Aqaba to the east, the Red Sea to the east and south, Sudan to the south, and Libya to the west. Across the Gulf of Aqaba lies Jordan, and across from the Sinai Peninsula lies Saudi Arabia, although Jordan and it is the worlds only contiguous Afrasian nation. Egypt has among the longest histories of any country, emerging as one of the worlds first nation states in the tenth millennium BC. Considered a cradle of civilisation, Ancient Egypt experienced some of the earliest developments of writing, agriculture, urbanisation, organised religion and central government. One of the earliest centres of Christianity, Egypt was Islamised in the century and remains a predominantly Muslim country. With over 92 million inhabitants, Egypt is the most populous country in North Africa and the Arab world, the third-most populous in Africa, and the fifteenth-most populous in the world. The great majority of its people live near the banks of the Nile River, an area of about 40,000 square kilometres, the large regions of the Sahara desert, which constitute most of Egypts territory, are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypts residents live in areas, with most spread across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria. Modern Egypt is considered to be a regional and middle power, with significant cultural, political, and military influence in North Africa, the Middle East and the Muslim world. Egypts economy is one of the largest and most diversified in the Middle East, Egypt is a member of the United Nations, Non-Aligned Movement, Arab League, African Union, and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Miṣr is the Classical Quranic Arabic and modern name of Egypt. The name is of Semitic origin, directly cognate with other Semitic words for Egypt such as the Hebrew מִצְרַיִם, the oldest attestation of this name for Egypt is the Akkadian
Egypt
–
The
Giza Necropolis is the oldest of the
ancient Wonders and the only one still in existence.
Egypt
–
Flag
Egypt
–
The Greek Ptolemaic queen
Cleopatra VII and her son by Julius Caesar,
Caesarion at the
Temple of Dendera.
Egypt
–
The 1803
Cedid Atlas, showing
Ottoman Egypt.
13.
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
–
Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 to 246 BCE. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice and he had two half-brothers, Ptolemy Keraunos and Meleager, who both became kings of Macedonia, and who both died in the Gallic invasion of 280–279 BCE. Ptolemy was first married to Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, who was the mother of his children, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II. During Ptolemys reign, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height and he promoted the Museum and Library of Alexandria, and he erected a commemorative stele, the Great Mendes Stela. Ptolemy II began his reign as co-regent with his father Ptolemy I from c.285 BCE to c.283 BCE, Egypt was involved in several wars during his reign. Magas of Cyrene opened war on his half-brother, and the Seleucid king Antiochus I Soter, desiring Coele-Syria with Judea, two or three years of war followed. The Ptolemaic sphere of power extended over the Cyclades to Samothrace, in 275/4 BC, Ptolemaic forces invaded Nubia and annexed the Triakontaschoinos. In 270 BCE Ptolemy hired 4,000 Gallic mercenaries. ”The victory won by Antigonus II Gonatas, king of Macedonia, Ptolemy was of a delicate constitution. Elias Joseph Bickermann gives the date of his death as January 29, Ptolemys first wife, Arsinoë I, daughter of Lysimachus, was the mother of his legitimate children, Ptolemy III Euergetes, his successor. Lysimachus Berenice Phernopherus, married Antiochus II Theos, king of Syria, after her repudiation he married his full sister Arsinoë II, the widow of Lysimachus — an Egyptian custom—which brought him her Aegean possessions. Ptolemy deified his parents and his sister-wife after their deaths, the material and literary splendour of the Alexandrian court was at its height under Ptolemy II. Although an enthusiast for Hellenic culture, he also adopted Egyptian religious concepts, callimachus, keeper of the library, Theocritus, and a host of lesser poets, glorified the Ptolemaic family. Ptolemy himself was eager to increase the library and to scientific research. The tradition preserved in the pseudepigraphical Letter of Aristeas which connects the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek with his patronage is probably overdrawn, pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap. 21 He is also mentioned in the Edicts of Ashoka as a recipient of the Buddhist proselytism of Ashoka, Alexandrian Pleiad Library of Alexandria Ptolemaic period - period of Egyptian history during the Ptolemaic dynasty. Ptolemais - towns and cities named after members of the Ptolemaic dynasty, list of people whose parent committed suicide Mookerji, Radha Kumud, Chandragupta Maurya and his times, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0433-3 Clayton, Peter A. Chronicles of the Pharaohs, the record of the rulers. The Foreign Policy of Ptolemy II, in McKechnie, Paul R. Guillaume, Philippe
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
–
A bust depicting Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
–
Ptolemy II Philadelphus (front), and his sister/wife
Arsinoe II
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
–
This granite statue depicts Ptolemy II in the traditional canon of
ancient Egyptian art.
Walters Art Museum,
Baltimore.
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
–
"
Cameo Gonzaga ", Hermitage
14.
Hermes
–
Hermes is an Olympian god in Greek religion and mythology, the son of Zeus and the Pleiad Maia, and the second youngest of the Olympian gods. Hermes is considered a god of transitions and boundaries and he is described as quick and cunning, moving freely between the worlds of the mortal and divine. He is also portrayed as an emissary and messenger of the gods and he has been viewed as the protector and patron of herdsmen, thieves, oratory and wit, literature and poetry, athletics and sports, invention and trade, roads, boundaries and travelers. In some myths, he is a trickster and outwits other gods for his own satisfaction or for the sake of humankind and his attributes and symbols include the herma, the rooster, the tortoise, satchel or pouch, winged sandals, and winged cap. His main symbol is the Greek kerykeion or Latin caduceus, which appears in a form of two snakes wrapped around a staff with carvings of the other gods. The earliest form of the name Hermes is the Mycenaean Greek *hermāhās, most scholars derive Hermes from Greek ἕρμα herma, prop, heap of stones, boundary marker, from which the word hermai also derives. The etymology of ἕρμα itself is unknown, R. S. P. Beekes rejects the connection with herma and suggests a Pre-Greek origin. Scholarly speculation that Hermes derives from a primitive form meaning one cairn is disputed. In Greek, a find is a hermaion. It is also suggested that Hermes is a cognate of the Vedic Sarama, homer and Hesiod portrayed Hermes as the author of skilled or deceptive acts and also as a benefactor of mortals. In the Iliad, he is called the bringer of luck, guide and guardian. He was an ally of the Greeks against the Trojans. However, he did protect Priam when he went to the Greek camp to retrieve the body of his son Hector and he also rescued Ares from a brazen vessel where he had been imprisoned by Otus and Ephialtes. In the Odyssey, Hermes helps his son, the protagonist Odysseus, by informing him about the fate of his companions. Hermes instructed Odysseus to protect himself by chewing a magic herb, when Odysseus killed the suitors of his wife, Hermes led their souls to Hades. Hermes was then instructed to take her as wife to Epimetheus, aesop featured him in several of his fables, as ruler of the gate of prophetic dreams, as the god of athletes, of edible roots, and of hospitality. He also said that Hermes had assigned each person his share of intelligence, Hermes, as an inventor of fire, is a parallel of the Titan Prometheus. In addition to the lyre, Hermes was believed to have invented many types of racing and the sports of wrestling and boxing, in 1820 Shelley translated this hymn
Hermes
–
Hermes Ingenui (
Vatican Museums). Roman copy of the 2nd century BC after a Greek original of the 5th century BC. Hermes wears: kerykeion, kithara, petasus (round hat), traveller's cloak and winged temples.
Hermes
Hermes
–
Hermes with his mother Maia. Detail of the side B of an Attic red-figure belly-amphora, c. 500 BC.
Hermes
–
Kriophoros Hermes (which takes the lamb), late-Roman copy of Greek original from the 5th century BC. Barracco Museum, Rome
15.
Chlamys
–
For the scallop genus, see Chlamys. The beetle genus described as Chlamys is now Neochlamisus, χλαμύδος was an ancient Greek type of rather short cloak. By the time of the Byzantine Empire it was, in a longer form, part of the state costume of the emperor and high officials. The ephaptis was a garment, typically worn by infantrymen. The chlamys was made from a rectangle of woolen material about the size of a blanket. It was normally pinned with a fibula at the right shoulder, originally it was wrapped around the waist like a loincloth, but by the end of the 5th century BC it was worn over the elbows. It could be worn over another item of clothing but was often the sole item of clothing for soldiers and messengers. As such, the chlamys is the garment of Hermes. The chlamys was typical Greek military attire from the 5th to the 3rd century BC, as worn by soldiers, it could be wrapped around the arm and used as a light shield in combat. The chlamys continued into the Byzantine period, when it was much larger and usually worn sideways, at least by emperors. It was held on with a brooch at the wearers right shoulder and nearly reached the ground at front. With the even grander loros costume, the costume was the ceremonial wear of Byzantine emperors. The emperor alone could wear a purple chlamys with gold tablia, officials wore white with purple tablia. In the miniature shown below the 11th-century emperor wears his open to the side, presumably to access to his sword. By the Middle Byzantine period all parts of the chlamys were highly decorative, with bright patterned Byzantine silk and tablia and borders heavily embroidered and encrusted with gems. In the 12th century it seems to have begun to fall from favour, although it continued to be shown on coins until the 14th century, some high officials seem to have continued to wear a version of it long after the emperors had abandoned it. Among women only the empress is recorded as wearing a chlamys, in art it is much rarer to see an empress in it than in a loros, but in the well-known ivory Romanos ivory Eudokia Makrembolitissa wears one while her husband Constantine X Doukas wears the loros. Clothing in ancient Greece Byzantine dress References Sources Parani, Maria G. Reconstructing the Reality of Images, Byzantine Material Culture, hellenistic Sculpture, The Styles of ca
Chlamys
–
Hermes wearing a chlamys
Chlamys
–
King David in the
Paris Psalter, 10th century CE
Chlamys
–
A chlamys-wearing torso, possibly of
Alexander
Chlamys
–
Model wearing a 19th-century re-creation
16.
Ptolemaic Egypt
–
The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a Hellenistic kingdom based in Egypt. Alexandria became the city and a major center of Greek culture. To gain recognition by the native Egyptian populace, they named themselves the successors to the Pharaohs, the later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions by marrying their siblings, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life. The Ptolemies had to fight native rebellions and were involved in foreign and civil wars led to the decline of the kingdom. Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt throughout the Roman and Byzantine periods until the Muslim conquest. The era of Ptolemaic reign in Egypt is one of the most well documented periods of the Hellenistic Era. In 332 BC, Alexander the Great, King of Macedon invaded the Achaemenid satrapy of Egypt and he visited Memphis, and traveled to the oracle of Amun at the Oasis of Siwa. The oracle declared him to be the son of Amun, the wealth of Egypt could now be harnessed for Alexanders conquest of the rest of the Persian Empire. Early in 331 BC he was ready to depart, and led his forces away to Phoenicia and he left Cleomenes as the ruling nomarch to control Egypt in his absence. Following Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, a crisis erupted among his generals. Perdiccas appointed Ptolemy, one of Alexanders closest companions, to be satrap of Egypt, Ptolemy ruled Egypt from 323 BC, nominally in the name of the joint kings Philip III and Alexander IV. However, as Alexander the Greats empire disintegrated, Ptolemy soon established himself as ruler in his own right, Ptolemy successfully defended Egypt against an invasion by Perdiccas in 321 BC, and consolidated his position in Egypt and the surrounding areas during the Wars of the Diadochi. In 305 BC, Ptolemy took the title of King, as Ptolemy I Soter, he founded the Ptolemaic dynasty that was to rule Egypt for nearly 300 years. All the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy, while princesses and queens preferred the names Cleopatra, Arsinoe and Berenice. Because the Ptolemaic kings adopted the Egyptian custom of marrying their sisters, many of the kings ruled jointly with their spouses and this custom made Ptolemaic politics confusingly incestuous, and the later Ptolemies were increasingly feeble. The only Ptolemaic Queens to officially rule on their own were Berenice III, Cleopatra V did co-rule, but it was with another female, Berenice IV. Cleopatra VII officially co-ruled with Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, Ptolemy XIV, and Ptolemy XV, upper Egypt, farthest from the centre of government, was less immediately affected, even though Ptolemy I established the Greek colony of Ptolemais Hermiou to be its capital. But within a century Greek influence had spread through the country, nevertheless, the Greeks always remained a privileged minority in Ptolemaic Egypt
Ptolemaic Egypt
–
Eagle of Zeus
Ptolemaic Egypt
–
Bust of
Ptolemy I Soter, king of Egypt (305 BC–282 BC) and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty
Ptolemaic Egypt
–
A bust depicting King
Ptolemy II Philadelphus 309–246 BCE
17.
Bilingual
–
Multilingualism is the use of two or more languages, either by an individual speaker or by a community of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the worlds population, more than half of all Europeans claim to speak at least one other language in addition to their mother tongue. Multilingualism is becoming a social phenomenon governed by the needs of globalization, people who speak several languages are also called polyglots. Multilingual speakers have acquired and maintained at least one language during childhood, the first language is acquired without formal education, by mechanisms heavily disputed. Children acquiring two languages in this way are called simultaneous bilinguals, even in the case of simultaneous bilinguals, one language usually dominates the other. People who know more than one language have been reported to be adept at language learning compared to monolinguals. Multilingualism in computing can be considered part of a continuum between internationalization and localization, the definition of multilingualism is a subject of debate in the very same way as the definition of language fluency. On one end of a sort of continuum, one may define multilingualism as complete competence. The speaker would presumably have complete knowledge and control over the language so as to sound native, on the opposite end of the spectrum would be people who know enough phrases to get around as a tourist using the alternate language. Since 1992, Vivian Cook has argued that most multilingual speakers fall somewhere between minimal and maximal definitions, in addition, there is no consistent definition of what constitutes a distinct language. For instance, scholars disagree whether Scots is a language in its own right or a dialect of English. Many small independent nations schoolchildren are today compelled to learn multiple languages because of international interactions, for example, in, all children are required to learn at least two foreign languages, the other national language and one alien language. Many Finnish schoolchildren also select further languages, such as German or Russian, in some large nations with multiple languages, such as India, school children may routinely learn multiple languages based on where they reside in the country. In major metropolitan areas of Central, South and East India, thus a child of Telugu parents living in Bangalore will end up speaking his or her mother tongue at home and the state language, Hindi and English in school and his or her surroundings. Many myths and much prejudice has grown around the notions of bi- and these are all harmful convictions which have long been debunked, yet still persist among many parents. A multilingual person is someone who can communicate in more than one language, more specifically, the terms bilingual and trilingual are used to describe comparable situations in which two or three languages are involved. A multilingual person is referred to as a polyglot. Multilingual speakers have acquired and maintained at least one language during childhood, the first language is acquired without formal education, by mechanisms heavily disputed
Bilingual
–
Multilingual sign outside the
mayor 's office in
Novi Sad, written in the four official languages of the city:
Serbian,
Hungarian,
Slovak, and
Pannonian Rusyn
Bilingual
–
A bilingual sign in
Brussels, the capital of
Belgium. In Brussels, both
Dutch and
French are official languages.
Bilingual
–
A caution message in
English,
Kannada and
Hindi found in
Bangalore,
India
Bilingual
–
The three-language (
Tamil,
English and
Hindi) name board at the Tirusulam suburban railway station in
Chennai (Madras). Almost all railway stations in India have signs like these in three or more languages (English, Hindi and the local language).
18.
Writing system
–
A writing system is any conventional method of visually representing verbal communication. While both writing and speech are useful in conveying messages, writing differs in also being a form of information storage. The processes of encoding and decoding writing systems involve shared understanding between writers and readers of the meaning behind the sets of characters that make up a script, the general attributes of writing systems can be placed into broad categories such as alphabets, syllabaries, or logographies. Any particular system can have attributes of more than one category, in the alphabetic category, there is a standard set of letters of consonants and vowels that encode based on the general principle that the letters represent speech sounds. In a syllabary, each symbol correlates to a syllable or mora, in a logography, each character represents a word, morpheme, or other semantic units. Other categories include abjads, which differ from alphabets in that vowels are not indicated, alphabets typically use a set of 20-to-35 symbols to fully express a language, whereas syllabaries can have 80-to-100, and logographies can have several hundreds of symbols. Systems will also enable the stringing together of these groupings in order to enable a full expression of the language. The reading step can be accomplished purely in the mind as an internal process, writing systems were preceded by proto-writing, which used pictograms, ideograms and other mnemonic symbols. Proto-writing lacked the ability to capture and express a range of thoughts. Soon after, writing provided a form of long distance communication. With the advent of publishing, it provided the medium for a form of mass communication. Writing systems are distinguished from other possible symbolic communication systems in that a system is always associated with at least one spoken language. In contrast, visual representations such as drawings, paintings, and non-verbal items on maps, such as contour lines, are not language-related. Some other symbols, such as numerals and the ampersand, are not directly linked to any specific language, every human community possesses language, which many regard as an innate and defining condition of humanity. However, the development of writing systems, and the process by which they have supplanted traditional oral systems of communication, have been sporadic, uneven, once established, writing systems generally change more slowly than their spoken counterparts. Thus they often preserve features and expressions which are no current in the spoken language. One of the benefits of writing systems is that they can preserve a permanent record of information expressed in a language. In the examination of individual scripts, the study of writing systems has developed along partially independent lines, thus, the terminology employed differs somewhat from field to field
Writing system
–
Writing systems
Writing system
–
Predominant national and selected regional or minority scripts
Writing system
–
Chinese characters (漢字) are morpho-syllabic. Each one represents a syllable with a distinct meaning, but some characters may have multiple meanings or pronunciations
Writing system
–
A Specimen of typefaces and styles, by
William Caslon, letter founder; from the 1728
Cyclopaedia
19.
Stela
–
A stele is a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected in ancient Western culture as a monument. Grave steles were often used for funerary or commemorative purposes, Stelae as slabs of stone would also be used as ancient Greek and Roman government notices or as boundary markers to mark borders or property lines. The surface of the stele usually has text, ornamentation, or both, the ornamentation may be inscribed, carved in relief, or painted. Traditional Western gravestones may technically be considered the equivalent of ancient stelae. The most famous example of an inscribed stela leading to increased understanding is the Rosetta Stone, an informative stele of Tiglath-Pileser III is preserved in the British Museum. Two steles built into the walls of a church are major documents relating to the Etruscan language, unfinished standing stones, set up without inscriptions from Libya in North Africa to Scotland were monuments of pre-literate Megalithic cultures in the Late Stone Age. The Pictish stones of Scotland, often carved, date from between the 6th and 9th centuries. An obelisk is a kind of stele. The Insular high crosses of Ireland and Britain are specialized steles, totem poles of North and South America that are made out of stone may also be considered a specialized type of stele. Gravestones, typically with inscribed name and often with inscribed epitaph, are among the most common types of stele seen in Western culture. Most recently, in the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe in Berlin, the memorial is meant to be read not only as the field, but also as an erasure of data that refer to memory of the Holocaust. Steles have been the medium of stone inscription in China since the Tang dynasty. Chinese steles are generally rectangular stone tablets upon which Chinese characters are carved intaglio with a funerary, commemorative and they can commemorate talented writers and officials, inscribe poems, portraits, or maps, and frequently contain the calligraphy of famous historical figures. During the Han dynasty, tomb inscriptions containing biographical information on deceased people began to be written on stone tablets rather than wooden ones, erecting steles at tombs or temples eventually became a widespread social and religious phenomenon. Emperors found it necessary to promulgate laws, regulating the use of funerary steles by the population, Steles are found at nearly every significant mountain and historical site in China. The First Emperor made five tours of his domain in the 3rd century BC and had Li Si make seven stone inscriptions commemorating and praising his work, of which fragments of two survive. One of the most famous mountain steles is the 13 m high stele at Mount Tai with the calligraphy of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang commemorating his imperial sacrifices there in 725. A number of stone monuments have preserved the origin and history of Chinas minority religious communities
Stela
–
Stele N from
Copán,
Honduras, depicting King K'ac Yipyaj Chan K'awiil ("Smoke Shell"), as drawn by
Frederick Catherwood in 1839
Stela
–
The
funerary stele of Thrasea and Euandria, c. 365 BC
Stela
–
Chinese ink rubbings of the 1489 (left) and 1512 (right) steles left by the
Kaifeng Jews.
Stela
–
Grave Stela of Nehemes-Ra-tawy, ca. 760-656 B.C.E.,37.588E,
Brooklyn Museum
20.
Rosetta Stone
–
The Rosetta Stone is a granodiorite stele, found in 1799, inscribed with three versions of a decree issued at Memphis, Egypt in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The top and middle texts are in Ancient Egyptian using hieroglyphic script and Demotic script, respectively, as the decree is the same in all three versions, the Rosetta Stone proved to be the key to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphs. The stone, carved in black granodiorite during the Hellenistic period, is believed to have originally been displayed within a temple, possibly at nearby Sais. It was probably moved during the early Christian or medieval period and it was rediscovered there in July 1799 by a French soldier named Pierre-François Bouchard during the Napoleonic campaign in Egypt. Lithographic copies and plaster casts began circulating among European museums and scholars, meanwhile, British troops defeated the French in Egypt in 1801, and the original stone came into British possession under the Capitulation of Alexandria and was transported to London. It has been on display at the British Museum almost continuously since 1802. It is the object in the British Museum. Study of the decree was already under way when the first full translation of the Greek text appeared in 1803, the Rosetta Stone is, therefore, no longer unique, but it was the essential key to modern understanding of Ancient Egyptian literature and civilisation. The term Rosetta Stone is now used in contexts as the name for the essential clue to a new field of knowledge. The Rosetta Stone is listed as a stone of black granite, found at Rosetta in a contemporary catalogue of the artefacts discovered by the French expedition and surrendered to British troops in 1801. This gave a dark colour to the stone that led to its identification as black basalt. The Rosetta Stone is 1,123 millimetres high at its highest point,757 mm wide and it bears three inscriptions, the top register in Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the second in the Egyptian Demotic script, and the third in Ancient Greek. The Rosetta Stone is a fragment of a larger stele, no additional fragments were found in later searches of the Rosetta site. Owing to its state, none of the three texts is absolutely complete. The top register, composed of Egyptian hieroglyphs, suffered the most damage, only the last 14 lines of the hieroglyphic text can be seen, all of them are broken on the right side, and 12 of them on the left. The following register of demotic text has survived best, it has 32 lines, the final register of Greek text contains 54 lines, of which the first 27 survive in full, the rest are increasingly fragmentary due to a diagonal break at the bottom right of the stone. The stele was erected after the coronation of King Ptolemy V and was inscribed with a decree established the divine cult of the new ruler. The decree was issued by a congress of priests who gathered at Memphis, the date is given as 4 Xandicus in the Macedonian calendar and 18 Meshir in the Egyptian calendar, which corresponds to March 27,196 BC
Rosetta Stone
–
The Rosetta Stone
Rosetta Stone
–
Report of the arrival of the Rosetta Stone in England in
The Gentleman's Magazine, 1802
Rosetta Stone
–
Left and right sides of the Rosetta Stone, with inscriptions in English relating to its capture by English forces from the French
Rosetta Stone
–
Experts inspecting the Rosetta Stone during the Second International Congress of Orientalists, 1874
21.
Ptolemy V Epiphanes
–
Ptolemy V Epiphanes, son of Ptolemy IV Philopator and Arsinoe III of Egypt, was the fifth ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty. He inherited the throne at the age of five, and under a series of regents, the Rosetta Stone was produced during his reign as an adult. Ptolemy Epiphanes was only a boy when his father, Ptolemy Philopator. However, in 202 BC, Tlepolemus, the general in charge of Pelusium, once Epiphanes was in the hands of Tlepolemus he was persuaded to give a sign that his mothers killers should be killed. The child king gave his consent, it is more from fear than anything else. Antiochus III the Great and Philip V of Macedon made a pact to divide the Ptolemaic possessions overseas, Philip seized several islands and populated places in Caria and Thrace, whilst the Battle of Panium definitively transferred Coele-Syria, including Judea, from the Ptolemies to the Seleucids. Antiochus then concluded peace, giving his own daughter Cleopatra I to Epiphanes in marriage, nevertheless, when war broke out between Antiochus and Rome, Egypt ranged itself with the latter power. Epiphanes came of age in approximately 196 or 197 BC with a known as an anacleteria. In manhood, Epiphanes was a sportsman, he excelled in athletic exercises. Great cruelty and treachery were displayed in the suppression of the native rebellion, in 197 BC, Lycopolis was held by the forces of Ankmachis, the secessionist pharaoh of Upper Egypt, but he was forced to withdraw to Thebes. The war between Upper and Lower Egypt continued until 185 BC with the arrest of Ankhmachis by Ptolemaic general Conanus and this victory re-established Ptolemaic rule in Upper Egypt, as well as the Triakontaschoinos. In 183 BC/184 BC, the rebels in Lower Egypt surrendered on the basis of terms that Epiphanes had personally promised to honor, however, showing himself treacherous and vindictive, he had them put to death in a cruel manner. The elder of Ptolemy Vs two sons, Ptolemy VI Philometor, succeeded as an infant under the regency of his mother Cleopatra the Syrian and her death was followed by a rupture between the Ptolemaic and Seleucid courts, on the old question of Coele-Syria. Ptolemy Vs reign was marked by trade with other contemporaneous polities. In the 1930s, excavations by Mattingly at a close to Port Dunford in present-day southern Somalia yielded a number of Ptolemaic coins. Among these pieces were 17 copper mints from the Ptolemy III to Ptolemy V dynasties, as well as late Imperial Rome, a History of Egypt Under the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Chronicles of the Pharaohs, The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Rulers, Ptolemy V Epiphanes entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
Ptolemy V Epiphanes
–
Tetradrachm issued by Ptolemy V Epiphanes,
British Museum
Ptolemy V Epiphanes
–
Ptolemaic Empire in 200 BC, during the reign of Ptolemy V (before the second invasion of Antiochus III)
22.
Obverse
–
In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse means the back face. The obverse of a coin is commonly called heads, because it depicts the head of a prominent person. In fields of scholarship outside numismatics, the front is more commonly used than obverse. For prints and drawings with material on both sides the one judged as more significant will be the recto, a convention now exists typically to display the obverse to the left and the reverse to the right in photographs and museum displays, but this is not invariably observed. Following this principle, in the most famous of ancient Greek coins, the tetradrachm of Athens, the obverse is the head of Athena, similar versions of these two images, both symbols of the state, were used on the Athenian coins for more than two centuries. The opposite side may have varied from time to time and this change happened in the coinage of Alexander the Great, which continued to be minted long after his death. The various Hellenistic rulers who were his successors followed his tradition and this script alone style then was used on nearly all Islamic coinage until the modern period. The type of Justinian II was revived after the end of Iconoclasm, without images, therefore, it is not always easy to tell which side will be regarded as the obverse without some knowledge. After 695, Islamic coins avoided all images of persons and usually, the side expressing the Six Kalimas is usually defined as the obverse. The form of currency follows its function, which is to serve as an accepted medium of exchange of value. Traditionally, most states have been monarchies where the person of the monarch, if not provided for on the obverse, the reverse side usually contains information relating to a coins role as medium of exchange. Additional space typically reflects the countrys culture or government, or evokes some aspect of the states territory. Regarding the euro, some regarding the obverse and reverse of the euro coins exists. This rule does not apply to the coins as they dont have a common side. A number of the used for obverse national sides of euro coins were taken from the reverse of the old pre-euro coins of some individual countries. Several countries continue to use portraits of the monarch and the Republic of Ireland continues to use the State Arms. The Chrysanthemum Crest was no longer used after the war, and so, the side on which the date continues to be regarded as the reverse. Following ancient tradition, the obverse of coins of the United Kingdom almost always feature the head of the monarch
Obverse
–
Roman imperial coin with the head of Tranquillina on the obverse, struck c. 241 when her marriage to Gordian III is depicted on the reverse in smaller scale; the coin exhibits the obverse "head" or front and reverse "tail" or back convention that still dominates much coinage today
Obverse
–
Roman imperial coin of Marcus Claudius Tacitus, who ruled briefly from 275-276, follows the convention of obverse and reverse coin traditions
Obverse
–
Obverse of the tetradrachm of
Alexander the Great, intended to be seen as a deity, wearing the attributes of the hero,
Heracles - 325 BC
Obverse
–
Solidus of
Justinian II after 705, Christ (left) is on the obverse, the emperor on the reverse
23.
Egyptian hieroglyphs
–
Egyptian hieroglyphs were the formal writing system used in Ancient Egypt. It combined logographic, syllabic and alphabetic elements, with a total of some 1,000 distinct characters, cursive hieroglyphs were used for religious literature on papyrus and wood. The later hieratic and demotic Egyptian scripts are derived from hieroglyphic writing, the writing system continued to be used throughout the Late Period, as well as the Persian and Ptolemaic periods. Late survivals of hieroglyphic use are found well into the Roman period, with the closing of pagan temples in the 5th century, knowledge of hieroglyphic writing was lost, and the script remained undeciphered throughout the medieval and early modern period. The decipherment of hieroglyphs would only be solved in the 1820s by Jean-François Champollion, the word hieroglyph comes from the Greek adjective ἱερογλυφικός, a compound of ἱερός and γλύφω, supposedly a calque of an Egyptian phrase mdw·w-nṯr gods words. The glyphs themselves were called τὰ ἱερογλυφικὰ γράμματα the sacred engraved letters, the word hieroglyph has become a noun in English, standing for an individual hieroglyphic character. As used in the sentence, the word hieroglyphic is an adjective. Hieroglyphs emerged from the artistic traditions of Egypt. For example, symbols on Gerzean pottery from c.4000 BC have been argued to resemble hieroglyphic writing, proto-hieroglyphic symbol systems develop in the second half of the 4th millennium BC, such as the clay labels of a Predynastic ruler called Scorpion I recovered at Abydos in 1998. The first full sentence written in hieroglyphs so far discovered was found on a seal found in the tomb of Seth-Peribsen at Umm el-Qaab. There are around 800 hieroglyphs dating back to the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, by the Greco-Roman period, there are more than 5,000. However, given the lack of evidence, no definitive determination has been made as to the origin of hieroglyphics in ancient Egypt. Since the 1990s, and discoveries such as the Abydos glyphs, as writing developed and became more widespread among the Egyptian people, simplified glyph forms developed, resulting in the hieratic and demotic scripts. These variants were more suited than hieroglyphs for use on papyrus. Hieroglyphic writing was not, however, eclipsed, but existed alongside the other forms, especially in monumental, the Rosetta Stone contains three parallel scripts – hieroglyphic, demotic, and Greek. Hieroglyphs continued to be used under Persian rule, and after Alexander the Greats conquest of Egypt, during the ensuing Ptolemaic and Roman periods. It appears that the quality of comments from Greek and Roman writers about hieroglyphs came about, at least in part. Some believed that hieroglyphs may have functioned as a way to distinguish true Egyptians from some of the foreign conquerors, another reason may be the refusal to tackle a foreign culture on its own terms, which characterized Greco-Roman approaches to Egyptian culture generally
Egyptian hieroglyphs
–
A section of the
Papyrus of Ani showing cursive hieroglyphs.
Egyptian hieroglyphs
–
Hieroglyphs on a funerary stela in
Manchester Museum
Egyptian hieroglyphs
–
The
Rosetta Stone in the
British Museum
Egyptian hieroglyphs
–
Hieroglyphs typical of the Graeco-Roman period
24.
Leap day
–
February 29, also known as leap day or leap year day, is a date added to most years that are divisible by 4, such as 2008,2012,2016,2020, and 2024. A leap day is added in various solar calendars, including the Gregorian calendar standard in most of the world, lunisolar calendars instead add a leap or intercalary month. In the Gregorian calendar, years that are divisible by 100, thus,1700,1800, and 1900 did not contain a leap day, neither will 2100,2200, and 2300. Conversely,1600 and 2000 did and 2400 will, Years containing a leap day are called leap years. Years not containing a leap day are called common years, February 29 is the 60th day of the Gregorian calendar, in such a year, with 306 days remaining until the end of the year. In the Chinese calendar, this day will only occur in years of the monkey, dragon, a leap day is observed because a complete revolution around the Sun takes approximately 6 hours longer than 365 days. A leap day compensates for this lag, realigning the calendar with the Earths position in the Solar System, otherwise, although most modern calendar years have 365 days, a complete revolution around the Sun takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours. An extra 24 hours thus accumulates every four years, requiring that a calendar day be added to align the calendar with the Suns apparent position. A solar year is slightly shorter than 365 days and 6 hours. The currently accepted figure is 365 days,5 hours,48 minutes,45 seconds. Adding a calendar day every four years, therefore, results in an excess of around 44 minutes for those four years, to compensate for this, three days are removed every 400 years. The Gregorian calendar reform implements this adjustment by making an exception to the rule that there is a leap year every four years. Instead, a year divisible by 100 is not a year unless that year is also divisible by 400. This means that the years 1600,2000, and 2400 are leap years, while the years 1700,1800,1900,2100,2200,2300, the Gregorian calendar repeats itself every 400 years, which is exactly 20,871 weeks including 97 leap days. Over this period, February 29 falls on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday 13 times each,14 times each on Friday and Saturday, the calendar of the Roman king Numa Pompilius had only 355 days which meant that it would quickly become unsynchronized with the solar year. An earlier Roman solution to this problem was to lengthen the calendar periodically by adding days to February. February consisted of two parts, each with an odd number of days, the first part ended with the Terminalia on the 23rd, which was considered the end of the religious year, and the five remaining days formed the second part. To keep the calendar year roughly aligned with the solar year, the second part of February was incorporated in the intercalary month as its last five days, with no change either in their dates or the festivals observed on them
Leap day
–
Adding a leap day (after 23 February) shifts the commemorations in the 1962
Roman Missal.
25.
Egyptian calendar
–
The ancient Egyptian calendar was a solar calendar with a 365-day year. The year consisted of three seasons of 120 days each, plus a month of 5 epagomenal days treated as outside of the year proper. Each season was divided into four months of 30 days and these twelve months were initially numbered within each season but came to also be known by the names of their principal festivals. Each month was divided into three 10-day periods known as decans or decades, the last two days of each decan were usually treated as a kind of weekend, with royal artisans and others free from work. Because this calendrical year was nearly a quarter of a day shorter than the solar year and it is therefore sometimes referred to as the wandering year, as its months rotated about a third of the way through the solar year each century. The introduction of a day to the Egyptian calendar made it equivalent to the reformed Julian calendar. This civil calendar ran concurrently with an Egyptian lunar calendar which was used for religious rituals and festivals. Current knowledge of the earliest development of the Egyptian calendar remains speculative, similarly, based on the Palermo Stone, Scharff proposed that the Old Kingdom observed a 320-day year but his theory has not become widely accepted. Some evidence suggests the early civil calendar had 360 days, although it might merely reflect the status of the five epagomenal days as days added on to the proper year. The first lasted from roughly June to September, the second from roughly October to January, as early as the reign of Djer, yearly records were being kept of the floods high-water mark. Until the closing of Egypts pagan temples under the Byzantines, the lunar calendar continued to be used as the year of various cults. The month may have divided into four weeks of 7 or 8 days. The difference between beginning the day at the first light of dawn or at sunrise accounts for an 11–14 year shift in dated observations of the lunar cycle, No evidence for such a month, however, exists in the present historical record. This date places it prior to the Ptolemaic period and within the native Egyptian Dynasty XXX, Egypts 1st Persian occupation, however, seems likely to have been its inspiration. This lunisolar calendars calculations apparently continued to be used without correction into the Roman period, on Psḏntyw, he is born on Ꜣbd, he grows old after Smdt. It was probably based upon observations of Sirius whose reappearance in the sky closely corresponded to the average onset of the Nile flood through the 5th and 4th millennium BC. The regular months were grouped into Egypts three seasons, which gave them their names, and divided into three 10-day periods known as decans or decades. In later sources, these were distinguished as first, middle, the last two days of each decan were usually treated as a kind of weekend, with royal artisans and others free from work
Egyptian calendar
–
Nut, Egyptian goddess of the sky, with the star chart in the tomb of
Ramses VI. Human figures represent stars and constellations
Egyptian calendar
–
Ancient star chart from the
Middle Kingdom of Egypt (Diagonal star tables)
26.
Serapeum
–
There were several such religious centers, each of which was a serapeion or, in its Latinized form, a serapeum. 31°10′55″N 29°53′49″E The Serapeum of Alexandria in the Ptolemaic Kingdom was a ancient Greek temple built by Ptolemy III Euergetes and dedicated to Serapis, by all detailed accounts, the Serapeum was the largest and most magnificent of all temples in the Greek quarter of Alexandria. Besides the image of the god, the temple housed an offshoot collection of the great Library of Alexandria. The geographer Strabo tells that this stood in the west of the city, excavations at the site of the column of Diocletian in 1944 yielded the foundation deposits of the Serapeion. These are two sets of ten plaques, one each of gold, silver, bronze, Egyptian faience, sun-dried Nile mud, the inscription that Ptolemy III Euergetes built the Serapeion, in Greek and Egyptian, marks all plaques, evidence suggests that Parmeniskos was assigned as architect. The foundation deposits of a dedicated to Harpocrates from the reign of Ptolemy IV Philopator were also found within the enclosure walls. Subterranean galleries beneath the temple were most probably the site of the mysteries of Serapis. In 1895, a diorite statue representing Serapis in his Apis bull incarnation with the sun disk between his horns was found at the site, an inscription dates it to the reign of Hadrian. The Serapeum in Alexandria was destroyed by a Christian mob or Roman soldiers in 391, several conflicting accounts for the context of the destruction of the Serapeum exist. According to early Christian sources, bishop Pope Theophilus of Alexandria was the Nicene patriarch when the decrees of emperor Theodosius I forbade public observances of any rites but Christian. In Alexandria, Bishop Theophilus obtained legal authority over one such forcibly abandoned temple of Dionysus, during the renovations, the contents of subterranean spaces were uncovered and profaned, which allegedly incited crowds of non-Christians to seek revenge. The trapped pagans plundered the Serapeum, consequently, the Serapeum was levelled by Roman soldiers and monks called in from the desert, as were the buildings dedicated to the Egyptian god Canopus. An alternate account of the incident is found in writings by Eunapius, here, an unprovoked Christian mob successfully used military-like tactics to destroy the Serapeum and steal anything that may have survived the attack. Whichever the cause, the destruction of the Serapeum, described by Christian writers Tyrannius Rufinus and Sozomen, was but the most spectacular of such conflicts, according to Peter Brown. However, Peter Brown frames it against a backdrop of frequent mob violence in the city. Also, Eusebius mentions street-fighting in Alexandria between Christians and non-Christians, occurring as early as 249, there is evidence that non-Christians had taken part in citywide struggles both for and against Athanasius of Alexandria in 341 and 356. Similar accounts are found in the writings of Socrates of Constantinople, R. McMullan further reports that, in 363, George of Cappadocia was killed for his repeated acts of pointed outrage, insult, and pillage of the most sacred treasures of the city. Whatever the prior events, the Serapeum of Alexandria was not rebuilt, another Serapeum was located at Canopus, in the Nile Delta near Alexandria
Serapeum
–
"
Pompey's Pillar " (in reality erected by
Diocletian) above the original site of the Alexandrian Serapeum
Serapeum
–
Statue of
Apis,
30th Dynasty,
Louvre.
Serapeum
–
Theophilus, Gospel in hand, stands triumphantly atop the Serapeum in 391
Serapeum
–
The obelisk facing the Pantheon, in Rome
27.
Horus
–
Horus is one of the most significant ancient Egyptian deities. He was worshipped from at least the late prehistoric Egypt until the Ptolemaic Kingdom, different forms of Horus are recorded in history and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists. He was most often depicted as a falcon, most likely a falcon or peregrine falcon. In another tradition Hathor is regarded as his mother and sometimes as his wife, Horus served many functions, most notably being a god of the sky, war and hunting. Horus is recorded in Egyptian hieroglyphs as ḥr. w Falcon, additional meanings are thought to have been the distant one or one who is above, over. As the language changed over time, it appeared in Coptic dialects variously as hoːɾ or ħoːɾ and was adopted into ancient Greek as Ὧρος Hōros and it also survives in Late Egyptian and Coptic theophoric names such as Har-si-ese Horus, Son of Isis. Nekheny may have been another falcon god worshipped at Nekhen, city of the falcon, Horus may be shown as a falcon on the Narmer Palette, dating from about the 31st century BC. In early Egypt, Horus was the brother of Isis, Osiris, Set, as different cults formed, he became the son of Isis and Osiris. Isis remained the sister of Osiris, Set and Nephthys, the Pyramid Texts describe the nature of the pharaoh in different characters as both Horus and Osiris. The pharaoh as Horus in life became the pharaoh as Osiris in death, New incarnations of Horus succeeded the deceased pharaoh on earth in the form of new pharaohs. The lineage of Horus, the product of unions between the children of Atum, may have been a means to explain and justify pharaonic power. The gods produced by Atum were all representative of cosmic and terrestrial forces in Egyptian life, the notion of Horus as the pharaoh seems to have been superseded by the concept of the pharaoh as the son of Ra during the Fifth Dynasty. Once Isis knew she was pregnant with Horus, she fled to the Nile Delta marshlands to hide from her brother Set, who jealously killed Osiris, there Isis bore a divine son, Horus. Since Horus was said to be the sky, he was considered to contain the sun. It became said that the sun was his eye and the moon his left, and that they traversed the sky when he. Later, the reason that the moon was not as bright as the sun was explained by a tale, known as the The Contendings of Horus and Seth. As Horus was the victor he became known as ḥr. w wr Horus the Great. In the struggle, Set had lost a testicle, explaining why the desert, Horus left eye had also been gouged out, then a new eye was created by part of Khonsu, the moon god, and was replaced
Horus
–
Horus,
(Louvre Museum),
Shen rings in his grasp
Horus
Horus
–
Figure of a Horus Falcon, between circa 300 and circa 250 BC (Greco-Roman). The Walters Art Museum.
Horus
–
Horus, patron deity of Hierakonpolis (near
Edfu), the predynastic capital of Upper Egypt. Its head was executed by means of beating the gold then connecting it with the copper body. A uraeus is fixed to the diadem which supports two tall openwork feathers. The eyes are inlaid with obsidian. (6th dynasty).
28.
Ptolemy VIII Physcon
–
Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, nicknamed Physcon, was a king of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt. Ptolemy VIIIs complicated political career started in 170 BC and this is when Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire invaded and captured King Ptolemy VI Philometor and all of Egypt, with the exception of the city of Alexandria. Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue as a puppet monarch, meanwhile, the people of Alexandria chose Ptolemy Euergetes, his younger brother, as king. Euergetes was popularly known as Physkōn, Latinized as Physcon, meaning sausage, potbelly or bladder, instead of taking up arms against one another, the brothers decided to co-rule Egypt. After Antiochus withdrew from the area in 168 BC due to threats from Rome, Physcon agreed to jointly rule Egypt in a triumvirate with Philometor and Cleopatra II. This arrangement led to continuous intrigues, lasting until October 164 BC, when Philometor traveled to Rome to appear before the Senate, who were somewhat agreeable with the arrangement. However, areas under Physcons sole rule were not satisfied with the arrangement and this left Physcon in charge of Cyrenaica. Although the arrangement lasted until Philometors death in 145 BC, it did not end the power struggles, Physcon convinced the Roman Senate to back his claims on Cyprus, but Philometor opposed this. Physcons attempt to conquer the island failed and the Senate sent Philometors ambassadors home, in 156 or 155 BC, Philometor tried to have Physcon assassinated but failed. Physcon went to Rome, displaying the scars he had received in the attempt, despite opposition from Cato the Elder, he received the Senates support and further resources for another attempt on Cyprus. During his time in Rome he met Cornelia Africana, and asked for her hand in marriage, the second attempt on Cyprus also failed. Philometor captured and held Physcon prisoner, but spared him, offering him instead the hand of his daughter, Cleopatra Thea, when Philometor died on a campaign in 145 BC, Cleopatra II quickly had her son proclaimed King Ptolemy VII. Physcon, however, returned from battle and proposed joint rule and marriage with Cleopatra II and he had the younger Ptolemy assassinated during the wedding feast and claimed the throne himself, as Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II, and had himself proclaimed pharaoh in 144 BC. In 145 BC, Physcon took his revenge on the intellectuals of Alexandria who had opposed him, including Aristarchus of Samothrace and he engaged in mass purges and expulsions, leaving Alexandria a changed city. Physcon seduced and married Cleopatra III without divorcing Cleopatra II, who became infuriated, many speculate that Physcon only married Cleopatra II because he was plotting to marry Cleopatra III when she became of marrying age. By 132 or 131 BC, the people of Alexandria had rioted, Physcon, Cleopatra III, and their children escaped to Cyprus, while Cleopatra II had their twelve-year-old son, Ptolemy Memphitis, acclaimed as king. Physcon was able to get hold of the boy, killed him, the ensuing civil war pitted Cleopatras city of Alexandria against the rest of the country, who supported Physcon. Growing desperate, Cleopatra offered the throne of Egypt to the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator, by 127 BC, Cleopatra fled to Syria
Ptolemy VIII Physcon
–
tetradrachm of Ptolemy VIII
Ptolemy VIII Physcon
–
Stele (monument) attributed to Ptolemy VIII, glorifying his rule and describing his support of Egyptian gods. The stele was written in
Egyptian hieroglyphs as well as Greek.
29.
Syrian Wars
–
These conflicts drained the material and manpower of both parties and led to their eventual destruction and conquest by Rome and Parthia. They are briefly mentioned in the biblical Books of the Maccabees, in the Wars of the Diadochi following Alexanders death, Coele-Syria initially came under the rule of Antigonus I Monophthalmus. In 301 BC Ptolemy I Soter, who four years earlier had crowned himself King of Egypt, the victors at Ipsus, however, had allocated Coele-Syria to Ptolemys former ally Seleucus I Nicator, founder of the Seleucid Empire. Seleucus, who had been aided by Ptolemy during his ascent to power, once both were dead, however, their successors became embroiled in war. A decade into his rule, Ptolemy II faced Antiochus I, Ptolemy proved to be a forceful ruler and skilled general. In addition, his recent marriage to his court-wise sister Arsinoe II of Egypt had stabilized the volatile Egyptian court, the First Syrian War was a major victory for the Ptolemies. Antiochus took the Ptolemaic controlled areas in coastal Syria and southern Anatolia in his initial rush, Ptolemy reconquered these territories by 271 BC, extending Ptolemaic rule as far as Caria and into most of Cilicia. With Ptolemys eye focused eastward, his half-brother Magas declared his province of Cyrenaica to be independent and it would remain independent until 250 BC, when it was reabsorbed into the Ptolemaic Kingdom. Antiochus II succeeded his father in 261 BC, and thus began a new war for Syria and he reached an agreement with the current Antigonid king in Macedon, Antigonus II Gonatas, who was also interested in pushing Ptolemy II out of the Aegean. With Macedons support, Antiochus II launched an attack on Ptolemaic outposts in Asia, most of the information about the Second Syrian War has been lost. It is clear that Antigonus fleet defeated Ptolemys at the Battle of Cos in 261, Ptolemy appears to have lost ground in Cilicia, Pamphylia, and Ionia, while Antiochus regained Miletus and Ephesus. The war was concluded around 253 BC with the marriage of Antiochus to Ptolemys daughter, Antiochus repudiated his previous wife, Laodice, and turned over substantial domain to her. He died in Ephesus in 246 BC, poisoned by Laodice according to some sources, Ptolemy II died in the same year. Also known as the Laodicean War, the Third Syrian War began with one of the many crises that plagued the Hellenistic states. Antiochus II left two ambitious mothers, his repudiated wife Laodice and Ptolemy IIs daughter Berenice Syra, in a competition to put their sons on the throne. Laodice claimed that Antiochus had named her son heir while on his deathbed, Berenice asked her brother Ptolemy III, the new Ptolemaic king, to come to Antioch and help place her son on the throne. When Ptolemy arrived, Berenice and her child had been assassinated, Ptolemy declared war on Laodices newly crowned son, Seleucus II, in 246 BC, and campaigned with great success. He won major victories over Seleucus in Syria and Anatolia, briefly occupied Antioch and, as a recent cuneiform discovery proves and these victories were marred by the loss of the Cyclades to Antigonus Gonatas in the Battle of Andros
Syrian Wars
–
Coele-Syria, site of the Syrian Wars.
30.
Antioch
–
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient Greco-Roman city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. Its ruins lie near the city of Antakya, Turkey. Antioch was founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, the citys geographical, military, and economic location benefited its occupants, particularly such features as the spice trade, the Silk Road, and the Persian Royal Road. It eventually rivaled Alexandria as the city of the Near East. It was also the center of Hellenistic Judaism at the end of the Second Temple period. Most of the development of Antioch was done during the Roman Empire. Antioch was called the cradle of Christianity as a result of its longevity, the Christian New Testament asserts that the name Christian first emerged in Antioch. It was one of the four cities of the Syrian tetrapolis, a single route proceeds south in the Orontes valley. The settlement of Meroe pre-dated Antioch, a shrine of the Semitic goddess Anat, called by Herodotus the Persian Artemis, was located here. This site was included in the suburbs of Antioch. There was a village on the spur of Mount Silpius named Io and this name was always adduced as evidence by Antiochenes anxious to affiliate themselves to the Attic Ionians—an eagerness which is illustrated by the Athenian types used on the citys coins. Io may have been an early colony of trading Greeks. John Malalas also mentions a village, Bottia, in the plain by the river. Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great is said to have camped on the site of Antioch and this account is found only in the writings of Libanius, a 4th-century orator from Antioch, and may be legend intended to enhance Antiochs status. But the story is not unlikely in itself, after Alexanders death in 323 BC, his generals divided up the territory he had conquered. Seleucus I Nicator won the territory of Syria, and he proceeded to found four sister cities in northwestern Syria, one of which was Antioch and he is reputed to have built sixteen Antiochs. Seleucus founded Antioch on a site chosen through ritual means, an eagle, the bird of Zeus, had been given a piece of sacrificial meat and the city was founded on the site to which the eagle carried the offering. Seleucus did this on the 22nd day of the month of Artemisios in the year of his reign
Antioch
–
Ancient
Roman road located in
Syria which connected Antioch and
Chalcis.
Antioch
–
Map of Antioch in Roman and early Byzantine times
Antioch
–
This
argenteus was struck in Antioch mint, under
Constantius Chlorus.
Antioch
–
The Antioch Chalice, first half of 6th century,
Metropolitan Museum of Art.
31.
Babylon
–
Babylon was a major city of ancient Mesopotamia in the fertile plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The city was built upon the Euphrates and divided in parts along its left and right banks. Babylon was originally a small Semitic Akkadian city dating from the period of the Akkadian Empire c.2300 BC, the town attained independence as part of a small city-state with the rise of the First Amorite Babylonian Dynasty in 1894 BC. Babylon grew and South Mesopotamia came to be known as Babylonia, the empire quickly dissolved after Hammurabis death and Babylon spent long periods under Assyrian, Kassite and Elamite domination. After being destroyed and then rebuilt by the Assyrians, Babylon became the capital of the Neo-Babylonian Empire from 609 to 539 BC, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. After the fall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the city came under the rule of the Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman, and Sassanid empires. It has been estimated that Babylon was the largest city in the world from c.1770 to 1670 BC and it was perhaps the first city to reach a population above 200,000. Estimates for the extent of its area range from 890 to 900 hectares. The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq, about 85 kilometres south of Baghdad, comprising a large tell of broken mud-brick buildings, the English Babylon comes from Greek Babylṓn, a transliteration of the Akkadian Babili. The Babylonian name in the early 2nd millennium BC had been Babilli or Babilla, by the 1st millennium BC, it had changed to Babili under the influence of the folk etymology which traced it to bāb-ili. The Gate of God or Gate of El being from the Aramaic Hebrew Bab for Gate and El for God and this being similar to the Hebrew word for confusion Balal. In the Bible, the name appears as Babel, interpreted in the Hebrew Scriptures Book of Genesis to mean confusion, the modern English verb, to babble, or to speak meaningless words, is popularly thought to derive from this name, but there is no direct connection. The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad, comprising a large tell of broken mud-brick buildings and debris. The site at Babylon consists of a number of mounds covering an area of about 2 by 1 kilometer, oriented north to south, along the Euphrates to the west. Originally, the river roughly bisected the city, but the course of the river has since shifted so that most of the remains of the western part of the city are now inundated. Some portions of the city wall to the west of the river also remain, remains of the city include, Kasr—also called Palace or Castle, it is the location of the Neo-Babylonian ziggurat Etemenanki and lies in the center of the site. Amran Ibn Ali—the highest of the mounds at 25 meters, to the south and it is the site of Esagila, a temple of Marduk which also contained shrines to Ea and Nabu. Homera—a reddish colored mound on the west side, most of the Hellenistic remains are here
Babylon
–
A partial view of the ruins of Babylon from
Saddam Hussein 's Summer Palace
Babylon
–
Plan of Ruins of Babylon, 1905
Babylon
–
Babylon in 1932
Babylon
–
The
Queen of the Night relief. The figure could be an aspect of the goddess
Ishtar, Babylonian goddess of sex and love.
32.
Seleucia Pieria
–
Seleucia Pieria, also known in English as Seleucia by the Sea, and later named Suedia, was a Hellenistic town, the seaport of Antioch ad Orontes, the Seleucid capital, modern Antakya. It city was slightly to the north of the estuary of the river Orontes. According to Pausanias and Malalas, there was a city here named Palaeopolis. At present, it is located at the village of Çevlik near the town of Samandağ in the Hatay Province of Turkey. Seleucia, Apamea, Laodicea, and Antioch formed the Syrian tetrapolis, Seleucia Pieria was founded in ca.300 BCE by Seleucus I Nicator, one of the successors of the Macedonian conqueror Alexander the Great and the founder of the Seleucid Empire. The Macedonians called the landscape Pieria, after a district in their homeland that was also between the sea and a mountain range, Seleucia was of great importance in the struggle between the Seleucids and the Ptolemies, it was captured by Ptolemy Euergetes in 246 BCE. As the Ptolemies and Seleucids fought over the city, it changed several times until 219 BCE. Then it obtained its freedom and kept it even to the end of the Roman occupation and it had long enjoyed the right of coinage. When the Seleucid Empire was subdued by the Armenian conqueror Tigranes II, Roman general Pompey the Great restored the Seleucids to power by giving the city to Antiochus I Theos of Commagene, a direct descendant of Seleucus I Nicator and a loyal ally of Rome. Under light Commagene rule, Seleucia enjoyed substantial autonomy, i. e. de facto independence, seleucias importance grew significantly over time, necessitating the enlargement of its harbours several times under Diocletian and Constantius. These harbours, called the inner and outer harbours, served from time to time the Roman navy, most buildings and structures today date from the Roman period. During Byzantine times the city went into a steady decline, the silting up of the citys harbours hastened this process. In the fifth century CE the fight to keep them open was given up. It suffered severely in the devastating 526 Antioch earthquake, Seleucia was captured by the Sasanids around 540 CE. While it never recovered as a port-city again, Al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik, Ummayad Caliph from 705-715, at the end of that same journey he must have made landfall at Seleucia before going to Antioch. His route at the beginning of the journey was by land and probably bypassed Seleucia, though on returning. Once more taking a route when setting out on his third journey, Paul may have missed Seleucia. This means that Paul passed through Seleucia at least three times, and probably several more on pre-missionary visits to Antioch of Syria, the oldest bishop known is Zenobius, present at the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE
Seleucia Pieria
–
A
Roman sarcophagus on the upper hills of the city
Seleucia Pieria
–
Column plinths of possibly the main/harbour street
Seleucia Pieria
–
A section of the
Titus Tunnel
33.
Somalia
–
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, Somalia has the longest coastline on Africas mainland, and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains and highlands. Climatically, hot conditions prevail year-round, with monsoon winds. Somalia has an population of around 12.3 million. Around 85% of its residents are ethnic Somalis, who have inhabited the northern part of the country. Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the southern regions, the official languages of Somalia are Somali and Arabic, both of which belong to the Afroasiatic family. Most people in the country are Muslim, with the majority being Sunni, in antiquity, Somalia was an important commercial centre. It is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt, during the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the Ajuran Empire, the Adal Sultanate, the Warsangali Sultanate, and the Geledi Sultanate. The toponym Somalia was coined by the Italian explorer Luigi Robecchi Bricchetti, Italian occupation lasted until 1941, yielding to British military administration. British Somaliland would remain a protectorate, while Italian Somaliland in 1949 became a United Nations Trusteeship under Italian administration, in 1960, the two regions united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government. The Supreme Revolutionary Council seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic, led by Mohamed Siad Barre, this government later collapsed in 1991 as the Somali Civil War broke out. Various armed factions began competing for influence in the power vacuum, during this period, due to the absence of a central government, Somalia was a failed state, and residents returned to customary and religious law in most regions. A few autonomous regions, including the Somaliland and Puntland administrations emerged in the north, the early 2000s saw the creation of fledgling interim federal administrations. The Transitional National Government was established in 2000, followed by the formation of the Transitional Federal Government in 2004, in 2006, the TFG, assisted by Ethiopian troops, assumed control of most of the nations southern conflict zones from the newly formed Islamic Courts Union. The ICU subsequently splintered into more radical groups such as Al-Shabaab, by mid-2012, the insurgents had lost most of the territory that they had seized. In 2011–2012, a political process providing benchmarks for the establishment of permanent democratic institutions was launched, within this administrative framework a new provisional constitution was passed in August 2012, which reformed Somalia as a federation. Somalia has maintained an informal economy, mainly based on livestock, remittances from Somalis working abroad, Somalia has been inhabited since at least the Paleolithic. During the Stone Age, the Doian and Hargeisan cultures flourished here, the oldest evidence of burial customs in the Horn of Africa comes from cemeteries in Somalia dating back to the 4th millennium BCE
Somalia
–
Neolithic rock art at the
Laas Geel complex depicting a long-horned cow
Somalia
Somalia
–
The
Silk Road extending from China to southern Europe, Arabia, Somalia, Egypt, Persia, India, and Java
Somalia
–
Queen Ati, wife of King Perahu of Punt, depicted on Pharaoh
Hatshepsut 's temple at
Deir el-Bahri.
34.
Roman Empire
–
Civil wars and executions continued, culminating in the victory of Octavian, Caesars adopted son, over Mark Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the annexation of Egypt. Octavians power was then unassailable and in 27 BC the Roman Senate formally granted him overarching power, the imperial period of Rome lasted approximately 1,500 years compared to the 500 years of the Republican era. The first two centuries of the empires existence were a period of unprecedented political stability and prosperity known as the Pax Romana, following Octavians victory, the size of the empire was dramatically increased. After the assassination of Caligula in 41, the senate briefly considered restoring the republic, under Claudius, the empire invaded Britannia, its first major expansion since Augustus. Vespasian emerged triumphant in 69, establishing the Flavian dynasty, before being succeeded by his son Titus and his short reign was followed by the long reign of his brother Domitian, who was eventually assassinated. The senate then appointed the first of the Five Good Emperors, the empire reached its greatest extent under Trajan, the second in this line. A period of increasing trouble and decline began with the reign of Commodus, Commodus assassination in 192 triggered the Year of the Five Emperors, of which Septimius Severus emerged victorious. The assassination of Alexander Severus in 235 led to the Crisis of the Third Century in which 26 men were declared emperor by the Roman Senate over a time span. It was not until the reign of Diocletian that the empire was fully stabilized with the introduction of the Tetrarchy, which saw four emperors rule the empire at once. This arrangement was unsuccessful, leading to a civil war that was finally ended by Constantine I. Constantine subsequently shifted the capital to Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople in his honour and it remained the capital of the east until its demise. Constantine also adopted Christianity which later became the state religion of the empire. However, Augustulus was never recognized by his Eastern colleague, and separate rule in the Western part of the empire ceased to exist upon the death of Julius Nepos. The Eastern Roman Empire endured for another millennium, eventually falling to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Roman Empire was among the most powerful economic, cultural, political and military forces in the world of its time. It was one of the largest empires in world history, at its height under Trajan, it covered 5 million square kilometres. It held sway over an estimated 70 million people, at that time 21% of the entire population. Throughout the European medieval period, attempts were made to establish successors to the Roman Empire, including the Empire of Romania, a Crusader state. Rome had begun expanding shortly after the founding of the republic in the 6th century BC, then, it was an empire long before it had an emperor
Roman Empire
–
The
Augustus of Prima Porta (early 1st century AD)
Roman Empire
–
Aureus of
Augustus, the first
Roman Emperor.
Roman Empire
–
A segment of the ruins of Hadrian's Wall in northern England
Roman Empire
–
A 5th-century
papyrus showing a parallel Latin-Greek text of a speech by
Cicero
35.
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
–
The Mamluk Sultanate was a medieval realm spanning Egypt, the Levant, and Hejaz. It lasted from the overthrow of the Ayyubid Dynasty until the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517, historians have traditionally broken the era of Mamlūk rule into two periods—one covering 1250–1382, the other, 1382–1517. Western historians call the former the Baḥrī period and the latter the Burjī due to the dominance of the regimes known by these names during the respective eras. Contemporary Muslim historians refer to the divisions as the Turkish. The Mamlūk state reached its height under Turkic rule with Arabic culture, the sultanates ruling caste was composed of Mamluks, soldiers of predominantly Cuman-Kipchaks, Circassian, Abkhazian, Oghuz Turks and Georgian slave origin. While Mamluks were purchased, their status was above ordinary slaves, Mamluks were considered to be true lords, with social status above citizens of Egypt. Though it declined towards the end of its existence, at its height the sultanate represented the zenith of medieval Egyptian and Levantine political, economic, the term Mamluk Sultanate is a modern historiographical term. The Arabic sources for the period of the Bahri Mamluks refer to the dynasty as the State/Realm of the Turks, other official names used were State of the Circassians. A variant thereof emphasized the fact that the Circassians were Turkish-speaking, the term Mongol State was used during Sultan al-Adil Kitbughas rule, who was of Mongol extraction. Dawlatāl Qalāwūn or Dawlat Banī Qalāwūn which means Qalāwūnī State/Dynasty which have ruled for hundred years between 1279 and 1382, al-dawla al-Ẓāhiriyya which meant Ẓāhirī state/dynasty which is the dynasty of Baibars and his two sons al-Said Barakah and Solamish. This dynasty have ruled consecutively for 19 years, Mamluk was a term defined as owned slave, distinguishing the mamluk from the garya and ghulam, which referred to household slaves. After thorough training in fields such as martial arts, court etiquette and Islamic sciences. However, they were expected to remain loyal to their master. Mamluks had formed a part of the state or military apparatus in Syria and Egypt since at least the 9th century, each Ayyubid sultan and high-ranking emir had a private mamluk corps. Most of the mamluks in the Ayyubids service were ethnic Kipchak Turks from Central Asia and they were highly committed to their masters, who they often referred to as father, and were in turn treated more as kinsmen than as slaves by their masters. These mamluks became known as the Salihiyyah, to provision his mamluks, as-Salih forcibly seized the iqtaʿat of his predecessors emirs. Despite his close relationship with his mamluks, tensions existed between as-Salih and the Salihiyyah, and a number of Salihi mamluks were imprisoned or exiled throughout as-Salihs reign. Tensions between as-Salih and his mamluks came to a later in 1249 when Louis IX of Frances forces captured Damietta in their bid to conquer Egypt during the Seventh Crusade
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
–
Mamluk Egyptian Flag
Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)
–
A
Mamluk nobleman from
Aleppo.
36.
Ptolemy I Soter
–
Ptolemy I Soter I, also known as Ptolemy Lagides, was a Macedonian Greek general under Alexander the Great, one of the three Diadochi who succeeded to his empire. Ptolemy became ruler of Egypt and founded a dynasty which ruled it for the three centuries, turning Egypt into a Hellenistic kingdom and Alexandria into a center of Greek culture. He assimilated some aspects of Egyptian culture, however, assuming the title pharaoh in 305/4 BC. The use of the title of pharaoh was often situational, pharaoh was used for an Egyptian audience, like all Macedonian nobles, Ptolemy I Soter claimed descent from Heracles, the mythical founder of the Argead dynasty that ruled Macedon. Ptolemy was one of Alexanders most trusted generals, and was among the seven somatophylakes attached to his person and he was a few years older than Alexander and had been his intimate friend since childhood. He was succeeded by his son Ptolemy II Philadelphus, Ptolemy served with Alexander from his first campaigns, and played a principal part in the later campaigns in Afghanistan and India. Ptolemy had his first independent command during the campaign against the rebel Bessus whom Ptolemy captured and handed over to Alexander for execution. During Alexanders campaign in the Indian subcontinent Ptolemy was in command of the guard at the siege of Aornos. When Alexander died in 323 BC, Ptolemy is said to have instigated the resettlement of the made at Babylon. Ptolemy quickly moved, without authorization, to subjugate Cyrenaica, by custom, kings in Macedonia asserted their right to the throne by burying their predecessor. Ptolemy then openly joined the coalition against Perdiccas, Perdiccas appears to have suspected Ptolemy of aiming for the throne himself, and may have decided that Ptolemy was his most dangerous rival. Ptolemy executed Cleomenes for spying on behalf of Perdiccas — this removed the check on his authority. In 321 BC, Perdiccas attempted to invade Egypt only to fall at the hands of his own men, Ptolemys decision to defend the Nile against Perdiccass attempt to force it ended in fiasco for Perdiccas, with the loss of 2000 men. This failure was a blow to Perdiccas reputation, and he was murdered in his tent by two of his subordinates. Ptolemy immediately crossed the Nile, to provide supplies to what had the day before been an enemy army, Ptolemy was offered the regency in place of Perdiccas, but he declined. Ptolemy was consistent in his policy of securing a power base and his first occupation of Syria was in 318, and he established at the same time a protectorate over the petty kings of Cyprus. When Antigonus One-Eye, master of Asia in 315, showed dangerous ambitions, Ptolemy joined the coalition against him, in Cyprus, he fought the partisans of Antigonus, and re-conquered the island. A revolt in Cyrene was crushed the same year, in 312, Ptolemy and Seleucus, the fugitive satrap of Babylonia, both invaded Syria, and defeated Demetrius Poliorcetes, the son of Antigonus, in the Battle of Gaza
Ptolemy I Soter
–
Bust of Ptolemy I in the
Louvre Museum
Ptolemy I Soter
–
Ptolemy as Pharaoh of Egypt, British Museum,
London.
Ptolemy I Soter
–
The taking of Jerusalem by Ptolemy Soter ca. 320 BC, by
Jean Fouquet.
Ptolemy I Soter
–
A rare coin of Ptolemy I, a reminder of his successful campaigns with Alexander in India. Obv: Ptolemy in profile at the beginning of his reign. Rev: Alexander triumphantly riding a chariot drawn by elephants.
37.
Alexander I of Macedon
–
Alexander I was the ruler of the ancient Greek Kingdom of Macedon from c.498 BC until his death in 454 BC. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Alcetas II, Alexander was the son of Amyntas I and Queen Eurydice. In 492 BC it was made to a subordinate part of the Persian Kingdom by Mardonius campaign. At that time, Alexander was on the nominal Macedonian throne, Alexander further acted as a representative of the Persian governor Mardonius during peace negotiations after the Persian defeat at the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC. In later events, Herodotus several times mentions Alexander as a man who is on Xerxes side, from the time of Mardonius conquest of Macedon, Alexander I is referred to as hyparchos by Herodotus, meaning subordinate governor. Despite his cooperation with Persia, Alexander I frequently gave supplies and advice to the rest of the Greek city states, and warned them of Mardonius plans before the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC. For example, Alexander I warned the Greeks in Tempe to leave before the arrival of Xerxes troops, after their defeat in Plataea, the Persian army under the command of Artabazus tried to retreat all the way back to Asia Minor. Most of the 43,000 survivors were attacked and killed by the forces of Alexander at the estuary of the Strymon river, Alexander eventually regained Macedonian independence after the end of the Persian Wars. Alexander claimed descent from Argive Greeks and Heracles, although Macedon was considered a state by some in Athens. After a court of Elean hellanodikai determined his claim to be true, he was permitted to participate in the Olympic Games possibly in 504 BC and he modelled his court after Athens and was a patron of the poets Pindar and Bacchylides, both of whom dedicated poems to Alexander. The earliest reference to an Athenian proxenos, who lived during the time of the Persian wars, is that of Alexander I, Alexander I was given the title Philhellene, a title used for Greek patriots. He furthermore gave his sister Gygaea for marriage to the Persian general Bubares in the late 6th century BC who was in Macedon at the time, Alexander had four sons and a daughter, Alcetas II, future king of Macedon. Perdiccas II, future king of Macedon, philip Menelaus, father of Amyntas II Amyntas, whose son Arrhidaeus was the father of Amyntas III. He was thought to be the father of Balacrus, father of Meleager and grandfather of Arsinoe of Macedon Stratonice, ancient Macedonians List of ancient Macedonians Smith, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology
Alexander I of Macedon
–
silver
tetradrachm of Alexander I
38.
Berenice I of Egypt
–
Berenice I was a Greek Macedonian noblewoman and through her marriage to Ptolemy I Soter, became the second queen, after Eurydice, of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. She was the daughter of local noblemen called Magas and Antigone. Her maternal grandfather was a nobleman called Cassander who was the brother of Antipater, the regent for Alexanders empire, in 325 BC, Berenice married an obscure local nobleman and military officer called Philip. Philip was previously married and had other children, through her first marriage, she bore Philips son, King Magas of Cyrene, his daughter Antigone, who married King Pyrrhus of Epirus, and a daughter called Theoxena. Magas dedicated an inscription to himself and his father, when he served as a priest of Apollo, Pyrrhus gave her name to a new city called Berenicis. After the death of her first husband, Berenice travelled to Egypt with her children as a lady-in-waiting for her mother’s first cousin Eurydice who was the wife of Ptolemy I. Ptolemy I was one of the generals of King Alexander the Great, Berenice caught the eye of Ptolemy I who married her in 317 BC. Berenice bore Ptolemy I, two daughters Arsinoe II, Philotera and a son Ptolemy II Philadelphus, in an unknown Olympiad, she was a victor in the chariot races. Ptolemy II was recognized as his fathers heir in preference to Eurydices children to Ptolemy I, during his reign, Ptolemy II built a port on the Red Sea and named it Berenice after his mother. After she died, Ptolemy II and later Ptolemy IV Philopator decreed divine honors to her and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Berenice. Dividing the Spoils, The War for Alexander the Great’s Empire
Berenice I of Egypt
–
Berenice I from "Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum"
Berenice I of Egypt
–
Head of Ptolemy II and his mother Berenice I
39.
Lysimachus
–
Lysimachus was a Macedonian officer and diadochus of Alexander the Great, who became a basileus in 306 BC, ruling Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon. Lysimachus was born in 361 BC, to a family of Thessalian Greek stock and his father was a nobleman of high rank who was an intimate friend of Philip II of Macedon, who shared in Philip II’s councils and became a favourite in the Argead court. He was probably appointed Somatophylax during the reign of Philip II, during Alexanders Persian campaigns, in 328 BC he was one of his immediate bodyguards. In 324 BC, in Susa, he was crowned in recognition for his actions in India, after Alexander’s death in 323 BC, he was appointed to the government of Thrace as strategos although he faced some difficulties from the Thracian Dynasty Seuthes. However, he managed to consolidate his power in the east of his territories, in 309 BC, he founded Lysimachia in a commanding situation on the neck connecting the Chersonese with the mainland which formed a bulwark against the Odrysians. In 306/305 BC, Lysimachus followed the example of Antigonus I and assumed the royal title, which he held until his death at Corupedium in 281 BC. In 302 BC, when the alliance between Cassander, Ptolemy I and Seleucus I was made, Lysimachus, reinforced by troops from Cassander, entered Asia Minor. On the approach of Antigonus I he retired into winter quarters near Heraclea, marrying its widowed queen Amastris, Seleucus I joined him in 301 BC, and at the Battle of Ipsus Antigonus I was defeated and slain. Antigonus dominions were divided among the victors, Lysimachus share was Lydia, Ionia, Phrygia and the north coast of Asia Minor. Feeling that Seleucus I was becoming dangerously powerful, Lysimachus now allied himself with Ptolemy I, Amastris, who had divorced herself from him, returned to Heraclea. Demetrius I subsequently threatened Thrace, but had to due to a sudden uprising in Boeotia. In 287 BC, Lysimachus and Pyrrhus in turn invaded Macedonia, Lysimachus left Pyrrhus in possession of Macedonia with the title of king for around seven months before Lysimachus invaded. For a short while the two ruled jointly but in 285 BC Lysimachus expelled Pyrrhus, seizing complete control for himself, domestic troubles embittered the last years of Lysimachus’ life. Amastris had been murdered by her two sons, Lysimachus treacherously put them to death, on his return, Arsinoe II asked the gift of Heraclea, and he granted her request, though he had promised to free the city. This atrocious deed by Lysimachus aroused great indignation, many of the cities of Asia Minor revolted, and his most trusted friends deserted him. The widow of Agathocles and their children fled to Seleucus I, in 281 BC, Lysimachus crossed the Hellespont into Lydia and at the decisive Battle of Corupedium was killed. After some days his body was found on the field, protected birds of prey by his faithful dog. Lysimachus body was given over to another son Alexander, by whom it was interred at Lysimachia, Lysimachus was married three times and his wives were, First marriage, Nicaea a Greek noblewoman and daughter of the powerful Regent Antipater
Lysimachus
–
Marble bust of Lysimachus. Naples,
Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli (Archaeological Museum),
Italy
Lysimachus
–
Obverse of coin of Lysimachus: The horned Alexander appears as the king's divine patron.
Lysimachus
–
Tetradrachm of Lysimachus. The
Greek inscription reads: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ "[coin] of King Lysimachus".
40.
History of Ptolemaic Egypt
–
The Ptolemaic Kingdom was a Hellenistic kingdom based in Egypt. Alexandria became the city and a major center of Greek culture. To gain recognition by the native Egyptian populace, they named themselves the successors to the Pharaohs, the later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions by marrying their siblings, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life. The Ptolemies had to fight native rebellions and were involved in foreign and civil wars led to the decline of the kingdom. Hellenistic culture continued to thrive in Egypt throughout the Roman and Byzantine periods until the Muslim conquest. The era of Ptolemaic reign in Egypt is one of the most well documented periods of the Hellenistic Era. In 332 BC, Alexander the Great, King of Macedon invaded the Achaemenid satrapy of Egypt and he visited Memphis, and traveled to the oracle of Amun at the Oasis of Siwa. The oracle declared him to be the son of Amun, the wealth of Egypt could now be harnessed for Alexanders conquest of the rest of the Persian Empire. Early in 331 BC he was ready to depart, and led his forces away to Phoenicia and he left Cleomenes as the ruling nomarch to control Egypt in his absence. Following Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, a crisis erupted among his generals. Perdiccas appointed Ptolemy, one of Alexanders closest companions, to be satrap of Egypt, Ptolemy ruled Egypt from 323 BC, nominally in the name of the joint kings Philip III and Alexander IV. However, as Alexander the Greats empire disintegrated, Ptolemy soon established himself as ruler in his own right, Ptolemy successfully defended Egypt against an invasion by Perdiccas in 321 BC, and consolidated his position in Egypt and the surrounding areas during the Wars of the Diadochi. In 305 BC, Ptolemy took the title of King, as Ptolemy I Soter, he founded the Ptolemaic dynasty that was to rule Egypt for nearly 300 years. All the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy, while princesses and queens preferred the names Cleopatra, Arsinoe and Berenice. Because the Ptolemaic kings adopted the Egyptian custom of marrying their sisters, many of the kings ruled jointly with their spouses and this custom made Ptolemaic politics confusingly incestuous, and the later Ptolemies were increasingly feeble. The only Ptolemaic Queens to officially rule on their own were Berenice III, Cleopatra V did co-rule, but it was with another female, Berenice IV. Cleopatra VII officially co-ruled with Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, Ptolemy XIV, and Ptolemy XV, upper Egypt, farthest from the centre of government, was less immediately affected, even though Ptolemy I established the Greek colony of Ptolemais Hermiou to be its capital. But within a century Greek influence had spread through the country, nevertheless, the Greeks always remained a privileged minority in Ptolemaic Egypt
History of Ptolemaic Egypt
–
Eagle of Zeus
History of Ptolemaic Egypt
–
Bust of
Ptolemy I Soter, king of Egypt (305 BC–282 BC) and founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty
History of Ptolemaic Egypt
–
A bust depicting King
Ptolemy II Philadelphus 309–246 BCE
41.
International Standard Book Number
–
The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
International Standard Book Number
–
A 13-digit ISBN, 978-3-16-148410-0, as represented by an
EAN-13 bar code
42.
List of pharaohs
–
Note that the dates given are approximate. Modern lists of pharaohs are based on records, Ancient Egyptian king lists and later histories, such as Manethos Aegyptiaca. An additional problem is that ancient king lists are often damaged, the following ancient king lists are known, Den seal impressions, found on a cylinder seal in Dens tomb. It lists all 1st dynasty kings from Narmer to Den by their Horus names, palermo stone, carved on an olivin-basalt slab. Broken into pieces and thus today incomplete, giza King List, painted with red, green and black ink on gypsum and cedar wood. South Saqqara Stone, carved on a black basalt slab, karnak King List, carved on limestone. Abydos King List of Seti I, carved on limestone, very detailed, but omitting the First Intermediate Period. Abydos King List of Ramses II, carved on limestone, Saqqara King List, carved on limestone. Very detailed, but omitting most kings of the 1st dynasty for unknown reasons, Turin King List, written with red and black ink on papyrus. Most possibly the most complete king list in history, today damaged, Manethos Aegyptiaca, possibly written on papyrus. The original writings are lost today and many anecdotes assigned to certain kings seem fictitious, Lower Egypt geographically consisted of the northern Nile and the Nile delta. The following list may not be complete, Regrouped here are predynastic rulers of Upper Egypt belonging to the late Naqada III period, the following list of predynastic rulers may be incomplete. Since these kings precede the First Dynasty, they have been grouped as Dynasty 0. The Fifth Dynasty ruled from 2498 to 2345 BC, the Sixth Dynasty ruled from 2345 to 2181 BC. The First Intermediate Period is a period of disarray and chaos between the end of the Old Kingdom and the advent of the Middle Kingdom, the Old Kingdom rapidly collapsed after the death of Pepi II. He had reigned for more than 64 and likely up to 94 years, the latter years of his reign were marked by inefficiency because of his advanced age. The union of the Two Kingdoms fell apart and regional leaders had to cope with the resulting famine. The kings of the 7th and 8th Dynasties, who represented the successors of the 6th Dynasty, tried to hold some power in Memphis
List of pharaohs
–
Iry-Hor
List of pharaohs
–
The
Pschent combined the
Red Crown of
Lower Egypt and the
White Crown of
Upper Egypt.
List of pharaohs
–
Ka
List of pharaohs
–
Scorpion II
43.
Hellenistic period
–
It is often considered a period of transition, sometimes even of decadence or degeneration, compared to the enlightenment of the Greek Classical era. The Hellenistic period saw the rise of New Comedy, Alexandrian poetry, the Septuagint, Greek science was advanced by the works of the mathematician Euclid and the polymath Archimedes. The religious sphere expanded to include new gods such as the Greco-Egyptian Serapis, eastern deities such as Attis and Cybele, the Hellenistic period was characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization which established Greek cities and kingdoms in Asia and Africa. This resulted in the export of Greek culture and language to new realms. Equally, however, these new kingdoms were influenced by the cultures, adopting local practices where beneficial, necessary. Hellenistic culture thus represents a fusion of the Ancient Greek world with that of the Near East, Middle East and this mixture gave rise to a common Attic-based Greek dialect, known as Koine Greek, which became the lingua franca through the Hellenistic world. Scholars and historians are divided as to what event signals the end of the Hellenistic era, Hellenistic is distinguished from Hellenic in that the first encompasses the entire sphere of direct ancient Greek influence, while the latter refers to Greece itself. The word originated from the German term hellenistisch, from Ancient Greek Ἑλληνιστής, from Ἑλλάς, Hellenistic is a modern word and a 19th-century concept, the idea of a Hellenistic period did not exist in Ancient Greece. Although words related in form or meaning, e. g, the major issue with the term Hellenistic lies in its convenience, as the spread of Greek culture was not the generalized phenomenon that the term implies. Some areas of the world were more affected by Greek influences than others. The Greek population and the population did not always mix, the Greeks moved and brought their own culture. While a few fragments exist, there is no surviving historical work which dates to the hundred years following Alexanders death. The works of the major Hellenistic historians Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, the earliest and most credible surviving source for the Hellenistic period is Polybius of Megalopolis, a statesman of the Achaean League until 168 BC when he was forced to go to Rome as a hostage. His Histories eventually grew to a length of forty books, covering the years 220 to 167 BC, another important source, Plutarchs Parallel Lives though more preoccupied with issues of personal character and morality, outlines the history of important Hellenistic figures. Appian of Alexandria wrote a history of the Roman empire that includes information of some Hellenistic kingdoms, other sources include Justins epitome of Pompeius Trogus Historiae Philipicae and a summary of Arrians Events after Alexander, by Photios I of Constantinople. Lesser supplementary sources include Curtius Rufus, Pausanias, Pliny, in the field of philosophy, Diogenes Laertius Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is the main source. Ancient Greece had traditionally been a collection of fiercely independent city-states. After the Peloponnesian War, Greece had fallen under a Spartan hegemony, in which Sparta was pre-eminent but not all-powerful
Hellenistic period
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The
Nike of Samothrace is considered one of the greatest masterpieces of
Hellenistic art.
Hellenistic period
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Alexander fighting the Persian king
Darius III. From the
Alexander Mosaic,
Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Hellenistic period
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Alexander's empire at the time of its maximum expansion.
44.
Argead dynasty
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The Argead dynasty was an ancient Greek royal house. They were the founders and the dynasty of Macedon from about 700 to 310 BC. Their tradition, as described in ancient Greek historiography, traced their origins to Argos, initially the rulers of the homonymous tribe, by the time of Philip II they had expanded their reign further, to include under the rule of Macedonia all Upper Macedonian states. The mythical founder of the Argead dynasty is King Caranus, the words Argead and Argive derive from the Greek Ἀργεῖος, of or from Argos, which is first attested in Homer, where it was also used as a collective designation for the Greeks. The Argead dynasty claimed descent from the Temenids of Argos, in the Peloponnese, whose ancestor was Temenus. In the excavations of the royal Palace at Aegae Manolis Andronikos discovered in the room an inscription relating to that belief. The latter asked them to leave his territory, believing in an omen that something great would happen to Perdiccas, the boys went to another part of Macedonia, near the garden of Midas, above which mount Bermio stands. There they made their abode and gradually formed their own kingdom, the Hellanodikai, however, after examining his Argead claim confirmed that the Macedonians were Greeks and allowed him to participate. They also added Mygdonia in their territory through the expulsion of the Edoni, Eordians, the Kings of Makedon, 399–369 BC. Archived from the original on 26 April 2008
Argead dynasty
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Vergina Sun
45.
Philip II of Macedon
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Philip II of Macedon was the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty of Macedonian kings, the son of King Amyntas III. However, his assassination led to the succession of his son Alexander. Philip was the youngest son of the king Amyntas III and Eurydice I, in his youth, Philip was held as a hostage in Thebes, which was then the leading city of Greece. In 364 BC, Philip returned to Macedon, the deaths of Philips elder brothers, King Alexander II and Perdiccas III, allowed him to take the throne in 359 BC. Originally appointed regent for his infant nephew Amyntas IV, who was the son of Perdiccas III, Philips military skills and expansionist vision of Macedonian greatness brought him early success. He first had to remedy a predicament which had greatly worsened by the defeat against the Illyrians in which King Perdiccas himself had died. Using diplomacy, Philip pushed back the Paionians and Thracians promising tributes, momentarily free from his opponents, he concentrated on strengthening his internal position and, above all, his army. Philip had married Audata, great-granddaughter of the Illyrian king of Dardania, however, this did not prevent him from marching against the Illyrians in 358 and crushing them in a ferocious battle in which some 7,000 Illyrians died. By this move, Philip established his authority inland as far as Lake Ohrid, the Athenians had been unable to conquer Amphipolis, which commanded the gold mines of Mount Pangaion. So Philip reached an agreement with Athens to lease the city to them after its conquest, however, after conquering Amphipolis, Philip kept both cities. As Athens had declared war against him, he allied Macedon with the Chalkidian League of Olynthus and he subsequently conquered Potidaea, this time keeping his word and ceding it to the League in 356. In 357 BC, Philip married the Epirote princess Olympias, who was the daughter of the king of the Molossians, Alexander was born in 356, the same year as Philips racehorse won at the Olympic Games. During 356 BC, Philip conquered the town of Crenides and changed its name to Philippi and he then established a powerful garrison there to control its mines, which yielded much of the gold he later used for his campaigns. In the meantime, his general Parmenion defeated the Illyrians again, in 355–354 he besieged Methone, the last city on the Thermaic Gulf controlled by Athens. During the siege, Philip was injured in his eye, despite the arrival of two Athenian fleets, the city fell in 354. Philip also attacked Abdera and Maronea, on the Thracian coast, Philip was involved in the Third Sacred War which had begun in Greece in 356. In summer 353 he invaded Thessaly, defeating 7,000 Phocians under the brother of Onomarchus, the latter however defeated Philip in the two succeeding battles
Philip II of Macedon
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Bust of Philip II of Macedon.
Philip II of Macedon
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Philip II gold
stater, with head of
Apollo.
Philip II of Macedon
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Silver
tetradrachms dated back to the reign of Philip II
Philip II of Macedon
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Great Tumulus of Aigai
46.
Alexander the Great
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Alexander III of Macedon, commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon and a member of the Argead dynasty. He was born in Pella in 356 BC and succeeded his father Philip II to the throne at the age of twenty and he was undefeated in battle and is widely considered one of historys most successful military commanders. During his youth, Alexander was tutored by Aristotle until the age of 16, after Philips assassination in 336 BC, he succeeded his father to the throne and inherited a strong kingdom and an experienced army. Alexander was awarded the generalship of Greece and used this authority to launch his fathers Panhellenic project to lead the Greeks in the conquest of Persia, in 334 BC, he invaded the Achaemenid Empire and began a series of campaigns that lasted ten years. Following the conquest of Anatolia, Alexander broke the power of Persia in a series of battles, most notably the battles of Issus. He subsequently overthrew Persian King Darius III and conquered the Achaemenid Empire in its entirety, at that point, his empire stretched from the Adriatic Sea to the Indus River. He sought to reach the ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea and invaded India in 326 BC and he eventually turned back at the demand of his homesick troops. Alexander died in Babylon in 323 BC, the city that he planned to establish as his capital, without executing a series of planned campaigns that would have begun with an invasion of Arabia. In the years following his death, a series of civil wars tore his empire apart, resulting in the establishment of several states ruled by the Diadochi, Alexanders surviving generals, Alexanders legacy includes the cultural diffusion which his conquests engendered, such as Greco-Buddhism. He founded some twenty cities that bore his name, most notably Alexandria in Egypt, Alexander became legendary as a classical hero in the mold of Achilles, and he features prominently in the history and mythic traditions of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. He became the measure against which military leaders compared themselves, and he is often ranked among the most influential people in human history. He was the son of the king of Macedon, Philip II, and his wife, Olympias. Although Philip had seven or eight wives, Olympias was his wife for some time. Several legends surround Alexanders birth and childhood, sometime after the wedding, Philip is said to have seen himself, in a dream, securing his wifes womb with a seal engraved with a lions image. Plutarch offered a variety of interpretations of dreams, that Olympias was pregnant before her marriage, indicated by the sealing of her womb. On the day Alexander was born, Philip was preparing a siege on the city of Potidea on the peninsula of Chalcidice. That same day, Philip received news that his general Parmenion had defeated the combined Illyrian and Paeonian armies, and it was also said that on this day, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, burnt down. This led Hegesias of Magnesia to say that it had burnt down because Artemis was away, such legends may have emerged when Alexander was king, and possibly at his own instigation, to show that he was superhuman and destined for greatness from conception
Alexander the Great
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"Alexander fighting king
Darius III of Persia ",
Alexander Mosaic,
Naples National Archaeological Museum.
Alexander the Great
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Bust of a young Alexander the Great from the Hellenistic era,
British Museum
Alexander the Great
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Aristotle tutoring Alexander, by
Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
Alexander the Great
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Philip II of Macedon, Alexander's father.
47.
Philip III of Macedon
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Philip III Arrhidaeus reigned as king of Macedonia from after 11 June 323 BC until his death. He was a son of King Philip II of Macedonia by Philinna of Larissa, named Arrhidaeus at birth, he assumed the name Philip when he ascended to the throne. As Arrhidaeus grew older it became apparent that he had learning difficulties. Alexander was fond of Arrhidaeus and took him on his campaigns, after Alexanders death in Babylon in 323 BC, the Macedonian army in Asia proclaimed Arrhidaeus as king, however, he served merely as a figurehead and as the pawn of a series of powerful generals. Arrhidaeus whereabouts during the reign of his brother Alexander are unclear from the extant sources and he was in Babylon at the time of Alexanders death on 10 June 323 BC. Arrhidaeus was the most obvious candidate, but he was unfit to rule. This eventuality did indeed arise and resulted in Roxanas son, Alexander and it was immediately decided that Philip Arrhidaeus would reign, but not rule, this was to be the prerogative of the new regent, Perdiccas. When news arrived in Macedonia that Arrhidaeus had been chosen as king, Cynane and this move was an obvious affront to the regent, whom Cynane had completely bypassed, and to prevent the marriage, Perdiccas sent his brother, Alcetas, to kill Cynane. The reaction among the troops generated by this murder was such that the regent had to give up his opposition to the proposed match and accept the marriage. From that moment on, Philip Arrhidaeus was to be under the sway of his bride, eurydices chance to increase her husbands power came when the first war of the Diadochi sealed the fate of Perdiccas, making a new settlement necessary. An agreement was made at Triparadisus in Syria in 320 BC, the regent died of natural causes the following year, nominating as his successor not his son Cassander, but his friend and lieutenant, Polyperchon. Cassanders refusal to accept his fathers decision sparked the Second War of the Diadochi, an opportunity presented itself in 317 BC when Cassander expelled Polyperchon from Macedonia. Eurydice immediately allied herself with Cassander and persuaded her husband to him as the new regent. Cassander reciprocated by leaving her in control of the country when he left to campaign in Greece. But individual circumstances and events at time were subject to rapid change. That same year, Polyperchon and Olympias allied with her cousin, Aeacides, king of Epirus, the Macedonian troops refused to fight Olympias, the mother of Alexander. Philip and Eurydice had no choice but to escape, only to be captured at Amphipolis, in 1977, important excavations were made near Vergina leading to the discovery of a two-chambered royal tomb, with an almost perfectly preserved male skeleton. He appears as one of the characters in the novel Funeral Games by Mary Renault
Philip III of Macedon
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stater of Philip III Arrhidaeus
Philip III of Macedon
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Philip III as pharaoh on a relief in Karnak
Philip III of Macedon
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Golden Larnax (Chrysi Larnaka) (with the Sun of Vergina on the lid) that contains the remains (bones) from the burial of King Philip II of Macedonia and the royal golden wreath. Formerly located at the
Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum, since 1997) displayed in the underground museum of
Vergina, inside the Great Tumulus.
48.
Alexander IV of Macedon
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Alexander IV, erroneously called sometimes in modern times Aegus, was the son of Alexander the Great and Princess Roxana of Bactria. Alexander IV was the son of a Macedonian father, Alexander the Great and he was Philip II of Macedons grandson. Because Roxana was pregnant when her died and the sex of the baby was unknown. The factions compromised, deciding that Perdiccas would rule the Empire as regent while Philip would reign, if the child was male, then he would be king. Alexander IV was born in August,323 BC and he brought with him Roxana and the two kings to Macedon and gave up the pretence of ruling Alexanders Empire, leaving former provinces in Egypt and Asia in control of the satraps. When Antipater died in 319 BC he left Polyperchon, a Macedonian general who had served under Philip II and Alexander the Great, as his successor, passing over his own son, Cassander. Cassander allied himself with Ptolemy Soter, Antigonus and Eurydice, the wife of king Philip Arrhidaeus. Polyperchon was allied with Eumenes and Olympias, although Polyperchon was successful at first, taking control of the Greek cities, his fleet was destroyed by Antigonus in 318 BC. When, after the battle, Cassander assumed full control of Macedon, Polyperchon was forced to flee to Epirus, followed by Roxana, a few months later, Olympias was able to persuade her relative Aeacides of Epirus to invade Macedon with Polyperchon. When Olympias took the field, Eurydices army refused to fight against the mother of Alexander and defected to Olympias, after which Polyperchon and Aeacides retook Macedon. Philip and Eurydice were captured and executed on December 25,317 BC, leaving Alexander IV king, Cassander returned in the following year, conquering Macedon once again. Olympias was immediately executed, while the king and his mother were taken prisoner, cassanders response was definitive, to secure his rule, in 309 BC he commanded Glaucias to secretly assassinate the 14-year-old Alexander IV and his mother. The orders were carried out, and they were both poisoned, one of the royal tombs discovered by the archaeologist Manolis Andronikos in the so-called Great Tumulus in Vergina in 1977/8 is believed to belong to Alexander IV. Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Alexander IV, livius. org, Alexander IV Wiki Classical Dictionary, Alexander IV
Alexander IV of Macedon
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Alexander IV with his mother, by
Alessandro Varotari.
Alexander IV of Macedon
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Tomb III in
Vergina, probably belonged to Alexander IV
49.
Antigonid dynasty
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The Antigonid dynasty was a dynasty of Hellenistic kings descended from Alexander the Greats general Antigonus I Monophthalmus. Succeeding the Antipatrid dynasty in much of Macedonia, Antigonus ruled mostly over Asia Minor and his attempts to take control of the whole of Alexanders empire led to his defeat and death at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BC. After a period of confusion, Demetriuss son Antigonus II Gonatas was able to establish the control over the old Kingdom of Macedon, as well as over most of the Greek city-states. It was one of four established by Alexanders successors, the others being the Seleucid dynasty, Ptolemaic dynasty. The ruling members of the Antigonid dynasty were, The Greek rebel against Rome and last King of Macedonia, Andriscus, claimed to be the son of Perseus
Antigonid dynasty
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Coin of
Antigonus I Monophthalmus ("the One-eyed") (382 BC - 301 BC).
Antigonid dynasty
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Coin of
Demetrius I of Macedon ("The Besieger"), (337 BC – 283 BC), son of Antigonus I Monophthalmus
Antigonid dynasty
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Coin of
Antigonus II Gonatas
50.
Antigonus I Monophthalmus
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Antigonus I Monophthalmus, son of Philip from Elimeia, was a Macedonian nobleman, general, and satrap under Alexander the Great. During his early life he served under Philip II, and he was a figure in the Wars of the Diadochi after Alexanders death, declaring himself king in 306 BC. Antigonus was appointed governor of Greater Phrygia in 333 BC and he was primarily responsible for defending Alexanders lines of supply and communication during the latters extended campaign against the Achaemenid Persian Empire. As part of the division of the provinces after Alexanders death in 323 BC, Antigonus also received Pamphylia and Lycia from Perdiccas, regent of the empire, at the Partition of Babylon. He incurred the enmity of Perdiccas, the regent, by refusing to assist Eumenes to obtain possession of the allotted to him. Leonnatus had left with his army for Greece, leaving Antigonus alone to deal with Cappadocia, Perdiccas seems to have viewed this as a direct affront to his authority and went up with the royal army himself to conquer the area. Eumenes was defeated and forced to retire to the fortress of Nora in Cappadocia, when Antipater died in 319 BC, he gave the regentship to Polyperchon, excluding Cassander, his son. Antigonus and the other refused to recognize Polyperchon, since it would undermine their own ambitions. He entered into negotiations with Eumenes, but Eumenes had already been swayed by Polyperchon, effecting his escape from Nora, he raised an army and built a fleet in Cilicia and Phoenicia, and soon after formed a coalition with the satraps of the eastern provinces. Antigonus fought against Eumenes in two battles at Paraitacene in 317 BC and Gabiene in 316 BC. After some deliberation, Antigonus had Eumenes executed, as a result, Antigonus now was in possession of the empires Asian territories, his authority stretching from the eastern satrapies to Syria and Asia Minor in the west. He seized the treasures at Susa and entered Babylon, the governor of the city, Seleucus, fled to Ptolemy and entered into a league with him, Lysimachus and Cassander against Antigonus. In 314 BC Antigonus invaded Phoenicia, under Ptolemys control, and his son Demetrius was defeated at the Battle of Gaza by Ptolemy in 312 BC, and after the battle, Seleucus made his way back to Babylonia. Seleucus returned to Babylon in order to build up a base of his own, the Babylonian War began between Antigonus and Seleucus, where Seleucus defeated both Demetrius and Antigonus, and secured Babylonia. After the war had been carried on with varying success from 315 to 311, peace was concluded, by which the government of Asia Minor and Syria was provisionally secured to Antigonus. This agreement was violated on the pretext that garrisons had been placed in some of the free Greek cities by Antigonus. Demetrius Poliorcetes, the son of Antigonus, wrested part of Greece from Cassander, after defeating Ptolemy at the naval Battle of Salamis in 306 BC, Demetrius conquered Cyprus. Following the victory Antigonus assumed the title king and bestowed the same upon his son, the other dynasts, Cassander, Ptolemy, Lysimachus and Seleucus, soon followed
Antigonus I Monophthalmus
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Coin of Antigonus I Monophthalmus, the
Greek inscription reads " ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΓΟΝΟΥ " meaning [coin] of king Antigonus
)
