Karanos. Bulletin of Ancient Macedonian Studies

Editorial

Borja Antela — 2020-12-01

Editorial Karanos 3 (2020)

Review: Antonio Ignacio Molina Marín, Alejandro Magno (1916-2015). Un siglo de estudios sobre Macedonia antigua, Zaragoza, Pórtico, 2018, 772 pp. [ISBN 9788479561758]

Borja Antela-Bernárdez — 2020-12-01

Review of Antonio Ignacio Molina Marín, Alejandro Magno (1916-2015). Un siglo de estudios sobre Macedonia antigua, Zaragoza, Pórtico, 2018, 772 pp. [ISBN 9788479561758].

Review of Pat Wheatley – Charlotte Dunn, Demetrius the Besieger, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2020, 528 pp [ISBN 9780198836049]

Ignacio Molina — 2020-12-01

Review of Pat Wheatley – Charlotte Dunn, Demetrius the Besieger, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2020, 528 pp [ISBN 9780198836049]

Review: Christian Thrue Djurslev, Alexander the Great in the early Christian tradition: Classical Reception and Patristic Literature, London, Bloomsbury, 2019, 240 pp [ISBN 9781788311649]

Ignacio Molina — 2020-12-01

Review of Christian Thrue Djurslev, Alexander the Great in the early Christian tradition: Classical Reception and Patristic Literature, London, Bloomsbury, 2019, 240 pp [ISBN 9781788311649].

Review: John Boardman, Alexander the Great: From his Death to the Present Day, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2019, 171 pp [ISBN 9780691181752]

Ignacio Molina — 2020-12-01

Review of John Boardman, Alexander the Great: From his Death to the Present Day, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2019, 171 pp [ISBN 9780691181752].

Review: Waldemar Heckel – Johannes Heinrichs – Sabine Müller – Frances Pownall (eds.), Lexicon of Argead Macedonia, Berlin, Frank&Timme, 2020, 538 pp [ISBN 978-3732904051]

Borja Antela — 2020-12-01

Review of Waldemar Heckel – Johannes Heinrichs – Sabine Müller – Frances Pownall (eds.), Lexicon of Argead Macedonia, Berlin, Frank&Timme, 2020, 538 pp [ISBN 978-3732904051].

Philippe II et les dieux

Sylvie Le Bohec — 2020-12-01

Macedonian kings kept close bonds with the divine sphere. They considered themselves as Heraklids (and, in consequence, they traced back their lineage to Zeus himself) and the kingship kept noteworthy religious functions. Philip II made wide use of this religious side and it became a key element of his public image and propaganda, both inside and outside the kingdom of Macedonia. It was especially important the relation Philip established with Panhellenic shrines, like Delphi and Olympia, in close connection with his aspiration for hegemony all over Greece. Philip also regarded his coinage as useful political tools and the religious motives engraved are very telling about the king's claims and objectives.

Originally published in Ancient Macedonia / Archaia Makedonia VI (Papers Read at the Sixth International Symposium held in Thessaloniki by the Institute of Balkan Studies (Greece): Le Bohec 2002a. Published in Karanos by kind permission of the author and the Institute for Balkan Studies.

Becoming Macedonian: Name Mapping and Ethnic Identity. The Case of Hephaistion

Jeanne Reames — 2020-12-01

An epigraphical survey (with digital mapping component) of Greece and Magna Graecia reveals a pattern as to where Hephais-based names appear, up through the second century BCE. Spelled with an /eta/, these names are almost exclusively Attic-Ionian, while Haphēs-based names, spelled with an alpha, are Doric-Aeolian, and much fewer in number. There is virtually no overlap, except at the Panhellenic site of Delphi, and in a few colonies around the Black Sea.

Furthermore, cult for the god Hephaistos –long recognized as a non-Greek borrowing– was popular primarily in Attic-Ionian and “Pelasgian” regions, precisely the same areas where we find Hephais-root names. The only area where Haphēs-based names appear in any quantity, Boeotia, also had an important cult related to the god. Otherwise, Hephaistos was not a terribly important deity in Doric-Aeolian populations.

This epigraphic (and religious) record calls into question the assumed Macedonian ethnicity of the king’s best friend and alter-ego, Hephaistion. According to Tataki, Macedonian naming patterns followed distinctively non-Attic patterns, and cult for the god Hephaistos is absent in Macedonia (outside Samothrace). A recently published 4^th century curse tablet from Pydna could, however, provide a clue as to why a Macedonian Companion had such a uniquely Attic-Ionian name.

If Hephaistion’s ancestry was not, in fact, ethnically Macedonian, this may offer us an interesting insight into fluidity of Macedonian identity under the monarchy, and thereby, to ancient conceptualizations of ethnicity more broadly.

Forever Young. The strange youth of the Macedonian Kings

Antonio Ignacio Molina — 2020-12-01

Traditionally, the belief has been that the Hellenistic kings began to shave their beards following the example of Alexander the Great. This paper proposes a new vision of this idea, given that explains the shaven face of Alexander through the youngness of the Macedonian kings. In our opinion, the sovereigns of Macedonia were presented many times by their fathers or regents like eternal teenagers in order to remain in power for as long as possible. Thus, the only way for any member of the Argead dynasty to achieve complete autonomy and to be fully free was to be seated on the throne. The same happen during the lifetime of popular generals (Parmenion) or advisers (Aratus). The royal portrait created by the Diadochoi was a symbol of power through which they could govern, never was an imitation of a real one. However, this royal portrait was inspired by Macedonian models that presented the Argead prince as inexpert and weak when they were unbearded.

Philia Networks in the Macedonian Court and the Long Accession of Alexander the Great

Julius Guthrie — 2020-12-01

This paper revaluates key moments in the court politics of Alexander the Great’s reign through the introduction of philia-networks governed by gift-exchange as a template for explaining the relationships between key participants. This approach makes it clear that Alexander initially held a passive role in the political life of his own court and was dependant on others for his succession. These dynamics shifted in the opening years of the Asian expedition as Alexander sought to break these philia-networks, building his own and surrounding his person with philoi of his own choosing.

Cherchez la femme: Power and Female Agency in Bactriaat the dawn of the Hellenistic Age

Marco Ferrario — 2020-12-01

Due prominently to the scanty nature of evidence on the ground attesting to an imperial presence which, however, historiographical sources claim to have been real and lasting over time, the satrapy of Bactria (roughly embracing northeastern Afghanistan, southern Uzbekistan and western Tajikistan) to this day still struggles to free itself of some prejudices, despite some extremely important discoveries and a more general scholarly reevaluation of previous conclusions. Possibly the most stubborn among these is the image of an ungovernable province, constantly on the brink of dynastic revolts (cf. Hdt. 9.113) or threatened by northern barbarians (against whom Cyrus found his end and whom Darius boasts of having subjected in the famous Bīsutūn inscription. With the recently published Aramaic Documents from Ancient Bactria, however, we have acquired an incredibly valuable source regarding the functioning of the satrapy at a crucial period in its history (the late 4th century BCE until the years immediately following Alexander). The present study is based primarily on the following: 1) this documentation, 2) the results of some recent and very significant studies on the Persepolis archive and 3) some methodological reflections on the relationship between empire and the local élite(s) suggested by the comparative analysis of the functioning of this relationship in a different phase of Central Asia’s imperial history (the 1930s). The study is intended, on the one hand, as a first step towards a new appreciation of the role Bactria and Sogdiana played in the delicate transitional phase from Achaemenid to Macedonian hegemony in the upper satrapies. On the other hand, it seeks to raise some hypotheses about the reasons behind the position held during the stormy years of Alexander’s Bactrian campaign and in the subsequent, no less troubled years by two protagonists of these crucial events, who are however still relatively unrecognized in their role as historical agents: the Bactrio-Sogdian princesses Roxane and Apama.

Terrible Olympias. Another Study in Method

Borja Antela — 2020-12-01

Olympias of Epirus is one of the main characters in the history of the emergency of Macedonia as an international power with Philip II and Alexander. Nevertheless, despite the many books, papers and studies that had been improving our knowledge about Argead Macedonia in times of the great Macedonian conquerors, the historians of the XIX^th and XX^th centuries treated Olympias in the same terms of the ancient sources. This uncritical perspective denotes a clear tendency and aims to reproduce gender stereotypes that comes to our own days.

Graeco-Bactrian Historiography and Archaeology: A brief guide

Marc Mendoza Sanahuja — 2020-12-01

The Greco-Bactrian kingdom is probably the most unknown of the main Hellenistic realms by the public and a significant part of the academic community. The contributions to this field by Spanish-speaking researchers has been anecdotal in comparison with other historiographical traditions. This paper aims to be an initiation guide in Spanish with the objective to provide resources (with abundant bibliography) to any researcher who looks for a first approach to these studies. Since its beginnings as a numismatic office work (with the foundational work by T. S. Bayer) to the current multiplicity of archaeological projects, this article tries to show a complete view of the historical evolution of this discipline and how the geopolitical changes in Central Asia have influenced it.

Elizabeth D. Carney

Antonio Ignacio Molina Marín — 2020-12-01

Elizabeth Donnelly Carney is one of the most renowned scholars on Ancient Macedonia. Carney’s research has contributed to open the studies about Ancient Macedonia to the scope of Gender Studies. Her influence in many modern interpretations concerning the complex relations of power and court network in Argead Macedonia also includes topics like mutiny, social performances (like royal banquets) and court groups (like the Royal Pages). Her scope is wide, and she usually focuses on concrete topics from multiple perspectives. Books like Women and Monarchy in Ancient Macedonia, or the recent Eurydice and the Birth of Macedonian Power (2019) (completing the works devoted to three generations of Macedonian Royal women with her Olympias (2006) and Arsinoë of Egypt and Macedon: A Royal Life (2013)) are now must-to works for world-wide researchers concerning Ancient Greece and Macedon. Among her many skills, the Editorial Board of Karanos wants to remark her kind proximity and her usual predisposition to comment and help, with her experience, to improve discussions, projects and papers with admirable knowledge.