Immortal Alexander the Great: The Myth, the Reality, His Journey, the Legacy (Hermitage Amsterdam)

founder: main sponsors: sponsors: insurance: partner of the hermitage for children: internet partner: media partner: courses: 4 Hermitage Amsterdam 2010 5 CONTENTS Mikhail B. Piotrovsky ‘The most important Alexander of all’ 9 Ernst W. Veen Undying fame 11 THE IMMORTAL ALEXANDER THE GREAT Map: Alexander the Great’s Eastern Campaign 16 Time line: the life of Alexander the Great 18 Anna Troimova With face turned towards the heavens 21 Mariam Dandamayeva Alexander and the East What came before 33 Andrey Alexeev Alexander and the Northern nomads 41 Mikhail B. Piotrovsky The two horns of Alexander the Great 49 Arkady Ippolitov ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ 53 Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin Russian antiquity A romance with Alexander the Great 69 Anna Troimova Alexander’s Eastern Campaign A chronicle of events 79 CATALOGUE Anna Troimova Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before Catalogue numbers 1–29 86 Dmitry Alexinsky Between Hellas and the barbarians Catalogue numbers 30–67 106 Anna Troimova The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic Era Catalogue numbers 68–113, 117–138 124 Yuri Kalashnik Monumental painting from Chersonesos Catalogue numbers 114–116 150 Andrey Bolshakov Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs Catalogue numbers 139–176 160 Mariam Dandamayeva The Greek language in the East Catalogue numbers 177–183 178 Alexander Kakovkin Coptic Egypt Ancient tradition in the Christian East Catalogue numbers 184–192 184 Mariam Dandamayeva Achaemenid Iran Catalogue numbers 193–212 190 Mariam Dandamayeva Seleucid Syria Catalogue numbers 213–225 200 Alexander Nikitin Palmyra Catalogue numbers 226–230 204 Asan Torgoev The Sacae and Alexander the Great Catalogue numbers 231–235 208 Grigory Semyonov † The Hellenised East Catalogue numbers 236–266 212 Olga Deshpande The ‘Indian campaign’ its Consequences for the West and for India Catalogue numbers 267–271 226 Yulia Elichina Embroideries from Noin–Ula (Northern Mongolia) Catalogue numbers 272–273 230 Yulia Elichina Ceramics from Khotan Catalogue number 274 232 Vera Zalesskaya Byzantium The third ancient world Catalogue numbers 275–283 234 Iskander Alexander in Islamic art Catalogue numbers 284–287 240 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age Catalogue numbers 288–370 245 Mikhail Khimin The ‘Alexander Romance’ of the Pseudo-Callisthenes in the Western European literary tradition Catalogue numbers 288–370 246 Yulia Kagan Alexander the Great and heroes of the Trojan cycle in cameos from Yekaterinburg Catalogue numbers 361–370 300 Bibliographical references 305 Classical texts and literature 307 Exhibition credits 308 Catalogue credits 309 155 Cameo: portrait of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Arsinoe II (‘The Gonzaga Cameo’) Alexandria, 3rd century BC ‘THE MOST IMPORTANT ALEXANDER OF THEM ALL’ Mihhail B. Piotrovsky Director, State Hermitage Museum here are few heroes in the history of the world that have not been cast down in recent years, insulted by critical analysis and by shameful ‘exposures’. Alexander the Great has, so far, escaped such a fate and even Hollywood (and other) ilms tell his story with the admiration and reverence of authors of antiquity. Many tribes and peoples in India, Afghanistan and in the Pamir Mountains are proud of their mythical origins among Alexander’s warriors. He has long been not just a great and handsome conquering hero but a symbol of how a clash of cultures can bring positive results. Without apparently bringing harm to anyone 9 (although that of course is not quite true), Alexander’s conquests gave birth in East and West to an incredible synthesis of cultures and even of belief systems. his synthesis – hellenistic culture – was marvellous in itself, but it was moreover that which laid the basis for the world’s further development, a development which led to Christian culture in its broadest sense and even to Islamic culture. ‘he Age of Alexander’ was a century of political, philosophical and artistic creativity. Magniicent states, new towns and cities, brilliant thinkers, amazing artists. For centuries great masterpieces – among them works included in this exhibition – have been connected with the name of Alexander. Graeco-Bactrian art, Greek sculpture, fantastical engraved gems, Sassanid and Byzantine silver, Persian miniatures, and much much more. he Hermitage is proud of its collection of works with connections to Alexander. We have a great afection for our Hellenism Room. For many years our scholars have been studying the question of the Hellenistic heritage in both West and East. But the imperial museum has another key link to the hero who brought East and West together. he Winter Palace was the residence of three Russian tsars who bore the name Alexander. 10 Just a few years ago we presented a large exhibition devoted to Alexander I, victor of Napoleon. He was named in honour of Alexander Nevsky, the Russian hero and saint who defended Russia from Western aggression, and of Alexander the Great, who conquered whole worlds. he name he was given at his birth was to play its role in the turn that his life took. Alexander II and Alexander III also made signiicant contributions to Russian history and to the Hermitage. With this exhibition, the Hermitage demonstrates the potential of a museum that is not just large, not just universal, but encyclopaedic. he complex cultural and temporal ties demonstrated by the world of Alexander the Great are not merely fascinating in themselves. Today, as the world once brought together by Alexander rapidly falls apart, it is good to recall that globalisation is not always something to regret. his exhibition serves to illustrate that fact. UNDYING FAME Ernst W. Veen Director, Hermitage Amsterdam Few individuals capture the imagination to the extent that they still inspire others many centuries ater their death. A number of religious leaders have attained such status, but no king or emperor, with one exception – Alexander the Great, the Macedonian ruler who conquered the world in the 4th century BC. Alexander was born in 356 BC. At the age of twenty he succeeded his father, who had been assassinated at a banquet. Two years later he crossed to Asia Minor and embarked on a prolonged military campaign. Alexander conquered large parts of the then known world, 11 through his charm, his reputation which preceded him, and through mighty battles in which many opponents were put to the sword. Eventually his men forced him to turn for home. Eighteenth months later, in 323 BC, Alexander died just six weeks before his 33rd birthday, probably from the efects of an old wound or a sudden illness ater an evening spent carousing. Alexander’s campaign transformed the world. He let behind the largest empire in classical antiquity; more importantly, his legacy lived on. His campaign spread Greek culture which was fostered by the cities that he founded as far away as India. Greek art, Greek myths and the stories that accumulated around Alexander inspired countless peoples throughout his new realm. Greek culture penetrated the most isolated communities. Artists turned their attention to representing the human body and drapery. he Greek, or Hellenistic, style became de rigueur in Alexander’s world, from the shores of the Mediterranean to the deserts and steppes of Central Asia and the borders of India. Medieval literature featured a number of heroes from antiquity. In these manuscripts Alexander took on a new role, that of wise ruler; a role fed by legends such as his conversation with the Athenian philosopher Diogenes or his generosity towards the family of the Persian king 12 Darius: ater his irst defeat of Darius, Alexander is said to have treated the Persian ruler’s mother, wife, daughters and son with every respect, allowing them to retain the lifestyle to which they were accustomed. his magnanimity inspired many European rulers to act in similar fashion. Conquering the ego is the greatest triumph of all. he State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg is a veritable treasure house of everything from archaeological inds to Western European art. In 2007 it held an exhibition entitled Alexander the Great and the Road to the East, an exhibition which proved that the museum’s collections were more than capable of furnishing plentiful material for the sweeping presentation on the subject, since they include objects from every culture that Alexander encountered. he Amsterdam exhibition is based on that Russian show. he story of Alexander – the myth and the reality, his journey and his legacy – is told by over 350 objects from the Hermitage’s many galleries and depots. hese include outstanding masterpieces from antiquity and from later periods. Gold from Achaemenid Iran, a statue of Cleopatra from Egypt, Greek black- and red-igure vases, Roman igures of Heracles and Dionysus, a gold Sacae horseman from Central Asia, Mongolian embroidery, Buddhist portrait busts from Afghanistan and India – all display Alexander’s inluence on the world. Alexander’s legacy in modern Europe is illustrated by paintings, prints and applied art from the Hermitage’s Western European and Russian departments, everything from a Brussels tapestry that belonged to the Romanovs to a Russian Empire clock once in the hands of a private collector. Finally: a word of thanks to our permanent sponsors, who enable us to run the Hermitage as we wish, and who are as generous to us as Alexander was to Darius’ family. Join Alexander on his journey to the East and the West! 13 99 Head of a warrior (part of a chariot) Greece (?), early 3rd century BC PHOTOGRAPHY AND IMAGE MANIPULATION Erwin Olaf THE IMMORTAL ALEXANDER THE GREAT 15 Scythen Scythians IL LY RIË I LLY R I A Kau Pella E P IRUS H THE SSALIË T HE SSA LY Thermopylai Thermopylae Thebe Thebes Chaironea Chaeronea HEL Olympia LAS Athene Athens Sparta s elle Troje Troy kas us t p o nGranikos Granicus 334 ION IË I O NI A Efesos Ephesus Miletos Miletus Gordion Gordium LY DIË LY D I A C ARIË CARIA Sardis Halikarnassos Halicarnassus Side cas us Ancyra (Ankara) C IL IC IË C I LI C I A F RYG IË PHRYGI A LYC IË LYC I A Cau Cilicische Poort Cilician Gates Tarsos Issos PAM F Y L IË Tarsus Issus 333 PA M PHY LI A Alexandria aan de Issos Alexandria ad Issum (Iskenderun) CYPRU S M E DIË MEDIA Nisibis Gaugamela 331 Arbela Arbella Nikeforion Nikephorion Palmyra Byblos Ecbatana Opis Sidon Damascus Tyrus Tyre SY RIË SY R I A PA PA L L E S T EST INA INE Paraitonion Paraetonium Jeruzalem Jerusalem Babylon Susa Gaza Alexandrië Alexandria Petra Alexa (Char Uruk Memphis Siwa Amon-orakel Amon oracle Ni jl Ni 16 le ALEXANDER THE GREAT’S EASTERN CAMPAIGN EGY PT E EGY PT Thebe Thebes ARABISCH SCHIEREILAN D ARABI AN P ENI NSU LA AZ IË ASI A Saka Sacae Marakandy Maracanda (Samarkand) SOG DIË SO GD I A NA Alexandria Eschate (Khujand) Nautaca Alexandria in Margiana (Merv) Zadracarta Rhagae IË KAN HYR CANIA HYR Susia IJzeren Poort Iron Gate Kurgansol Alexandria aan de Oxus Alexandria on the Oxus (Ai Khanum) Drapsaca Bactra BAC TRIË BAC T R I A Hecatompylos Alexandria in Ariana Alexandria van de Kaukasus (Herat) Alexandria of the Caucasus (Begram Bagram) Taxila Khyberpas Khyber Pass Aspardana (Isfahan) DRAN G IAN A Alexandria Profthasia Alexandria Prophthasia (Farah) ARAC HOS IA Alexandria in Arachosia (Kandahar) andria in Susiana rax Spasinu) Pasargadae Nikaia Nicaea Hydaspes 326 Indus a Boukefalia Bucephalia Alexandria aan de Hyfasis Alexandria on the Hyphasis Alexandria aan de Indus Alexandria on the Indus (Uch) Persepolis du s ARAC HOS IA In Alexandria in Carmanië Alexandria in Carmania (Golashkerd) Pura Rhambakia Rhambacia Pattala IN DIA 17 THE LIFE OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT 18 Al 35 34 3– 34 8 33 6 33 4 33 33 3 2 33 nd er bo 6 0 33 ex a 1 rn to Ki ng Ph ilip II o fM ac ed on an Tu to Al red ex b an y A r de r t i s tot am l es e, p o his s h o s i b ly rse w B u it h ce H e p ph alu hae st s Ba Su ttl eo fC ha er on dQ io ue en Ol ym pi as n ea mm Oc er to A Al be r r tax ex e an Phil rxe sI ip de V I rs u c I m u of P ce rd e ers ed Ma s t red ia m y ot b u h e y h i rd e Ea Ale sb r th r l y xa n ro o ed Ju d ne dyg and ne er a of u s B a r riv M a a r d u cc ttl es ee P c ed a eo i on u sa ded f t n As n he i ias by Da Ri a Ap v ri u e ri rG sI c. 5 l–Ju r II a l nic No y A u l Al ve e s , x ex mb ir an an st de er B der en i ra co nG at t le nd un or te Da of di rb Iss um ri u Ja et us sI nu we II ,s ar en e y– c o Al Ju nd ex ly en an Sie co de ge un ra an te nd rb df Da et a ll ri u we of sI e Ty n II re 33 0 32 9 32 8 32 32 6 32 32 7 5 4 32 3 Ma rc 7A h A lex p 1 O ril A a n d er cto lex b e a n d vi s its r B e th at r fo t le un e O d o f G s A ra c l 30 e le au Ja g a xa n o f A n Ju me dr m n e uar y la , ia i on i D A c. th n th n S 17 ariu lexa ird iw e Ju sI nd a a n N il ly I di eD Da I lea er a r ri e n riu ve lt al s I s hi ves en a II m s c in co P a un ur d e pita erse te rb l re d i Ecb p oli et s we n C at w c. 1 a en h h n er Ju oa a Al eh ne ra ex e a Al an n r e ds ex de ma an uc ra ins de ce nd u e ra n d Da t il ed dv ri u J a b un nc W sI y e Be i nt es II e s t ot su Au r A s h tu eR mn lexa ive Al n d e rO ex r in xu an s; de the ca rk Ba pt ills ct ur r es i C an Al l e Be ex ca itu ss a p s nd us La ita ,o e te ne lo su r m a f o B f mm rr his ac e r ies o i t ra De the ce at So rs ho Ap g ril f A dia n T l Ma ex he a n p ri n y a d e ce L a B at rm i r ’s s s R e t te bi J u l e o s of og oxa f ly A n ra Al Rive lexa ph a ex er a n r Hy n d e Ca de da r llis r ’s s p a n d th a r es a H e en mi es es g a i n p h a e m s s tt Ja t u i o tin h nu y a e In n as ar di s y tt Al he an emb ex kin R l an ive g ea de r H Po t t h r is yp ru s e R st r ha ive sis uc Ma rI kb nd rc h us ya La M na te as rro Oc sw w to in be edd his r A ing lun lex s in g; an Ap Su he de sa ril r ’s ba Ma Ma re l y ov y ly A e P su lex rH 1 1 J re rv ep an un pa r ive d h a e ae s Al t io n e r i s nB t io ex f or an n a b di t de es r d h e c yl o n ies a m p at t h aig n ea g e to A ra of 32 b i a 19 69 Head of Alexander (fragment of a statuette) Asia Minor, Roman, 1st century AD, copy of a Greek original from 175–150 BC WITH FACE TURNED TOWARDS THE HEAVENS Anna Troimova Few people have been so important in the history of world art as Alexander the Great. His legacy was to fundamentally change the consciousness of the peoples of Western Europe and the East. His Eastern campaign – the most far-ranging military campaign in history – led to the destruction of the Persian Empire, then the most powerful empire in the East, and extended the borders of Greek civilisation. Despite contradictory assessments of Alexander as an individual, all scholars concede that the most important result of his rule was the creation of a cosmopolitan culture that united the achievements of Classical Greece, semi-barbarian Macedon, and the countries of Central Asia and the Near East. Alexander’s inluence on religion, town planning, art and science is well known. In the course of the Eastern campaign he established many cities (including Alexandria in Egypt) and founded new syncretistic cults; he was the patron of philosophers, historians and artists. In Alexander’s time new genres appeared that subsequently became part of the European artistic repertoire (the statue of the hero-ruler, the equestrian monument, the triumphal procession, and so on). 21 With face turned towards the heavens Alexander’s role was not conined to his actions and their consequences in the political, social and cultural spheres. he most substantial (and unprecedented) inluence on the Hellenistic era was exerted by his own image: Alexander the Great was an important factor in history, in political psychology and in the history of art. Profound changes in the perception of the world brought about by the Eastern campaign led to the appearance of new dominant ideas. In art, these ideas gave birth to a variety of new forms that distinguish the Hellenistic style from the previous era, but it was only in Alexander’s image that everything came together and crystallised. he ruler’s external appearance, as presented in numerous depictions, can truly be said to provide the most vivid relection of contemporary beliefs and tendencies: ‘he spirit of the art of Hellenism was largely the spirit of the Macedonian king.’1 Alexander’s face was repeated endlessly. His image was revolutionary not only in terms of art: it afected people’s conceptions of other people, of heroes and gods, of the nature of power, of the virtues, of the limits of what could be achieved. Even during the ruler’s lifetime his portraits were transformed into a series of stereotypes (‘the inspired hero’, ‘the deiied ruler’, ‘the warriorconqueror’, ‘the tragic hero’, and so on), which could easily be adapted to any image, depending on necessity and context. In the Hellenistic art of Greece, Italy, Asian and Eastern countries, ‘Alexander’s features’ could be seen everywhere – in portraits of rulers and military leaders, in statues of gods and heroes, in small sculptural items, in private portraits, and even in decorative art – on architectural features and utensils. he classical tradition has provided us with a considerable body of evidence (written sources, inscriptions and surviving monuments) for the existence of numerous statues, group sculptures, works by painters and stone-cutters portraying Alexander. During his lifetime most of these monuments were commissioned by Alexander himself, but they were also ordered by his father Philip II, by Alexander’s court, by cities in Greece and Asia Minor and various private individuals. Ater his death his portraits were acquired by diadochi (his successors), kings and dynasties, city-states and leagues of cities. Series of coins with his portrait, intended to conirm the legitimacy of the succession of power, were minted in all the Hellenistic kingdoms. he most common images were 22 small private commissions, statuettes for domestic cults – particularly numerous in Egypt – and engraved gems, which evidently served as talismans. No other historical character in the ancient world, either before or ater Alexander, was to be depicted in art by so many peoples over such a vast territory and such a long period of time. Despite the large number of dubious portraits, in which it is frequently diicult to make out whether the depiction is of Alexander or some vague hero or god, it is clear that neither the Ancient East nor Imperial Rome employed such a variety of themes and genres in the portrayal of a ruler. Even more amazing is the number of diferent interpretations, sometimes changing Alexander beyond recognition. We should also note the extreme diiculty caused by imitations, such that we cannot always tell if we are talking of a portrait of Alexander himself or a work inluenced by portraits of him. Most of the surviving portraits are in sculpture, and it is these which have traditionally attracted the attention of scholars. hese heads and busts are mostly Roman copies of Greek originals. Several mosaics and frescoes based on late 4th-century BC paintings have survived. Ancient writers mention that Alexander was the subject of works by the renowned Greek sculptors Lysippus, Leoharus and Euphranor, by the painter Apelles and the gem-engraver Pyrgoteles, but none of the surviving works can be attributed to these masters. How can the portraits be identiied? Since the late 19th century researchers into Alexander’s iconography have relied on three pieces of evidence. he irst is a herm portrait with the ancient inscription ‘ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΥ ΜΑΚΕ[ΔΩΝ]’ [Alexander the Macedonian, son of Philip], presented to Napoleon by the Spanish ambassador José Nicolá de Azara. he next is a mosaic found at Pompeii, with a close up depiction of the protagonists in ‘he Battle of Alexander and Darius’. he most reliable evidence, however, is provided by coins, which feature a date, a portrait in proile and the signature ‘Alexander’ (cat. 53, 54). All other depictions are deined by surmise – based on a comparison with these portraits, on context or descriptions of Alexander by ancient historians. Almost everything we know from ancient sources about the king’s appearance and his portraits derives from Plutarch. Anna Troimova ‘Alexander’s appearance is best conveyed by Lysippus’ statues, and he himself considered that only that sculptor was worthy to mould his image.’2 ‘Only he was able express his character in copper and to display his valour together with his outward appearance; this at a time when others, in trying to imitate the inclination of his neck and the iridescent gentleness of his gaze, were unable to convey the king’s manly and leonine expression.’3 ‘Pompey’s hair rose in a slight wave over his forehead, and this, together with the dewiness of his gaze, imparted a similarity, more than real, with portraits of Alexander.’4 ‘hey say that Alexander, son of Philip, was distinguished by natural beauty – his hair was blonde and wavy, but by all accounts something terrifying could be seen in the king’s face.’5 Historians’ descriptions and ancient portraits have formed the basis for the study of Alexander’s iconography.6 his is, indeed, how any study is made of images of historical characters from the ancient world, but the diference in Alexander’s case is that the written sources deal not so much with his actual appearance as with works of art, or with the inluence of Alexander on those around him. he portraits that have survived say a great deal more about the time and place of their creation, the clients who commissioned them and the contemporary outlook on the world than they do about the character of the subject. Inconstant and multifaceted, Alexander easily takes on the forms of the culture which produced the portrait, even though the subject is always one and the same person. Among the principal characteristics of the image are youthful beauty and clean-shaven features. Today we might ind it diicult to conceive just how signiicantly portraits of Alexander difered from those of his predecessors. Rulers, military leaders and statesmen were always depicted with a beard in Greek art – as, for example, were Alcibiades, Pericles and Alexander’s father Philip. here is evidence that in Greek society shaven cheeks were considered to be negative, a mark of efeminacy, even perversion.7 Perhaps the youthful Alexander reminded people of Greek heroes and gods, above all Apollo, Hermes and the young Dionysus, as well as many heroes such as Eubuleus, Triptolemus, the Dioscuri, the young Heracles and Achilles. Victorious athletes were also depicted without beards – it may be that Alexander embraced the Greek cult of athletic youthful male beauty. It was certainly of no little importance that the king was still very young at the time he was winning world dominion – he was just 22 years old. In other words, Alexander himself altered the stereotypes: from that time forth, divine and eternally youthful beauty became an important attribute of a ruler in the ancient world. Another of Alexander’s characteristic features was his ‘leonine and manly appearance’. Comparison with a lion was a widely-used metaphor in ancient literature. It irst appeared in Homer, who writes of Achilles with his lion’s heart.8 He rushes upon his enemies like a lion-destroyer: ‘he is cruel, spurning any pity, and like a lion thinks only of savagery’.9 Pausanias describes the statue of a lion on the battleield at Chaeronea, embodying the courage of the fallen hebans.10 A treatise on physiognomy attributed to Aristotle describes a lion’s appearance and character, and notes that ‘courage is characteristic of those who resemble lions’.11 Ancient statues of lions are reminiscent of the images of Alexander: the proud bearing of the head, the luxuriant mane of hair and the anastole (locks of hair rising over the forehead – a characteristic repeated in many of the ruler’s portraits.12 Apart from a manly appearance, Alexander’s portraits are distinguished by the ‘dewiness of his gaze’. he interpretation of the word ‘dewiness’ has caused diiculties, since in ancient times it was a female quality that was incompatible with a masculine appearance. It is the word used by Lucian for the eyes of Aphrodite of Knidos,13 and by Anacreontes for the eyes of lovers.14 By analogy with the erotic subtext of Anacreontes and Lucian, Kleiner sees in this look a desire, but a desire for glory.15 Schwarzenberg thinks it is the look of a ‘thoroughbred Greek’, whose chief virtue was a striving for valour.16 Alexander was frequently portrayed with wide open eyes raised towards the sky, which may have been meant to express the pathos and melancholy that were supposed to be qualities found in all heroes and gods… and of course in Alexander. Henceforth, the gaze conveyed the relationship of a person not only to the earthly sphere, but also to the divine sphere. In the art of the late Roman Empire and of the Middle Ages the concentration of attention on the gaze became one of the principal means of expression. 23 With face turned towards the heavens he last feature of portraits mentioned by ancient authors is the inclination of the head (κλίσις, αποστροφή, ανάτασις). ‘Lysippus sculpted Alexander looking up, with face turned towards the heavens (as he actually had the habit of holding his head, slightly tossing it), and this pointed inscription was placed under the statue: he words on the lips of the idol, directing his gaze toward the sky: “I am the master on earth; Zeus rules on Olympus.”’ Plutarch, Alexander, II, 2 In the opinion of 19th-century scholars, ανάτασις was simply a habit, explained by a disease of the neck.17 Others take the view that the inclination of the head directs the gaze ‘towards the heavens’, signifying communication with a deity.18 One comes across numerous examples in portraits of Alexander: the head inclined in sentimental fashion, energetically raised, thrown back in ecstasy. Subsequently Pompey, Mithridates, Caracalla and others inclined their heads in an attempt to be similar to Alexander, so as to draw political parallels between themselves and the great ruler and military leader. his motif was to be extremely important in 17th- and 18th-century European art. In the ecstatic poses of Catholic martyrs and saints we can recognise the echo of Hellenistic images, of Laocoon, the Niobides and dying giants, and of course of Alexander, who was perceived in the Renaissance period as being part of the same group of ancient heroes.19 he look toward the heavens, the dewy gaze and the leonine appearance were metaphors based on visual comparison with mythological images which embody key concepts in Greek culture. Not surprisingly, these motifs have had a long tradition in European art. As early as the 4th century BC they helped to create an impressive portrait of this historical personality, the son of King Philip of Macedon who conquered the world. When researching Alexander’s era, it is oten diicult to understand what is real and what is a ‘relected image’. he inluence of the image on reality proved to be strongest, so we cannot interpret the portraits of Alexander purely in the light of facts from his biography or of his political plans. heir meaning can only be evaluated in the context of the new myth that was started in Alexander’s lifetime and which long outlived the ancient world. 24 Alhough Alexander was always depicted as a young man, there is a group of portraits in which that quality is paramount. In early portraits of Alexander as a youth he is represented as an ephebe – a young Greek in Athens. A 4thcentury BC original marble head in the Acropolis Museum and its later version (Schloss Erbach, Germany) relate to the Attic school of art; the image is similar to those of youths on Attic tombstones.20 his image is unique in that it combines Alexander’s perfect face and his ‘leonine’ hairstyle.21 A portrait in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Albertinum in Dresden is thought to be a copy of a work by Lysippus. his is a blend of reined idealism and masterly representation of the youth’s individuality. his is the traditional Greek vision of Alexander: as a young Athenian citizen. Taking into account Greek society’s antagonism and hostility to Macedonian expansion, it is hard to understand just who created these portraits and on what occasion. It has been suggested that the original of the portrait found in the Acropolis was installed in 334 BC, shortly ater the Battle of the River Granicus, as a mark of gratitude to Alexander for his dedication to the Athenian Acropolis of 300 sets of armour and weapons captured in the battle.22 Ater the Battle of the River Granicus Alexander commissioned a group sculpture, a work which can probably be said to be the irst war memorial in history. ‘Alexander of Macedon ordered Lysippus, an unsurpassed sculptor in this genre, to portray the horsemen of his squadron who had perished by the River Granicus, and to place his own statue among them.’23 he vast monument, including portrayals of Alexander and 34 of his fallen comrades, was erected in Dion, the ancient capital of Macedon.24 Although not a single igure from this monument has survived, to judge by descriptions and relections of the work in ine art Lysippus would seem to have created a new genre. Some idea of the monument is provided by a bronze statue of the Roman period found at Herculaneum, showing Alexander on a rearing horse in a cuirass and with a sword (Archaeological Museum, Naples). Lysippus’ innovative feature was to show the Macedonian leader among dead warriors, set within an imaginary ‘heroic’ time and an imaginary space. his method of combining the world of the living and the dead was also used in other works relating to Alexander, as on the sarcophagus from Sidon. Anna Troimova One of the most inluential artistic images of Alexander was that of the hero-ruler. It is customary to link the appearance of this image with the name of Lysippus, who sculpted a statue of Alexander with a spear, a work that evoked numerous responses in ancient literature.25 A general idea of the composition is provided by statuettes of the Roman period (Hermitage, Inv. A.130), depictions on reliefs and several copies of heads. he best of the latter is thought to be the ‘Schwarzenberg Alexander’, which takes its name from its owner, Erkinger Schwarzenberg, who gave it to the Glyptothek in Munich. Notwithstanding the doubts as to whether Lysippus’ sculpture ever did exist,26 the debates about its date and place of origin,27 and the signiicant diferences in the details of the statuettes, scholars generally agree that the famous prototype did exist and that it was, to all appearances, intended for Alexandria. Alexander was shown nude, full of heroic energy, holding a spear in his hand. Polyclitus’ ‘Doryphoros’ (he Lance-Bearer) is considered to be the forerunner of the statue. Lysippus is known to have called himself a pupil of the ‘Doryphoros’,28 and Alexander’s statue was made under its direct inluence. In fact, a lance-bearer was one of the most popular subjects for statues in the ancient world; its pose and graceful motif is oten relected in statues of athletes, and – in Roman times – in the depiction of gods. he lance-bearer demonstrates the link between the ideal and the individual: it can be interpreted as a victorious athlete, as a model illustration to the ‘Canon’ of Polyclitus, or as a mythological character, such as Pliny’s ‘Achilles Holding a Spear’.29 Lysippus’ use of a quote from the latter statue was quite natural, since Alexander preferred Achilles above all other mythological heroes.30 he king made a journey to Troy, where he visited the grave of Achilles,31 and his friendship with Hephaestion was reminiscent of the friendship of Achilles and Patroclos. Alexander carried a copy of the Iliad with him everywhere, and liked to repeat that it was the best means of learning virtue.32 Many ancient historians subsequently drew comparisons between Alexander and Achilles – their outward appearance, their lives and characters. Both remained ever present in the minds of their descendants, both refused to be subordinate to laws. One can easily compare the hot temper of Alexander with the indomitable wrath of Achlles, the grieving for Hephaestion with the mourning of Patroclos. Both Alexander and Achilles had particularly golden hair, and both resembled lions in their cruelty and strength.33 According to Homer, Achilles had a sacred weapon – a spear made from a sacred ash tree. Arrian describes how Alexander, on his way to Troy, took an ancient weapon from the temple of Athena, which he carried with him on his campaign.34 his weapon was not simply a weapon of war, but an αρετή (arete) – a sacred attribute of Achilles, a token of heroic valour. In the hands of the conqueror the spear took on additional signiicance as a symbol of power over the subjugated territory. According to historians, Alexander threw his spear as he approached Troy by sea, thus penetrating the land of Asia. He then leaped ashore and was the irst to step on to dry land.35 By this demonstrative gesture the land of Asia was declared to have been ‘conquered by the spear’. Ater Alexander’s death this symbol came to be widely used by the diadochi and it was later adopted by the Romans in their ideology and art.36 he most important diference in the portraits by Lysippus is that the sculptor managed best of all to convey Alexander’s arete. Arete was not an exclusively individual or supernatural characteristic: it was a quality present in mortals and heroes, but could not be applied to a deity. he Greeks believed that heroes were not only the dead, but also military leaders, chietains and other warriors;37 heroism depended on their actions, their parentage and their military valour. ‘To gain immortal glory’ was the only way to achieve immortality,38 so it was arete that put mortals and heroes on an equal footing.39 his was the irst time in Greek sculpture that the concept of the heroic, combining all possible aspects of that term in the ancient world – religious, mythological, historical – had been given visual embodiment. he individual aspect characteristic of the Modern Age (ater 1500) had not yet appeared and so the individuality of Alexander is the individuality of a new mythological hero. In Lysippus’ work, the hero is a model, a constant that determines the absence of boundaries between history and the present, between mythological ancestors and real people.40 Alexander’s historical role was irst recognised in an early Hellenistic work of art – the epoch-making painting 25 With face turned towards the heavens ‘Battle of Alexander and Darius’ which, although it has not survived except in copies, is thought to have been the work of Philoxenes of Eretria. According to Pliny, Philoxenes was commissioned to portray the battle between Alexander and Darius by the Macedonian king Cassander.41 he painting evidently dated from 317 BC, when Cassander became king. It is a reliable account both of historical events and of their higher poetic interpretation. A mosaic copy of that painting was found at Pompeii in 1831, where it adorned the loor of the house of the Faun. It was probably created in the 2nd century BC. Scholars are not unanimous as to which battle was portrayed: the Battle of Issus, the Battle of Gaugamela, or a composite painting of several actions, including the Battle of the River Granicus.42 Judging by the tree with fallen leaves and the warm clothing of the Persian warriors, the action took place in winter, so it most likely to have been the Battle of Issus, which was fought in early December. ‘he Battle of Alexander’ is one of the irst mass battle scenes in the history of European art. he artist portrayed the action on a cosmic scale, the dramatic optical foreshortening of the igures creating an illusion of endless space. Two huge armies seem to join in battle; the serried ranks of diagonal spears and the chaotic, panicked movement of warriors and horses give the impression of a gigantic skirmish. he composition is centripetal – spears, warriors and horses are all directed towards the centre, where we see the ight between the two men. hus the worldwide cataclysm is interpreted as a battle between Alexander and Darius and we recognise the downfall of the Eastern Empire in the light of the Great King. Alexander rushes in with eyes shining and an almost crazed look on his face. Even in ancient times historians wrote of the madness of Alexander43 and the fact that he was possessed by a manic obsession. Alexander’s horse Bucephalus (‘bullhead’) was a itting steed. he demonic, terrifying image of the horseman is ininitely removed from the dreamy Attic youth and Lysippus’ noble hero. Personifying inexorable destructive force, the conqueror brings sufering and destroys the primeval order of things. he grandeur and tragic nature of what is happening is expressed most clearly in the terror sown by Alexander and in the sufering of Darius – a noble old man in royal garments. A sense of hopelessness is conveyed 26 by the look on Darius’ face, by his outstretched hands, and by the bleak, gloomy landscape with its dead, lealess tree. hus ‘he Battle of Alexander’ embodies the equal grandeur of both victory and defeat – one of the most important concepts of Hellenism. Arguments have raged ever since the 4th century BC about Alexander’s relationship with the gods and whether he thought of himself as a deity. One of the grounds for these discussions has been the account of ancient authors about a portrait by Apelles entitled ‘Alexander the hunderer’. Some general sense of this composition is provided by a fresco from Pompeii (Archaeological Museum, Naples) and the Neisos gem in the Hermitage (cat. 123). ‘he artist portrayed Alexander with lightning in his hand, so vividly and so naturally that people said that of the two Alexanders, the son of Philip was invincible, but Apelles’ Alexander was inimitable’.44 his unusual painting was installed in the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus. In all probability it was commissioned by Alexander himself, who paid 20 golden talents for it – an enormous sum at the time. Although the exact date of the commission is unknown, it was obviously painted before Alexander’s death and was closely linked to the Asian campaign. Alexander arrived in Ephesus in the middle of 334 BC: ‘Alexander arrived in Ephesus four years later, returned the exiles who had been banished from the city for their sympathies towards him, destroyed the oligarchy and restored democracy; he ordered the payments which the Ephesians had been making to the barbarians to be rendered to Artemis.’45 Having liberated the cities of Asia Minor from Persian dominion, Alexander strove to gain a political foothold, representing himself to the Ionian Greeks as a liberator, a ighter for democracy and a generous patron. He declined the tributes of the Ephesians, directing them to Artemis; he also wished to pay for the restoration of the temple burned down by Herostratus, on condition that the name of Alexander be inscribed upon it.46 he Ephesians cleverly declined this proposal, on the pretext that a god could not build a temple to another deity. Apelles’ painting was directly related to the conirmation of the Macedonian conqueror’s authority among the Greek population of Ionia. his may be why Apelles took a step that was extraordinary for the Greeks, since a mortal had Anna Troimova never previously been depicted with the attributes of a god. It could be that the painting appeared ater Alexander’s visit to Siwa, where he received a positive answer to the question as to whether he really was the son of Zeus, or possibly ater the Battle of Gaugamela in 331 BC.47 he fact that the king had exchanged the attribute of a hero – a spear – for the lightning of Zeus did not go unnoticed,48 and it can be said that the ancients already recognised the king’s new status, as is conirmed by the painting. here are numerous opinions expressed in the scholarly literature as to how far his iconography corresponded to various cults, exactly when Alexander was deiied, and what customs were used in this regard. he portrayal of Alexander with lightning did not mean that he was actually worshipped as Zeus, but Apelles was clearly openly comparing Alexander with Zeus – an audacious challenge to the Greeks’ existing concepts of the nature of men and the gods. Again we see that the artistic image of Alexander was more revolutionary than the reality – the religion, politics and ideology of Alexander’s era. he use of attributes of heroes and gods in the portrayal of rulers subsequently became generally accepted. Amon’s horns, Dionysus’ elephant scalp, Heracles’ lion’s skin and club, Pan’s horns and Poseidon’s trident signiied various aspects of a king’s image. Hunting was a very popular theme with Alexander and his followers. Sources mention a bronze group entitled ‘Alexander’s Hunt’: ‘Once, seeing that Alexander had killed a large lion, the Laconian ambassador exclaimed: “Alexander, you have had a ine battle with the lion for the king’s power.” Craterus presented the portrayal of this hunt to Delphi. Copper statues of dogs, of the king in his ight with the lion, and of Craterus himself running to his aid were made partly by Lysippus, partly by Leoharus.’49 he same composition featured on a mosaic in Pella and on a fresco from the so-called ‘tomb of Philip’. Scholars have frequently compared the hunting scenes (particularly that on the fresco from ‘Philip’s tomb’) with episodes from Alexander’s life. he depiction of a hunt on a funeral structure was indeed a traditional theme of the heroic cycle of meal, battle, hunt. his ‘heroic triptych’ is invariably found in the decoration of burials in many Mediterranean regions and beyond – in hrace, Macedon and the Northern Black Sea region, and although these were quite normal occupations for the aristocracy, one can hardly speak of the historicity of the scenes, since the action takes place in the world beyond the grave. he main character in these scenes is the heroised deceased.50 Hunting also gained popularity at the courts of the diadochi as a royal, Eastern pastime.51 Several hunting scenes adorn the ‘Sarcophagus of Alexander’ – one of the most famous, most studied, and still most enigmatic monuments. he sarcophagus was found in 1887 in the royal necropolis at Sidon. Its owner is supposed to have been King Abdalonimus, a local dynast who was put in power by Alexander. he style of the relief on the sarcophagus gives scholars grounds for dating it to the last quarter of the 4th century BC. Its long sides are decorated with scenes of battles between the Greek Macedonian army and the Persians, and the shorter sides feature the hunting of a deer, a lion and a panther. Alexander appears twice: as a horseman in a lion’s skin in the thick of the battle, and as one of the deer hunters. It has more than once been remarked that the king’s facial features and clothing do not correspond with his generally accepted portraits. Moreover, the two igures of Alexander on the Sidon sarcophagus difer from one another. Alexander is clothed, whereas some of his warriors are depicted naked. he Persians are in Eastern garments, but are given Greek weapons, so that they are portrayed as equal in courage to the Greek army.52 hese and many other inconsistencies are explained by the fact that the sarcophagus is a mixture of Middle Eastern and Hellenic traditions. he style of execution is Greek, despite some deviations from classical standards. he themes have Eastern roots – long before Alexander’s time the Lycean dynasties commissioned monumental sepulchres, glorifying themselves in scenes of battle and royal hunts. he inclusion of Alexander on the funeral monument of Abdalonimus is very much in the spirit of the age: in the chaos that followed the death of the empire’s founder, his image attracted like a magnet and was a mark of prestige. ‘Portrayed on coins, carried in processions and worshipped in cults, [the image of the king] promised unlimited achievements and similarly unlimited blessings’.53 27 With face turned towards the heavens Studying Alexander’s role in the development of the political theory and ideology of Hellenism, one well-known expert on the ancient world wrote: ‘We have to speak not of Alexander himself, but of a coniguration of interests… It was of prime importance for the political tradition of Hellenism that Alexander appeared within the sphere of monarchic symbolism’.54 hanks to Alexander a language of state ideology took shape, based on a combination of individual characteristics and symbols of power. It is quite natural that he was represented in his lifetime as the Cosmocrator, master of a world bounded only by the Ocean. However, in art at least, Alexander rose further still, into the sphere of the gods. he creation of the image of Alexander the Cosmocrator was of great signiicance not only for the ancient world, but for monarchic ideology in every later age in the West. A magniicent medallion found at Aboukir (near Alexandria) and dating from 230 or 250 AD shows Alexander looking towards the heavens; he is wearing a diadem and the horns of Amon, is clothed in a cuirass and has a spear in his hands. His armour and the weapon are covered in star signs, symbolising cosmic power over the universe. he link between Alexander and Helios, the ancient cosmic deity who personiied solar energy, was irst made in the Hellenistic period. his is evident in portrayals of Alexander-Helios (for example, the head of Alexander in the Brooklyn Museum) and Helios with Alexander’s likeness (head of Helios, Rhodes Museum). ‘he part of the Earth that has not seen Alexander is now devoid of light,’ wrote Plutarch.55 According to tradition, Alexander’s birth was proclaimed by the appearance of a new star.56 he image of the Sun-Ruler in command of the world has always impinged on the consciousness of European peoples – from the Hellenistic kings and the Emperors of Rome to late European kings. However, the ‘sun’ also had a reverse side. Even in ancient times the personality of Alexander became the embodiment not only of political power, but also of the concept of power itself. It was accompanied by a demonic, irrational authority, which became relevant in the history of the modern world – for example, in the ideology of contemporary dictators. he royal style of depictions of Alexander formed the basis for portraits of the diadochi, his successors. It would be wrong, however, to talk of slavish imitations of the Macedonian 28 king’s appearance. While borrowing him as a model, the diadochi tended to emphasise their own individuality. A literal copying of Alexander’s features (the inclination of the neck, the kingly hair or the glance towards the heavens) signiied the expression of a speciic political idea like, for instance, Mithridates VI Eupator’s ‘liberation of the Greeks’ slogan. Right up to the beginning of the Roman era every ruler had Alexander’s portrait on his coins: ‘Such coins really were international currency, symbolising Graeco-Roman arete, but ideologically neutral and acceptable to all – kings, cities, merchants, traders and “barbarians”. he charisma of Alexander was completely integrated into Hellenistic society along with the coins.’57 In Alexander’s home state of Macedon his memory was vividly coloured with a ‘local lavour’. here is a great deal of evidence for this, in particular the domestic cult for which a statuette found in a residential quarter of Pella was intended. he statue of Alexander-Pan from the 3rd century BC follows Lysippus’ artistic tradition. On Alexander’s head are little horns which appear to be in strange dissonance with the naked body of the youth and its energetic ‘heroic’ pose. Alexander is not being compared with the god, but is being identiied with him. Historians of Hellenism know that Pan had a political signiicance for Hellenistic states, and especially for Macedon. Since the Macedonian royal family was descended from the Argeads, Pan and his embodiment as a goat was used in state symbols. Pan was worshipped as the god of hunting, which was important for Macedon with its custom of the royal hunt, and as a god-protector on the ield of battle. his latter function of Pan acquired great signiicance in the Hellenistic era, a time of military conlicts. His particular eminence occurred in the reign of Antigonus Gonates, when Pan was portrayed on coins among stars and on a round Macedonian shield with military trophies.58 Alexander was revered more in Egypt than in any other country in the Hellenistic period. He was a key igure from the moment he stepped on to Egyptian soil and continued to be so for several centuries. One of the irst steps Alexander took was to visit the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis,59 and he also decorated the Temple of Amon at Luxor.60 Alexander is depicted on reliefs in the Egyptian style, as the Pharaoh of Anna Troimova Upper and Lower Egypt entering the temple. In the period between 311 and 285 BC Alexander’s successor Ptolemy Soter founded a dynastic cult with Alexander as the principal object of worship. At least four statues were installed in Alexandria: an equestrian statue of the creator (founder),61 a statue in heroic nakedness, a statue of Alexander in the Tychaion,62 and Alexander the Aegiochus (with an aegis, a shield of goatskin), which survives in seventeen copies. According to legend, Alexander’s body was displayed to the public in his tomb. he capital was adorned with huge paintings, which enchanted the Romans who captured them in the 1st century BC. Among those recorded are ‘Alexander in a Chariot’,63 Alexander as a youth with Philip and Athena,64 two paintings by Apelles – with Nike and with the Dioscuri, and also in a chariot accompanied by the goddess of Triumph, the goddess of War (Pompe) and the goddess of Fury (Lissa).65 he Hellenistic writer Callixenes describes in detail a vast festival organised in 275–274 BC by Ptolemy II Philadelphus.66 he massive celebration was accompanied by athletic and musical contests, dramatised processions and a military parade. In the festival programme, which was centred around the royal family, a separate procession was devoted to Alexander. His statue also took part in the main – Dionysian – procession along with statues of Ptolemy and a deity. hese characters helped to explain Alexander’s role in the history of Egypt: Dionysus inspired Alexander in his Eastern campaign, which liberated Greek cities from the Persians; the presence of Priapus (in Egyptian mythology the god Min) symbolised fertility, sexual power and success, and the allegorical igure of Arete – the striving for valour, Alexander’s main driving force in all his actions.67 ‘he dynastic cult and all the subordinate cults of a private and public nature devoted to members of the royal family were, and remained, predominantly Greek – in their initiations, language, ritual and appearance.’68 he name, cult and image of Alexander were totally accepted by Egyptian culture and remained, until the end of Hellenism in 30 BC, a guarantee of the country’s stability, prosperity, fertility and military success. he memory of Alexander was not so immediate and evident in Asia. Not a single posthumous cult was established, apart from those that appeared in 334 and 333 BC in some cities in gratitude for their liberation from the Persians. A general idea of such cult depictions is provided by coins, a few statuettes, and two marble statues in himatia from Priene (Antikensammlung, Berlin) and Magnesia (Archaeological Museum, Istanbul). here were evidently other monuments, but only indirect information about them has survived. A Roman coin from Smyrna features a group sculpture – Alexander, sleeping in the pose of Ariadne, with two igures of Tyche. A bronze coin from Sagalassa (268–270 AD) shows Alexander on a horse pursuing a barbarian, with Zeus standing behind them. he same igure of a huge horseman can be seen in a rock tomb in Termessus (Pisidia). A warrior with a similarity to Alexander, surrounded by numerous symbols, is depicted in front of a funeral carriage. Finally, from the inscriptions on surviving bases, we know that statues of Alexander appeared in two dynastic group sculptures – those erected by the Antigonides69 on the island of Delos and by Antioch I in Nemrud Dagi. Neither of these works has survived. Judging by written and epigraphic sources, no new portraits of Alexander were created in the Hellenistic period. he monuments that have survived are copies of likenesses taken in his lifetime. Most of them bear a very strong imprint of their time and the prevalent style. hus, the famous 2nd-century BC portrait from Pergamum harks back to Lysippus, but, in comparison with the late classical prototype, the Pergamum master has created a more emotional, almost tragic image. In 1871, shortly ater the discovery of the reliefs on the Great Frieze of the Pergamum altar, a clear similarity was noted between this portrait and the faces of the giants. It was later proposed that the head was a fragment of a igure belonging to the frieze,70 but this has not found widespread support among scholars. his similarity shows how inluential the artistic stereotype was. ‘Alexander’s features’ are repeated in the faces of the young giants and of Helios (i.e. in the appearance of the victorious and the vanquished). he imitation of Alexander’s features is frequently encountered in Hellenistic depictions of heroes and gods, giving the impression that it happened subconsciously when originals were being copied. For instance, the youth personifying the River Orontes in the composition with 29 With face turned towards the heavens Tyche of Antioch (cat. 78), or the bronze half-igures of tritons that adorn the chariot from a hracian burial (Hermitage, Inv. V. 866), resemble Alexander. Sometimes these links have irm parallels in mythology: Pan (the head of a youth – Hermitage, Inv. A. 130), Achilles (cat. 77), a Dioscurus (cat. 97), Helios (cat. 107) or Asclepius (Hermitage, Inv. A. 254). We cannot compare these imitations with historical reality: as a rule, they bear no relation to ritual practice or religious views. he transformation of the image has its own peculiar logic: it is the logic of myth – the myth-making of ancient art.71 With the arrival of the Romans, ‘imitatio Alexandri’ was transferred into a purely political sphere. His name and his example were used by a great variety of politicians – Gaius Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, Mithridates, Octavian Augustus, Caracalla and Constantine the Great.72 his imitation was pragmatic and was based on the use of several ideas: the idea of world domination (Caesar, Caracalla), the idea of national unity and liberation from a foreign yoke (Mark Antony, Mithridates, Octavian Augustus), the idea of the higher power of the ruler-commander of the universe (Octavian Augustus, Constantine). Rome readily borrowed Hellenistic symbols and archetypes connected with Alexander. His personality and the story of his deeds were the subjects of historical compositions and philosophical treatises, and Alexander is now known to us chiely through Roman sources. Finally, the Roman Emperors also valued his portraits highly. Many originals were captured and taken to Rome, while others were copied many times for the Romans, which is how the overwhelming majority of depictions of Alexander have come down to us today. Alexander’s fate in the era of Hellenism is amazing. he empire he created quickly fell apart and the states that appeared had nothing to do with his name. Ater the king’s death the diadochi gave Alexander no divine honours, and (with the exception of Egypt) founded no new cults. he more time went by, the less practical necessity there was to maintain the memory of the empire’s founder. Yet Alexander’s colossal inluence on the consciousness of his contemporaries and descendants has never ceased – his image changed art and reality, the mentality of the ancients and the world around them. 30 Notes Anna Troimova 1 T. Hölscher, Ideal und Wirklichkeit in den Bildnissen Alexanders des Grossen (Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, Phil.-hist. Klasse, Abh. 2), Heidelberg, 1971, p. 43 20 N. Himmelmann, Herrscher und Athlet. Die Bronzen vom Quirinal, Milan, 1989, pp. 88–92 Historienbilder (Beiträge zur Archäologie 6), Würzburg, 1973, pp. 129–130; Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 110 66 Athenaeus, 5, 201 d–e, 202 a 21 Stewart 1993 (n. 6), p. 111 68 P. M. Fraser, Ptolemaic Alexandria, 3 vols, Oxford, 1972, vol. I, p. 128 2 Plutarch, Alexander, IV 3 Plutarch, Alexander, II, 2 22 Arrian, I, 16, 7; Plutarch, Alexander, XVI, 17–18; see also: Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 110 43 J. Stroux, ‘Die stoische Beurteilung Alexanders des Grossen’, Philologus, No. 88 (1933), p. 229 4 Ploutarchos, Pompeius, II, 1 23 Velleius, I, 11, 3–4 45 Arrian, I, 17, 10 5 Aelianus, Varia Historia, XII, 14 24 Arrian, I, 6, 4–5 46 Strabo, 14, 1, 22–23 6 J. J. Bernoulli, Die erhaltenen Darstellungen Alexanders des Grossen: Ein Nachtrag zur griechischen Ikonographie, Munich, 1905; E. Schwarzenberg, ‘Der Lysippischer Alexander’, Bonn Jahrbuch, 1967, No. 167, pp. 58–118; E. Schwarzenberg, ‘The Portraiture of Alexander’, Alexandre le Grand: Image et réalité, ed. E. Badian, Geneva, 1976 (Fondation Hardt, Entretiens, 23), pp. 223–278; Hölscher 1971 (note 1); R. R. R. Smith, Hellenistic Royal Portraits, Oxford, 1988; B.S. Ridgway, Hellenistic Sculpture, vol. I: The styles of ca. 331–200 B.C., Bristol, 1990; A. Stewart, Faces of Power, Berkeley, Los Angeles, 1993 25 Plutarch, Alexander, II, 2; Plutarch, Isis and Osiris, 24, 360D; Himerius, Orationes, XIV, 14; Tzetzes, Chiliades, XI, 100; Antologia Graeca, II, 571 47 Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 195 26 Smith 1988 (note 6), p. 62 49 Plutarch, Alexander, XL, 4 27 Stewart 1993 (note 6), pp. 161–170 50 A. A. Troimova, ‘Исторический сюжет и религиозная традиция. К истолкованию фрески из «Гробницы Филиппа»’ [Historical Subjects and Religious Traditions. Towards an Interpretation of the Fresco from ‘Philip’s Tomb’], Введение во храм. Сборник статей [The Presentation in the Temple. An Anthology of Articles], ed. L. A. Akimova, Moscow, 1997, pp. 148–160 28 Cicero, Brutus, 86, 296 29 Pliny the Elder, XXI, 18; see also: A. Stewart, Greek Sculpture, New HavenLondon, 1990, p. 160 30 Schwarzenberg 1967 (note 6), pp. 62, 68–70 44 Plutarch, Alexander, II, 2 48 Plutarch, Isis and Osiris, 24; Plutarch, Alexander, II, 2 7 Athenaeus, 13, 565a 31 Plutarch, Alexander, XV 8 Iliad, VII, 228 51 A. Stamatiou, ‘Alexander the Great as a Lion Hunter’, Praktika, 1983, p. 209 32 Plutarch, Alexander, VII 9 Iliad, XX, 164 10 Pausanias, Description of Greece, X, 40, 5 11 Aristoteles, Physiognomica, I, 809a – 814b 33 W. Ameling, ‘Álexander und Achilleus: Eine Bestandsaufnahme’, Zu Alexander dem Grossen. Festschrift G. Wirth zum 60. Geburtsbag, ed. W. Will, with J. Heinrichs, Amsterdam, 1988, pp. 657–692 67 Stewart 1993 (note 6), pp. 252–263 69 The Macedonian kingdom after Alexander the Great, founded by Antigonus I Monophthalmos. 70 W. Radt, ‘Der “Alexanderkopf” in Istanbul: Ein Kopf aus dem Grossen Fries des Pergamon-Altars’, Archäologischen Anzeiger, 1981, pp. 583–585 71 A. A. Troimova, ‘«Imitatio Alexandri» в искусстве эпохи эллинизма’ [‘Imitatio Alexandri’ in the Art of the Age of Hellenism], Эллинистические штудии в Эрмитаже. Сборник статей к 60-летию М.Б.Пиотровского [Hellenistic Studies in the Hermitage. Anthology of Essays on the 60th Birthday of M. B. Piotrovsky], ed. E. N. Khodza, St Petersburg, 2004, pp. 62–74 72 D. Michel, Alexander als Vorbild für Pompeius, Caesar und Marcus Antonius, Brussels, 1967; D. Kienast, ‘Augustus und Alexander’, Gymasium, vol. 76, 1969, pp. 430–436; P. Green, ‘Caesar and Alexander: aemulatio, imitation, comparatio’, American Journal of Ancient History, 1978, no. 3, pp. 1–17 52 See: V. von Graeve, ‘Das Alexandersarkophag und seine Werkstatt’, Istanbuler Forschungen, vol. 28, Berlin, 1970, pp. 85–100; Messerschmidt 1989 (note 42), pp. 70–77; Ridgway 1990 (note 6), pp. 43–44; Stewart 1993 (note 6), pp. 299–300 34 Arrian, I, 2, 7 12 Schwarzenberg 1967 (note 6), pp. 68, 86–88; Schwarzenberg 1976 (note 6), pp. 249–251; Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 77; A. A. Troimova, ‘Жизнь мифа в античном искусстве: судьба Ахилла’ [The Evolution of Myth in Ancient Art: The Fate of Achilles], Шлиман, Троя, Санкт-Петербург [Schliemann. Troy. St Petersburg]. exh. cat., Hermitage, St Petersburg, 1998 13 Lucian, Imagines, 6 53 Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 225 35 Diodorus, Alexander, XVII, 17, 2 36 P. Green, Alexander to Actium. The Historical Evolution of the Hellenistic Age, Berkeley, Los Angeles, 1990, pp. 5, 167, 187, 198, 367 54 A. Heuss, ‘Alexander der Grosse in die politische Ideologie des Altertums’, Antike und Abendland, Hamburg, 1964, no. 4, p. 66 55 Plutarch, Alexander, VIII 37 Iliad, II, 116, 934 38 Plato, Symposium, 208 c–d; Sophocles, Philoctetes, 1440 56 Cicero, On the nature of the Gods, I, 23, 47 57 Stewart 1993 (note 6), p. 327 14 Anacreon, 28, II 15 G. Kleiner, ‘Das Bildnis Alexanders des Grossen’, Jahrbuch des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts (Berlin), 1950–1951, No. 65/66, p. 229 16 Schwarzenberg 1967 (note 6), p. 72 17 Bernoulli 1905 (note 6), p. 19; see also: F. Schachermeyer, Alexander der Grosse, Vienna, 1973, p. 95; Schwarzenberg 1976 (note 6), p. 251, no. 1 18 H. P. L’Orange, Apotheosis in Ancient Portraiture, Oslo, 1947, p. 21 19 E. Schwarzenberg, ‘From the Allessandro Morente to the Alexandre Richelieu. The Portraiture of Alexander the Great in the Seventeenth Century Italy and France’, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, 1969, no. 32, pp. 398–405 39 A.A. Troimova, Imitatio Alexandri. Портреты АлександраМакедонского и мифологические образы в искусстве эпохи эллинизма. Диссертация на соискание степени кандидатаискусствоведения [Imitatio Alexandri. Portraits of Alexander of Macedonia and Mythological Images in Art during the Age of Hellenism. Dissertation for the qualiication of Candidate of Art History], St Petersburg, 2009 40 Ibid. 58 H. P. Laubscher, ‘Hellenistische Herrscher und Pan’, Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts. Athenische Abteilung, 1985, No. 100, p. 341, note 45 59 Arrian, III, 1, 4 60 Stewart 1993 (note 6), pp. 174–175, T 91 a–b 61 Ps. Libanios, Progymnasmata (Foerster 1915), pp. 533–555 41 Pliny the Elder, XXXV, 110 62 Ibid. 42 B. Andreae, Das Alexandermosaik aus Pompeji, Recklinghausen, 1977, pp. 25–26; J. J. Pollitt, Art in the Hellenistic Age, Cambridge, 1986, pp. 46; W. Messerschmidt, ‘Historische und ikonographische Untersuchungen zum Alexander-sarkophag’, Boreas, 1989, no. 12, p. 84; T. Hölscher, Griechische 63 Hieronymus of Kardia apud Athenaios, 5, 206 d–e 64 Pliny the Elder, XXXV, 114 65 Pliny the Elder, XXXV, 27 31 206 Rhyton with halfigure of a winged ram Iran, 5th century BC ALEXANDER AND THE EAST WHAT CAME BEFORE Mariam Dandamayeva In the spring of 334 BC the Greek-Macedonian army crossed the Hellespont and landed in Asia Minor. A new era in human history had begun: many of the Eastern countries came under the control of dynasties of European extraction, and the languages, domestic and cultural traditions, scientiic and technical achievements of the East and Europe came into close contact across the board. It was a world that was, at irst glance, according to William Tarn, very similar to our own.1 Alexander’s campaign, however, which wrought extensive political and cultural changes in the life of Europe, Asia and Africa, was not the beginning, but just the latest stage in the history of relations between the East and Greece. hese contacts apparently date back to the 2nd millennium BC, though the surviving evidence does not yet make it possible to say how broad and direct those contacts were. he existence of links between the Greeks and Eastern peoples is indicated, in particular, by objects from Egypt and Near Eastern countries found in burials of the Mycenean period (1400–1150 BC). As far as written sources are concerned, many scholars are inclined to see in the ‘Ahhiyawa’ people mentioned in Hittite cuneiform tablets a distortion of ‘Achaeans’, the term used for 33 Alexander and the East What came before one of the Greek tribes regularly encountered, in particular, in Homer’s Iliad. Moreover, it has also been suggested that the powerful Hittite state in Asia Minor, whose heyday was from the 15th to early 13th centuries BC, is none other than a prototype of the legendary Troy, and that the account of the Trojan war in Greek mythology is the reminiscences of Greeks in later centuries, shrouded in legend, of actual conlicts with the Hittites that occurred at the dawn of Greek history. In scholarly and popular-scholarly literature there have also been attempts to compare the names of characters in the Trojan myths with the onomastics of Hittite texts, or to ind links between individual episodes in Homer’s poems and the literature of the ancient East.2 However, historical sources do not yet permit us to identify with suicient certainty the legendary Troy as the Hittite state. he Dark Ages that followed the fall of the MinoaenMycenean civilisation were a period that isolated Greece from the outside world. Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, in both of which the action takes place far from Greece, provide no real idea of the peoples of other countries. he people of Troy, an Eastern state in Asia Minor, have Greek names and speak Greek. here is not the slightest hint of a language barrier or ethnic and cultural diferences between the Trojans and the Greeks. Neither do the characters in the Odyssey have any such diiculties: the king of Ithaca and his fellow-travellers are hurled from one foreign land to another, but the descriptions we read are not of actual peoples and countries, but of the fabulous lands like those of Russian fairy tales. here, as in any fairy tale, extraordinary events take place and strange creatures are encountered, which is no evidence of real contacts with foreigners, but rather evidence of their absence. Homer had, however, heard of the wealth of the Egyptians and the cunning of the Phoenicians. Radical changes took place in the 7th century BC, in the period of Greek colonisation, when the people of Hellas set of to seek their fortune in Egypt, Asia Minor, Syria and along the Northern Black Sea coast.3 From then on, as the Greeks again mastered the sea routes that had been forgotten in the Dark Ages, Egypt was to be within their reach. Imported Greek ceramics, largely made on the Greek islands, started appearing in Egypt in the 7th century BC. At the beginning of that century the Greek city of Naucratis was founded in 34 northern Egypt, and its workshops began producing everyday items, mostly vessels, which were a quaint blend of Greek shapes and colour combinations characteristic of Egyptian art. he Greeks also penetrated deep into the south of Egypt. he foot of the gigantic statue of Ramses II at Abu Simbel has a Greek inscription scratched into it, listing the names of the Greek mercenaries who reached the area in the army of Psammetichus II (reigned 595–589 BC). In the time of Herodotus – the 5th century BC – there were already so many Greeks in Egypt that, if the Greek historian is to be believed, there was a whole class of interpreters in the country.4 he states whose geographical location made them natural intermediaries between Greece and the East were Syria and, to an even greater extent, Asia Minor, which has served as a bridge between the Greeks and the Asian peoples in all ages. It is no coincidence that the Greeks placed the legendary Troy there, on the opposite shore of the Hellespont. he 7th and 6th centuries BC saw a rapid development in culture, science and art in the Greek cities of Asia Minor, paving the way for the lourishing of Greece in the classical period of its history. For Asia the beginning of the era of Greek colonisation – the 8th and 7th centuries BC – was dominated by the cultural development and political power of Assyria, and subsequently, ater its downfall in 612 BC, of Babylonia. hese countries were very far removed from Greece, but the inluence of the dominant forces in Asia could not entirely fail to afect the Greeks. In the annals of the Assyrian kings, particularly those of Sargon II and Esarhaddon, we ind mentions of battles with Iamanaja or Iamnaja – an ethnonym that apparently refers to ‘Ionians’. he Ionians were one of the Greek tribes that settled the Greek cities of Asia Minor and the islands. he Ionians with whom the Assyrians clashed, however, were more likely to have been pirates plying their trade on the high seas, and then not always ethnic Greeks. Some Iamanaja also igure in 6th-century economic texts from Babylon and from Uruk further to the south. Evidence of the existence of contacts between the Greeks, on the one hand, and Assyria and Babylonia, on the other, is also found in Greek sources. A surviving poetic fragment by Alcaeus (7th – 6th centuries BC) mentions the poet’s brother, who served as a mercenary in the Babylonian army, and an unusual (coming from a Greek) reference to the city Mariam Dandamayeva as ‘holy Babylon’. Apparently Greeks serving not only in the Egyptian, but also in the Babylonian and before that, possibly, in the Assyrian armies was a frequent occurrence. One has to think that it was mercenaries, along with traders, who played a signiicant role in establishing and developing contacts between Greece and Eastern countries. he cultural links between the Greeks and Eastern peoples are most evident in Greek ine art of the archaic period, mostly in sculpture large and small and in vase-painting. Greek sculpture was hugely inluenced by Egyptian art in its initial stages. Greece was inundated not only by actual Eastern pieces, but by Eastern ornaments and Eastern themes, the result of which was the formation of the so-called orientalised (i.e. similar to Eastern) style. here is no doubt that winged sphinxes, gryphons, centaurs, sirens and other fantastic creatures came from the East. he source of these borrowings is obvious – the art of Syria, Assyria and Egypt. Hybrid creatures combining human features with those of an animal or of various animals were the most widespread motif in the art of Syria and Assyria in the irst half of the 1st millennium BC. Monsters of various kinds, including anthropomorphic creatures with wings, were not at all characteristic of Greek mentality and Greek art. hey did not igure in Greek monuments that preceded the archaic period, and they subsequently disappeared almost as suddenly as they had appeared. In the mythology and art of the classical period there remained only a few winged gods, and even then this attribute was oten determined by their functions, as with Hermes and Iris, the messengers of the gods, or Nike, the inconstant goddess of victory. he Olympians are devoid of wings and, in fact, of any zoomorphic features. Did the Greeks understand the meaning of the Eastern themes that they were so readily imitating? hey probably were not aware of their true meaning, but interpreted the images in accordance with their own conceptions. We may suppose that some themes from Greek mythology originated or were modiied under the inluence of works of art seen in the East, or of imported items that had reached Greek cities. For example, surviving works of Greek literature enable us to trace changes in the legend of Atlas between the 8th and 6th centuries BC. In Homer the earth and the sky are joined by gigantic pillars, which are ‘controlled’ by Atlas.5 In Hesiod, however, Atlas already supports the sky with his head and his tireless arms.6 his reinterpretation of the theme was possibly caused by the inluence of a very popular image in Assyrian engraved gems: many seals of that time feature an anthropomorphic character with his arms holding up the sky or the pillar upon which the sky rests. It was only much later, in the time of Aeschylus, that the image of Atlas which became the canonical depiction in the art of the ancient world and Europe – that of a man holding the sky on his shoulders – appeared. he Greeks of the archaic period were convinced that there was one single world, and that the gods who controlled the world were the same for both Greeks and foreigners. hey also recognised that the culture of the peoples of the East was much older than their own. It was there, in Eastern countries, that they found the ancestors of the Greek gods and the Greek aristocracy. his may be why, ater seeing Eastern images, the Greeks decided that these were gods and heroes that were familiar to them, and were prepared to adjust their own myths under their inluence. he sources of other Greek legends were probably not visual images, but rather mythological or folkloric themes of Eastern peoples. One of the most convincing examples of this type of borrowing is the ‘heogony’ by the epic poet Hesiod, customarily dated to the 7th century BC. he principal plot line of Hesiod’s epic – the birth of the gods, then the ight between the Olympians and the gods of a previous generation (titans and giants), culminating in the victory of the Olympians – is oten considered to have been borrowed from the East. his theme is indeed reminiscent of the conlict of the Babylonian theogonic epos ‘When on High’ (‘Enūma Elish’), which tells of the struggle and inal victory of the Babylonian ‘new generation’ god Marduk over his predecessors, the monsters Apsu and Tiamat. Legends of that kind, however, explaining a change in power, could also arise independently of one another, like the myths about the changes in the seasons. Life itself – and not the mythological traditions of another people – was possibly the source of such themes. At the same time, the theme of the monster Typhon in the ‘heogony’ leaves no doubt that its source was the HittiteHurrian myth of Kumarbi: certain details encountered in both works are just too close.7 Over 500 years had passed between the existence of the Hittite kingdom and Hesiod’s time, but the 35 Alexander and the East What came before Greeks had probably learned this theme from the Phoenicians, who, as the cuneiform tablets from Ras Shamra show, were well acquainted with the Hittite-Hurrian literary tradition. Another myth which apparently showed Eastern – in this case, Egyptian – inluence was the story of Andromeda. he background against which Perseus was able to carry out his heroic deed – ofering the girl as a sacriice to a sea monster, thus saving his native city from misfortune – was possibly borrowed from the Egyptian legend of the bride of the Nile (for the Greeks, whose rivers were small and carried no threat of loods, it was natural to replace the river monster with a sea monster). It is no accident that the place of action of the Greek legend is Ethiopia, the country where the sources of the Nile are located. On Greek vases Andromeda is sometimes surrounded by exotic igures of curly-haired, thick-lipped Ethiopians. However, the richest source of Greek mythology was Asia Minor. Lydia, Lycaea, Phrygia and other areas of Asia Minor were countries where the action in Greek myths oten unfolded and from where many of the characters originated, in particular Zeus’ son Apollo, the unfortunate Niobe, punished for her arrogance by the death of her children, the young Atis, and Cybele, the powerful mistress of the beasts. Although the Greek literary-mythological tradition assimilated some themes that came from the East, it remained totally independent in terms of its literary genres. Perhaps the only genre connected in one way or another with the East was the fable – not for nothing was the famous fabulist Aesop considered, at a later time, to be a native of Asia Minor who subsequently lived in Babylon. It is diicult to say whether the Greek fable as a genre really did come from the literary traditions of Asia Minor. A type of poetry did exist in Assyrian-Babylonian literature in which the characters were not people but plants, and possibly also animals. he Eastern fable, however, as far as may be judged from surviving texts, was devoid of the distinctive characteristic that was indispensable in Greek, and subsequently European, fables – a moral. It may be that the Greeks were indebted to the East for the general idea of the fable as a story in which animals and plants behaved like humans. he archaic era was a time of rapid development in Greek science, and the formation of the celebrated dialectical approach of the Greeks to the explanation of 36 natural phenomena. he philosophers hales, Heraclitus, Anaximandrus and Anaximenes have traditionally been credited (rightly so, judging by the fragments of their works that have survived) with the transference of the scientiic achievements of the Near East, in particular those of the Babylonians, on to Greek soil. Greek thinkers frequently based their research on material accumulated by their Eastern counterparts, whose science, like their civilisation as a whole, originated much earlier than that of the Greeks. A very important role in this scientiic exchange was played by Babylonian science, the successor of Sumerian science – in the irst instance, by mathematics and astronomy. Only meagre fragments of the scientiic works of the Greeks in this early period have survived, and we can now only surmise how numerous these borrowings were. In particular, it is possible that the Greek names for the planets (subsequently translated into Latin) were themselves translated from Babylonian, e.g. Venus (Aphrodite) – Ishtar. he inluence of Babylonian mathematics on the Greeks was evidently substantial, but the Greeks borrowed material, not methods of research. hey did not compile lists of problems as the Sumerian-Babylonian mathematicians did, but drew up general rules. Neither were Greek borrowings from the people of the East in other cultural spheres automatic – the ancient culture of Egypt and Near Asia served only as a stimulus and as material for their creative thought. he next stage in the development of relations between the Greeks and the Eastern peoples ater the era of colonisation came with the Persian Wars. Taking a cue from the Ancient Greeks, it is customary even today to see them as the triumph of Greek democracy, which made it possible for a handful of Greeks, who saw themselves as free defenders of their homeland, to be victorious over the forces of the Persian kings that had so recently appeared to be indestructible. he Persian Wars had not only moral signiicance, however, but also enormous political and cultural importance for the Greeks. heir contacts with the peoples of the East became more extensive and more active. Asia was now much more accessible to the Greeks than it had been previously. Not only Greek mercenaries, but also Greek cratsmen, doctors and military specialists were now frequently to be found in Persia. A very signiicant inluence of Greek art on the East can therefore Mariam Dandamayeva be observed even in the period that preceded Alexander’s campaigns. In addition, the route to Persia lay through other Eastern countries, in particular ancient Babylon, about which the literary tradition, telling of its fabulous beauty and wealth, was established long before Alexander. As a result of the Persian Wars the Greeks realised that they were not alone in the world, and that other peoples had their own languages, history and cultural traditions. On a purely empirical level, of course, they must have been aware of this earlier, but such close contact with barbarians made the Greeks think about the historical development of their own homeland and of other countries. It was at this time that the historical genre came into being, reaching its peak in the works of Herodotus, a Greek historian from Halicarnassus in Asia Minor, whose work was closely linked with Athens.8 Herodotus was not the irst Greek historian. he works of his predecessors, the socalled logographers (from the Greek logos – a tale, sometimes with the shade of meaning of ‘an invented account’), have survived only in insigniicant fragments. At least some of the logographers travelled extensively (Hecataeus of Miletus, for example, who wrote a history of Egypt). he Persian Wars, as a result of which Asia became a single entity, made this possible. What distinguished the logographers from earlier traditions was the fact that they wrote in prose. heir compositions were not historical in the modern sense of the word: the characters in them were oten gods and heroes. Another feature of the logographers’ works, also borrowed by Herodotus, was the characteristic (for the archaic period) certainty in the ethnic and cultural unity of the world. For instance, noble Greek families had Eastern characters in their family trees, and Perseus and Heracles could be either Egyptians or Assyrians. he Greeks of that time were evidently convinced that history began in the East, and that all their national heroes came from there. he gods had diferent names and diferent appearances in various countries, but they were the same gods. For example, from Herodotus’ point of view, the Egyptian god Amon, who was usually depicted with the head of a ram on a human body, was none other than Zeus, who once hid from Heracles under a sheep’s skin.9 Herodotus, who had thought of writing a history of the Persian Wars, described the campaigns of Cyrus, the founder of the Achaemenid dynasty, accompanying his references to the countries he subjugated with extensive historicalcultural digressions. It is these digressions, describing the cultural traditions and customs of the peoples of the East, which are of principal value in this work by the historian from Halicarnassus. he information Herodotus provides is oten unreliable, and his arguments, from a modern point of view, are naïve, but he is not called ‘the father of history’ for nothing. Herodotus is interested in the course of historical development, takes a detached view of the culture and customs of other peoples, attempts to ind rational explanations for unconventional (from a Greek point of view) behaviour, and recognises their right to be diferent – not like Greeks. he word ‘barbarians’ was widely used in Herodotus’ time to mean, more oten than not, simply ‘non-Greeks’. When describing the clashes between the Greeks and Persians, he called the latter ‘barbarians’. Much time was to pass before the Greeks were able to recognise the diference, on a theoretical level, between ethnic groups, and the irst thing that was evident in contacts with representatives of other peoples was, of course, the diference in language. he term ‘barbarian’ also meant someone who spoke in an incomprehensible language, making a sound something like ‘ba-ba’. It is usually considered that for a long time the word ‘barbarian’ did not have the negative connotations for the Greeks which it subsequently acquired. To a signiicant extent this is true, but the Greeks, while realising their diference from other peoples, were convinced of the superiority of their own culture and way of life. heir victory in the Persian Wars, of course, only served to conirm this conviction. Even Herodotus, who is renowned for his broad views and who remarked that every people believes its own institutions to be the best, felt the superiority of the Greeks over the barbarians – at any rate, their moral superiority. he Spartan king Pausanias, whose relative’s body had been abused by the Persians, could not bring himself to do the same with the corpses of those who had committed the sacrilege, because, in his opinion, it did not beit Greeks to behave like barbarians.10 Greek literature of the 5th and 4th centuries BC shows that the attitude of the Greeks to barbarians in the classical period was not particularly respectful. In his comedy ‘he Babylonians’ Aristophanes, in an attempt to sting his political opponents in his native 37 Alexander and the East What came before Athens more painfully, compares them with Babylonians; and Andromache, the heroine of Euripides’ ‘he Trojan Women’, shouts at the Greeks who are committing excesses during the sack of Troy: ‘You are barbarians, not Greeks’.11 his example demonstrates the kind of behaviour associated with the term ‘barbarians’ by Euripides’ contemporaries. As far as the Greeks were concerned, the distinguishing characteristics of barbarians, especially the inhabitants of Asia Minor – the Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians – were idleness, drunkenness, gluttony, efeminacy and a tendency towards debauchery. he concept that barbarians were in all respects the direct opposite of decent people (i.e. the Greeks) can constantly be traced in Greek traditions, sometimes taking on openly grotesque or fantastic forms. Yet the Greeks’ naïve consciousness of the value of their own culture was not of a conceptual character; they had no ideology of superiority over other peoples, and there was none of the contempt towards other peoples that was characteristic of the Roman Empire. In many cases they readily admitted the merits of Eastern culture, particularly of science, and well understood how much older the civilisation of Egypt and Asia was than their own. his attitude to the Eastern peoples was also relected in the ideas of Alexander the Great, whose interest in the countries of the East was combined with a striving to take Greek culture there. 38 Notes Mythological beings Line drawings after Assyrian seals, 9th –7th century BC Mariam Dandamayeva 1 W. W. Tarn, Hellenistic Civilisation, London, 1930, pp. 3–4 2 The fullest hypotheses relating to Eastern borrowings in Greek culture are set out in: Martin West, The East Face of Helicon. West Asiatic Elements in Greek Poetry and Myth, Oxford, 1997 3 The fundamental works in the ield of the inluence of Eastern culture on Greek culture in the archaic period are by Walter Burkert, in particular: W. Burkert, The Orientalizing Revolution. Near Eastern Inluence on Greek Culture in the Early Archaic Age, Cambridge (MA)-London, 1992 4 Herodotus, II, 164 5 Odyssey, I, 53 6 Hesiod, Theogony, 517, 519 7 H. G. Güterbock, ‘The Hittite Version of the Hurrian Kumarbi Myths: Oriental Forerunners of Hesiod’, American Journal of Archaeology (Princeton), vol. 52, 1948, no. 1, pp. 123–124 8 For the importance of the Persian Wars in the origin of the historical genre, see Robert Drews, The Greek Accounts of Eastern History, Cambridge (MA), 1973. 9 Herodotus, II, 42. 10 Herodotus, IX, 79. 11 Euripides, The Trojan Women, 764 39 30 Overlay for a gorytos: scenes from the life of Achilles Northern Black Sea coast, Bosporan kingdom (?), 350–325 BC ALEXANDER AND THE NORTHERN NOMADS Andrey Alexeev Several years before Alexander the Great’s troops met the Central Asian nomads in Darius III’s army in action – at the Battle of Gaugamela on 1 October 331 BC – Philip II, Alexander’s father, had been obliged irst to form a union and subsequently to wage war with other nomads: the Black Sea Scythians, who were active from the mid-4th century BC in Dobruje in hrace, on the right bank of the Lower Danube. It was at this time and in this region that the interests of the two powerful political entities of the time irst clashed; one of them, Macedon, would shortly achieve world hegemony, while the other, Scythia, always remained on the periphery of the general political struggle. In 340 BC Philip was laying siege to Byzantium on the shore of the hracian Bosporus, while at the same time further north – by the Danube – the Scythian King Ateas, as recorded by the Roman historian Pompeius Trogus in his Historiae Philippicae (7th century BC), was waging war with Istrians – either men from the city of Istria or a local hracian tribe. As he was experiencing diiculties in this war, Ateas applied for Philip’s assistance through the residents of the city of Apollonia, promising in return to adopt the King 41 Alexander and the Northern nomads of Macedon and consequently to bequeath his property to him. It is typical that earlier, apparently, the same Scythians had also come into conlict with the residents of Byzantium. Certainly Clement of Alexandria (2nd – 3rd centuries AD) mentions the following letter in one of his compositions, with a cross-reference to Aristocrites: ‘Scythian King Ateas to the people of Byzantium: do not harm my revenue, or my mares will drink your water.’ 1 hus at one time the Macedonians and the Scythians had a common enemy, and Philip considered it advantageous not only to form an alliance with Ateas, but also to provide him with tangible assistance, sending a Macedonian detachment to help him. At this very time, however, the ‘king of the Istrians’ died, the war ended, and Ateas sent the Macedonian troops back, saying that he did not need help, nor did he need an heir, since he already had a son. In reply, Philip demanded that Ateas bear part of the expense of the siege of Byzantium, and, when the Scythians refused, he lited the siege and proceeded northwards. At the same time he informed Ateas that he wished to erect a statue of Heracles in the Danube estuary, to which Ateas replied that he would not permit Philip’s army on to his land, but that he was prepared to receive and install the statue himself, and even to care for its maintenance. Otherwise, he warned, the statue would be pulled down and used to make arrows for the nomads. he conlict was resolved by a battle between the Scythians and the Macedonians in 339 BC, in which King Ateas (then over 90) was killed. Philip took 20,000 women and children prisoner, and just as many thoroughbred horses, but it turned out that the Scythians had no gold or silver. he details of this battle are unknown to us, with the exception of an account by Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. 30–103 AD) that during a battle with the Scythians (evidently meaning the Scythians of Ateas) Philip placed his most reliable horsemen behind his lines of warriors, ordering them to return or kill those who retreated.2 Strange as it may seem, this victory did not apparently harm the Scythians’ military reputation, neither did it bring Philip particular luck – on the return journey all his booty was taken by the Triballoi, and in a skirmish with them he himself was once again wounded in the leg. It should be noted that King Ateas, who was ruler of almost the whole of Scythia (or rather its westernmost part), evidently considered himself to be Philip’s equal, even taking 42 some demonstratively political steps to conirm their equality of status. In particular, one can point to the minting of silver coins, the irst issue of which (featuring the head of Heracles and a Scythian on a horse with the inscription ΑΤΑΙΑΣ) can be set at some time not long before 346 BC, and the second of which (with the head of Artemis and a Scythian on a horse) – at 345–339 BC; these were minted in Kallatis, on the western shore of the Black Sea. Ateas’ coins were not copies of Macedonian gold and silver coins, but have a close metrological and typological connection with them. In 1977–1978 the history of relations between Philip and Ateas unexpectedly emerged from the conines of research into the niggardly and dry accounts of ancient authors. It was then that the Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronikos began excavating the so-called Great Tumulus near Vergina, Northern Greece (in the territory of ancient Macedon), in which three tombs belonging to members of the Macedonian royal dynasty were discovered (another was discovered later). In one of these tombs, which Andronikos and the scholars who supported him considered to be the burial-vault of Philip II, murdered in 336 BC (nowadays many historians, archaeologists and anthropologists consider it to be the tomb of King Philip III Arrhidaeus, Philip II’s son and Alexander the Great’s half-brother, who was killed in 317 BC and buried with royal honours in 316 BC together with his wife Eurydice), a gold bracket was found on a gorytos of the Scythian type (for similar examples, see cats 30, 42), with scenes of the taking of a city. his extraordinary object has sometimes been considered by modern scholars to be a trophy of war or a diplomatic git from the Scythians in the context of the Scythian-Macedonian conlict of 339 BC. here is no less basis, however, for considering it to be a diplomatic git sent, for instance, by Perisades, ruler of the Bosporus, to his near and distant neighbours in Scythia and Macedonia at the turn of the 330s and 320s BC. In any case, the gold gorytos from the 2nd tomb in the Great Tumulus at Vergina provides us with remarkable material evidence of the contacts between the Northern Black Sea states and Macedon. In 335 BC, ater the death of Philip II, Alexander the Great waged a campaign against the Illyrians and hracians, reaching the Danube with his army and even crossing to its let bank into the land of the Getae, one of the hracian tribes. he Andrey Alexeev Scythians are not mentioned in the context of this campaign. It may be that Alexander simply skirted around their territory, or that ater the war with Philip they had temporarily let the area around the Danube. In the spring of 334 BC Alexander crossed the Hellespont (now the Dardanelles) on to the Asian side with a 35,000strong army. In Troy he made sacriices to the gods and to Achilles, and let a full set of arms in the Temple of Athena, taking in exchange, according to Arrian, ‘some of the sacred weapons that still survived from the Trojan War’, which they carried before him in battles. So began the Great Eastern Campaign, in which Alexander the Great, again according to Arrian, ‘counted on nobody but himself; he did not run away from the Great King; he subdued the tribes that stood in his way to the sea’.3 Ater three years, having taken numerous cities and won several glorious victories over the Persians, Alexander reached Assyria, where his last major battle with Darius took place near Gaugamela, not far from the River Tigris. Before the battle began, various peoples who had subordinate or friendly relations with the Persians joined the Persian army; these included Scythians (as Quintus Curtius Rufus writes). Arrian mentions the Sacae (‘a Scythian tribe of the Scythians who live in Asia’, ‘horsemen who shoot from a bow’), who arrived with Indians, Bactrians and Sogdians. Typically, the latter were actually under the command of Bessus, the satrap of Bactria, but the Sacae did not place themselves under his command, since they were the direct allies of Darius – they were led by Mavak Mauaces. Descriptions of the formation of the Persian army also mention other Central Asian nomads, particularly the Dai (Dahae) and the Massagetai. In this case our main sources – Arrian, Curtius Rufus and Diodorus of Sicily – sometimes use diferent names for speciic nomadic tribes which took part in the battle when describing the same events. According to Arrian, for instance, the let lank of the Persian army included Scythians (in the vanguard) and Dahae, and the right lank – the Sacae. According to Curtius Rufus, the Dahae and the Massagetai were on the let lank. It is typical that the Persians’ only major success in this battle was achieved just where the detachments of nomads were located. When the ‘mass light’ of the main body of the Persians had already started, the Macedonians’ let lank was breached, and part of the enemy cavalry forced its way through the gap to the supply section of Alexander’s army. In this instance Arrian writes of Indians and ‘the Persian cavalry’, Curtius Rufus writes of Massagetai (subsequently calling this detachment ‘Scythian’), and Diodorus of a detachment including ‘a thousand Scythian horsemen’. Whatever may have been the case, it is quite clear that it was a detachment of nomadic horsemen that managed to force its way through to Alexander’s supply section and rob it. he Macedonians twice attempted to repel the attack, but without success. During the second counter-attack, according to Curtius Rufus, the Scythians’ commander was killed, but the Bactrians who came to their aid recovered the position. he Persians nevertheless sufered a crushing defeat in this battle, ater which there was virtually nothing to impede Alexander’s progress to the East. It took him less than two years to reach the most remote Persian satrapies, Bactria and Sogdia, force the River Ox (Amudarya) and approach the River Jaxartes-Tanais (Syrdarya), which the ‘local barbarians’, in Arrian’s words, called the Orxant. It was here in 329 BC that Alexander decided to found a city named ater himself. here then began a revolt of the local people ‘living in the vicinity of the river’, who started to destroy the Macedonian garrisons in the cities. A little earlier Alexander had received embassies from the Abii Scythians living in Asia and from the European Scythians. his event is described, though not in entirely identical detail, by both Arrian and Curtius Rufus. Arrian is more consistent and comprehensible in his accounts, and also in his concepts of geography, while Curtius includes some additional details, but is vaguer about geography. Arrian writes that Alexander sent with the Scythians (the largest tribe in Europe) ‘some of his ‘friends’, on the pretext of establishing friendly relations; the real purpose of this embassy was to become familiar with the nature of the Scythian land and to ind out how great the population was, what its customs were, and with what arms they went to war’.4 Curtius Rufus even gives the name of the envoy – Pendas (or Berdes), who was commissioned to visit the Scythians living on the shores of the Bosporus. Debates still continue among scholars about who these Scythians were. he majority of scholars think that the people in question were Central Asian nomads who may have been called 43 Alexander and the Northern nomads ‘European’ in error, since, during Alexander’s campaign, but especially ater it, the Asian Tanais (Jaxartes) began to intermingle frequently with the European Tanais (River Don), which lowed into the Sea of Azov and, according to the most widespread opinion in ancient times, divided Europe from Asia. Nevertheless, Arrian himself (or perhaps his source), to judge by his description of subsequent events, meant the remote Scythians living near the Black Sea. Indeed, shortly ater the departure of the envoys, a skirmish took place near the Tanais between the Macedonians and the ‘Asian’ Scythians (as they are characterised by Arrian), whose forces had arrived at the river and positioned themselves on its right bank. hese Scythians began to insult Alexander, ‘boasting according to the barbarian custom’. Despite unfavourable predictions, Alexander ‘in irritation’ decided to cross the river. In the skirmish about a thousand Scythians were killed and about 150 taken prisoner. During this pursuit, however, Alexander himself drank some ‘bad’ water, as a result of which he fell ill and was obliged to turn the Macedonians back. Shortly aterwards envoys from the Scythian king came to Alexander with apologies and explanations that ‘it was not the Scythian people as a whole that were involved, but a band of robbers and brigands’. his episode shows the diference in Arrian’s distinction between the ‘Asian’ Scythians, who lived in the immediate vicinity of the River Jaxartes, and the ‘European’ Scythians, who clearly inhabited a quite diferent area. Ater the events described, the Macedonians were obliged for a time to ight with the rebellious local population, who were joined by detachments of local nomads. Ater Alexander had wintered in the Bactrian capital, Bactra, he again received an embassy from the European Scythians, with whom Alexander’s envoys also returned. During this time the Scythian king had died ater sending the irst embassy, and had been replaced by his brother. From this it follows that these Scythians, as opposed to the Asian Scythians, lived quite a distance from Central Asia – an area that was several months’ journey away, which indirectly conirms the possibility of their location on the Northern Black Sea coast. he European Tanais/River Don and the Asian Tanais/Syrdarya are about 2,000 to 2,500 kilometres apart, so the envoys would have required about four months for an unhurried journey with no obstacles. 44 hese Scythians brought gits, which were esteemed ‘most precious’ by them, and also an ofer to marry Alexander to their king’s daughter and his friends to the daughters of powerful Scythians. ‘Alexander replied afectionately to the envoys, as it was to his advantage at that time, but he declined the Scythian brides.’5 An account that merits attention in this episode is that Pharasmanes, the king of the Chorasmians, came at the same time as the Scythians and ofered Alexander assistance in subjugating the peoples of the Euxine (Black Sea). At that time Alexander refused, saying that it was ‘now not the time for him to go to Pontus’, since his thoughts were occupied by India. When he had subjugated the whole of Asia, however, he would return to Greece and burst into Pontus from there. From these words it follows that Alexander had not rejected the idea of subjugating the Black Sea coast, and it becomes clear just why he sent his envoy-spies to the Scythians and why Pharasmanes made his ofer at the very time when the Scythian envoys were with Alexander. Material evidence of the exchange of embassies may be provided by the discovery in the Scythian ‘royal’ burial mound at Chertomlyk (Ukraine) of a golden akinakes captured from the Persians, which may have been sent by Alexander to the ruler of the steppes as a diplomatic git (cat. 203). he formal harness from the Alexandropol Barrow (also now in the Ukraine), another Scythian burial-mound, can also be considered in the context of these or similar political events (cat. 44). It is not inconceivable that even before Persia was subjugated Alexander had been nurturing the idea of skirting the Black Sea to the north through the lands of the Scythian nomads and returning to Macedon from there. At any rate, even before the dispatch of the royal embassy to Scythia, Zopirio, Alexander’s governor-general in Pontus, undertook a campaign in 331 or 330 BC with his 30,000-strong army in the north-west of the Black Sea coast against the Getae, the Scythians and the Greek city of Olbia on the northern shore of the Black Sea. Zopirio even managed to lay siege to Olbia, where there may have been a ‘ith column’ that established contact with the Pontine governor-general (in one cultural layer at Olbia archaeologists discovered a letter on a clay amphora: ‘Nicophanes, son of Adrastes, gave Zopirio a horse; let him send it to me in the city and let him be given the letters’ – evidence, in the opinion of some scholars, of betrayal). Andrey Alexeev Nevertheless, the campaign ended in total failure, Zopirio being routed with the aid of the Scythians. his victory of the Scythians is typically seen in the same light as their legendary victories over the Persian kings Cyrus II and Darius I in the 6th century BC. hus Justin, in his epitome of Pompeius Trogus’ ‘Historiae’, when listing the most important events in Scythian history, wrote the following: ‘he Scythians established dominion over Asia on three occasions; they themselves constantly remained untouched, or not defeated by another power. hey drove the Persian king Darius out of Scythia in ignominy; Cyrus was slaughtered with his whole army; Zopirio, Alexander the Great’s general, was also destroyed with his whole army…’6 What was most surprising, however, was that when Alexander learned of this crushing defeat, he was not unduly saddened by the loss of Zopirio’s army (as recorded by Justin/ Pompeius Trogus). his becomes comprehensible only if one supposes that Alexander’s plans had changed fundamentally by this time, and that the defeat essentially opened the road to India. Indeed, in the event of Zopirio being successful it would have been necessary, regardless of Alexander’s own wishes, to put into practice the global strategic plan of joining his troops with those of Zopirio in the remote Scythian steppes. he world of the Eurasian nomads was not entirely homogeneous, ‘Scythians’ being the general name for a great variety of tribes who difered in their places of habitation, armaments, customs and political inclinations. During Alexander’s sojourn in Central Asia, when the whole of Bactria and Sogdiana were already in the power of the Macedonians, the king and his comrades-in-arms were constantly having to put down resistance from the locals, whose most prominent leader was the Sogdian Spitamenes, a member of the retinue of the satrap and self-styled king Bessus, and one of those who seized him and delivered him to Alexander ater Darius was murdered. Spitamenes could also rely on the support of various nomadic tribes, especially the Massagetai and the Dahae. When Spitamenes decided to strike another blow against the Macedonians in Sogdiana, he persuaded around three thousand Scythian Massagetai horsemen to join him. Arrian writes that ‘It is an easy matter to induce these Scythians to engage in one war ater another, because they are pinched by poverty, and at the same time have no cities or settled abodes to give them cause for anxiety about what is most dear to them.’7 he Macedonians won the battle, many of the Bactrians and Sogdians surrendered, and the Massagetai, ater robbing the supply section of their allies, led along with Spitamenes. Learning of Alexander’s intention to pursue them, they killed Spitamenes and sent the king his head. here is, however, a diferent version of these events: in Curtius Rufus’ account Spitamenes went into hiding not with the Massagetai but with the Dahae, and was murdered by his wife. Judging by the available information, the Central Asian nomads were later to also take a fairly active part in subsequent events, but on the side of Alexander. We know that there were detachments of Dahae and Scythians in his army during the Indian campaign and the battle with Porus. heir presence was obviously very important to Alexander, since, in summoning his weary soldiers to continue the campaign into India, he could point out that the Scythians and Dahae were now ighting on their side. his is how Curtius Rufus renders his words: ‘You have to think how small our numbers were when we crossed the Hellespont; now the Scythians follow us and we are receiving help from the Bactrians, and Dahae and Sogdians are ighting amongst us’.8 he last time nomads are mentioned is in 323 BC, when, according to Arrian, embassies from various peoples visited the great king on his way to Babylon – Bretti, Lucanians and Tyrrhenians from Italia, Carthaginians, Ethiopians, Celts and Iberians, and – for the third time – the ‘European’ Scythians. Arrian writes: ‘Especially at that time Alexander was, to himself and those around him, the ruler of the world.’9 Ater Alexander’s death and the break-up of his empire, its northernmost part – hrace – passed to the διάδοχος (Greek for ‘successor’ or ‘heir’) Lysimachus, a general and one of the king’s bodyguards. Several years before this, however, ater the death of Zopirio, the Odris hracians under King Seuthes III had defected from Macedon. At approximately the same time Memnon, Alexander’s governor-general in hrace, rebelled, also inciting the barbarians. From 323 BC the kingdom of Odris under Seuthes III became more powerful, and the hracians’ ight against Macedonian rule was renewed – now in the person of Lysimachus, who nevertheless proclaimed himself king of hrace in 305 BC. he natural allies of the hracians in this situation may have been the 45 Alexander and the Northern nomads Notes 1 Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, V, 31 231 Figure of a horseman with a bow 2 Frontinus, Strategemata, II, 8, 14 Iran, 5th – 4th century BC 3 Arrian, I, 12, 4. Scythians, who had also been in conlict with Macedonian expansion on several occasions. Evidence of the links between the Scythians and the hracians at this time is provided by the fairly numerous imported hracian formal items – above all, by the adornments for horse’s bridles (see cat. 43). In 313 BC Lysimachus attempted to subjugate the Western Pontine cities of Kallatis, Istria and Odessos, which received assistance from Getae and Scythians. he participation of the latter proved unsuccessful, as Lysimachus managed to split the coalition and defeat the Scythians, who remained without support. Shortly aterwards, at the turn of the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, under various pressures, not least of which was obviously the onslaught of new nomadic tribes from the East (and their movement to the west may have been stimulated partly by Alexander’s military action in Central Asia), Black Sea Scythia ceased to exist as a powerful military and political entity. 46 4 Arrian, IV, 1, 2 5 Arrian, IV, 15, 5 6 Justin, Epitoma, II, 3, 1–4 7 Arrian, IV, 17, 5 8 Curtius Rufus, History, IX, 2, 24 9 Arrian, VII, 15, 5 287 Iskander and the dying Darius Miniature from the Khamsa of the Persian poet Nizami (1141–1209), copied by Hasan al-Husseini al-Khatib ash-Shirazi in 948 (1541) THE TWO HORNS OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT Mikhail B. Piotrovsky Among the numerous historical accounts used by the Koran to conirm the thesis of an almighty and all-powerful God, there is a mention of Dhul-Qarnayn – ‘He of the Two Horns’. he ‘Cave’ chapter (18: 83–98) describes, with a prolixity not entirely usual for the Koran, how Allah determined the fate and the exploits of the Two-Horned One and set him on a just and correct course. he hero reached the place where the sun sets, i.e. the end of the world, and saw that it sinks into a fetid spring. Nearby lived certain people, who asked him to judge them. He punished the unjust, rewarded the righteous, then set of in the opposite direction – to the place where the sun rises. here also dwelt a strange people, totally unprotected from the sun. Dhul-Qarnayn then reached another geographical place of interest – a place between two barriers (mountains). he people who lived there could hardly understand human speech. hey appealed to him for help, asking him to protect them from terrible creatures that were hostile to people and spread impiety and unbelief across the earth. hese creatures were called Yajuj and Majuj – these are, of course, the Gog and Magog of the Bible. he hero was ofered gits for saving the 49 The two horns of Alexander the Great people, but he said what was important to him were not taxes but the favour of Allah, and for the sake of this he would erect a barrier against the forces of evil. here follows an almost realistic account of the construction of a wall (or dam) between the mountains. he residents of the region were ordered to bring ‘pieces of iron’. Dhul-Qarnayn built a stone wall between the mountains on a level with their summits. He then ordered a ire to be started, melted the metal and poured it into the crevices between the stones. he terrible Yajuj and Majuj were unable to get over or destroy this barrier. Dhul-Qarnayn declared the construction of the wall to be by the will and git of Allah, and warned that when the end of the world comes and Judgment Day arrives, the wall would turn to dust (18: 83–98). In another place it is written that on the Day of Judgment ‘Yajuj and Majuj will be revealed, and they will rush down from each of the heights’ (21: 96). he Biblical Gog and Magog here take on a somewhat more speciic nature than in the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel and in the Revelation of St John. hey live behind the wall, behind the celebrated Iron Gate, which ancient Eastern legends considered to be a defence against incursions by nomads in the steppes of Central Asia (or indeed in the North Caucasus). It follows from the text in the Koran that the Two-Horned One was a igure familiar to the people of Mecca. hey asked Mohammed about him. he account in the Koran is not the irst narrative about him, but interprets his miraculous deeds and journeys as conirmation of the will of Allah, without which nothing of any importance can occur on earth.1 he identity of Dhul-Qarnayn has never been in doubt: it is the name given to Alexander the Great in Arabic. he sobriquet encompassed the two aspects of his history, real and mythical. In the ancient East horns were always revered as a sign of great power given by God. We may recall that an erroneous interpretation of a Biblical text attributed a horn to the prophet Moses. A mistake is a mistake, but thanks to the magical belief in the possessors of horns this image is now rooted in Jewish and Christian traditions. Several kings with various forms of the sobriquet ‘horned’ igure in the legends of ancient Yemen. hey have their own Dhul-Qarnayn, a Himyarite king whose legends include a number of episodes relating to the story of Alexander.2 he Two-Horned One is mentioned in ancient Arabian poetry, and several legendary kings from the Lachmid 50 dynasty in eastern Arabia and Iraq were given that name.3 For the most part, however, the Two-Horned One was taken to be Alexander. Mythological symbolism led to the identiication of Alexander with the Egyptian bull-god Ammon. Depictions of him thus gave rise to an image of the king which included horns. hey appear on coins of Alexander. And the evocative sobriquet replaced his real name. Yet none forgot his real name. he great hero made a huge impression on the peoples he conquered. his gave rise to numerous tales and legends in which Greek stories blended with various popular themes. Series of legends about the great leader appeared, known collectively as ‘the Romance of Alexander’. Among the versions in various languages the ones that stand out are, of course, the Greek and Syrian. In this ‘Romance’ there are many wonderful tales of fabulous journeys to the diferent ends of the earth, of the search for the source of immortality, and so on. he ‘Romance’ became a well-loved collection of edifying stories that were passed on by word of mouth, frequently losing various sections and themes that found their way into other series of legends. It is one of the most typical and widespread epic works of the Hellenistic and Post-Hellenistic East. It was therefore only natural that those who listened to Mohammed’s revelations also wanted to know what he thought and knew about the widely-known hero. And the Koran, the mouthpiece of Allah, included episodes from the story of Alexander in its historical and philosophical scheme. Another loosely-veiled theme from the Alexander cycle can be found in the Koran, in an account of one of the most mysterious heroes (18: 59/60 – 81/82). A typical Alexandrine theme – the search for the source of eternal life – is part of a narrative about Musa – Moses, although the Koran certainly does not conirm that this Musa is also the Old Testament prophet. he hero and his servant set out to seek ‘living water’ and discover it by accident. A salted ish sprinkled with the water comes to life. What is interesting is the place where this miracle occurs. In the Koran it is called Majma-ul-Bahrain – the mingling of two seas. he place in question is the northern part of the Persian Gulf (historically Bahrain). Here the fresh waters of the Tigris and Euphrates mingled with the salt sea. Here powerful subterranean freshwater springs gush into the salt sea. his was where the ancient Sumerians placed paradise – the place of eternal life. hese beliefs are much earlier than Mikhail B. Piotrovsky Alexander, but the dual image of ‘two seas’ is somewhat akin to ‘two horns’. he mythical themes coincide. he ish that had come to life swam of, and in its place the hero and his servant met a Slave of Allah, a wise man whom Musa asked if they could become his travelling companions and disciples. he Slave of Allah refused, saying that they would not have the patience to wait for an explanation of the strange deeds he would do. And that is just how it turned out. Musa was sorely perplexed as to why his companion holed and sank the boat of some poor ishermen, why he killed an unknown boy, and why he repaired the wall in a settlement whose residents had refused him hospitality. When taking his leave, the Slave of Allah explained his actions. He had damaged the boat so that it would not be captured by a tyrant king. he boy he had killed was an unbeliever and would have brought grief and trouble to his parents; now they could beg Allah for the git of another son. he wall he had restored had contained treasure that had to be preserved until the coming-of-age of two good orphans, the children of devout parents. he Slave of Allah had done all this not of his own will, but at the behest of Allah, who alone knows the meaning of events and actions. his is the basic idea running through all the stories in the Koran. It is expressed both in the absorbing accounts of the building of the wall and in paradoxical parables. And in both cases the narrative includes well-known stories from the legends of the fabulous Alexander.4 he references and allusions in the Koran are evidence of the widespread existence of traditions about Alexander, even in an area as remote from his area of operation as the Arabian Peninsula. Indeed, they breathed new life into these traditions. he tales of the Two-Horned Iskander (Alexander the Great), hallowed by the quotes in the Koran, became more widespread. hey were recorded by commentators on the Koran, and were retold by historians and the authors of compilations of entertaining stories in various parts of the huge Muslim world. Finally, they were taken up by poets. he story of Alexander, the great hero who had subjugated East and West, became an obligatory theme by which poets demonstrated their skill. he Iskandar-nahme was a permanent part of the celebrated Khamse – collections of ive poems. Nizami, Navoi, Amir Khosro Dahlavi and many others wrote about him.5 Pictorial images emerged alongside the literary image. Nobody would even have considered portraying a character from the Koran, yet a character of the same name in a Persian poem could safely be drawn without the artist being branded a sinner and blasphemer. Along with the poetic collections of standard ‘Alexandrine’ episodes and motifs there appeared standard pictorial motifs, themes, compositions and images. hey were simultaneously similar and diferent, like the folk themes they illustrated. Taken together, the Koran, the commentaries, the poetry and the miniatures create a single image of Alexander, the mighty Two-Horned One, who subjugated East and West, discovering not only the source of eternal life, but also the source of eternal divine wisdom. he hero of the tales is, at the same time, the hero of philosophical parables. Beauty blends with wisdom. West mingles with East. One of the particularly impressive themes in the miniatures concerns the portrait of Alexander shown to him by Queen Nushabe. he portrait of Alexander did actually become part of Hellenistic culture. he story of Alexander listening to the siren gave rise to one of the most striking graphic and colour compositions in Muslim painting. And the popular theme of the meeting of the two great kings – Alexander and Darius – permits me to close this article with a quote from Kipling’s best-known poem – the lines that, for some reason, people forget to add ater the famous ‘Oh, East is East, and West is West’: But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth, When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth! Rudyard Kipling, ‘he Ballad of East and West’ Alexander Dhul-Qarnayn, the real man and the fabulous character, showed that East and West are but the two horns of power and glory. Notes 1 See: M. B. Piotrovsky, Коранические сказания [Koranic Sayings], Moscow, 1991, pp. 147–149; M. B. Piotrovsky, Исторические предания Корана [Historic Traditions in the Koran], St Petersburg, 2005, pp. 125–128 3 See: M. B. Piotrovsky, Предания о химйаритском царе Асаде ал-Камиле [The Tradition of the Himyarite King Asad al-Kamil], 1977, pp. 19, 29, 33, 75, 107 5 E. E. Bertels, «Роман об Александре» и его главные версии на Востоке [‘The Romance of Alexander’ and its Main Versions in the East], Moscow, 1948, pp. 3–185 4 See: Piotrovsky 1991 (note 1), pp. 111–112; Piotrovsky 2005 (note 1), p. 97 2 J. Horovitz, Koranische Untersuchungen, Berlin – Leipzig, 1926, pp. 11–112 51 311 Gerard Audran (1640–1703), after Charles Le Brun Alexander the Great’s triumphal entry into Babylon, 1675 ‘STAND LESS BETWEEN THE SUN AND ME’ Arkady Ippolitov here is no other igure in world history – no Greek ruler, Roman Caesar, mediaeval king or emperor of the Modern Era – whom artists have depicted so frequently and in so many diferent ways as Alexander the Great. For the number and variety of subjects associated with his life Alexander can be compared only with personages of divine origin. he king of Macedonia began his journey through European art on the pages of early mediaeval manuscripts and, continuing through the millennium, at the end of the 20th century he features in the graiti art of the Afro-American Jean-Michel Basquiat. For almost 2,500 years artists have turned again and again to his deeds, but his image has not become ixed in a given iconography; it changes constantly with time, becoming to some degree a relection of each period. Alexander the Great – a historical personality as real and as famous as Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, Napoleon or Lenin – unexpectedly proves to be a far more lexible, changeable and attractive subject for visual arts than any of his rivals from the past. What is the secret of such success? What makes Alexander so attractive that he is on a par with Dionysus and Apollo, and not Pericles, Caesar or Augustus? 53 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ In order to understand Alexander’s paradoxical popularity, we need to answer a treacherously simple question: what does ‘the Ancient World’ mean for a person in the 21st century? here will probably be a great many answers, some of them perhaps even mutually exclusive, but in the end one is forced to the conclusion that the image of antiquity in today’s world is as varied as contemporary reality itself. But, making a crude generalization in the manner of encyclopaedias, it is possible to say that for each of us antiquity is a bygone civilization, a large and important stage in the life of humanity that shaped all its subsequent existence, but one we have outlived, that is over and done, that has entered the realm of history. Antiquity is something we are taught about in secondary school, a sort of generalized ‘ancient world’ of Greece and Rome, a great, but closed chapter. Many people go on to discover that the ancient world of the textbooks is simpliied and schematic, that in actual fact it is broader, more complex and interesting, but the sense of it being over and done remains. However important Latin and Ancient Greek might be for us, they are still considered dead languages; the Romans and Greeks, and their gods with them, have disappeared into the mists of time and the great culture of antiquity evokes associations in our minds above all with a ruin, however beautiful and majestic it might be. he Middle Ages are far closer to us, and the barbarians who destroyed ancient civilization are, in comparison with the Greeks and Romans, close relatives of ours. Mythology, that extremely important component of ancient civilisation, has, together with it, become so remote from us, that the very word ‘myth’ in general usage has become a synonym for fantastic exaggeration, a misconception that has very little in common with reality. Great Pan has died and no-one makes oferings to Apollo or Dionysus any more; the temples of the gods have turned into architectural monuments; the nymphs, satyrs and dryads have vanished. In ancient times mythology was inseparably intertwined with history and the gods played a full part in events. Today, though, the epic heroes have been separated from the historical personages and no-one any longer mixes up in a single tale heseus and Pericles, Romulus and Gaius Marcius in the way Plutarch did. Mythology has also become a thing of the past. Or so it would seem… 54 Is that really true? he images of mythology proved so powerful and expressive that they acquired a timeless character outside of history. Mythology coalesced with the present day and became humanity’s constant, immortal companion. Just as on an unconscious level Ancient Greek and Latin became part of our everyday speech, mythology acquired a new life, penetrating to the very depths of our consciousness. he Oedipus complex, panic, tantalizing ofers and the like have taken such deep root within us that they have become a part of our everyday reality. To some extent mythology proved stronger than history and it is mythology that is capable of making us repeatedly relive antiquity, as part of our own personal experience, as something that is and not something that was. Alexander the Great, a lesh-and-blood man who beyond any doubt actually existed, belongs to history. here is no shortage of objective discussions of his historical role, of his activities, of the causes and consequences of his successes and failures, of his biography, character and even appearance. Ancient authors – Plutarch, Quintus Curtius Rufus, Diodoros of Sicily and Arrian – reported his life in a fairly ‘historiographic’ manner, seeking to be accurate and reliable. Subsequent scholars have based their work on those highly important sources, clarifying and correcting them on the basis of an ever-growing and, especially in the past two centuries, increasingly objective body of knowledge. Following the lead of the ancient historians, who expressed doubts about various fantastical conceptions that attached themselves to Alexander even while he was still alive, modern scholarship has as far as possible stripped his image of the various interpretive accretions of the centuries, striving to recreate a portrait as close as possible to reality. Yet, however praiseworthy the ancient writers’ eforts at objectivity are, their works nonetheless present Alexander irst and foremost as a literary character, invested with all the attributes of a ictional hero. he image of a young ruler who conquered the whole world by the age of thirty is by deinition supernatural and from the very outset the account of Alexander’s life is accompanied by speculation about his possible divine origins that links the Macedonian king to mythological heroes, giving his image an altogether special lustre. Only divinity can explain his unique destiny and ideas of this sort, even if denied, become a irm feature of Alexander’s story. At practically one and Arkady Ippolitov the same time as the tradition of a historical biography of Alexander, there grew up a tradition that told of an unearthly, superhuman, unreal Alexander, of an Alexander more akin to Achilles and Heracles than to Pericles and hemistocles. hese two traditions, seemingly mutually exclusive, in actual fact become tightly intertwined. For us Alexander has a priori a mythological aspect and not a single modern monograph about him can avoid going into the rumours about his descent from the god Amon or the way people likened him to Zeus the hunderer. In the image of the Macedonian king history and mythology merge into a single whole: history is mythologised, so to speak, and the king’s deeds acquire a shining aureole of higher meaning. he Gordian knot and Alexander’s magnanimity, Alexander over the body of Darius and the founding of Alexandria became topoi of European culture, universal subjects like the deeds of Heracles and heseus. hey encompass so much that later on Alexander comes forcibly to mind in totally new historical situations, making the image of the young victor over the Persians topically relevant again and again. It was only natural that already in ancient times a large number of ictional works appeared alongside histories of his life, depicting Alexander as an utterly fantastical hero invested with superhuman abilities. he most popular of these was the Alexander Romance by the Pseudo-Callisthenes.1 It served as the basis for many literary and folkloric variations in both East and West that blended historical facts with overtly fabulous details. In them Alexander descends to the bottom of the sea, lies into the heavens on the backs of eagles, obtains living water and talks with prophetic birds. With speciic reference to the stories about Alexander, in the early 14th century the Arab Ibn Khadoun wrote warning historians against believing ‘absurd things’ like the account of sea monsters hindering the foundation of Alexandria and the king himself going down into the sea to draw likenesses of them. In Europe the beginning of a literary tradition of tales about Alexander is customarily dated to the 10th century and the appearance of the Historia de preliis by the archpriest Leo of Naples, which tells of the glorious deeds of antiquity. Although based on the works of various Latin authors, these chronicles are nonetheless infused with a genuine Christian piety and are intended to demonstrate that even in the distant ungodly past worthy men appeared from time to time. Subsequently a great many similar accounts appeared in which Alexander is called ‘the irst Greek king’, occupying a place in the narrative somewhere between Priam and Scipio the African and preceding the kings of the Franks and ancient Germans. he chronicles were supplemented by illustrations that presented Alexander as a strong, stocky, bearded man clad in heavy armour, more like one of Charlemagne’s successors as ruler of the Holy Roman Empire than the creator of the Hellenistic world. In these chronicles history was regarded as an edifying tale and for all the naïvety of the mediaeval monks’ perception of antiquity, the chronicles pointed a course that was important for the emergent culture: antiquity was experienced as contemporary reality. An Alexander possessed of certain virtues, chastity, restraint and magnanimity towards subordinate knights, presented through his life an example that accorded with the ideals of the feudal hierarchy. Later this attitude towards Alexander caused him to be included among the twelve valiant ‘men of antiquity’, a sort of medieval pantheon of indeterminate composition that included such igures as Hector, Caesar and Lancelot. Alexander appeared in the company of these heroes in castle murals, in tapestry series and even among the statuary adorning cathedrals, where he is sometimes allotted a place no less honourable than the Cumaean Sibyl. Although such liberal-minded intellectuals as Father Leo closed their eyes to Alexander’s paganism, it was nonetheless clearly understood that despite all his glory and greatness the Greek king was destined for a place in hell. It could well be Alexander that Dante meets in the seventh circle, among the tyrants. hus two interpretations of the image of Alexander the Great combined in the Christian tradition: he was a paragon of valour, but at the same time a demonstration of the vanity of all earthly things, and of power above all. he negative attitude to Alexander popular among austere ascetics such as St Dominic or homas a Kempis was supported by the authority of the Church Fathers, who mention Alexander among the unrighteous pagan rulers who stooped to such blasphemy as their own deiication. While scholarly monks pondered over the question of what was uppermost in Alexander’s image – the virtues or the 55 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ paganism – the Greek ruler became a hero of folklore and from there passed into secular literature. A major role was played in this process by the Crusades and a closer acquaintance with the Byzantine and Arab world. In contrast to Father Leo, for whom Alexander was a remote igure from a past that was over and done, Byzantine historians and Arab poets perceived him with greater immediacy – as a distant, but direct predecessor. Under their inluence the mediaeval knightly romance blossomed and Alexander became a favourite personage with the French troubadours and German Minnesingers. heir hero difered from the somewhat ponderous igure in the chronicles, becoming a lighter, obliging handsome knight, whose chief characteristic was courtesy. In countless French and German poems from the late 12th and 13th centuries, Alexander does everything that beits an exemplary knight errant: defeats evil sorcerers and terrible dragons, frees beautiful maidens from enchanted castles, forces his way through impenetrable forests, talks with fairies, performs the boldest deeds and sheds righteous tears. Noble ladies appear in Alexander’s milieu. In the poem by Ulrich von Etzenbach there is a whole motley succession of them: the queen of Samargon, the duchess of hebes, the Burgravine of Tyre and the queen of Celidon. hey are gentle, lovely, virtuous creatures and Alexander’s service towards them is devoid of any sinful sensuality. Fantasy here co-exists with certain rudiments of historicity and from courtly literature the particular late Gothic image of Alexander crystallized. Now he was a handsome, tender beardless youth, attired with foppish reinement, displaying a virtuoso command of the language of courtly gallantry as well as of his weapons, a perpetual wanderer who spent his time in battles alternating with feasts – in short, an irresistible ‘golden boy’ of the Greek world in a Gothic interpretation. But the image of Alexander fabricated by courtly poetry had one important feature that made one take him seriously. he ‘golden boy’ vanquished the East and by the age of thirty became the ruler of the world, thus providing a worthy example for the imitation of all brave crusaders – including Godfrey of Bouillon, Richard the Lion-Heart and Frederick Barbarossa. his ancient hero embellished by the fanciful imagination of poets proved more relevant to High Gothic thought than any other personage of the knightly epic. 56 Alexander’s paganism was simply forgotten by poets who fell under the spell of his charm. hat is how Alexander appears in the International Gothic tradition, and surviving miniatures depict him as a svelte, almost frail youth with a shock of golden hair and a gentle, moist look in his beautiful eyes – just the way he is described by ancient writers, although the Gothic artists were ignorant of their discussions of his appearance. he ideal of courtly chivalry coincided with the image of the Greek king and the charming Alexander, cutting a dash in armour and evoking the envy of even Charles the Bold of Burgundy, was depicted in the late 14th and early 15th centuries almost as oten as St George. From the International Gothic Alexander found his way into the Italian Quattrocento. he earliest known Italian Renaissance depictions of Alexander are in the paintings on Florentine cassoni.2 In these works some kind of aberration occurs: in contrast to Etzenbach or the Frenchman Lambert de Tort, whose imagination was totally unrestrained, the Italians were closer to antiquity and for Leo of Naples Alexander was primarily a historical igure. he image of the courtly knight merges with that of the ancient ruler and the cassoni carry scenes of knightly battle that must be illustrations of a kind for the works of Plutarch and Quintus Curtius, that were then becoming fashionable reading matter. he unusual combination of a sense of history and admiration for the image of a courtly Alexander leads to a peculiar ‘realism’ in the depictions of the Macedonian king’s story that come across as contemporary events. Gaugamela, Susa and Persepolis turn into castelli, Alexander into a dashing condottiere, the Persian ladies to whom Alexander was so scrupulously courteous into elegant patricians. Nevertheless this is not the fantasy of Etzenbach, but ancient realia, and the ladies are not burgravines and duchesses, but the family of Darius. At the end of the Quattrocento a turning point occurred, irst and foremost in enlightened Florence. he historical distance between antiquity and the contemporary world was made more tangible. Alexander was no longer the best of the knights of modern times, but a Greek king, whose mores might evoke ever-increasing admiration but which difered nonetheless from those of the present day. he irst depictions all’antica appeared, an example being a marble relief attributed to the circle of Verrocchio now in the National Gallery, Arkady Ippolitov Washington. It belongs to the type known as ‘ideal heads’ that became popular in Italian Renaissance art and that present historical or mythological personages in a distinctive kind of portrait. Works of this sort vividly characterize Renaissance thinking: they inseparably blend into one the ideal and the historical, presenting an astonishing symbiosis. Antiquity is, as it were, recreated anew and is thus experienced no less, and sometimes even more keenly than contemporary reality. One sense in the work of the Florentine sculptor a desire to convey the spirit of authentic antiquity: Alexander’s armour is heavily stylized in the manner of Ancient Rome; the face with its regular features is deliberately antiquated, and the relief itself calls to mind examples of ancient sculpture that might have been known to its creator. In the Florentine Alexander, however, everything is somewhat exaggerated: his armour embellished with sea deities and monsters is over-fanciful; his heroic appearance is taken to high-lown extremes; the facial features are classical, even classicised. Yet despite all the stylisation all’antica, through the image of a Greek ruler the proile of a haughty, ruthless condottiere emerges. A look at this relief, so abstract and ideal, immediately recalls Verrochio’s statue of Colleoni, the inest monument to the brutal audacity of Renaissance-era professional soldiers. he mutual interchangeability of antiquity, the distant past, and the present day that is characteristic of the phenomenality of Renaissance thinking became one of the marks of that age’s lifestyle. With truly artistic ease dukes and popes indentiied themselves with ancient heroes and their own rule with the golden days of antiquity. In Italy at the end of the 15th century Alexander gained particularly passionate admirers amongst the members of the Borgia family. A major role was played by the fact that, on being proclaimed pope the head of the clan, Cardinal Rodrigo, took the name Alexander VI and he was lattered to have the same name as the great conqueror. Cesare, the Pope’s beloved illegitimate son, although he bore a name that clearly alluded to his Roman predecessor, Julius Caesar, also had a liking for the Macedonian, which was inspired by his non-Italian origins. A cult of Alexander reigned in the Borgia family and many late 15th-century works depicting him are connected in one way or another with Cesare’s ambitions, his eforts to unite Italy just as Alexander’s conquest united Greece. he Alexander of the Italian Quattrocento is typologically connected to the Alexander of the courtly romance, but his image is purged of the excessively fabulous, acquiring an aura of ‘ideal reality’, something generally characteristic of the Renaissance’s view of antiquity. hat is what Alexander was like as he entered the art of the High Renaissance, whose exponents simultaneously antiquated Alexander more and more, as if distancing him in time, investing him with the image of highly speciic historicity, yet idealised him and thus set him outside of time, since an ideal is not subject to time. hanks to Raphael, Alexander found his way into the holy of holies in papal Rome, the frescoes of the Stanza della Segnatura (see cat. 304), and it is entirely possible that the warrior who features in he School of Athens is not Alcibiades, as some researchers suggest, but Alexander, a pupil of Aristotle and patron of philosophers and scholars. Raphael’s school also produced one of the earliest depictions of the subject Alexander and Timoclea (Musée des Beaux-Arts, Lille) that extols the king’s mercy. his episode, related by Plutarch,3 has Alexander granting life and liberty to a heban woman who killed the looter that raped her. It does not occur in the courtly narratives. For the High Renaissance Alexander was not only a great warrior and conqueror, but also a wise ruler who patronized Lysippus, Aristotle and Apelles, delighted in Homer, and rated spiritual activities perhaps even higher than military exploits. he fact that the arts lourished under his rule proves no less important than the victorious war against Darius and it was to Alexander’s time that artists looked in the type of depiction invented by the Renaissance that is conventionally referred to by the Greek name ekphrasis, meaning the recreation of ancient works on the basis of surviving descriptions. A classic example of this type is the fresco of he Wedding of Alexander and Roxana by Giovanni Bazzi, known as Sodoma, at the Villa Farnesina. Sodoma’s composition faithfully follows the description Lucian let of a painting on the same subject by Aetion that was famous in the Ancient World. he artist proclaims his respect for antiquity, while at the same time entering into competition with it, seeking to prove that his own time can resurrect from oblivion the great art of the past. he fresco shows Alexander being led by Hymen, god of marriage, to the bed of Roxana, who has been undressed by 57 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ cupids in expectation of the groom. he entire work is illed with a languid eroticism. It is a sort of Renaissance Roman reverie about ancient sensuality, introducing a new facet into the image of Alexander: the king praised for his chastity proves no stranger to voluptuousness either. Sodoma also depicted another subject at the Villa Farnesina: he Magnanimity of Alexander – the young king’s virtuous refusal of Darius’ harem – treated as the apotheosis of chastity, comparable with the magnanimity of Scipio, who returned a beautiful captive to her bridegroom virgin and untouched. As a companion piece to Alexander’s Wedding, which was placed in the bedroom, he Magnanimity loses its original meaning, depicting Alexander not so much abstinent like the moralist Scipio, who scorned female charms, as restrained: ater leaving Darius’ wives untouched, he made good the loss with his enjoyment of Roxana’s beauty. Sodoma also treats Alexander’s appearance in a new way. He is no longer the frail youngster with rather sharp, although tender facial features, but an Apollonian hero with a mane of curly hair, a passionate gaze and that distinctive inclination of the neck that was described by ancient authors. he fresco asserts a new type of Alexander that then became canonical right up to the 19th century. Perhaps the match between Alexander’s appearance and the ancient texts was due to input from Latin scholars, but more than ancient descriptions, Sodoma’s source was an authentic piece of ancient sculpture – a head found in the environs of Florence in the late 15th century that was known as ‘Alessandro Morente’ – ‘he Dying Alexander’ – but is most probably the head of a moribund giant. Renaissance myth-making proved very potent, however, and the ancient titan became the foundation for a new iconography of Alexander the Great. Renaissance Rome gave birth to another legend that played an important role in the treatment of Alexander’s image in the following centuries. It was believed that two colossal sculptures on the Piazza Quirinale – or Monte Cavallo (Horse Hill), as it was also known – depicted Alexander taming Bucephalus. Inscriptions beneath the statues proudly proclaimed one to be the work of Phidias, the other of Praxiteles. he sculptures were considered the glory of Rome and the fact that Phidias died long before Alexander was even born and there is no record of his employing Praxiteles did 58 not trouble anyone. Every artist who came to Rome would make a point of visiting Monte Cavallo to sketch them and a host of prints appeared that carried this ‘ancient’ likeness of Alexandra across the whole of Europe. In fact the statues are of the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux, and have no connection to the celebrated Greek sculptors, but the legend proved so enduring that even Piranesi repeated it on an engraving dating from 1747 (cat. 317), although it had already been refuted by antiquarian scholars earlier in the century. All in all, the artistic myth-making of the Renaissance that invested Alexander with the features of the Dioscuri, sons of Zeus, was not so very wide of the mark – the Renaissance misconception echoes Alexander’s own desire to proclaim his own divine origin. he faces and bodies of the Dioscuri are ideal and devoid of any kind of individual features: this group is an embodiment of the triumph of higher principle over unbridled nature and the superimposing of that image on the ‘historical’ episode – the scene of the taming of Bucephalus retold by many ancient authors – led to a situation where to the cultured European mind any group depicting a handsome naked youth struggling with a stallion, right up to Coysevox’s horses, became associated with Alexander. To some extent this even applies to the famous horses on the Anichkov Bridge in St Petersburg. Alexander features in the art of High Renaissance Rome as a god-like youth with thick, wavy hair, a gaze full of tenderness and passion, a proud bearing sotened by a slight tilt of the handsome neck, as a hero whose undoubted courage is underlined by beauty so perfect that there is even a certain femininity about it – that is the very way that Alexander himself would have wanted to appear, and the way he is presented by the ancient authors most favourably disposed towards him. To a certain degree Alexander’s appearance even merges with the image of Paris, said to be the most handsome man there has ever been; classical scholars also found a connection between the two that was extremely important to the Renaissance mind: a shared appellation – Paris was also known by the name Alexander, meaning ‘victor’ – that implied similar destinies, for all the diference in their characters. Both condemned the world to war, although one chose Aphrodite, that is to say, a life of vice, while the other chose Athena and a life of action. he subjects featuring Alexander Arkady Ippolitov extol his decisiveness, magnanimity, tolerance, restraint, scholarship, respectfulness and fairness. here is Alexander cutting the Gordian knot, taming Bucephalus, caring for the manuscripts of Homer, granting Timoclea her liberty, raising Darius’ mother from her knees, entrusting himself to Philip the physician – all the classic set of subjects that go back to Plutarch and Quintus Curtius, whose works people read and re-read. he mediaeval fantasy evaporated and there is no way the Alexander of Raphael’s school could be taken for a knight who communes with fairies and courts burgravines. For all their keenness on subjects that eulogized the peaceful Alexander, artists did not forget the thing that brought the king most glory – his achievements as a military commander. A change also took place in the way Alexander’s battles were depicted. Although huge armies of giants and sorcerers loom large in courtly romance, for such works the most important thing in warfare was nonetheless single combat: the knight’s war was decided man-to-man. Right up to Raphael painters adhered to this tradition – suice it to recall the battle scenes of Uccello or Pietro della Francesca. Mediaeval miniaturists illustrated tales of the battles between Greeks and Persians, also concentrated primarily on Alexander’s single combat with Darius. Now though, ater the gigantic panorama of Constantine’s battle at the Milvian Bridge, executed by Raphael with the aid of his pupils, the battles at Issus and Gaugamela, and against the Indian ruler Porus ceased to be depicted as separate man-to-man ights and turned into huge struggles with hundreds of personages. he victory of Alexander, who is sometimes even lost among the mass of warriors, is no longer the success of a soldier who wields his weapons with courage and great skill, but the triumph of a general who knows how to command a body of men. Previously the most important thing about Alexander was personal valour, now it became strategic genius; so his victory over Darius is also the victory of reason over barbarism. his theme became especially important at the time of the High Renaissance and not before: even in the Quattrocento there was no diference in principle between the Greeks and their enemies – both were knightly warriors. Now, though, Alexander and his comrades dressed in armour given the look of antiquity ight with hordes of Eastern barbarians whose beards, clothing, curved swords and turbans are very reminiscent of Muslims. Oten Darius’ forces are bolstered by fantastic chariots and elephants – an exotic motif beloved of artists when depicting Alexander’s battles and triumphs, something that again adds a speciic nuance to his image. His victory over the Persians is not merely soldierly valour, but the triumph of European civilization. To some extent the military achievements of the Macedonian ruler were directed towards establishing the worldwide hegemony of the ‘School of Athens’. It was in early 16th-century Rome that this idea, later to be so important, crystallized: the idea of Alexander as a cultural missionary, spreading Hellenic (read European) civilization across the whole of Asia (the world). One more subject joined those associated with Alexander’s story and became very signiicant for Renaissance artistic culture in particular, going on to achieve a irm place among those most frequently depicted. I refer to Alexander, Apelles and Campaspe. It is not found in Plutarch or Quintus Curtius, but was reported by Pliny and Claudius Aelianus, and then repeated by Rafaello Borghini in his treatise Il Reposo, which was devoted to questions of art and oten read by artists. Apelles was one of the Ancient World’s greatest artists, Alexander one of its greatest rulers, Campaspe one of its most beautiful women. Alexander wanted to have a portrait of her, but while Apelles was painting her, he fell passionately in love with her himself. Alexander generously passed his mistress on to the artist, contenting himself with her likeness. It remains unclear whether Campaspe was consulted, although some art theoreticians took a keen interest in the question: in 17thcentury France, for example, there was a lively debate on whether she gained or lost from this change of lovers. he anecdote from Pliny and Aelianus became popular with artists because it airmed the painter’s new status. he artist was no longer the simple, inconspicuous executor of the client’s will, but it company for a monarch who deigned to take note of what was going on inside his head and heart (Alexander is supposed to have guessed that Apelles was in love with Campaspe). Might some chronicle-illustrator have ventured to make eyes at the Duc de Berry’s mistress? hat would have been unthinkable! his instance from ancient history, while demonstrating Alexander’s magnanimity once again, also elevated the creative individual. Apelles was the ideal of the painter, Alexander the ideal of the monarch; their 59 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ relationship was a model for imitation and the title of ‘new Apelles’ became the most lattering in the hierarchy of artists’ appellations. here was a boom in Apelles-related subjects, such as ‘Apelles and the Shoemaker’ – ater putting up with the cratsman’s remarks about an incorrectly painted sandal, Apelles stopped him short when he began to criticize the depiction of the foot as well. Giorgio Vasari adorned his own home with a mural on this subject and somewhat later, in the Baroque era, another subject appeared: ‘Apelles Pointing out to Alexander the Inappropriateness of His Criticism’ (an engraving by Salvator Rosa). Stories of other famous Greek artists, Zeuxis and Parrhasius,4 also dated from Alexander’s time, so his reign was perceived as a Golden Age for the ine arts. he ancient situation was projected onto the contemporary world and perceived as a direct indication of the interrelationship of art and power: only tolerance and generosity towards the creator give a reign brilliance. he ruler wishing to become a new Alexander must needs have a new Apelles. hus Alexander was perfection itself. To be compared to him was lattering, and for the aristocrats of 16th-century Rome and Florence the Greek ruler became the favourite historical igure of antiquity. Murals of events from his life cover the facades and interiors of Roman palazzi and practically all the prominent exponents of Roman-Tuscan Mannerism devoted works to him: Polidoro da Carravaggio, Maturino da Firenze, Perino del Vaga, Francesco Salviati, Jacopo Coppi, the brothers Taddeo and Federico Zuccaro, and Francesco Morandini. hey all produced variations on one and the same set pattern of visual narrative. hey usually begin with the scene of the Gordian knot, and then the artists intersperse battles with such examples of Alexander’s magnanimity as ‘Alexander and the family of Darius’, Alexander covering Darius’ body with a cloak’, ‘Alexander by the tomb of Darius’ (or Achilles). With their characteristic archness, Mannerist artists very oten included the subject of ‘Alexander and Campaspe’ in the biographical cycles, thus indicating that if their client wants to be like the great Macedonian, he should also emulate his generosity towards painters. Although many frescoes have been lost and are known to us only from descriptions and drawings, the most famous cycle – by Perino del Vaga – has survived. hey were very popular and oten copied (see cats 315–316). 60 Giulio Romano, the most gited of Raphael’s pupils, took the story of Alexander from Rome to Mantua. His frescoes at the Palazzo del Te devoted to the amorous adventures of Zeus include a scene with an extremely rare iconography – ‘Jupiter and Olympias’,5 inspired by a single half-sentence in Plutarch: ‘[Philip] was told he should one day lose that eye with which he presumed to peep through that chink of the door, when he saw the god, under the form of a serpent, in the company of his wife.’6 he historian’s remark, slipped into an account of Alexander’s origins, is fairly signiicant. On the one hand it testiies to heated debates between ancient authors about the divine parentage of the king who declared himself to be the son of Zeus-Amon; on the other it hints at rumours of Alexander’s illegitimacy. hat sort of gossip explained the oneeyed Philip’s aversion to his heir. In the epic about Alexander they transmuted into the tale of Olympias being impregnated by the priest (in later versions, magician) Nectanebo, who came to her in the guise of a serpent. Giulio treats the scene with his characteristic wit: Zeus, with a rampant phallus but with a snake’s tail instead of legs, is caressing the surprised, but contented Olympias. Meanwhile Zeus’ eagle, hovering above the lovers, is poking a thunderbolt into Philip’s eye as he peeps through the half-open door. he irony of such a depiction is obvious and it introduces a distinctive note into the chorus of Mannerist gloriication of Alexander, one that grew gradually stronger as the century progressed. In the 16th century the image of Alexander was popular north of the Alps as well, in Germany, where there was a rich tradition of the Meistersingers’ poetry, superimposed on a growing enthusiasm for ancient authors. One particular admirer of Alexander was Emperor Maximilian, the patron of Albrecht Dürer, who sought to emulate the great Greek in the characteristically pompous and rather ponderous manner of ‘the Last Knight’. An extremely interesting work by Hans Wertinger is associated with Maximilian. he Physician Philip at the Sickbed of Alexander the Great (National Gallery, Prague) is dated 1517, making it almost exactly contemporary with the depictions of Alexander by Raphael and Sodoma. his popular subject derives from Plutarch and Quintus Curtius Rufus and recalls how Alexander fell ill ater bathing in the icy water of the River Cydnus. he doctors considered his condition so serious that none of them dared to attend the Arkady Ippolitov king, and only Philip, an Acarnanian, preferred ‘to hazard his own credit and life, than sufer him to perish for want of physic, which he conidently administered to him…’7 In a letter to the king, Parmenio accused Philip of being in the pay of Darius and seeking to kill his patient. ‘…when Philip came in with the potion, he took it with great cheerfulness and assurance, giving him meantime the letter to read. his was a spectacle well worth being present at, to see Alexander take the draught and Philip read the letter at the same time, and then turn and look upon one another, but with diferent sentiments; for Alexander’s looks were cheerful and open, to show his kindness to and conidence in his physician, while the other was full of surprise and alarm at the accusation, appealing to the gods to witness his innocence, sometimes liting up his hands to heaven, and then throwing himself down by the bedside, and beseeching Alexander to lay aside all fear, and follow his directions without apprehension.’8 Does one need to add that for 16th-century courts this colourful scene was particularly topical? Wertinger depicts the court of a German ruler. he ailing Alexander lies on a huge bed beneath a magniicent canopy with brocade festoons embroidered with heraldic shields; he is wearing a white nightshirt edged with gold and a red nightcap. With one hand he raises a gold cup containing the remedy to his lips, while the other holds out the letter to Philip, who is dressed in a cape with a broad fur collar and a red beret, typical attire for a court physician. Courtiers and guards crowd around, while a musician sits by the head of the bed, playing a lute to soothe the patient; hounds dash around the room and at the foot of the bed is a small table bearing a wonderful still life: a silver wine jug and a dish of fruit. he whole scene comes across as a genre scene from the life of Emperor Maximilian. Wertinger’s Alexander is far removed from the ideal youthful demigod of Sodoma and Raphael – a bearded man, well on in years, with a face that is somewhat cheerless, as beits a sick man, yet good-natured. Wertinger makes the scene extremely homely, presenting the Greek king in the form of a contemporary invested with highly characteristic features. To some extent this sort of approach to history is archaised and derives from the illustrations of mediaeval chronicles, but at the same time, by making the Greek a man of his own era, the artist brings him closer to us, foreshadowing the attempts made in 20th-century literature to reproduce antiquity with full empathetic immediacy, such as Mikhail Kuzmin’s novel Alexander of Macedonia. A similar approach to Greek history was taken by Albrecht Altdorfer, who in 1529 created one of the greatest battle paintings in world art – A Battle between Alexander and Darius (Alte Pinakothek, Munich). he title does not specify which particular encounter is depicted. Altdorfer’s painting is the quintessence of all the battles in world history; it is a universal panorama with a horizon that dissolves in the immense distance, in the blue mountains and lakes. he viewer’s gaze soars over the battle, pausing on the painstakingly depicted igures of cavalrymen in the foreground bearing down on one another, but then burying itself in the hundreds and thousands of combatants. he ranks of foot soldiers and horsemen collide like waves; countless banners lutter above them. It is not clear who is winning and only gradually, ater great efort, does the eye pick out a fantastic gold carriage drawn by three white horses and embellished with the Latin inscription DARIUS. he horses are carrying the chariot away from the attackers and a gold-clad horseman, to all appearances Alexander, is already poised to run the driver through with a lance. In the distance we can make out a camp of colourful tents, a city replete with sharp-pointed towers and the battle being played out on the ground continues in the skies: the swirling gloomy clouds are set alight by the incandescent sun. his heavenly cosmogony is interpreted as the embodiment of Alexander’s illuminating victory, but the painting gives the impression of a sunset and, even if the artist does associate the Greek king with the sun, the sense of approaching night stresses that sun’s indiference towards both victors and vanquished. Floating in the sky with Surrealistic trompe-l’oeil persuasiveness is a carefully painted tablet bearing a Latin inscription glorifying Alexander. It performs the role of a fateful sign of destiny and testiies to all earthly events being predetermined by heaven. he Greeks and Persians, who can be told apart only ater intense study of the painting, and even then only in the foreground, are dressed in costumes of Altdorfer’s day, which in combination with the cosmic character of the panorama and the eternal, unchanging sky makes the painting a universal symbol of 61 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ battle in the abstract, outside of time and geography. his painting became Napoleon’s favourite. He looted the canvas from Germany and took it everywhere with him. Alexander was popular at the French court of Francis I as well. In the art of the School of Fontainebleau the Italian inluences brought by Rosso Fiorentino and Francesco Primaticcio became tightly interwoven with the inherent courtly gallantry of the French. he result was that scenes from Alexander’s story were supplemented with allusions to his amorous adventures, as in Primaticcio’s paintings decorating the apartments of the Duchesse d’Etampes, Francis’ mistress (see cat. 307). he image of Alexander, the great general and conqueror of the world, celebrated for his continence, was sotened. he ideal hero also became an ideal lover – no longer just the passionate bridegroom of Roxana, but also the table companion of celebrated courtesans, the aforementioned Campaspe or the famous Tais of Athens. Primataccio introduced the subject of a gallant encounter between Alexander and halestris, queen of the Amazons (who came to Alexander specially to conceive a child; according to some accounts, he impregnated all the Amazons) and also a subject that relects none too well on the Greek conqueror: Alexander and Tais Setting Fire to the Palace at Persepolis. In a drawing that has survived in the Louvre, the king and the rather dishevelled beauty, both armed with torches, look like a Bacchic couple sowing destruction about them. he humanising of Alexander is accompanied by a tinge of irony, which echoes the opinion of the ancient authors who criticized him for saying ‘that he only gave the remains of the Persians their due, but at the same time he adopted their customs and sumptuous attire, which illed his heart with pride’.9 he new attitude to Alexander, no longer so admiring as in Mannerist Rome, was summed up by Napoleon, who said that Alexander when barely more than a child had conquered a good part of the globe with his sword; but was that a simple invasion on his part, a sort of impatient outburst? No, it was all worked out to the very last, carried out with wisdom. Alexander showed himself to be at one and the same time a great warrior, a great politician and a great lawmaker. Sadly, when he reached the pinnacle of his glory, his head began to whirl and his heart was ruined: he ended with the heart of Nero and the morals of Heliogabalus. 62 his passage from one conqueror about another briely encapsulates the debates about Alexander’s personality that have come down from antiquity: as Augustus’ favourite personage, Alexander was severely criticized by Seneca. Even Michel de Montaigne, who makes frequent mention of Alexander in the pages of his Essays and calls him ‘the greatest of men’ observes when discussing ‘the inconstancy of our actions’:10 ‘No valour can be more extreme of its kind than that of Alexander: but it is of but one kind, neither full enough throughout, nor universal. Incomparable as it is, it has yet some blemishes; of which his being so oten at his wits’ end upon every light suspicion of his captains conspiring against his life, and the carrying himself in that inquisition with so much vehemence and indiscreet injustice, and with a fear that subverted his natural reason, is one pregnant instance. he superstition, also, with which he was so much tainted, carries along with it some image of pusillanimity; and the excess of his penitence for the murder of Cleitus is also a testimony of the unevenness of his courage.’ Summing up his argument, Montaigne observes with regard to human nature in general: ‘Our deeds are naught but separate unconnected actions (voluptatem contemnunt, [sic] in dolore sunt molliores, gloriam negligunt, franguntur infamia)11 people disdain pleasure, but yield to sorrow; despise fame, but cannot bear dishonour and we want by calling things by false names to earn esteem.’12 he greatest of humans is nonetheless irst and foremost human. Alexander is great in battle, in his generosity to the vanquished (as we see in Veronese’s painting in the National Gallery, London, where he appears as the embodiment of rational Europe, graciously receiving the luxury of the East that bows before him), in his faith in Philip the physician and respect for Timoclea’s virtue. But there is also the Alexander of the orgies in Persepolis and Babylon, the murderer of Cleitus, cruel and intemperate, inclined to rage and luxury, the ruler of the world who considered himself a superman. Montaigne brings us to the ambivalent attitude of the 17th century towards Alexander, which also determined our modern interpretation of his image. One of the most scathing responses to the cults of Alexander at European courts was the spread of the subject ‘Alexander and Diogenes’ (see cat. 300). ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ is a new model Arkady Ippolitov for the relationship between the free-thinker and those in power. he interaction between Alexander and Diogenes is diametrically opposed to the expectation of gracious generosity, ultimately humiliating, that was embodied in the igure of Apelles, the court painter. In Rome, which had sung Alexander’s praises in the previous century, in the 1600s Diogenes became almost as popular as the Greek ruler. his was connected with a growing vogue for the Stoics and Seneca. It was not for nothing that, when he depicted himself during his Italian journey together with his intellectual friends, Rubens crowned the composition with a bust of the philosopher, as can be seen in the picture now in the Uizi gallery. Seneca also became a model for Roman aristocrats, who found themselves in mild opposition to the authorities, men like Cassiano dal Pozzo, the greatest Roman art patron of the mid-17th century who is associated with Nicolas Poussin, Salvator Rosa, Benedetto Castiglione and Pietro Testa, that is to say, with those artists who were guided by the aesthetics of Classicism. All of them presented the story of the Stoic philosopher in paintings and drawings, very oten turning to the subject of Alexander and Diogenes. heir attitude to Alexander’s triumphs was, to all appearances, reserved and they let the depiction of them to other artists. But a passionate admirer of Alexander could be found in the Rome of the Baroque – in the shape of that exceptional and extravagant woman, Christina of Sweden. his philosopher queen dreamt of making Stockholm as enlightened as Hellenistic Alexandria and summoned Descartes to her court, allotting him the role Aristotle held under Alexander. To the French philosopher’s horror, Christina woke him at ive in the morning to enjoy intelligent conversation with him. Her daily routine and the Stockholm fogs drove Descartes into the grave, while Christina herself abdicated as her royal duties hampered her personal life, converted to Catholicism and let for Rome with her remarkable collection of works of art. hose included the famous Gonzaga Cameo that was then considered a portrait of Alexander and very strongly inluenced the iconography of his depictions (cat. 155). Christina is known for her fondness for male attire, which caused indignation among the Protestant clergy (the Catholics forgave her everything on account of her conversion); she behaved no less freely than Georges Sand and chose Alexander the Great as her idol. he ex-queen was taken by the Greek’s youth, his somewhat efeminate good looks, his decisiveness and his learning. Artists close to her circle, such as Sébastien Bourdon, oten depicted episodes from Alexander’s life. In the Baroque era Rome continued to shape tastes. Antonio Tempesta’s series of twelve engravings on subjects from Alexander’s story (cat. 306), published in the late 1590s and immediately copied by the German engraver Matthäus Merian the Elder, rapidly sold all over Europe, inspiring a whole wave of imitations. Under the inluence of Tempesta, the Dutchman Leonard Bramer produced a series of drawings (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam) that increased the number of scenes to 48 and, with typical Dutch narrative inventiveness, added a host of details to Alexander’s pictorial biography. he most striking instance of a Dutch artist’s treatment of Alexander’s story remains, however, Rembrandt’s interpretation of a few subjects related to the Greek king. We know that around 1660s Rembrandt painted a shoulderlength depiction of Alexander the great for the wealthy Sicilian collector Antonio Rufo. he painting has been lost, although certain researchers have attempted to identify this Alexander painted for Rufo with the Athens in the Museu Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon, or the Man in Armour at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery, Glasgow. However sketchy the speculation might be about the identity of those depicted, both these paintings give an idea of how Rembrandt’s Alexander may have looked. he type of depiction derived from the Renaissance ‘ideal heads’, but the great Dutchman’s brush turns the ancient hero into a pensive knight, illuminated by a light from within, a man whose solitude withstands the surrounding darkness. No less important for the treatment of Alexander’s image is Rembrandt’s composition Aristotle before a Bust of Homer (Metropolitan Museum, New York) that was also a commission from Rufo. he king’s tutor is presented as a courtier dressed in sumptuous clothing, somewhat reminiscent of 16th-century attire, reaching out to touch the marble head of the blind poet. his caressing gesture and the melancholy gaze ixed upon the long-dead poet establishes a link between ages, stretches a thread across the centuries to life in the artist’s own day. Hanging on the gold chain that adorns the philosopher’s breast is a medallion bearing a portrait of Alexander, his pupil and patron. In the conversation that 63 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ Homer, Aristotle and Rembrandt conduct in eternity, earthly fame is nothing but a precious trinket, ‘a gaudy patch upon a ragged garment’.13 he complete antithesis of Rembrandt’s Alexander can be found in the Alexander created by Charles Le Brun for the gloriication of Louis XIV (see cats 308–313) – resplendent, elegant, reined even to the point of a certain afectation. Of all the personages of antiquity the Sun-King felt the greatest sympathy for the Macedonian and oicially proclaimed himself ‘the new Alexander’. In 1665 Jean Racine wrote a tragedy, Alexandre le Grand, dedicating it to the French monarch. At that same time the court artist Le Brun was asked to make a series of canvases depicting Alexander’s deeds to adorn the Louvre. It is possible that the king singled Alexander out among the igures of ancient history while still Dauphin, when to a special commission from his father, Louis XIII, the Florentine artist Stefano della Bella produced exclusive engraved royal playing cards featuring historical heroes, so that while playing his heir might be inspired by great examples. Della Bella’s minute engraving presents Alexander as a horseman prancing delightfully on a rearing steed. His helmet is adorned with a sumptuous ostrich-feather plume. Le Brun’s Alexander is a projection of the Dauphin’s childhood reveries, expanded to a scale worthy of a king. Gracious and magniicent, his face and bearing reminiscent of Apollo, the handsome god of reason and light, the Alexander of the Louvre gallery was a lattering mirror of the Sun-King himself. he entire series – reproduced several times in engravings immediately ater its creation on special orders – became a model of le grand goût – the ‘Grand Style’ of Louis XIV’s era. he cult of Alexander at the court of Versailles was the apogee of European adoration of the Macedonian ruler. Louis, who was inclined to deify himself, was lattered by the recognition of Alexander as a god in his own lifetime, although it is interesting to note a few entirely human coincidences between the lives of the two heroes. Both the one and the other had a somewhat troubled childhood and early adolescence: their relations with parents who hated each other were not simple and the diicult position of a child sufering from the regal ambitions of a crowned father and mother give extra meaning to Louis’ admiration for Alexander. he Dauphin not only viewed della Bella’s paintings, but also heard readings 64 from Plutarch and Quintus Curtius that told of the young prince’s hidden struggle with Philip and Olympias’ despotism. Louis’ accession to the throne and abrupt rejection of the dowager queen’s tutelage were for him a sort of cutting of the Gordian Knot. Racine had good cause to dedicate his play to him: Alexander’s life as presented by the court artists Le Brun and Mignard became a sumptuous theatrical spectacle, a royal ballet of the kind of which Louis was so fond, the pompous apotheosis of his reign, burdened nonetheless subconsciously by the psychological traumas of his early years. Placed in precious bindings, engravings reproducing Le Brun’s cycle were deliberately sent of to the courts of Europe as royal gits, becoming a part of oicial propaganda. Le grand goût determined international fashion and the continent’s greater and lesser monarchs strove to imitate the theatrical splendour of the court of Versailles. In the 1730s a whole team of Italian artists – Francesco Solimena, Francesco Trevisani, Sebastiano Conca, Placido Constanzi, Giovanni Battista Pittoni and Francesco Imperiali – fulilled a commission from the king of Spain for a cycle of canvases on the theme of Alexander to decorate the Escorial. he Venetian Francesco Fontebasso painted Alexander’s battles and triumphs (Musée de Brou, Bourg-en-Bresse) in a manner no less expressive in its colourful bombast than Le Brun’s. he Bolognese artist Donato Creti painted murals on subjects from the story of Alexander in the palace of the Counts of Novellara. As if competing with Veronese, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo painted a Darius’ Family before Alexander (Detroit Institute of Arts) that brims over with Eastern exotica, pages, dwarfs and parrots. he vogue for Alexander spread from France and Italy to Austria and Germany: scenes from his life were depicted by Johann Michael Rottmayr, Johann Elias Ridinger, Martino Altomonte, Bernhard Rode, Franz Anton Maulbertsch, Paul Troger, Ottmar Elliger and Friedrich Heinrich Füger. Alexander became a favourite personage of the Italian opera seria and episodes from his life were performed in court theatres from Madrid to St Petersburg. Le Brun’s compositions had the character of grand theatrical productions. For Louis XIV the whole world was nothing but the stage for a grand ballet, with the monarch at the centre like the Sun in the centre of the irmament. Just as the other heavenly bodies are subordinated to the movement Arkady Ippolitov of the Sun, his own movements are followed by his subjects and the greatest of them are merely a corps de ballet, whose purpose is to echo his perfect dance. But even the best dancer in the universe is nothing other than an actor, and if all the world is a stage, then a show of power, even the most resplendent, is nothing more than a show. From the outset grand goût ceremonial contained a majestic artiiciality that rapidly turned into play when reproduced ad ininitum at the courts of European rulers. However eloquent the mythological comparisons were, they were still just igures of speech; the divine Alexander was, of course, like Apollo, but Apollo himself was a character in an opera. he Alexander of the fresco cycles has much in common with the Alexander of small-scale sculpture and a porcelain fragility characteristic of rococo art in general became more and more tangible in the Greek king. If we compare Jean Restout’s Physician Philip at the Sickbed of Alexander the Great in the Musée de Picardie, Amiens, with earlier depictions of the same subject, then the enchanting doll-like character of the scene becomes evident. Neo-Classical and Empire art added nothing principally new to the image of Alexander. He remained as before one of the favourite heroes from the Ancient World, although David with his austere taste preferred Pericles or Brutus. Beyond doubt Napoleon, who carried Altdorfer’s Battle between Alexander and Darius around with him, modelled himself on the young conqueror in his early years. he Napoleon of the bridge at Arcola is Alexander cutting the Gordian Knot and the French general must inevitably have recalled Alexander as he sailed towards Egypt, tossing of the sublimely humiliating phrase ‘Donkeys and scholars in the middle!’, or dreaming obsessively of an Indian campaign. From the start, Bonaparte’s Russian campaign was compared with Alexander’s Scythian war. he quotation cited earlier, however, clearly reveals Napoleon’s ambivalent attitude to the Greek ruler. From the sublime to the ridiculous is only a step, and that step was taken by Honoré Daumier in his lithograph Apelles, Alexander and Campaspe, one of a series of cartoons on ancient history. Deliberately selecting a subject that had since the Renaissance been among those glorifying the art of painting, Daumier turns the characters of the loty ancient legend into naked ordinary people, putting on airs hilariously in their efort to portray violent passion. At almost exactly the same time as Daumier’s lithograph, Alexander got a leeting mention in Gogol’s play he Government Inspector in what has become a popular quotation – ‘Alexander the Great was a hero, it’s true. But that’s no reason to go breaking chairs’ – which repeats the increasingly ironical attitude towards the Classical aesthetic. Somewhat earlier the same subject was chosen for a painting by Anne-Louis Girodet, who in the role of Campaspe depicted his mistress, a well-known demimondaine, who preferred the artist to titled admirers. Admittedly she let Girodet soon aterwards and he publicly reproached her, depicting her in the guise of a Danae who chose gold in preference to true love. Alexander became a character in the ‘anecdotes from ancient times to the present day’ that every man of the world was expected to have committed to memory. In the second half of the 19th century, however, Gustave Moreau was an admirer of Alexander’s story. He was attracted above all by the colourful brilliance of the accounts of the Greek campaigns into the depths of Asia. ‘he young conqueror king now stood over all those peoples – captive, vanquished and crawling at his feet… he little Indian valley where a huge, beautiful throne towered up was a relection of the whole of India with its temples and fantastic festivals, strange idols, sacred lakes, and underground complexes full of riddles and horror. And Greece, the soul of radiant and beautiful Greece, full of triumph, was far from these uninhabited regions that became the embodiment of dream and mysteriousness’.14 hat is how Moreau himself described the whole cycle of his drawings and watercolours on the theme of Alexander’s Indian triumph, works that resemble a mirage seen by an opium-lover. A brilliant composition on the subject of Alexander taming Bucephalus was also produced, strange as it may seem, by Edgar Degas (National Gallery, Washington). In the 20th century the assessment of Alexander’s conquests evoked stormy debates among historians and modern art, having lost interest in ancient history, abandoned the Greek king to the creators of comics, cartoons and Hollywood costume dramas. Ater Daumier it is hard to regard the Macedonian without irony. Mikhail Kuzmin wrote a novel about Alexander that depicted the king as a latent homosexual, while Picasso, who in his late period produced endless variations on the theme of ‘artist and model’ with an overt allusion to the mutual relations of Apelles, Alexander 65 ‘Stand less between the sun and me’ and Campaspe that were so important for Renaissance and Baroque artists, was interested only in their erotic subtext. If you search for ‘Alexander the Great’ in today’s Internet, almost half the sites that come up will be devoted to discussion of Colin Farrell and the Hollywood epic. But to conirm the unfading topicality of Alexander’s image it is suicient to mention two facts from the artistic life of the past century. In 1932 Karel Čapek wrote an essay in which he proclaimed Alexander of Macedonia the irst anti-Fascist, while Adolf Hitler’s favourite sculptor, Arno Breker, founded a society of admirers of Alexander that met in a hall decorated with his own sculpture of the naked Greek king. Notes 1 Callisthenes of Olynthus (c. 360–328 BC) was a Greek historian who described the battles of Alexander. In later centuries much purely legendary information was brought together in the 3rd century AD to produce what came to be known as ‘the romance of Alexander’. The author of this later text is known as the PseudoCallisthenes. 2 Large wedding chests, often painted with scenes from the Bible or everyday life. 3 Plutarch, Alexander, XII 4 Two Greek painters of the 5th century BC, who according to legend had a competition as to who could the most realistic image. Zeuxis depicted a grape so convincing that the birds lew down to peck at them. Parrhasius beat him by painting a linen drapery, so convincing that Zeuxis tried to pull it aside in order to see ‘the painting behind’. 5 Olympias was the mother of Alexander. 6 Plutarch, Alexander, III 7 Plutarch, Alexander, XIX 8 Plutarch, Alexander, XIX 9 Curtius Rufus, History 10 Michel de Montaigne, Essays, Part II, Chapter 1: ‘On the Inconstancy of Our Actions’ 11 Cicero, De oiciis, I, 21 12 Michel de Montaigne (note 10) 13 Alexander Pushkin in the poem ‘The Bookseller and the Poet’ 14 Pierre Briant, De la Grèce à l’Orient. Alexandre Le Grand, Paris, 1987, p. 104: ‘Le jeune roi conquérant domine tout ce peuple captif, vaincu et rampant à ses pieds… La petite vallée indienne où se dresse le trône immense et superbe contient l’Inde tout entière, les temples au faîtes fantastiques, les idoles terribles, les lacs sacrés, les souterrains pleins de mystères et de terreur… Et la Grèce, l’âme de la Grèce rayonnante et superbe, triomphe au loin dans ces régions inexplorées du rêve et du mystère.’ 66 298 Sebastiano Ricci (1659–1734) Apelles painting Campaspe, 1713–1714 351 Tapestry: Alexander the Great and the family of Darius From the series The Story of Alexander the Great, from the paintings by Charles Le Brun Flanders, Brussels, workshop of Jan Frans van den Hecke, 1661–1695 RUSSIAN ANTIQUITY A ROMANCE WITH ALEXANDER THE GREAT Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin hemes and motifs associated with Alexander the Great appeared in Russian culture even before the Mongol invasion by Batu Khan in 1237, arriving by way of Byzantium on the wave of Christianization. From the 12th century the text of ‘the Romance of Alexander’ was incorporated into Russian chronicles, while in art the subject of ‘the light of Alexander’ gained some currency. his episode, in which the Macedonian king soars through the skies in a chariot drawn by gryphons, was not originally present in the romance by the PseudoCallisthenes1 in which Alexander – seeking an answer to the question ‘Is this the end of the Earth? Is this where the sky rests upon it?’2 – used cunning to make two huge white birds attracted by bait on the end of a spear carry him into the skies. he replacement of the birds by gryphons, the winged ‘dogs of Zeus,’ evidently occurred in the 10th century and was set down in the Constantinopolitan manuscript from which Leo of Naples made his Latin translation. In any event depictions of this type – and there are a great many of them in both East and West – are associated with a very strong Byzantine inluence.3 he earliest Old Russian work featuring Alexander’s aerial journey is a gold diadem embellished with enamels 69 Russian antiquity A romance with Alexander the Great from Sakhnovka (Ukraine) dating from the 12th century. he generalised, schematic treatment of the aerial journey scene prompted scholars to interpret it as a pagan image connected with Slavonic agrarian magic symbolism. It is not impossible that an imported image with a pronounced apotropaic function was indeed inluenced by local religious and iconographic traditions, becoming contaminated with some local subjects, although the image of Alexander the Great itself was in demand primarily in the aristocratic milieu that was Hellenised to a fair degree and directly dependent on Byzantine inluences and models.4 From the time of the Roman Empire, the image of Alexander the Great had become one of the symbols of imperial power. But the rulers of the western kingdoms that arose on the debris of ancient civilisation traced their mythologised pedigrees back to Aeneas and Caesar, while Alexander remained a personage in an edifying tale of the vanity of earthly glory. In Byzantium, though, the Macedonian king was regarded as a direct predecessor of the Basileis (ruler) of Constantinople. It was only natural that, having chosen the Greek faith and being moreover related to the Byzantine emperors, the rulers of Kievan Rus5 looked on the heroic Alexander as ‘one of their own’. A treatise written by the 6th-century Byzantine historian Menander Protector recommended using comparison with Alexander to glorify the imperial idea.6 Centuries later the rhetorical formula of his History found logical development in the Word of Daniel the Exile, addressed to Prince Yaroslav Vladimirovich of Novgorod: ‘Lord, grant our prince the strength of Samson, the courage of Alexander, the mind of David and increase, o Lord, all people beneath their heel’.7 he etiquette formula used repeatedly in medieval Russian literature that ranks together Alexander of Macedonia, the Old Testament king David, and the ‘King of Kings’ Jesus, who was ‘of the House of David’, represents the idea of the triumph of earthly power and its vital connection with heavenly power. It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that this very theme was contained in the iconographic programme of the carved decoration on the white-stone churches of Vladimir-Suzdal. As far as can be judged from archaeological data and attempted reconstructions, in the developed romanesque decoration of the Dormition (1158–1161) and St Demetrius 70 (1193–1197) Cathedrals in Vladimir and the Cathedral of St George in Yuryev-Polsky (1230–1234) reliefs depicting the apotheosis of Alexander the Great occupied an exceptionally important place in the hierarchy of meaning, being placed at the top of the eastern zakomary (arched gables) on the south façades of all three ediices, combined in the overall scheme with images of Old Testament kings and episodes from the Gospel.8 he translation into stone of familiar rhetorical formulae extolling princely power was also justiied by the role that the white-stone cathedrals played in the urban ensemble.9 he Dormition Cathedral was constructed as the seat of an independent metropolitan see at a time when Andrey Bogolyubsky, who styled himself ‘Lord Andrey the Great’, was seeking by all possible means to legitimise the right of the city founded by Vladimir Monomakh to the role of successor to Kiev and Constantinople – ‘I want to renew this city with the metropolitanate and may this city be principal over all.’10 he Cathedral of St Demetrius was conceived as the architectural centrepiece of the residence of Grand Prince Vsevolod the Big Nest, while the church in Yuryev-Polsky served as the princely sepulchre. he question arises as to how far subjects from the romance of Alexander might have inluenced the decoration of the Vladimir-Suzdal churches, since apart from gryphons – ‘the gripps of Alexander’s aerial journey’ – the reliefs also feature lions, birds and even an elephant (in the Cathedral of St George). he inclusion of such a bestiary might be due to romanesque inluences (Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa may have supplied Andrey Bogolyubsky with cratsmen). It is permissible to claim that the decisive factor was the apotropaic function of these images, which derived from Byzantine tradition. But with time these animal images and the apotheosis of Alexander itself lost its connection with the original complex of notions and became irmly entrenched in Russian ‘low-class’ culture, in folklore, in national decorative and applied art, where it endured right through to the mid-19th century. One example of this is provided by numerous wedding medallions bearing a scene of the ‘aerial journey’. Around the turn of the 15th century, the tradition of regarding Alexander as a forerunner and patron of earthly rulers died out, but the Russian ‘Alexandriada’ Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin underwent a new evolution, acquiring, in literature above all, philosophical depth and taking on unexpectedly tragic tones. Connected as it was with the theme of death, a theme of key importance in the medieval West, it became part of the common European conceptual complex of Alexander in the context of the vanitas and the legend of the repentant sinner. As they became confused with utopian dreams of blessed lands beyond the seas and millennialism, the legends of Alexander acquired particular topicality with the approach of the year 1492, considered the 7000th year since the Creation in the Russo-Byzantine calendar. As a result the Macedonian ruler is mentioned in many spiritually didactic and apocryphal works from the late 15th century onwards. hese include he Letter of Prester John, entitled ‘A Story of the Indian Kingdom’ in Russian translation11 and legends about the anchorite Zosimas’s journey to the land of the blessed ‘Rachmans’12 and the tale of three monks whose search for the place ‘where the sky touches the earth’13 took them to a column set up by Alexander. At this same time a translation appeared of the medieval German ‘Dialogue between Life and Death’, one version of which puts these words into Death’s mouth: ‘Alexander, the king of Macedonia, was bold and brave, king and master of all beneath the sun, yet him too I took just as one of the poor.’14 But the quintessence of such sentiments in the spirit of Russian chiliasm was the Serbian Alexandria – one of a host of European romances and poems about Alexander that arose from Latin imitations of the Pseudo-Callisthenes. It came to occupy a special place among the works of translated literature of the 14th and 15th centuries, being considered a rare example of a courtly romance in medieval Russian letters.15 he earliest extant manuscript of the Serbian Alexandria is a copy made by Yefrosin, a monk of the KirilloBelozersky Monastery and decorated with miniatures by ‘Yefremishka the painter’.16 he Serbian Alexandria became extremely popular in the 17th century and inluenced many original works of Russian literature. Many superbly illustrated manuscript copies appeared at that time. Among the most interesting examples are relatively late illuminated copies from the collections of Piotr Viazemsky and Ivan Zabelin.17 At the end of the century the romance became a key component in the integrated text of the Russian baroque and in that capacity it not only found relection in works of literature and art, but was constantly present as an important connecting link in Russian ethical and aesthetic thought. he image of Alexander as an occasion for relections about power, as an example inducing imitation of virtue, as a reminder of the immortal glory of Almighty God – one could enumerate many diferent themes associated with Alexander in one way or another. he themes of the Russian ‘Alexandriada’ were presented with characteristic baroque complexity and beauty in the work of Simeon Polotsky, court poet and spiritual tutor to the tsar’s children. A graduate of two eminent educational institutions – the Kiev-Mohyla Collegium and the Wilno Academy, Simeon was one of the most educated men of his time. He was familiar with both Quintus Curtius Rufus’ work and the Historiae Philippicae of Pompeius Trogus in Justin’s epitome. Simeon needed subjects from the story of the conquering Macedonian king as a rhetorical link, capable of leading the reader to an acceptance of the didactic idea summed up by each episode he described. hat is the pattern of the verses ‘he Robber and he Image’, which form part of the collection of his didactic poetry he Garden of Many Flowers (1677–1678). In his last anthology, Rhymologian, Polotsky included the cycle ‘he Fine-Sounding Gusli’18 that he had presented to Fyodor Alexeevich on 18 June 1676, the day of his coronation. he cycle had a prose preface. Among the many wishes expressed there is this: ‘I wish that you might be a second Constantine or a new Vladimir to the church, that you will have the power of Alexander the Great, the kindness of Titus the Roman, the humility of David, the wisdom of Solomon, the piety of Hezekiah, the enterprise of Joseph…’19 Simeon Polotsky displayed a purely baroque tendency to adorn and ornament, realised not only in the disegno interno of the work, but in the outward forms of its presentation. Edifying verses writing in a calligraphic hand, richly embellished with cinnabar and elaborate initials hung in frames in the rooms of his pupils, the children of Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich, next to amusing foreign and Russian prints. In his time, Ivan Zabelin pointed out that Simeon Polotsky’s prints or the engravings of Simon Ushakov, head of the iconpainting workshop of the Armoury Chamber from 1664, could have served as a kind of ‘portable fresco’.20 he rooms of the 17th-century suburban summer palaces were indeed 71 Russian antiquity A romance with Alexander the Great decorated with both easel paintings and murals. We know that in 1667 ‘in rooms by the state apartments’ a Dutchman named Daniel Vugters, who had come to Russia with the Swedish ambassador Bengt Horn, painted subjects ‘on canvas from the book Alexandria with great skill’. hat same year the Armenian Bogdan Saltanov painted ‘he Birth of King Alexander of Macedonia’.21 At the lost palace of Kolomenskoe (near Moscow), which we know from written descriptions, the tsar’s painters working under the direction of Ushakov and Bogdanov created murals that included ‘Tsar Julius of Rome and Tsar Porus of India’ and ‘Alexander of Macedonia and Tsar Darius of Persia’.22 It is hard to judge the stylistic peculiarities and iconography of these murals. hey were quite possibly copied from Western European prototypes which Muscovite painters knew mainly through prints. hese foreign pictures circulated widely in Muscovy23 and served as sources for borrowed subjects and compositions in Russian popular prints or lubki, among which episodes from the Alexandria were extremely popular.24 Lubki depicting Alexander’s battle with Porus in their turn inluenced the painting of wedding chests with a depiction of King Alexander on horseback.25 Tales of the barbarous hordes of Gog and Magog being shut up behind mountains and ‘the wondrous people discovered by King Alexander of Macedonia’26 found relection in popular legend. A vivid illustration of how deeply the image of Alexander penetrated into Russian lower-class culture is provided by a number of fairy tales that tell of a girl giving birth to Alexander.27 In texts relating to accidental archaeological inds made during the digging of earthworks in the 17th and 18th centuries we come across ‘typical bookish legends’ connected with Alexander. he bones of mammoths are taken to be the remains of the elephants in the Macedonian army, while a note on a map gives this explanation for the origin of a Chinese temple at the mouth of the River Amur: ‘King Alexander of Macedonia went as far as this place, hid his gun and let a bell.’28 Possibly even the image of the Sirin Bird29 retains memories of the ‘human-like bird’ that stopped Alexander in his ‘aerial journey’ with the words ‘O Alexander! Why, without having understood the earthly, are you trying to grasp the heavenly?’30 In the reign of Alexey Mikhailovich (1645–1676) the Serbian Alexandria was part of the usual stock of home 72 reading, but the tsar’s own sons knew Alexander’s story from numerous historical anthologies and chronicles which, from the 16th century onwards, viewed the history of the Muscovite state as a continuation of the history of the illustrious monarchies of antiquity. Among the manuscripts owned by Fyodor Alexeevich was a historical compendium containing – besides stories of ancient history taken from the Speculum iustitiae, a translation from Polish of ‘an epitome of the description of ive ancient monarchies by Pompeius Trogus’.31 Most probably the book was commissioned by the boyar Boris Morozov, tutor of the young Tsar Alexey Mikhailovich.32 In his childhood Tsarevich Pyotr Alexeevich (later Peter I) had illustrated books and ‘amusing exercise books’, the irst of which were commissioned for the future great reformer of Russia in May 1673, when he was barely a year old.33 here are documents relating to the year 1675/76 from the Ambassadors’ Oice (forerunner of the Foreign Ministry) that refer to the making of a sumptuous illustrated copy of the Alexandria. his may be the manuscript now kept in the Library of the Academy of Sciences.34 A handwritten note added to the 1848 catalogue which states that this copy of the Alexandria was used to teach the Tsarevich gave rise to the conception that it was with this very book that the future emperor was taught to read. Interestingly, in 1724, when the emperor had at his disposal some volumes of Ivan the Terrible’s ‘Illuminated Compiled Chronicle’,35 an anthology created in the late 1560s–early 1570s that then belonged to Patriarch Nikon in the mid-1600s, he gave the volume that included the Alexandria to his six-yearold daughter Natalya as a git on her birthday.36 Historical and political thinking in the 16th and 17th centuries associated Russian statehood not only with Byzantium but also with the ‘Latin world’: chroniclers wrote of the descent of Russian princes from Emperor Augustus and it was at this time that the Pskovian monk Filofey came up with the concept of Moscow as the hird Rome.37 It was in the reign of Alexey Mikhailovich that the contradictory coexistence of a striving to establish the country irmly in its Russo-Byzantine exclusiveness and an acute need to become part of European civilisation was most keenly manifested. he new European way of perceiving Alexander, which penetrated Russian culture in generalised form, did not supplant the themes of the medieval Alexandrias in the Russian mind. Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin Peter the Great did all he could to encourage publishing in general, seeking to disseminate in Russia classic works that represented the Western historical tradition of writing about Alexander. Peter himself was familiar with the original 1677 Nuremberg edition of a two-volume work popular in Europe – Kurtze Beschreibung der weltlichen Haupt-Monarchien – in which separate chapters are devoted to the realm of Alexander the Great. Among the many printed works in foreign languages in the tsar’s library we also ind Quintus Curtius Rufus’ work De rebus gestis Alexandri Magni Regis Macedonum, in an edition published in Amsterdam in 1670.38 Peter paid great attention to the quality of translations: they had to be submitted to the tsar like all other books printed in the Russian language. Jan Tessing’s print-shop, established in Amsterdam in 1699 with the assistance of Peter I, began its work for Russia by preparing the publication of a Russian translation of Curtius. Although the translation by Ilya Kopiyevsky39 was despatched to Peter, for unknown reasons it was never published and another, anonymous, translation was printed instead. he title page of the irst Russian engraved edition of ‘he Deeds of Alexander’ proclaimed: ‘he book by Quintus Curtius on the deeds performed by Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia, translated on the orders of His Majesty the Tsar from Latin into Russian in the year 1709 and printed in Moscow in October of the same year.’40 It was reprinted four times during the emperor’s lifetime. Peter I’s fondness for festivities and celebrations is widely known. He played a prominent role in events that were accompanied by ireworks and the raising of triumphal arches and pyramids that were abundantly decorated with sculpture and paintings. An embodiment of the synthesis of the arts, these works spoke to the audience in the allegorical language of ‘symbols and emblems’.41 We can conjure up the appearance of those temporary, forever lost creations of the ‘Petrine Baroque’ only from descriptions, from technical drawings, engravings and a few surviving sketches. A series of engravings issued by the Moscow Print Oice gives us an idea of the decoration of the seven triumphal arches through which Russian regiments entered Moscow in December 1709 ater their victory over the Swedes at Poltava. he Triumphant Entry of the Russian Forces into Moscow… was engraved by Pieter Pickaert in 1709 and Ivan Zubov in 1710–1711. Among other constructions the prints show ‘the Triumphal Arch built by the labours of school teachers’, which was funded by the SlavicGreek-Latin Academy and possibly designed by the architect Ivan Zarudny. he many historical and allegorical igures and scenes representing ‘he Apotheosis of Peter I in the Temple of Martial Virtue’ include a depiction of the Russian monarch himself in the guise of Alexander the Great. In the surviving description of this structure Peter is repeatedly compared with the Macedonian king. ‘Our great praiseworthy Heracles, His Royal Illustrious Majesty, who has become the equal of Alexander in that orbem terrarium peragravit, he has travelled the whole European world, and has excelled him in not being ut orbis latro, the robber of the world (as Diodorus of Sicily called Alexander).’42 On a panel of a 1703 arch decorated by the same academy teachers, the triumphant Peter is depicted in the guise of Heracles. Virtue stands to the right of him, with Tsarevich Alexey Petrovich to the let ‘in the person of the young Alexander’.43 Worthy of note among the ‘Alexandriada’ of Peter’s time is one of Russia’s irst pleasure gardens – the Summer Garden in St Petersburg. he ‘garden planted in the Italian manner’ was laid out in 1704 and in as little as ive years became a centre of administrative and public life in the new capital, displaying ‘wondrous beauty’ and delighting ‘those out on the river with its view’.44 Peter is known to have worked on the Summer Garden design himself, not only choosing the site, but also drawing a layout for it while taking the waters in Spa.45 According to Jacob Stählin, Peter also personally concerned himself with ‘inding … instructive garden ornaments’ as a result of which the low of marble and lead statues bought for the Summer Garden in the period 1717–1724 was quite controlled, and only sculptures ‘approved by His Majesty’ were ordered from Italy.46 Among the nine signed works by the Venetian Pietro Baratta commissioned for the Summer Garden is a marble bust of Alexander the Great with the inscription ‘ALESSANDRO’ on the pedestal and the sculptor’s autograph – ‘PIETRO BARATTA’ – below the let shoulder. Contemporaries who were personally acquainted with Peter could not stop themselves from comparing the Russian emperor to the celebrated hero of Antiquity. he Danish ambassador Just Juel, recording a meeting with Peter at Narva on 30 December 1709, summed up his impressions 73 Russian antiquity A romance with Alexander the Great with a quotation from Quintus Curtius,47 while Abbot Milon, who witnessed Peter losing his temper badly at a banquet and almost killing the object of his rage, recalled a similar incident in Alexander’s life: ‘Alexander, the killer of Cleitus, is less worthy in that he received a better education than Peter I.’48 Meanwhile Peter’s own attitude to Alexander was far from straightforward. In his stories about Peter the Great, the sculptor and turner Andrey Nartov reported him making this pronouncement: ‘What kind of hero is a man who wages war only for the sake of his own glory, and not for the defence of his homeland, desiring to be the master of the universe! Alexander was not Julius Caesar. he latter was a rational leader; the former wished to be a giant bestriding the world. May those who imitate him have little success!’49 During the reign of Peter the Great’s daughter Elizabeth (Elizaveta Petrovna, 1741–1761/62), when ‘ater the convulsions of Peter’s time and the horror’s of Biron’s rule there came days of quiet, carefree life’,50 attitudes to the historical legend of Alexander underwent considerable changes. hese changes were linked not only to the new ethical and philosophical outlook of the ‘Elizabethan baroque’ age, but to the tradition of the medieval Alexandrias. ‘Mars, formerly drunk with Russia’s blood, fell asleep’,51 and although the image of the Macedonian king and great general was still associated with victories on the battleield, the new ideological climate meant that this meant it was negatively perceived, something particularly evident in the theatrical experiments of Elizabeth’s 4time. Alexander made his stage debut back in the time when Elizabeth herself had an amateur theatre. We know that her aunt, Natalya Alexeevna, who took a keen interest in ‘comedial matters’ and even tried her hand at play-writing,52 intended to stage at Preobrazhenskoe a play ‘about the fortress of Grubstone in which the leading role is King Alexander of Macedonia’.53 But the timid theatrical beginnings of Peter’s time are less remarkable for the use of the image of Alexander than the productions of provincial school theatres attached to theological colleges. In February 1745 the theatre of the seminary in Tver presented ‘A Declamation for the Birthday of Elizabeth Petrovna’, written by Mikhail Tikhorsky, teacher of poetics and rhetoric. It was a fairly short two-act play with interludes between the scenes. Figures ideales – the ancient 74 deities Janus, Mars and Pallas together with allegories of allegories of Russia, Antiquity and Fame – disputed over whose great fame was more secure – Peter the Great or Alexander, deciding the issue in favour of the Russian emperor. he idea that ‘a noble person’s name will not die, when it is known to many’54 is also expressed in the famous ‘Opera about Alexander of Macedonia’ of 1748. In its inale the soothsayer Mercury comes out to the vanquisher of the Persians and seeks to prove to the great king that his name is not worthy of immortality because he concerns himself more about his own glory than that of his country. ‘But note also that though you now are famed / he tomb will hide you like an ordinary man / For immortality shall not be thine.’55 Nonetheless, the idea of a kingdom stretching across the world and the image of the ideal ruler had become so irmly associated with the name of Alexander in 18th-century minds that they were rapidly revived when Catherine II (1762–1796) took the throne. Her reign was not only the brilliant age of Russian Enlightenment and Neo-classicism, but a period of consolidation of the absolute monarchy, when Russia at last won that European recognition and authority of which Peter the Great had dreamt, and a time of martial glory. Everything that deeply concerned Catherine in matters of state and politics proved to be connected one way or another with the igure of Alexander the Great. Contemporaries and posterity, sensing this invisible link, ranked the Russian empress alongside those historical heroes, comparison with whom she so prized. ‘When on his return from Italy [Ivan] Shuvalov informed her that artists there were depicting her proile from busts or medals of Alexander the Great and were entirely satisied with the resultant resemblance, she joked about it with evident self-satisfaction’.56 If Alexander of Macedonia ‘was the irst whom historical tradition called Great’, then for Russia that line was logically extended with the names of Peter and Catherine. But exceptional historical and cultural importance attaches to one more link in this chain – the irst Christian emperor Constantine. he author of the well-known text ‘On the Foundation and Construction of the Capital City of St Petersburg…’ when reporting the foundation ‘on Kotlin Island of the fortress of Saint Alexander’ (such a combination of names does not seem coincidental, given the baroque love of complex metaphor) and a celebrated episode with Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin an eagle that, ‘descending from the heights perched on that gate’, draws an analogy with the foundation of a city ‘in his own name’ by ‘the great Constantine, equal of the apostles’.57 ‘Peter=Constantine’ was as stable a metaphor of the Petrine era as ‘Peter=Alexander’ and if we recall all Peter’s eforts at expansion to the East, and what came before, then Catherine’s famous ‘Greek Project’58 seems to be a fairly stable political, or rather geopolitical, idea in Russian history (the Russian imperial mentality, Russian culture), attempts to realise which were met with greater or lesser success. In this context it is revealing to compare a 1698 etching59 and Richard Brompton’s double portrait of Catherine’s grandchildren Alexander and Constantine (cat. 297). While the former presents Peter himself in the guise of Constantine, in Brompton’s work the labarum – the banner of the faith that appeared to the irst Christian emperor in a vision before his battle with Maxentius – is held alot by Grand Duke Constantine, while his brother Alexander, like his Macedonian namesake, cuts the Gordian Knot that for contemporaries represented the complex tangle of European politics. he ideological continuity between these depictions is undoubted, as is the fact the Catherine, like Alexander the Great, planned to create an empire that would unite East and West. For the Macedonian king, one of the symbols and means of achieving this idea was the foundation of the Alexandrias – cities he founded to mark his army’s eastward advance. In the process of assimilating the new south of Russia, a process made possible by success in the struggle against Turkey, Catherine conducted an equally active policy of town-building and colonisation. he ageing empress invested great hopes in her grandsons, particularly the eldest, Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich (later Alexander I). In the mind of Catherine and the young man’s tutor, the Swiss Fréderic César Laharpe, his idols were to be Peter the Great and Alexander the Great. As an enlightened European with republican convictions, however, Laharpe did not idealise the Macedonian king and some of his pronouncements gave the future Russian autocrat much food for thought. ‘One should never forget,’ he wrote, ‘that Alexander the Great, a man gited with a splendid genius and brilliant qualities, laid waste to Asia and committed so many horrors solely out of a desire to emulate Homer’s heroes, in the same way that Julius Caesar, by imitating that same Alexander, committed the crime of crushing the liberty of his homeland.’60 he ‘Alexandrine spirit’ and Neo-classicism of Catherine’s era found entirely appropriate embodiment in the ine arts of the second half of the 18th century. One of the irst major works on a subject from Quintus Curtius was Alexander the Great’s Conversation with Diogenes painted by Matvei Puchinov in 1762 and shown that same year at the irst public exhibition of the Imperial Academy of Arts. In 1781–1788 Mikhail Kozlovsky created his famous sculpture he Vigil of Alexander the Great (Russian Museum, Inv. Sk 331). A description of the sculpture by Pyotr Chekalevsky gives this interpretation of the well-known subject: ‘this ruler while still young in years, during the reign of his father Philip, desiring to acquire great learning, tried to abstain from sleep and always held a brass ball in his hand when he dropped of, which when he was deep in sleep dropped into a pan, waking him up with the noise it made.’61 From the 1790s the number of subjects from ancient history included in the programme set by the board of the Academy of Arts increased considerably, prompted by Neoclassicism’s striving ater ‘natural truth’ and speciic historical content. Alexander’s exploits became set themes in the academy syllabus alongside the great deeds of such heroes of the past as Scipio the African and Mucius Scaevola. In 1793 two subjects were set – Alexander giving Campaspe to Apelles and Alexander refusing to drink water brought to him in a helmet, even though sufering greatly from thirst, because there was not enough water for all his soldiers, who were as thirsty as he.62 he sculptor Ivan Terebenev turned to subjects from Quintus Curtius when working on a series of ive reliefs for the Anichkov Palace (1809–1810), depicting ‘Alexander Parting from His Family’, ‘Trusting Philip the Physician’, ‘Alexander on the hrone’, ‘Alexander before Darius’ Family’ and ‘Alexander with the Body of Darius’. Feodosy Shchedrin placed a statue of Alexander the Great on the attic level of the Admiralty building, along with Achilles, Ajax and Pyrrhus (according to the concept of the architect Adrian Zakharov, the four heroes enthroned on the corners of the attic were intended to guard the new building). Fyodor Tolstoy also produced two drawings on the theme of Alexander the Great’s faith in Philip 75 Russian antiquity A romance with Alexander the Great the physician (1806, Russian Museum, Inv. R 9747, R 9748) and a wax bas-relief showing Alexander the Great’s triumphal entry into Babylon (1809, Hermitage, Inv. R 145), for which he was elected an honorary member of the Academy of Arts. In the late 19th and early 20th century, themes taken from the life and legend of Alexander inally disappeared from the repertoire of academic art. he Academy board last proposed such a programme in 1879, when Henryk Siemiradzki was awarded the irst gold medal for his painting Alexander’s Faith in Philip the Physician (State Art Museum of Belarus, Minsk) and Mitrofan Vereshchagin a ‘gold medal of the second rank’ for a work on the same subject (Russian Museum, Inv. Zh 91–49). New life was breathed into the Russian ‘Alexandriada’, paradoxical as it may seem, by the reform of classical education and the advancement of learning, above all study of the ancient world and the history of art. It would perhaps be impossible to ind a single major Russian poet of the turn of the 20th century whose work does not include some personal, inner ‘Alexander mythology’, not one who did not create his own Alexandria. In the case of Valery Bryusov, one of the acknowledged leaders of Russian Symbolism, passages in the Tertia vigilia (1901) and Mirror of Shadows (1912) continued the ‘classical’ line in the interpretation of the ancient hero’s image. In Mikhail Kuzmin’s he Deeds of the Great Alexander63 the theme took on the highly distinctive Pseudo-Callisthenic tone of the medieval Alexandrias that was received with such delight by Vyacheslav Ivanov.64 his age became known as the Silver Age of Russian culture – art, music and literature; it was to be not only the last period when Russian culture drew extensively upon antiquity, but also a time when through the collective eforts of scholars, philosophers and poets, the ‘universal’ was at last recognised in the ‘national’. 76 Notes 1 Callisthenes of Olynthus (c. 360–328 BC) was a Greek historian who described the battles of Alexander. In later centuries much purely legendary information was brought together in the 3rd century AD to produce what came to be known as ‘the romance of Alexander’. The author of this later text is known as the PseudoCallisthenes. 2 B. A. Rybakov, Язычество Древней Руси [Paganism in Ancient Rus], 1988, p. 567 3 G. Millet, ‘L’ascension d’Alexandre’, Syria, 4, 1923, pp. 85–I33; V. M. Schmidt, A Legend and his Image. The Aerial Flight of Alexander the Great in Medieval Art, Groningen, 1995 4 O. E. Etingof, ‘Античные традиции в древнерусской художественной культуре’ [Ancient Traditions in the Artistic Culture of Ancient Rus], Античное наследие в культуре России [The Ancient Hermitage in Russian Culture], ed. G. S. Knabe, Moscow, 1996, p. 64 5 Russia began to take shape as a state on the basis of the principality of Kiev, which existed between the late 9th and mid-13th century. 6 Византийские историки Дексипп, Эвнапий, Олимпиодор, Малх, Петр Патриций, Менандр, Кандид [The Byzantine Historians Dexippus, Eunapius, Olympiodorus, Malchus, Peter the Patrician, Menander, Candidus], ed. S. Destunis, St Petersburg, 1860, pp. 314–359 7 Слово Даниила Заточника по редакциям XII и XIII вв. и их переделкам [The Word of Daniil Zatochnik in Editions of the 12th and 13th centuries and their Reworking], compiled by N. N. Zarubin, Leningrad, 1932, p. 35 8 G. K. Vagner, ‘Южный фасад Георгиевского собора (1230–1234)’ [The South Façade of the St George Cathedral (1230–1234)], Краткие сообщения Института археологии АН СССР [Brief Proceedings of the Institute of Archaeology of the USSR Academy of Sciences], 1963, issue 96, pp. 18–24; G. K. Vagner, Мастера древнерусской скульптуры. Рельефы Юрьева-Польского [Masters of Old Russian Sculpture. Reliefs from YuryevPolsky], Moscow, 1966; G. K. Vagner, Дмитриевский собор [The Cathedral at Dmitriev], Leningrad, 1969 9 G. K. Vagner, Скульптура Владимиро-Суздальской Руси [Sculpture in Vladimir-Suzdal Rus], Moscow, 1964 10 Свод памятников архитектуры и монументального искусства России [Collection of Architectural Monuments and Monumental Art], State Institute of Art History of the Russian Federation Ministry of Culture, Moscow, 1998, pp. 151f Dmitry Nikitin | Yulia Balakhanova | Mikhail Khimin 11 V. M. Istrin, Александрия русских хронографов: Исследование и текст [The Alexandria of Russian Chronographers], Moscow, 1893, pp. 62f; M. N. Speransky, ‘Сказание об Индийском царстве’ [The Legend of the Indian Kingdom], Известия по русскому языку и словесности Академии наук СССР [News on Russian Language and Literature of the USSR Academy of Sciences], Leningrad, 1930, vol. III, book 2, p. 430 12 Children of the third son of Adam and Eve who supposedly lived on an inaccessible island in the ocean. 13 Памятники отреченной русской литературы [Monuments of Rejected Russian Literature], compiled by N. S. Tikhonravov, 2 vols, 1863, pp. 79, 81–83, 87 14 Повести о споре жизни и смерти [The Tale of the Dispute of Life and Death], text prepared by R. P. Dmitrieva, MoscowLeningrad, 1964, p. 165 15 A. N. Veselovsky, ‘Из истории романа и повести’ [From the History of the Romance and the Tale], issue 1, Сборник Отделения русского языка и словесности Академии наук (Санкт-Петербург) [Anthology of the Department of Russian Language and Literature of the Academy of Sciences (St Petersburg)], vol. XL, 1886, issue 2; Александрия. Роман об Александре Македонском по русской рукописи XV в. [Alexandria. The Romance of Alexander of Macedon in a Russian 15th-century Manuscript], text prepared by M. N. Botvinnik, Ya. S. Lurye, O. V. Tvorogov, Moscow, 1965 16 State Public Library, St Petersburg; Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery collection, no. 11/1088, 8; Alexandria 1965 (note 15), p. 187 17 State Public Library, St Petersburg, Fund XVII. 8; State History Museum, Moscow, Zabelin collection, no. 8/827 18 Gusli – a Russian stringed instrument, rather like the psaltery. 19 Simeon Polotsky, Избранные сочинения [Selected Works], text prepared, with commentaries, by I. P. Eremin, Moscow–Leningrad, 1953, p. 111 20 I. E. Zabelin, Домашний быт русских царей в XVI и XVII столетиях [The Home Life of Russian Tsars in the 16th and 17th Centuries], 2 vols, Moscow, 1918, part 1, p. 230 24 Singular – lubok. M. Snegirev, О лубочных картинках русского народа [On Lubok Pictures of the Russian People], Moscow, 1844, p. 3; B. M. Sokolov, Художественный мир русского лубка [The Artistic World of the Russian Lubok], Moscow, 2005, p. 10 25 I. N. Ukhanov, Народное декоративно-прикладное искусство городов и посадов Русского Севера конца XVII–XIX веков [Decorative and Applied Folk Art of the Towns and Settlements of the Russian North in the 17th to 19th Centuries], St Petersburg, 2001, p. 140 26 D. A. Rovinsky, Подробный словарь русских граверов XVI–XIX вв. [Detailed Dictionary of Russian Engravers of the 16th to 19th Centuries], 2 vols, Moscow, 2004, p. 81 27 Yu. I. Smirnov, Восточнославянские баллады и близкие им формы: Опыт указателя сюжетов и версий [Eastern Slav Ballads and Similar Forms: An Attempt to Compile an Index of Subjects and Versions], Moscow, 1988, p. 24 28 A. A. Formozov, Страницы истории русской археологии [Pages from the History of Russian Archaeology], Moscow, 1986, p. 34 29 Russian version of the siren in Greek mythology. 30 Rybakov 1988 (note 2), p. 576 31 Library of the Academy of Sciences, P I A, no. 15 32 Исторический очерк фондов рукописного отдела Библиотеки Академии наук [Historical Outline of the Reserves of the Manuscript Department of the Library of the Academy of Sciences], Moscow-Leningrad, 1956, issue I: 18th century, pp. 291, 384; I. N. Lebedeva, Библиотека Петра I: Опись рукописных книг [The Library of Peter I: An Inventory of the Manuscript Books], St Petersburg, 2003, p. 37 33 Historical Outline 1956 (note 31), pp. 65, 313, 399; Lebedeva 2003 (note 32), p. 213 34 Library of the Academy of Sciences, P I, no. 99 35 Library of the Academy of Sciences, P I B, no. 76 36 Lebedeva 2003 (note 32), p. 193 22 Ibid., p. 200 37 Moscow after the fall of Rome and Constantinople was to become the leader of the Christian world. 23 V. F. Levinson-Lessing, История картинной галереи Эрмитажа (1764–1917) [The History of the Hermitage Picture Gallery (1764–1917)], Leningrad, 1986, p. 33 38 Библиотека Петра I: Указательсправочник [The Library of Peter I: A Reference Index], compiled by E. I. Bobrov, ed. D. S. Likhachev, Leningrad, 1978, p. 118 21 Ibid., part 1, p. 225 40 Lebedeva 2003 (note 32), p. 197 41 ‘Панегирическая литература Петровского времени’ [Panegyric Literature of the Age of Peter I], Русская старопечатная литература (XVI – первая четверть XVIII в.) [Russian Old Printed Literature (16th – First Quarter of the 18th Century)], text prepared by V. P. Grebenyuk, ed. O. A. Derzhavina, Moscow, 1979, pp. 64f 42 E. A. Tyukhmeneva, Искусство триумфальных ворот в России первой половины XVIII века. Проблемы панегирического направления [The Art of the Triumphal Arch in Russia in the First Half of the 18th Century. Questions of the Panegyric Trend], Moscow, 2005, p. 186 51 Пьесы столичных и провинциальных театров первой половины XVIII в. [Plays in the Capital and Provincial Theatres in the First Half of the 18th Century], Moscow, 1975, p. 27 52 F. Kh. Veber, ‘Записки о Петре Великом и его царствовании’ [Notes on Peter the Great and his Reign], Русский архив [Russian Archive], 1872, Nos. 7–8, 9, col. 1424 53 ’Описание комедиям, что какие есть в государственном посольском приказе’ [Description of Comedies in the State Ambassadors’ Oice], Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts, Fund 39, delo 21]. f. 1–1v 54 Plays 1975 (note 51), p. 509 43 Ibid., p. 82 55 Ibid., p. 685 44 F. Prokopovich, История имп. Петра Великого от рождения его до Полтавской баталии [The History of Emperor Peter the Great from his Birth to the Battle of Poltava], St Petersburg, 1788, p. 83 45 Zh, A. Matsulevich, Летний сад и его скульптура [The Summer Garden and its Sculpture], Leningrad, 1936, pp. 22f 46 S. O. Androsov, ‘От Антико до Модерно (Заметки об итальянской скульптуре конца ХV — начала ХVI в.)’ [From Antico to Moderno (Notes on Italian Sculpture of the Late 15th to Early 16th Century], Античное наследие в культуре Возрождения [The Classical Heritage in Renaissance Culture], Moscow, 1984, pp. 228–232; O. Ya. Neverov, ‘Новые материалы к истории скульптурного убранства Летнего сада’ [New Material on the History of the Sculptural Decoration of the Summer Garden], Памятники культуры. Новые открытия: Ежегодник 1986 [Cultural Monuments. New Discoveries. Annual for 1986], Leningrad, 1987, pp. 297–311 47 J. Juel [Yu. Yul], Записки [Notes], Moscow, 1900, pp. 91f 48 ‘Анекдоты, касающиеся до государя императора Петра Великого, собранные Иваном Голиковым’ [Anecdotes Relating to the Sovereign Emperor Peter the Great, Gathered by Ivan Golikov], Петр Великий. Воспоминания, дневниковые записи, анекдоты [Peter the Great. Reminiscences, Diary Notes, Anecdotes], ed. L. Nikolaev, Moscow, 1993, p. 7 49 Петр Великий в его изречениях [Peter the Great in his Own Words], St Petersburg, 1910, p. 48 50 P. I. Bartenev, ‘Императрица Елизавета Петровна и ее записочки к Василию Ивановичу Демидову’ [Empress Elizaveta Petrovna and her Notes to Vasily Ivanovich Demidov], Русский Архив [Russian Archive], 1878, Book 1, p. 10 56 V. O. Klyuchevsky, Очерки и речи: Сборник статей [Essays and Speeches: Anthology of Articles], Petrograd, 1919, p. 318 57 Yu. N. Bespyatykh, Петербург Петра I в иностранных описаниях [Foreign Descriptions of the St Petersburg of Peter I], Leningrad, 1991, p. 259 58 In a secret letter of 1782 to the Austrian ruler Joseph II, Catherine suggested that they create an independent bufer state in the south of Russia, with Constantinople as its capital. 59 Library of the Academy of Sciences, P I B, no. 116 (Petrine Gallery no. 31) 60 V. M. Faibisovich, Воспитание Александра [The Education of Alexander], in the series In Brevi, Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2005, p. 16 61 P. Chekalevsky, Рассуждения о свободных художествах с описанием некоторых произведений российских художников [Thoughts on the Free Arts with the Description of Some Works by Russian Arts], St Petersburg, 1792, pp. 94–96 62 P. N. Petrov, Сборник материалов для истории императорской Академии Художеств за сто лет ее существования [Anthology of Materials for the History of the Imperial Academy of Arts for the One Hundred Years of its Existence], edited and with notes by P. N. Petrov, St Petersburg, 1864, part 1, p. 316 63 M. A. Kuzmin, ‘Подвиги Великого Александра’ [The Feats of Great Alexander], Весы [Scales], 1909, no. 1, pp. 19–41; No 2, pp. 17–34 64 V. Vs. Ivanov, ‘О прозе М. Кузмина’ [On the Prose of M. Kuzmin], Аполлон [Apollo], 1910, no. 7, Section II, pp. 48f 39 Library of the Academy of Sciences, P I B, no. 81 (Petrine Gallery no. 31) 77 37 Breastplate from a Greek set of armour with the head of Medusa Greece, 5th – 4th century BC ALEXANDER’S EASTERN CAMPAIGN A CHRONICLE OF EVENTS Anna Troimova Alexander, son of Philip II of Macedon and Olympias, was born in Pella on 21 July 356 BC. He was educated irst by Leonidas, a relative on his mother’s side, then by the Greek Lysimachus, and from 343 BC by Aristotle, who provided the young man with a classical Greek education. Alexander’s military career began at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, when he commanded the wing of the Macedonian army that destroyed the heban wing. Macedon was, by this time, one of the most powerful states in the Mediterranean. Ater the victory over the Greeks at Chaeronea the Corinthian League of Greek cities and states was formed, and Philip II was declared hegemon (commanderin-chief) of the League’s forces. he aim of the League was to wage war on the Persians, as revenge for Xerxes’ expedition and the irst rape of Athens, 150 years before. Philip was assassinated by the young aristocrat Pausanias in October 336 BC. As the principal, but not the only, pretender to the throne, Alexander immediately occupied the royal palace with his troops. He appealed to the people, promising to continue the policies of his father. he army proclaimed Alexander, Philip’s elder son, king of Macedon. 79 Alexander’s Eastern Campaign A chronicle of events he new ruler had to demonstrate his capabilities, not only within the state, but also beyond. Ater coming to the throne in the winter of 336 BC, Alexander marched into hessaly with his troops, quickly reached hermopylae and halted before hebes, having sent an ultimatum to Athens. he Corinthian synhedrion or assembly recognised Alexander’s legal right – as Philip’s heir – to be hegemon of the Hellenes and strategistautocrat in the war against Persia. he League’s forces began making preparations for a campaign to the East. Before the start of the Eastern campaign, peace still had to be secured on the home front. Alexander undertook a campaign into Illyria – he led his troops along the Rhodope Mountains to the foothills of the Balkans, crushing the opposition of local tribes, then crossed the Balkans and suddenly pushed across the Danube. As a result of these battles, which modern historians have compared with Caesar’s campaigns, the restless northern regions submitted to Alexander. he Illyrian campaign gave Alexander control of the territory between the Balkans and the Danube. While the Macedonian forces were ighting the Illyrians, insurrection was brewing in the Greek cities. Demosthenes, the principal political opponent of Macedon, decided to accept the gold ofered by the Persians, and the Athenians sent an embassy to the Great King. In the summer of 335 BC hebes rose up: the Macedonian garrison was surrounded and put under arrest. his action brought a terrible punishment that was long remembered by ancient historians. Alexander’s troops completed a lightning march and halted beneath the walls of hebes. Alexander wished to resolve the conlict by peaceful means, without bloodshed and he summoned an emergency session of the Corinthian League. he Greek cities prevaricated and hebes found itself isolated. Still the hebans did not surrender. In late September 335 BC the city was captured and razed to the ground, its citizens sold into slavery and their land distributed among neighbouring cities. Now Alexander’s authority had been conirmed in all directions, it was time for the Eastern campaign. he Macedonian army numbered 32,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry, and together with the ailiated forces amounted to over 50,000 men.1 It was the largest military campaign ever undertaken by the Greeks. At the end of March 334 BC the army and navy proceeded in the direction of the Hellespont 80 (now the Dardanelles). Alexander commanded one of the ships himself and sailed across the straits at the same place where Xerxes had once crossed into Asia. On his arrival in Troy, the conqueror performed several symbolic gestures: he took a sacred shield and lance from the ancient Temple of Athena, and made a sacriice at the graves of Achilles and Patroclos. In the meantime, considerable forces were being recruited for the defence of the Persian Empire – the satraps of Lydia, Phrygia, Ionia, Paphlagonia, Cappadocia and Cilicia, and troops from Gircania, Media and Bactria. he total manpower was 10,000 cavalry and 20,000 Greek mercenary infantry.2 he Persians rejected the plan of Memnon, Greek commander of the Persian army, which was to retreat, let the enemy through, then attack them from the rear; they decided to ight a pitched battle. his celebrated battle took place in May 334 BC on the rocky bank of the River Granicus in the Zelea valley (in Hellespontine Phrygia). he victory of the Greek-Macedonian army, achieved on the fourth day of the campaign, demonstrated the indisputable supremacy of the Macedonian cavalry and opened the way to the cities of Asia Minor. Sardis and Ephesus surrendered without a battle, while Miletus, which did put up resistance, was stormed and captured. In the summer Alexander laid siege to Halicarnassus, capital of Caria, then conquered Lycia and Pamphylia. Ater that he proceeded into Great Phrygia and wintered in Gordium, residence of the Phrygian kings. Legend had it that only the man who could untie the Gordian knot, plaited on an ancient chariot, could become the country’s ruler. Alexander cut it in two with a single blow from his sword. Ater the Persians’ shattering defeat, Darius appointed Memnon commander-in-chief, agreeing to his plan for a defensive war. It was a decision that bore fruit: Memnon’s leet began to hold sway in the Mediterranean, and Sparta and Athens entered into negotiations with Persia. However, in May 333 BC Memnon died, putting paid to Darius’ military campaign. Alexander headed southwards and captured Tarsus, the capital of Cilicia. Ater a two-week break brought about by the commander’s illness, the army continued its campaign into Syria. he irst battle between Alexander and Darius took place in November 333 BC near the city of Issus. he Persians Anna Troimova sufered huge losses and Darius led Damascus, leaving behind his mother, wife, son and two daughters. his battle decided the fate of Western Asia – Alexander had opened the way to Phoenicia, where the Persians’ main naval bases were located. Sidon surrendered without a ight, while Tyre suggested that an alliance be concluded, on condition that the city retain its independence. Alexander was not prepared to negotiate on this and took the decision to capture the city. he siege of Tyre lasted from January to August 332 BC. During this war modern engineering was used, including the construction of a dam connecting an island to the mainland, and the building of siege machines and battering rams. Ater the siege of Tyre the army approached the border city of Gaza and laid siege to the fortress for two months. All the fortress’ defenders – Persians and Arabs – were killed, the city was settled by neighbouring tribes and fortiied by a Macedonian garrison. Syria and Palestine were captured in the same way and now, as a result of his victories on land and sea, Alexander enjoyed absolute dominion over the Middle East. In a year and a half the Greek-Macedonian army had conquered all the countries in the area – from Tauris to Egypt. In the autumn of 332 BC Alexander stepped on to Egyptian soil. He headed for the ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis and encountered no resistance there. In the Temple of Ptah in Memphis he was proclaimed Pharaoh, Son of Ra and Deputy of Horus.3 In early 331 BC Alexander founded the new capital of Egypt – Alexandria – in the Nile delta. From there he made a pilgrimage to Siwa to the desert oracle, which proclaimed the Macedonian king to be the son of Amon. In 331 BC Alexander crossed into Mesopotamia for the decisive battle against Darius. Ater a gruelling march from Tyre to the Euphrates, he crossed the Tigris on two specially constructed bridges. he battle commenced on 1 October on a plain near the village of Gaugamela (not far from the city of Arbela). Despite the considerable numerical superiority of the Persian forces, the Macedonians and Greeks were victorious, thanks to Alexander’s brilliant tactics. Darius led, abandoning the royal treasury, his armaments and his chariot. he Macedonian troops proclaimed Alexander ‘king of Asia’, and over the course of the next several months he triumphantly entered all the Persian royal residences: Susa and Babylon (in modern Iraq), Persepolis and Pasargad (in modern Iran). he capture of Persepolis, ancient capital of Iran, marked the end of the ‘war of vengeance on the Persians’. Alexander went to Ecbatana in May 330 BC in pursuit of Darius, but the Great King had been assassinated by conspirators from his own inner circle and the GreekMacedonian forces returned to Bactria. In the autumn Alexander took Drangiana and wintered in Arachosia (in modern Afghanistan). Proceeding through the Hindu Kush towards Bactria, the soldiers crossed the Oxus (now the Amudarya) and reached Maracanda (now Samarkand). he River Jaxartes (now the Syrdarya) marked the northernmost limit of Alexander’s conquests. Alexander spent the following two years putting down the resistance of local princes in Sogdia and Bactria. Aterwards, in the summer of 327 BC, he embarked on an Indian campaign at the head of a 50,000-strong army. May 326 BC saw the great battle between Alexander and the Indian rajah Porus on the River Hydaspes, the most important battle in the whole Eastern campaign. Emerging victorious, Alexander continued on his way East, but his soldiers, exhausted by the campaigns, rebelled, and on the bank of the River Hyphasis in July 326 BC Alexander gave the order to turn back. he army split into two parts and returned by land and sea. he army under Alexander marched down the Indus towards the ocean, while Nearchus supervised the return of the navy. he expedition ended in Susa in January 324 BC. A grand celebration was organised there – mass weddings between Macedonian warriors and women from noble Persian and Median families. In early 323 BC Alexander entered Babylon, which he intended to make the capital of his empire. He started preparing for an Arabian expedition to settle the coast of the Persian Gulf and the neighbouring islands. he beginning of the expedition was set for 22 June but Alexander died at the height of the preparations for the campaign, on 13 June 323 BC. Alexander’s military leaders immediately began to argue about his heritage. It was decided to bury his body in Egah, ancient capital of Macedonia, and work started on the construction of his burial chariot. However, Ptolemy, who had secretly taken possession of the king’s remains, carried them in a golden coin to Alexandria, where the great conqueror was buried in 322 BC. 81 Alexander’s Eastern Campaign A chronicle of events Notes 1 A. B. Bosworth, Conquest and Empire: The Reign of Alexander the Great, Cambridge, 1993, p. 35 A ‘federation of satrapies’ was formed in place of the empire. Arrhidaeus, Alexander’s imbecile brother, was formally declared king, along with Alexander’s minor son Roxane, while true control of the country passed to the State Collegium and the commanders: Antipater became governor of Macedon, Perdiccas the hiliarch of Asia, and Craterus was appointed prostates. Ptomely became head of Egypt, Lysimachus of hrace and Leonnatus of Phrygia. Antigonus was given Hellespontine Phrygia (adjacent to the Hellespont) and Eumen received Cappadocia. he result was a political crisis that brought about the end of the empire; Alexander’s former comrades-in-arms were conirmed as rulers of the new states. Alexander’s Eastern Campaign lasted more than ten years and was the longest military campaign in history. It resulted in the creation of a gigantic power that stretched from the Danube to the Indus. But the largest empire of ancient times disintegrated ater the death of its founder, its territory becoming the site of a number of Hellenistic states. 82 2 The number of the Persian army is unknown. Diodoros of Sicily proposed that there were about 48,000 men, mainly cavalry, but it is impossible to say if this igure is correct. 3 Egyptian pharaohs were called the living Horus. 32 Iron helmet with silver decorations Greece, Melos (?), mid- to late 4th century BC 79 Head of a young man Campania or central Italy, 3rd century BC PHOTOGRAPHY AND IMAGE MANIPULATION Erwin Olaf CATALOGUE 85 CLASSICAL HELLAS GREECE UNDER ALEXANDER AND BEFORE Anna Troimova The age of Alexander the Great marks the end of the classical period in Greek culture. By that time the civilisation that had lourished on the coast of the Aegean Sea had reached the highest point of its development. As opposed to the countries of the Ancient East, where cultural and historical changes were gradual, in Greece groundbreaking discoveries were made simultaneously in every ield of culture over the course of just three centuries. It was there that philosophy, science and theatre were born, along with that particular form of communal society – the ancient polis, the city-state. The revolution in Greek art led to the birth of the ‘classical’ style, which has been synonymous with ‘perfect’ ever since the age of Hellenism. The spiritual and political driving force of Hellas was Athens, which led the confederation of Greek cities in their confrontation with the old enemy, Persia. Public buildings and temples in the citadel of the Acropolis in Athens demonstrated Hellenic ideology and the lofty values of the Greek state. One of the most important discoveries of Greek civilisation was embodied in the Parthenon sculptures: the new ‘ideal realism’ that formed the foundation of Hellenism in the art of Mediterranean, Asian and Eastern countries for thousands of years. The secret of the discovery lay in the Greeks’ unique aptitude for generalisation. Greek artists were not 86 creating a fabulous, ideal world, but by challenging the complete illusion of the real depiction of man, they left aside everything that was mortal or transient and elevated his image to a universal one. In the classical period Greek civilisation was already spreading rapidly around the whole of the Mediterranean area. The Greeks founded cities across a huge area along the coasts of the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The world of ancient culture became the model for many peoples – in Africa, Sicily, in the lands of the savage Gauls and Thracians. Hellenistic inluence was also powerful in the neighbouring patriarchal states of Northern Greece and the Balkans, such as Thessaly and Macedonia. Alexander’s strong, deep-seated links with Greek culture grew from the fact that for several centuries the Macedonian royal court had been assimilating the achievements of that culture: Greek script, the theatre, works of Hellenic art, the worship of Greek gods and heroes.1 Alexander was attracted most by the world of the heroic epic – Homer’s tales of the exploits of the Greeks’ ancestors. The themes of the Trojan cycle, especially the myth of Achilles, had a marked inluence on Alexander’s personality: he imitated Achilles and endeavoured to outdo him. The images of the principal characters in the Iliad created by the Greeks, the battle scenes and the way in which heroes were revered, are demonstrated to us today in the form of Attic and Southern Italian vase painting (cats 1–4, 12, 13). Another important mythical character for Alexander was Heracles, the most popular Greek hero. Portraits of the Macedonian king, the cults he established and the evidence of ancient historians reveal that the conqueror set himself up to rival Heracles, his mythical forebear. A statuette of Heracles at a feast that had been created by Lysippus, the sculptor from Sicyon who worked for Alexander, was the king’s favourite work of art. Along with his copy of Homer’s Iliad, the statuette accompanied him throughout his Eastern campaign (cat. 6). The guiding star of the Eastern campaign was another mythological hero, Dionysus, who was especially revered by the Macedonians. In the perceptions of the Greeks, it was Dionysus, the god of all peoples, who had brought them culture, leading an Asian campaign that passed through Asia Minor, Persia, Bactria and Arabia with his retinue. As recounted by historians, Alexander declared that Dionysus had proceeded through India in triumph, and that the Macedonian army was following in his footsteps. The god of many faces, Dionysus was frequently portrayed from the late Classical period through the Hellenistic epoch, his image appearing in vase painting, sculpture large and small and reliefs. Portraiture developed in the second half of the 4th century BC, when the role of the individual had signiicantly increased in public consciousness. Sculptures were made of many leaders who played an important part in Athenian life during the dramatic period of the decline of the city’s hegemony. Portraits appeared of the contemporaries of Philip and Alexander – the orators Aeschines (cat. 10) and Demosthenes (cat. 11), who defended opposing political interests.2 Changes in tastes and attitudes are relected both in monumental public art and in statues intended for the private sphere. A lourishing of jewellery art accompanied the rise of the peripheral states – the ancient colonies on the northern Black Sea coast (cats 14–24), Thrace and Macedonia. Works of Greek masters often relect the taste of their non-Greek clients – the Bosporan, Scythian and Macedonian nobility, for whom ‘Greek’ was a token of high status and prestige. Notes 1 See F. Schachermeyer, Alexander der Grosse. Ingenium und Macht, 1949; N.G.L. Hammond, A History of Macedonia, 1988 2 Aeschines tried to convince Athens not to oppose the Macedonian expansion under Philip II, but Demoshtenes argued the opposing case. 1 Black-igure Hydria: Achilles with the body of Hector Attica, c. 510 BC Leagros Group, The Antiope Painter Clay; h 49, Ø rim 24.5, Ø base 15 cm Provenance 1834, Pizzati collection; found at Vulci Inv. B.173 (GR 2003) St. 165 Inv.nr. B.173 (GR 2003) St. 165 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 1, p. 65 On the hydria’s body, set within an ornamental frame, is the principal subject – Achilles tying Hector’s body to a chariot: ‘Then he’d harness his fast horses to their chariot, / tie on Hector and drag him behind, driving / three times around the tomb of Menoetius’ dead son’ (Iliad, XXIV, 14–16). Achilles was one of the most important heroes in Greek mythology: Alexander compared himself with Achilles, whether for his propensity for divine wrath or for his ability suddenly to display unexpected mercy. The event shown here is one of the key episodes of the Trojan War and was frequently used as a subject in vase painting, particularly by the Leagros group of painters working in the last third of the 6th century BC. Achilles dragging the body of Hector can also be seen, for example, on the hydria (Munster 565) and on the amphora (Boston 63.473), both also painted by members of the Leagros group. AP 87 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 2 Black-igure Amphora A Ajax with the body of Achilles B Zeus and Hera in a chariot Attica, 530–520 BC The Swing Painter Clay; h 52.9, Ø rim 22, Ø base 16.9 cm Provenance 1894, purchased by Helbig from de Gossi; discovered in Bieda (modern Blera, in Lazio) Inv. B.2066 (GR 6994) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 2, p. 66 88 This depiction of a warrior with a body on his shoulders and a shield beneath his arm may be interpreted as Ajax Telamonides bearing the body of Achilles from the ield of battle (Apollodorus, Epitome, V, 4). Ajax was renowned for his enormous height and his valour, in which he was second only to Achilles. ‘His shield. / It was like a tower made of bronze, with seven layers, / each one of ox-hide’ (Iliad, VII, 220). The warrior with a bow and arrow behind Ajax may be Teucer, Ajax’s half-brother, who gained fame as a skilled archer during the Trojan War and in the funeral games held in honour of Achilles (Apollodorus, Epitome, V, 4), while the old man at the front of the procession may be Peleus, Achilles’ father. Ajax Telamonides brought twelve ships to Troy (Iliad, II, 557–558), did battle with Hector (Iliad, VII, 268–270), covered the fallen Patroclos with his shield (Iliad, XVII, 132–139) and helped to carry his body (Iliad, XVII, 718–753). Although he played the main role in the protection of Achilles’ body and its removal from the battleield, it was to Odysseus that Achilles’ armour went. Enraged, Ajax went mad and decided to slaughter the Achaean leaders, but Athena put him in a daze and he killed animals instead. When he came to his senses, Ajax was unable to bear the shame and committed suicide (Apollodorus, Epitome, V, 4). The events in the life of Ajax most frequently depicted in vase-painting are his removal of Achilles’ body from the ield of battle and his suicide. Ajax was revered as a hero – there was a temple to him in Salamis (Pausanias, Description of Greece, I.35, 3), and ‘Ajantia’ festivals were held in Attica and Salamis. AP 4 Red-igure ‘Nolan’ amphora: nereid on a dolphin Attica, 450–445 BC The Achilles Painter Clay; h 34 cm Provenance 1834, Pizzati collection Inv. B.195 (GR 2025), St. 1536, B.713 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 4, p. 68 On the front of the amphora a nereid rides upon a dolphin. The nereids were the ifty daughters of the old man of the sea, Nereus, who was himself the son of Pontus, the ‘noisy sea’ (Hesiod, Theogony, 132), and of the earth goddess Gaia. The nereid holds a helmet in her left hand. Scholars link such depictions of nereids carrying pieces of armour with the story of celebrated Ancient Greek hero Achilles, for whom, at the request of his mother, the nereid Thetis, a miraculous suit of armour was made by Hephaestus, god of ire and the blacksmith’s craft: ‘A heavy helmet shaped to it Achilles’ temples, / beautiful and inely worked, with a gold crest on top’ (Iliad, XVIII, 610–611). AP 3 Red-igure hydria-kalpis: Achilles and Polixena Attica, c. 500 BC The Berlin Painter Clay; h 37.5, Ø rim 17, Ø base 13.5 cm Provenance 1834, Pizzati collection; found in Kanino Inv. B.200 (GR 2030) St. 1588, B.528 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 3, p. 67 The shoulders of this hydria-kalpis portray Achilles and Polixena by a spring, depicted as a post with a lion’s mask, from which water pours into a hydria on a pedestal to left. To right of the spring squats Achilles, hiding from Polixena. To left stands Polixena in a long chiton and a cloak; she wears bracelets on her arms and her hair, is tied in a knot and fastened with a ribbon at the back of her head. On the fountain sits a raven – the prophetic bird of Apollo, harbinger of Achilles’ death from an arrow ired by Paris, Polixena’s brother, and of Polixena’s death at the hands of Neoptolemus, Achilles’ son. The more common portrayal of this scene in Attic vase painting also shows Troilus, Polixena’s brother, who was killed by Achilles. Achilles was one of the principal heroes of Greek mythology, with whom Alexander compared himself. The story of Polixena is one of those episodes in Achilles’ biography which clearly demonstrated the impossibility of resisting a heroic and tragic fate preordained by the gods. AP 89 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 5 Heracles with the apples of the Hesperides Roman, 2nd century AD, after a Greek original of the second half of the 4th century BC Marble; h 201 cm Provenance unknown Inv. A.308 Literature Davydova 1998, p. 54 This Roman statue of Heracles (Roman: Hercules) at rest is a copy of a Greek original from the second half of the 4th century BC, similar in its plasticity to the works of the sculptor Skopas. Researchers usually link it with a statue of Heracles described by Pausanias, which the Greek traveller and writer saw in the gymnasium at SIcyon (Pausanius, Description of Greece, II.10, 1). On his head Heracles wears a garland of leaves from the white poplar tree (populus alba), indicating that in ancient times he was revered as both a hero and a deity. This paradigm of the biography of one of the most powerful characters in mythology found a parallel in the life of Alexander the Great. The statue is unique – not only for the garland on its head, which has survived, but also for the depiction of the hero’s attributes: the combined or united quiver and bow case similar to the Scythian gorytos. LD 90 6 Heracles feasting Roman, 1st century AD, after a Greek original of the 330s BC Marble; h 46 cm Provenance 1920, Academy of Arts, to which it had been transferred by Alexander I; 1801 presented to Paul I by Antonio Francesco Farsetti Inv. A.831 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 12, p. 76 Works by the Roman poets Martial and Statius contain descriptions of a statuette of Heracles feasting, the so-called ‘Heracles epitrapezios’, a table decoration made by Lysippus for Alexander the Great. The hero was shown seated on a rock covered with a lion’s skin, a cup in his right hand and a club in his left. Heracles’ face, with its upward gaze, bore the portrait features of the great military commander himself. After Alexander the statuette was owned by Hannibal, Sulla and the Roman poet Novius Vindex. The ‘Heracles epitrapezios’ may have been made in 332 BC during Alexander’s siege of the Phoenician city of Tyre, and may have shown Heracles of Tyre or Melcart, a local deity who was identiied with Heracles and was sometimes portrayed in a lion’s skin. Alexander believed that Heracles/Melcart had helped him to gain the victory. LD 91 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 7 Heracles ighting a lion Rome, fragments of the 2nd – 3rd century AD, with additions and restoration made in Italy, probably 17th century Marble; h 65 cm Provenance 1887, Princes Golitsyn collection Inv. A.498 Literature Golitsyn Museum 2004, p. 169 In the Golitsyn collection this statuette of Heracles was considered to be an Italian Renaissance work. In the 19th century, however, curators at the Hermitage identiied it as a Roman copy of a 4th-century BC work by the Greek sculptor Lysippus, although the precise appearance of Lysippus’ work is not known. It may have been a group sculpture (or several of them), or possibly a relief on the theme of the twelve labours of Heracles (known as the dodekathlos). In Roman art the labours were frequently depicted on the sides of sarcophagi. It is possible that here a fragment from one such a relief was completed by an Italian artist of the 16th or 17th century to create the sculpture ‘Heracles ighting a lion’: its baroque style is certainly in keeping with such a date. In comparing Heracles and Alexander – one hero mythical, the other real – we underline once more the scale and might of Alexander’s heroic exploits. LD 92 8 Eros with a bow Rome, 1st century AD, after a Greek original of 338–335 BC Marble; h 133.2 cm Provenance 1851 sent to St Petersburg from the Vatican ‘in return for the concession of land on the Palatine Hill’ (as stated in the inscription around the base); 1828 found in Rome Inv. A.199 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 15, p. 79 This is a copy of a statue that was well known in ancient times, an image of Eros by the Greek sculptor Lysippus, made for the sanctuary of Eros in Thespiae (Boeotia) in the 4th century BC. Most restored copies show Eros shooting his bow, not stretching the bowstring as here, but technological analysis carried out in the Hermitage has shown that Eros’ right hand, which is clutching the end of the bow and the loop of the bowstring, was made from the same stone as the torso and thus is contemporary with it. Lysippus skilfully conveyed the efort of a slender boy preparing to shoot his victim not from any bow, but from the bow of Heracles himself: a lion’s skin and a club, attributes of the legendary hero, appear on the stump beside Eros. LD 93 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 9 Head of Meleager Roman, after a Greek original of the 340s BC Marble; h 60 cm Provenance 1887, Princes Golitsyn collection Inv. A.505 Literature Golitsyn Museum 2004, p. 165 Amongst the works of Skopas was a statue of the Greek hero Meleager, one of the participants in the Calydonian hunt. The same theme also served as the basis for the pediment of the Temple of Athena Alea in Tegea (Peloponnese), designed and decorated by Skopas. In its iconography the head of the youth in the Hermitage collection is close to these works by the master. Skopas’ style exerted considerable inluence on Greek art in the second half of the 4th century BC, including portrait images of Alexander. LD 94 10 Disc with a portrait of Aeschines Roman, mid-2nd century AD, after a Greek original of the second half of the 4th century BC Marble; Ø 65 cm Provenance 1787, collection John Lyde Brown, Wimbledon; 1756 found in the Gulf of Naples Inv. A.64 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 13, p. 77 The identiication of this depiction as a portrait of Aeschines is based on a comparison with portrait herms bearing the ancient inscription ‘Aeschines’ in the Vatican and the British Museum. The Roman copies are based on a Greek original of around 320 BC. Aeschines (398/389 – after 314 BC) was a prominent political igure in Athens in the second half of the 4th century BC; He played an important role in the fate of democracy. An outstanding orator, he was the political opponent of Demosthenes and represented pro-Macedonian interests. In 348 BC Aeschines was part of the embassy to Philip of Macedon that concluded the Peace of Philocrates. On his return he was accused by Timarchus of receiving bribes for lobbying Philip’s interests. Aeschines repudiated the charge in his speech ‘About the Embassy’, in which he showed Timarchus to be an immoral man. Later, following Greece’s defeat at Chaeronea, when the orator Ctesiphontes proposed awarding Demosthenes a golden garland in the Athenian theatre on the Great Dionysia, Aeschines came out against the proposal. In two speeches ‘Against Ctesiphontes’ he accused Demosthenes of damaging the Athenian state with his political activities. Demosthenes’ celebrated reply in his speech ‘About the Garland’ was a crushing blow to Aeschines’ position. He lost the action and was forced into exile on Rhodes, where he founded a school of rhetoric. AAT 11 Head of Demosthenes Roman copy, irst quarter of the 2nd century AD, after a Greek original of 280 BC by the sculptor Polyeuctes Marble; h 38 cm Provenance 1862, Campana collection; discovered in Frascati Inv. A.403a Literature Alexander 2007, no. 14, p. 78 Demosthenes (384–322 BC) was one of the greatest orators in the ancient world, and is still famous today. A leading Athenian politician, Demosthenes was quick to recognise the danger posed by Philip of Macedon and headed the patriotic anti-Macedonian party. Demosthenes proposed the slogan of Greek national unity ‘in the struggle against the northern barbarian’. He condemned the Peace of Philocrates with Philip (in which Aeschines was a participant). Demosthenes secured Aeschines’ condemnation and banishment in his celebrated speech ‘About the Garland’. In 325–324 BC Demosthenes was accused of receiving a bribe from the ruler of Babylon, following which he left Athens, returning only after the death of Alexander the Great, when he attempted to mobilise the inhabitants of the Peloponnese in resistance to Macedon. This ‘Lamian War’ ended in defeat for the Greeks; Demosthenes led to the island of Calabria and took poison to avoid imprisonment. This portrait of Demosthenes is based on Polyeuctes’ statue made in 280 BC and installed in the Agora in Athens. Some 50 copies of the portrait have survived, which speaks tellingly of the orator’s extraordinary popularity among the Romans. AAT 95 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 12 Red-igure volute-krater: warrior with a horse in a heroon Southern Italy, Apulia, 330–320 BC Master of the Seated Woman Group Clay; h 72.2, Ø rim 37.8, Ø base 11.4 cm Provenance 1834, Pizzati collection; discovered in Bari Inv. B.581 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 17, p. 81 The vase was intended for a warrior’s burial. The inhabitants of the Greek colonies that sprang up in the south of the Apennine Peninsula in the 5th century BC had witnessed the military victories of Alexander Molossian of Epirus, uncle of Alexander the Great. At that time Tarento, the principal centre of artistic production in Apulia, was also the heart of a league of Italian cities, against which the local tribes of Lucania and Messapia staged a revolt. The people of Tarento applied to Alexander Molossian for assistance, and for several years (334/3–331/0 BC) he was very successful in military actions, but he sufered a crushing defeat in the Battle of Pandosia and was killed. There are many rich burials from this time, a good number of which contained items of artistic value. EBA 96 13 Red-igure volute-krater: scene of sacriice Southern Italy, Apulia, 330–320 BC The Darius Painter Clay; h 95, Ø rim 45.4, Ø base 21 cm Provenance 1925, Countess Shuvalova collection; discovered in Ruvo (?) Inv. B.4323 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 18, p. 82 An early work by the Darius Painter, so named after a volute-krater in Naples that shows a sitting of Darius’ military council. That krater was discovered in a burial in Canosa in 1851, together with bronze armour and six large vases, the best known of which is a krater with scenes of the sumptuous burial of Patroclos. Three more vases and one fragment associated with Alexander’s Persian campaign have survived; one is an amphora in Naples that apparently shows Alexander and Darius – over the heads of the individual characters the painter scratched a Greek inscription: ‘Burial of Patroclos’, ‘Darius’, ‘Persians’. These inds undoubtedly provide evidence of the considerable interest in Alexander’s Persian campaign among the people of Southern Italy in the 30s and 20s BC. EBA 97 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 14 Bracelet (one of a pair) Greek, late 5th – early 4th century BC Gold, silver; w 8.3 cm Provenance 1855; 1854 found in a grave in the necropolis at Pantikapaion (now Kerch; excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. P.1854.28 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 22, p. 86 A solid silver ring (the photograph shows the pair) tipped with gold lions’ heads attached to the ring by gold bushes. The lions’ heads consist of two stamped halves soldered together, the details of the relief on the faces inished with embossing. The tongues and teeth were made separately and soldered to the inished object. The bushes are decorated in iligree. Traces of gilding in the form of acute-angled scallops are visible on the silver ring by the bushes. This form of bracelet with zoomorphic ends was borrowed by Greek masters from the Orient, where it was known even before the time of the Achaemenid Empire. Here the Eastern prototype was reworked by the Greek master: in the late 5th century BC the narrow ornamental strip of Achaemenid bracelets gave way to a wide bush covered with iligree (Pfrommer 1990, p. 101). YPK 15 Pendant earrings with maenads Greek, 4th century BC Gold; h 4.4 cm Provenance 1862; 1859 found in the Yuz-Oba burial mound in the necropolis at Pantikapaion (now Kerch; excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. Yu.O.4 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 23, p. 87 Each earring consists of two parts: a triplelayered rosette with petals edged with ribbed wire, and a pendant in the form of a dancing maenad, one with a panther on her back, the other with a deer. The igures of the maenads were cast in gold and the small details were cast and soldered on separately. The maenads’ clothing and hair and the animals’ fur are carved. Similar tiny igures of dancers, deities and animals found in Bosporan burial mounds of the 4th century BC form a whole gallery of miniature sculpture. LN 98 16 Ribbon necklace with triple-blade pendants Greek, third quarter of the 4th century BC Gold; l 33.9 cm Provenance 1859; 1858 found in the Pavlovsky burial mound at the eastern extremity of the Yuz-Oba ridge (excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. Pav.2 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 24, p. 88 The pendants are attached with iligree rosettes to the edge of a ‘ribbon’ of double-plaited linked chains. At the ends of the necklace are lions’ heads holding the ringlets in their mouths. A cord passed through the ringlets made it possible to adjust the position of the necklace around the neck. Some researchers call the pendants beech nuts, others think they are the tips of arrows or spears. This type of necklace with spear-like pendants appeared in the inventories of the Temple of Artemis at Delos among donations to the temple’s treasury. YPK 99 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 17 Earrings with igures of Nike Greek, mid-4th century BC Gold; h 4.8 cm Provenance 1859; 1858 found in the Pavlovsky burial mound at the eastern extremity of the Yuz-Oba ridge (excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. Pav.3 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 25, p. 89 Each igure of Nike mirrors the motion of the other’s raised arm holding a ribbon. Double-layered rosettes over the igures’ heads conceal the wide hooks of the earrings. The arms, wings, feet and ribbons were made separately and soldered to the body, which was cast in a single section. The hair, facial features, folds of the chitons and feathering of the wings were carved subsequently. A repair to the broken hook on one of the earrings, carried out in antiquity, is evidence that they were worn for a long time. A monumental sculpture may have served as the prototype for this miniature work. YPK 100 19 Pendant with a relief: nereid Greek, Bosporan kingdom, 4th century BC Gold, enamel; h 15.5, Ø disc 7.3 cm Provenance 1864; 1864 found in the Bolshaya Bliznitsa burial mound on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Ivan Zabelin and Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. BB.31 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 27, p. 90 One of a pair of pendants, each of which consists of a disc with ive attached rows of amphorashaped pendants. Filigree, gold balls, blue and green enamel are used in the decoration. The edge of the disc is decorated with iligree sequins and strips of smooth and ribbed wire, which the convex surface features a stamped relief depiction of a nereid (possibly Thetis), bearing a warrior’s armour on a seahorse to Achilles, hero of the Trojan War. The cult of Achilles was widespread along the Northern Black Sea coast and was manifested in Greek art of the region, including jewellery. Scholars have varying opinions regarding the function of these luxurious pendants. Some suggest they were worn in the ears, others that they hung at the temples; yet others think they were pinned to the breast. LN 18 Olive wreath Greek, Bosporan kingdom, mid-4th century BC Gold; Ø c. 32 cm Provenance 1839; 1839 found in a burial mound on the land of the Mirza of Kekuvat on the outskirts of Kerch (excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. Kek.1 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 26, p. 89 Short twigs, leaves and fruit, accurately conveying the shape of the leaves and fruit of the olive tree, are attached to stems of gold leaf rolled into tubes or freely inserted into apertures. However, the somewhat careless manufacture, especially in the construction and the manner in which the details are attached to the body of the wreath, suggests that this wreath was made speciically for a burial. The custom of heroising deceased nobles or wealthy citizens took root in the Bosporus from the middle of the 4th century BC. A gold wreath was placed on the deceased’s head in preparation for his meal beyond the grave with demigods and heroes of the past. YPK 101 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 20 Plaque with Heracles Greek, Bosporan kingdom, 4th century BC Gold; 6 × 6 cm Provenance 1864; 1864 discovered in the Bolshaya Bliznitsa burial mound on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Ivan Zabelin and Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. BB.44 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 28, p. 91 One of 14 square gold plaques with a relief depiction of a clean-shaven Heracles wearing a wreath and carrying a club. Plaques of similar shape and decoration depicting Demeter and Persephone have been found in the burial of a priestess of the goddess Demeter in the Bolshaya Bliznitsa burial mound. Their similarities are probably explained by the fact that all three characters were associated with the Eleusinian mysteries. Heracles is known to have been initiated into the mysteries of the worship of Demeter, goddess of agriculture and fertility. LN 21 Earrings with boat-shaped pendants Greek; third quarter of the 4th century BC Gold; h 5.8 cm Provenance 1864; 1864 found in the Bolshaya Bliznitsa burial mound (vault no. 1) on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Ivan Zabelin and Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. BB.32 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 29, p. 91 Each earring consists of a disc with a double strip of gold balls around the edge and a lower with two layers of delicate petals; attached to the bottom is a boat from which are suspended four gold balls joined together by ine chains. Between the disc and the boat are stamped acanthus leaves and palms. Three rows of pendants of varying shapes and sizes are attached to the boat. These richly decorated objects with their complex three-part construction are part of a relatively small group of luxury earrings. YPK 102 22 Ring with the bow and club of Heracles Greek, third quarter of the 4th century BC Gold; Ø 2.3 cm Provenance 1899; 1899 found in Chersonesos (under-wall vault no. 1012; excavations by Karl Kostsyushko-Valyuzhinich) Inv. Kh.1899.11 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 32, p. 93 The depiction of the bow and club – attributes of Heracles – almost entirely reproduces the reverse side of coins issued under Philip II and his son Alexander the Great (cats 57, 58). Depictions of Heracles and his attributes were very popular on Macedonian coins and served propaganda purposes, reminding the populace of their legendary ancestor. The rubbed image shows that the ring was used for a long period as a seal. Another ring found in the same vault (cat. 23) also reproduces a well-known type of coin. YPK 23 Ring with Athena Nikephoros Greek, Northern Black Sea coast, possibly Pantikapaion, late 4th century BC Gold; Ø signet 2.3 cm Provenance 1899; 1899 found in Chersonesos (under-wall vault no. 1012; excavations by Karl Kostsyushko-Valyuzhinich) Inv. Kh.1899.9 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 33, p. 93 The image on the signet is virtually identical to that on a coin of Lysimachus of Thrace (306/305–281 BC; cats 63, 64). Coins and their impressions with a similar depiction are frequently encountered along the Northern Black Sea coast. ON 103 Classical Hellas Greece under Alexander and before 24 Braid with a Heracles knot Greek, late 4th century BC Gold, iller; l 31.7, Heracles knot 4.5 × 2.4 cm Provenance 1899, from Chersonesos Inv. Kh.1899.7 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 34, p. 94 Composed of three parts: in the centre a Heracles knot of gold leaf; to either side two strips of gold braid made of seven doubleplaited chains joined together. A ribbon for tying the braid around the back of the head was probably threaded through the eyelets on the ends of the bushes. Such Chersonesos work was to undergo certain changes at a later period: in the 3rd century BC, for instance, a Heracles knot on a fragment of a diadem from Pantikapaion is decorated with coloured inserts, although its construction is essentially the same as this diadem from Chersonesos, as is that of the celebrated 2nd-century BC diadem from the Artyukhov burial mound (cat. 104). Some scholars difer regarding the purpose of the Chersonesos braid, describing it as a necklace. LN 104 25 Stater 26 Stater 27 Stater Corinth, 338–300 BC Silver; Ø 20 mm; 8.41 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/8835 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 37, p. 95 Corinth, 4th – 3rd century BC Silver; Ø 22.5 mm; 8.45 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964 /8838 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 38, p. 96 Peloponnese, Sicyon, 400–323 BC Silver; Ø 23.5 mm; 12.18 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964 /9155 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 39, p. 96 Obverse Pegasus facing left; below – Obverse Pegasus facing left, below – Obverse Chimera facing left, the irst letter of the city’s name. the irst letter of the city’s name. with a monogram below. Reverse Head of Athena, a boar behind her. YD Reverse Head of Athena in a helmet facing left, a Triton behind her. YD Reverse Dove in a garland facing left. YD 28 Stater 29 Stater Crete. Gortyna, 431–300 BC Silver; Ø 24.5 mm; 10.85 g Provenance 1925, from the Cheka (Soviet state security service) Inv. ON-2964/11669 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 49, p. 99 Locris. Opuntian Locris, 387–339 BC Silver; Ø 24.5 mm; 12.77 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/8446 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 47, p. 99 Obverse Head of Persephone, Obverse Europa sitting on a tree, facing left. with an eagle in front. Reverse Bull with its head turned backwards. YD Reverse Ajax in a helmet with a shield and a sword, a bunch of grapes below the shield. Around it the name of the city: ΟΠΟΝΤΙΩΝ (Opuntian Locris). YD 105 BETWEEN HELLAS AND THE BARBARIANS Dmitry Alexinsky At the start of the reign of Philip II (360/59–336 BC), Macedonia – a country of mountains, forests and little urbanisation – was a backwater of the Hellenic world whose inhabitants were not particularly distinguished by the Greeks from the other northern barbarians. It is likely that as early as the 5th century BC an oicial genealogy was drawn up in Macedonia to relect the claims of the Hellenised upper nobility to Greek provenance. The genealogy linked the ruling house of the Argeads with Argos in the Peloponnese and the descendants of the Heraclides. Despite this, however, representatives of the ruling dynasty found great diiculty in gaining recognition – for example, the right to take part in the sacred Pan-Hellenic Games at Olympia. The Macedonians used Greek script and worshipped the Olympian gods, but Hellenic inluences had not penetrated into the rest of the country beyond the royal residences in Aigai and Pella. In their way of life, customs and beliefs, not only Macedonian shepherds and peasants, but also members of the ancestral nobility were closer to their barbarian neighbours – the Paionians, Triballi and Odrissae. The similarity of the cultures of Macedonia, southern Thrace, Epirus and the northern regions of Greece proper were particularly evident in religious practices, especially in the rites of the dead and 106 the worship of Dionysus with its mysteries and orgiastic rituals. In the south Macedonia bordered on Thessaly, which even in Roman times was infamous as an abode of sorcerers. It contained Phthia, the birthplace of Achilles, and Skyros, the birthplace of his son Neoptolemus, legendary progenitor of the Molossian kings and thus an ancestor of Alexander the Great on his mother’s side. Thessaly had close connections with Macedonia even before the Congress of Corinth and the formation of the Pan-Hellenic League: Philip II was elected tagus – head of the federation of Thessalonian communities. By the early 330s BC the Thessalonians were loyal allies of the Macedonian king, and later of his son, in whose Eastern Campaign the splendid Thessalonian cavalry would take part. The Macedonians and Thracians had long been involved in horse-breeding, and Macedonian nobles – hetairoi (comrades) – accompanied their king on horseback into battle and on hunts, which were invested with an important sacred function. The heroic horsemen in hunting garb portrayed on Thessalonian gravestones are identical to the depictions of hunters on Thracian and Macedonian tombs, pursuing a deer or a black boar. The image of the ‘Thracian horseman’, a hero-god and a divine hunter, is a concentration of all facets of the hunt’s signiicance in the lives of the Northern Balkan tribes – from the initiation of youths to the ritual of the dead. Monumental burial vaults discovered on the territory of ancient Thrace and Macedonian royal tombs in Aigai (Vergina) show direct parallels in the style of the burials. Despite the closeness of their cultures, the neighbouring Balkan tribes could hardly be said to enjoy peaceful relations. Kings from the house of the Argeads were obliged to wage endless wars with the semi-dependent rulers of north-western mountainous principalities such as Lyncestis, repel incursions from warlike Thracians and resist Illyrians invading from the west. The powerful Greek states (Thebes, Athens and Sparta) frequently meddled in Macedonian afairs, recruiting the Balkan mountaindwellers as allies or mercenaries. In Philip II’s reign the Macedonians also had to cope with the might of Scythian weapons. This constant interaction led to mutual inluence in weaponry and in military tactics. Macedonia, already the frontier between Hellas and the barbarian world by virtue of its geographical location, was at the convergence of various inluences, accumulating the experience of its neighbours and adversaries. It was no coincidence that the basic tactic of Alexander’s army was the combined action of all types of weapons. Various elements of the Scythian panoply were widely used in Thrace, which had long maintained close contact with the Scythians: for example, the short Scythian sword-dagger (akinakes). Also well known in the Balkans was the Scythian bow and quiver, combined with a naluche or gorytos (cat. 30). Bridles found in the burials of Scythian and Thracian nobles (cat. 43–44) also have much in common. Thucydides writes that the Thracians ‘have a common border with the Scythians and have similar armour’.1 Neither did the Macedonians escape Scythian inluence. Authors describing ancient military tactics state that the wedge-shaped formation of horsemen customary in Alexander the Great’s cavalry was borrowed from the Scythians via the Thracians. At the same time, a considerable contribution was made by Hellenic traditions, which inluenced the creators of the Macedonian army – kings Archelaus and Philip II. They borrowed from the Greeks the phalanx – the correct formation of heavily-armed warriors (hoplites), as well as a range of protective armour. The requirements of the Macedonian and Thracian nobility were largely supplied by Greek masters, many of whom were based in Chalkidiki and on islands in the Aegean. Archaeological inds of items of protective armour in the territory of ancient Thrace (in Kazanlyk in the Rhodope region) are almost exclusively the work of Hellenic armourers: bronze helmets, knemides and coats of mail. The majority of the helmets found in Thracian burials are of the ‘Chalkidiki’ type. Similar helmets were also popular in the area around the Black Sea (cat. 33), though many of these items show signs of reworking with the aim of adapting them to local conditions. Suits of armour and additional means of protection that existed in Thrace and Scythia were occasionally manufactured locally: lamellar coats of mail, warriors’ belts made of metal plates and hooped greaves, though the metal used for these items was frequently iron, not bronze. From the second half of the 4th century BC iron was also more and more widely used for the manufacture of items of protective armour by Greek masters also (cat. 32). There have been welldocumented inds of iron helmets and coats of mail at Vergina and in burials near the village of Prodromos. An iron helmet and a περιτραχήλιον, Alexander’s protective ‘necklace’, are mentioned by Plutarch.2 There was apparently no special device in Greek armour for the protection of the neck, whereas wealthy Thracian burials of the mid-4th century BC have produced iron pectorals covered with gold leaf and equipped with a protective collar – an early prototype of the medieval gorget. A similar object, evidently a trophy or a diplomatic gift, was found in ‘Philip’s tomb’ at Vergina.3 It may be that Plutarch Notes had in mind a similar breastplate of Thracian origin. The Macedonians’ armaments can therefore be seen to be an amalgam of various traditions, including purely Greek elements (cat. 39), as well as speciic Thracian or Macedonian features. Among the latter we should mention the sarissa (a long Macedonian spear) and the causia (a felt skull-cap), which from Alexander’s time became part of the royal regalia (cat. 238), but primarily served as an ethnic indicator, a kind of symbol of Macedonia. Ofering of weapons on graves – a custom not practised by the Hellenes since the archaic period – were common to the burial rites of the Macedonians and the Thracians, as well as their Eastern neighbours the Scythians. This explains why the majority of items of Greek armour found during excavations come from the periphery of the Hellenic ecumene – from barbarian or Graeco-barbarian burials in the North Balkans, the Middle Danube, the Northern Black Sea coast and the Northern Caucasus (cat. 35, 36). Objects from these burials give a clear idea of the armour of the Macedonians, their adversaries and allies in the late classical and Hellenist periods. 1 Thucydides, II, 96, 2 2 Plutarch, Alexander, XX, 32, 13 3 The hypothesis put forward by Manolis Andronikos that this is the tomb of Philip II is not generally supported. 107 Between Hellas and the barbarians 30 Overlay for a gorytos: scenes from the life of Achilles Northern Black Sea coast, Bosporan kingdom (?), 350–325 BC Gold; 46.8 × 27.3 cm Provenance 1865, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1863 found in the Chertomlyk burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Ivan Zabelin) Inv. Dn 1863 1/435 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 58, p. 105 This gold overlay was discovered along with a sword and a scabbard (cats 31, 203). Two very similar overlays were found in other Scythian burial mounds. Of particular interest are the two central friezes, consisting of a series of consecutive scenes on a single theme. In 1889 Carl Robert suggested that these be understood as a reproduction of a painting by the Greek artist Polygnotos, mentioned by Pausanias in his Description of Greece: the picture showed Achilles dressed in women’s clothes and concealed by Thetis among the daughters of Lycomedes on the island of Skyros, then discovered there by Odysseus and Diomedes. 108 This is the most commonly accepted interpretation of the scenes among Russian scholars, although other opinions deny the presence of Achilles. In Greece the subject of the Trojan War was particularly popular after the Persian wars, for it encapsulated the all-embracing concept of the opposition of Hellas and the East, which, with the Greek-Macedonian invasion of Persia, had become topical once more. If we assume that the appearance of this theme on metalwork from the Northern Black Sea area was a result of Alexander’s campaign, then this gorytos must have been made after 334 BC. AYA 31 Overlay for a scabbard: battle scenes Northern Black Sea coast. Bosporan kingdom (?), 350–325 BC Gold; l 54.4, max w 16.5 cm; 56.17 g Provenance 1865, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1863 found in the Chertomlyk burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Ivan Zabelin) Inv. Dn 1863 1/447 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 59, p. 107 This scabbard probably relates to the sword found in the same burial (cat. 203). The depiction of the barbarian warriors includes details characteristic of Greek pictorial traditions for the portrayal of both Amazons and Persians, which has led most researchers to interpret these scenes as episodes from either the Greek-Persian wars or from Alexander the Great’s Eastern campaign. The latter proposition is supported by certain details in the warriors’ armaments: the greaves on the legs of the hoplite to far right, the long spear of the barbarian horseman on his falling horse. Moreover, it is reasonable to suppose that the scabbard includes a depiction of Alexander himself. Such an interpretation is not contradicted by the hypothesis that the scabbard also refers to the epic cycle of the Trojan War, notably in the portrayal of Achilles, with whom contemporaries often compared Alexander. Two other overlays with similar depictions have been found in Scythian burials. AYA 109 Between Hellas and the barbarians 32 Iron helmet with silver decorations Greece, Melos (?), mid- to late 4th century BC Iron, silver, gold, wood, leather; h c. 22, max l and w (with peak) 30 × 22 cm Provenance from 1852 in the Hermitage; 1837 brought to St Petersburg and given to the Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal; 1834 found in a warrior’s burial near the Karantinnoye Highway (Kerch; excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. P.1834.42 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 60, p. 108 Forged from iron and decorated with silver relief overlays that retain traces of gilding, the helmet has a silver plate depicting the head and shoulders of Athena centre front. Medallions to either side feature a silver Gorgon mask (gorgoneion). Both cheek-protectors have winged mixanthropic igures, with dragons’ tails winding in rings from their hips. Some scholars have identiied these creatures as Scylla. Finds of iron defensive armour from the early Hellenic era are extremely rare, for this would have been a luxury item in the late 4th and 3rd century BC. Plutarch, for example, mentions Alexander the Great’s iron helmet (Plutarch, Alexander, 32). An iron helmet was found in the royal burial at Vergina – the socalled tomb of Philip II. DA 110 33 Greek helmet Greece, 4th century BC Bronze; h with cheek-protector 30.6, max Ø crown 21.8; h 17.6 cm Provenance from Tsarkoye Selo Arsenal; winter 1839 found in a rich burial in a mound on the land of the Mirza of Kekuvat (Kerch; excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. Kek.5 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 61, p. 109 This is a typical helmet of the late ‘Chalcis’ type, one of the predominant forms in the 4th century BC. An identical helmet is depicted on the hilt of a sword from the ‘tomb of Philip II’ at Vergina. Greek workshops supplied the extensive market amongst the barbarian peoples on the periphery, in the Balkans (Thrace) and along the Northern Black Sea coast, meeting the demands of the local nobility for armour. DA 34 Attic helmet Greece, 4th century BC Bronze, silver; h 21 cm Provenance 1909, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1906 purchased in Maikop Inv. 2507/1 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 62, p. 110 Attic forged helmets were widely used in the ancient world from the 5th to 3rd century BC. In the 4th century BC they began to be imported intensively into the Northern Black Sea region and the Northern Caucasus. This elegant and richly decorated helmet is an outstanding example of its type. LG 111 Between Hellas and the barbarians 35 Hellenistic helmet 36 Spheroconical helmet Eastern Mediterranean, 3rd – 2nd century BC Bronze, with a bluish-green patina; 18 × 31 × 19 cm Provenance 1930, Counts Stroganov collection; 1784 or 1785, chance ind in a burial in Vladikavkaz Fortress Inv. B. 2210 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 63, p. 111 Eastern Mediterranean, second half of the 3rd – 2nd century BC Bronze; h 26 cm Provenance unknown Inv. Akht. 31 Literature Vlasova 2009, pp. 73–74, pl. IV 1, 3 Helmets of this type, known as ‘Attic’, with a peak, were widely used from the 4th to 2nd century BC. DA, NPG The peaked helmet bears a relief pattern reminiscent of a headband with an angle in the middle, and curves with volute ends to the sides. The Greek letters B and N are punched into the right-hand side of the helmet; it has been suggested that they mean ‘ifty-two’. EV 112 37 Breastplate from a Greek set of armour with the head of Medusa Greece, 5th – 4th century BC Bronze; 41 × 44 cm Provenance 1919; 1914–1915 found in the 6th Elizabethan burial mound near Kuban, Krasnodar Region (excavations by Nikolay Veselovsky) Inv. Ku 1914 8/1 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 64, p. 112 This bronze breastplate from a Greek cuirass is one of a number of unique objects found along the Northern Black Sea coast and in the Northern Caucasus. Covering the lower part of the breastplate is a high-relief large head of Medusa, a superb example of ancient bronze relief. Medusa’s hair is represented by spiralling scrolls and framed by four pairs of snakes, between which is a stylised lower, like a lotus palmette. Fangs project from the corners of her mouth. Around her neck is a necklace with arrow-shaped pendants, and pyramidal earrings hang from her ears. LG 38 Part of a coat of chain mail Northern Black Sea coast, 5th century BC Iron; h c. 50, l scales 2.3 cm Provenance 1932, from the Artillery Museum; 1901 found in burial mound no. 491 at Makeyevka in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Nikolay Brandenburg) Inv. Dn 1932 63/14 Literature Galanina 1977 Objects characteristic of a Scythian warrior’s armour were discovered in the burial at Makeyevka: bronze arrowheads, an iron knife and the tip of a spear, items of harness and animalistic bridle decorations, as well as several ancient vessels. One of the warriors buried there was dressed in a coat of mail made of iron scales. TR 113 Between Hellas and the barbarians 39 Bronze greaves Greece, 4th century BC Bronze; h right greave 41, h left greave 40, base 7.2 × 6, max Ø and w 11.5/10, h along joint 22.7 cm Provenance 1839, found in Kerch, in a burial mound on the land of the Mirza of Kekuvat (excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. Kek.6 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 65, p. 113 Greaves are single-jointed legprotectors that cover a warrior’s shins and knees; they were one of the most important parts of traditional Ancient Greek armour. This pair of leg-protectors, probably from the burial of a Bosporan aristocrat, is a classic example of skilfully forged greaves. Along the upper and lower edges and crosswise beneath the kneeguard are crudely made holes of various diameters at unequal intervals, and it is clear that the greaves were reworked in a local Bosporan workshop. DA 114 40 Makhaira Greece, 4th century BC Iron, badly corroded; l surviving piece 73.5 cm Provenance after 1852, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal; 1836 transferred to the Arsenal from Kerch Museum; 1834 found in a warrior’s burial near the Karantinny Highway in Kerch (excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. P.1834.44 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 66, p. 114 was irmly established as part of Greek ofensive weaponry. It appears to have been exceptionally popular in Macedonia. According to Plutarch, Alexander showed a preference for this weapon in battle: in the Battle of Gaugamela the king fought with a makhaira presented to him by Kition, King of Cyprus (Plutarch, Alexander, XXXII, 14–17). DA A makhaira (or falcata) is a singlebladed weapon characterised by the reverse curve of the blade, which is sharpened on the inside. By the 4th century BC the makhaira 41 Handle of a makhaira in the shape of an eagle-headed gryphon Greece, 4th century BC Silver, gold, iron; l 6 cm Provenance 1876, Imperial Archaeological Commission; found in a robbed grave in the 3rd Semibratny burial mound in the Kuban region (excavations by Vladimir Tiesenhausen) Inv. SBr.III–2 Literature Chernenko 1973, pp. 70–71, ig. 4 Decorated with a two-part silver overlay in the shape of an eagleheaded gryphon, attached to the handle by two iron rivets. DA 42 Fragments of the overlay of a gorytos with epic scenes (the capture of Troy?) Northern Black Sea coast, Bosporan kingdom (?), 350–325 BC Silver, gold; restored gorytos 47 × 28 cm Provenance 1894, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1886 and 1888 found in the Karagodeuashkh burial mound near Kuban (excavations by Evgeny Felitsyn) Inv. 2492/38 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 67, p. 115 Vladimir Malmberg (LappoDanilevsky, Malmberg 1894) suggested a reconstruction of the fragments on the basis of a gorytos found in the Chertomlyk burial mound (cat. 30). It was only a hundred years later, when excavations of the Great Burial Mound near Vergina in Northern Greece (led by Manolis Andronikos in 1977–1978) revealed the graves of members of the Macedonian royal dynasty, that Malmberg’s reconstruction could be fully corroborated and reined. A fully preserved gold overlay for a gorytos, printed from the same die (or dies) as the one from Karagodeuashkh, was discovered in grave II, which modern scholars see as that of either Philip II (father of Alexander the Great; murdered in 336 BC), or, as is more probable, of Philip III Arridaeus (Alexander’s half-brother; murdered in 317/316 BC). The subject on the Macedonian gorytos is not entirely clear and has given rise to debate. Some scholars, including Andronikos, have expressed serious doubts. It has been suggested that the gorytos found at Vergina was either a trophy captured by the Macedonians after a skirmish with the Scythians in 339 BC, or a gift received during negotiations. AYA 115 Between Hellas and the barbarians 43 Set of bridle decorations Thrace, second half of the 4th century BC 44 Bridle decorations – nose-guard and phalar Silver; 4.2 × 4.3 cm; 27.42 g Eastern Iran (?), Northern Black Sea coast (?), 350–300 BC Two cheek-guards Nose-guard Silver; 9.5 × 3.5 cm; combined weight 75 g Gold; 4.5 × 2.3 × 1.9 cm; 21.29 g Four bridle phalars (decorative bridle medallions) Phalar in the form of an eightpetalled rosette Silver; 3.7 × 2.9 cm; combined weight 54.5 g Provenance 1906, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1902 found in the Oguz burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by V.N. Rot) Inv. Dn 1902 1/85–87 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 68, p. 116 Gold, silver (loop); Ø 4.6 cm; 23.49 g Provenance mid-19th century; 1855 found in the Alexandropol burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. Dn 1855 1/129, Dn 1855 1/144 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 69, p. 117 The Oguz burial mound is one of the greatest Scythian ‘royal’ burial mounds of the 4th century BC. These bridle decorations, however, difer signiicantly in iconography and style from typical Scythian antiquities, having more in common with Thracian harness. Finds of Thracian items in Scythian monuments are characteristic of the second half of the 4th century BC, apparently relecting the strengthening of military and diplomatic contacts between the Scythians and the Thracians in the face of the common threat posed by Macedon under Philip II and Alexander the Great. AYA One detail of the nose-guard reveals the object’s possible origin: the mushroom-shaped projection on the horse’s head, obviously representing a plaiting of the horse’s fringe, was not – to judge from metalwork found in the Black Sea area – typical for Scythian horses, but it is seen in depictions of Persian horses. The penetration of items such as the Alexandropol bridle set into European Scythia during the late 4th century BC was evidently a consequence of the short-term political situation in the time of Alexander the Great, which led to considerable interaction between the Scythians and the outside world, including such remote regions as the peripheral regions of the Achaemenid Empire. AYA Nose-guard 116 45 Armaments from the burial of a Scythian warrior Greece, Northern Black Sea coast, 4th century BC Bronze, iron, clay; various dims from 2.2 (arrowheads) to 61.5 cm (clay amphora) Provenance 1932, Artillery Museum; 1902 found in burial mound no. 493 near Ilintsy in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Nikolay Brandenburg) Inv. Dn 1932 72/1–12 Literature Galanina 1977 A full set of ofensive and defensive armaments of a Scythian warrior, consisting of fragments of two iron spear tips, the iron tip of a javelin, bronze arrowheads, bronze greaves (leg-coverings), a bronze breastplate and a belt made of bronze plates. The burial can be dated to the irst half of the 4th century BC. TR 117 Between Hellas and the barbarians 46 Plate depicting a battle between two warriors Northern Black Sea coast, 4th century BC Gold; 14 × 19 cm Provenance Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1859 found in the Geremesov burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Ivan Zabelin) Inv. Dn 1859 1/2 Literature Rayevsky 1977, pp. 117, 118 This plate is a ine illustration of subjects from Scythian military history. Of particular interest are the details of the depictions, for here we are dealing not with Greek pictorial interpretation, but with interpretation by the Scythians themselves. Both warriors wear armour of Greek and Scythian type – helmets, coats of mail and greaves. The horseman holds a spear with which he strikes his opponent. Although the footsoldier has a gorytos, it is not clear what other arms he has. The meaning of the scene is a matter of conjecture, but it has been suggested that it shows an episode from the Scythian myth of the two brothers who were the primogenitors of the Scythian people. AYA 47 Cauldron with ornamented body Northern Black Sea coast, 375–325 BC Bronze; h 47 cm Provenance Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1897 found in the Raskopana Mogila burial mound in the Dnepr basin (excavations by Dmitry Evarnitsky [Yavornitsky]) Inv. Dn 1897 2/14 Literature Treister 2007 In shape, this cauldron is typical of steppe vessels of the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Nomadic tribes used such cauldrons both for cooking food and for boiling the meat of sacriicial animals for religious purposes (Herodotus, IV.61). A huge bronze cauldron was installed by the Scythian King Ariapif in Scythia’s main religious centre. What is unusual is the unique decoration of three friezes, employing Greek pictorial and architectural motifs (bucrania, palmettes). In ideological content (the three levels of the Scythian model of the cosmos, arranged vertically) and technique (casting), however, the cauldron is entirely Scythian. AYA 118 48 Drachma 49 Tetradrachma 50 Tetradrachma Thessaly, Larissa, 400–344 BC Silver; Ø 20 mm; 6.03 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964 /7802 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 70, p. 118 Macedon, Philip II, 359–336 BC Silver; Ø 25.5 mm; 14.2 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/5326 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 72, p. 118 Macedon, Philip II, 359–336 BC Silver; Ø 25 mm; 13.84 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/5332 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 73, p. 119 Obverse Head of the nymph Larissa. Obverse Head of Zeus facing right. Obverse Head of Zeus facing right. Reverse Horse with a foal, facing right. Above, the name of the city: ΛΑ ΡΙΣΑΙ. YD Reverse Mounted horseman facing right, holding a palm branch. Left: ΦΙΛΙΠ ΠΟΥ – Philip’s (coin). Right and below, monograms. YD Reverse Mounted horseman facing right, holding a palm branch. Left: ΦΙΛΙΠ ΠΟΥ – Philip’s (coin) ; under the horse’s leg, a monogram; below, a spike. YD 119 Between Hellas and the barbarians 51 Stater Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Gold; Ø 18.5 mm; 8.47 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65 D/285 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 74, p. 119 Obverse Head of Athena. Reverse Standing igure of Nike, below left, head of Helios, right: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). YD 52 Stater Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Gold; Ø 18 mm; 8.5 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65D/288 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 74, p. 119 Obverse Head of Athena. Reverse Standing igure of Nike; left, two protomes of horses; right, an inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). YD 120 53 Tetradrachma 54 Tetradrachma 55 Drachma Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Silver; Ø 25.6 mm; 16.94 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/5700 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 76, p. 120 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Silver; Ø 27 mm; 16.57 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/5706 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 75, p. 119 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Silver; Ø 18 mm; 3.19 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/6046 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 78, p. 120 Obverse Head of Alexander as Obverse Head of Alexander as Obverse Head of Alexander as Heracles in a lion’s skin. Heracles in a lion’s skin. Heracles in a lion’s skin. Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. Inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). Under the throne, a monogram: ; to left, a torch and monogram. YD Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. Inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). Under the throne, a star; to left, a torch and monogram. YD Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. Inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ — Alexander’s (coin). To the left, a helm, under the throne, monogram. YD 56 Drachma Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Silver; Ø 17.8 mm; 4.26 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/6066 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 79, p. 121 Obverse Head of Alexander as Heracles in a lion’s skin. Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. Inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). In the ield, the tip of a spear. YD 121 Between Hellas and the barbarians 57 Copper coin 58 Copper coin 59 Copper coin Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 18 mm; 6.4 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6189 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 80, p. 121 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 19.4 mm; 5.93 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6207 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 81, p. 121 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 17 mm; 3.12 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6262 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 82, p. 122 Obverse Head of Alexander as Obverse Head of Alexander as Obverse Head of Apollo facing right. Heracles in a lion’s skin. Heracles in a lion’s skin. Reverse Bow in a gorytos, club. Reverse Bow in a gorytos, club. Between them an inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡ[ΟΥ] – Alexander’s (coin). Below, a monogram. YD Between them, an inscription: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). Below, a leaf. YD 60 Copper coin 61 Copper coin 62 Copper coin Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 17.4 mm; 4.24 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6286 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 84, p. 122 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 16.9 mm; 4.31 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6288 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 85, p. 123 Macedon, Alexander the Great, 336–323 BC Copper; Ø 16.2 mm; 2.78 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6301 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 86, p. 123 Obverse Macedonian shield with Obverse Macedonian shield with Obverse Head of Athena in a helmet lightning in the centre. lightning in the centre. facing right. Reverse Macedonian helmet with the letters B and A to either side. YD Reverse Macedonian helmet with the letters B and A to either side. YD Reverse Ship prow facing right, a double axe in front. Above are the letters B and A, and below — the monogram. YD 122 Reverse Horse facing right, a dolphin below. Inscription above: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ – Alexander’s (coin). YD 63 Tetradrachma 64 Tetradrachma 65 Tetradrachma Thrace, Lysimachus, 323–281 BC Silver; Ø 33 mm; 16.76 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6664 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 88, p. 124 Thrace, Lysimachus, 323–281 BC Silver; Ø 30 mm; 16.96 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2964/6674 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 89, p. 124 Thrace, Byzantium, 357–340 BC Silver; Ø 23 mm; 14.83 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2961/4362 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 100, p. 128 Obverse Head of Alexander the Great Obverse Head of Alexander the Great Obverse Cow standing on a dolphin with the horn of Amon. with the horn of Amon. Reverse Athena enthroned with a shield and spear, in her right hand a Nike. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ – ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ – King Lysimachus’ (coin). To left, a monogram. YD Reverse Athena enthroned with a shield and spear, in her right hand a Nike. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ – ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ – King Lysimachus’ (coin). To left, a monogram. YD and facing left, its right leg raised. At the top and below the leg are monograms. 66 Didrachma 67 Tetradrachma Epirus, Pyrrhus, 295–272 BC Silver; Ø 23 mm; 8.49 g Provenance 1952, State Valuables Reserve of the Soviet Union Inv. ON-2988/34450 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 107, p. 130 Epirus, Pyrrhus, 295–272 BC Silver; Ø 29.5 mm; 17.09 g Provenance Provenance: 1925, from the Cheka (Soviet state security service) Inv. ON-2964/8235 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 109, p. 131 Obverse Head of Achilles in a helmet, Obverse Head of Zeus facing left. Reverse Stamped square. YD facing left. Reverse Thetis riding a seahorse with weapons for Achilles. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΠΥΡΡΟΥ – King Pyrrhus’ (coin). YD Reverse Dione enthroned with a sceptre. Inscription: [B]ΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ [Π]ΥΡРΟΥ – King Pyrrhus’ (coin). YD 123 THE MEDITERRANEAN IN THE HELLENISTIC ERA Anna Troimova The main characteristic of the Hellenistic era was the rapid dissemination of Greek culture to the East, far beyond the Aegean. Whereas its inluence had previously taken the form of colonisation and trade links, now, as a result of Alexander’s campaign, it included military expansion that afected the ancient civilisations of the Middle East from the Mediterranean to India. Greek culture became international: the Greeks’ language and script, art, religion, mythology and way of life were universally adopted. Classical traditions were particularly irmly established in the Mediterranean area – both in the West (Italy, Gaul, Spain and Africa) and in the East (Anatolia, Syria and Egypt). In the Apennine peninsula Greek forms lourished until the 6th century AD, and in Anatolia right up to the Middle Ages. Having provided a powerful impulse to the development of culture in many countries, Athens – even in Alexander’s lifetime – had lost its former glory. The new centres of inluence were Macedonia in Northern Greece, Pergamum in Asia Minor, Antioch in the Middle East and Alexandria in Egypt. ‘Never before had so many architects, artists and sculptors been at work… rulers considered it their duty to surround themselves with people capable of bringing renown to their capitals and palaces… the numerous rich “bourgeoisie” patronised the arts and sciences’.1 124 The new mandates changed the style and the scale of art. One of the principal innovations was the creation of genres that were incomparable with the classical age in their variety. The most important achievement was a change in expressive possibilities, particularly the ability to depict emotions and various conditions of the body and soul. It was in the Hellenistic period that many discoveries were made without which it would be impossible to imagine the history of Western European art. Individualisation in portraits, the creation of the image of the hero-ruler, genre realism, dramatic and ecstatic efects, the language of allegory, the depiction of passions and suferings were irst embodied in the work of artists who combined Greek genius with the grandeur of the East. Portraits of Hellenistic kings go back to the original prototype created for depictions of Alexander in his lifetime. The image of the charismatic ruler with the attributes of heroes and gods was based on this model. Sculptures of rulers, busts, fragments of statues, small statuettes, portraits on coins and carved stones can still be seen today. ‘The royal image shows a remarkable homogeneity. There was a uniied Hellenistic royal style with deining traits and limits of variation – in apparent age, hairstyle, attributes, and degree of divinization’2 (e.g.: cats 69, 124, 125, 157, 220, 221). Portraits of the Ptolemies appear calmer and simpler (cats 70, 141, 142, 158, 164–165, 174), those of the Antigonids and Seleucids more heroic (cats 222–225), and those of the Bosporan rulers, especially Mithridates VI Eupator, regal and more godlike (cats 71, 72, 126). An outstanding phenomenon in the art of the Hellenistic era was colossal group sculptures depicting scenes from heroic myths, frequently from the Trojan cycle. Among such works are Laocoon, Achilles and Penthesilea (cat. 77), and Menelaus with the body of Patroclos. These groups are customarily considered to be allegorical depictions of the valour, noble descent or heroic exploits of the clients. There is a suggestion that the originals of some sculptured compositions were made in Pergamum, since they are close in style to the depictions of Gauls and reliefs on the Great Frieze of the Pergamum altar. The exotic character and dramatic efect of the Homeric groups made a profound impression on the Romans, which is why numerous copies of these fantastic sculptures have survived. Intimate charm and attractive grace form another facet of Hellenistic art. Delicate clay igurines and Tanagra statuettes of graceful women – sitting, standing, dancing – were originally produced in Boeotia, but rapidly gained popularity in Greece, Asia Minor and Alexandria (cats 87, 88, 90). Statuettes representing small genre sketches also came into fashion (cat. 91). Love of the exotic and interest in the depiction of nature led to a predilection for ugliness. The art of the Hellenistic era created a particular genre of the grotesque (cat. 95). Types of characters that had been ignored by artists in previous periods were frequently portrayed at this time: mime artists (cat. 94), actors (cat. 92), old women and children (cats 91, 93). An interest arose in non-Greek characters – negroes, Scythians, Persians, and so on. Despite the conformity of artistic language in the Hellenistic era, there were regional peculiarities that led to diferent perceptions of Hellenic traditions. In this context Alexandria was a special case – the city became the meeting-place of all peoples and cultures. The court art of Alexandria was a blend of splendour and idealism that put the art at the courts of other Eastern countries in the shade. The images of the kings and the new syncretistic gods (cats 145, 146, 155, 171, 173) were a successful combination of Egyptian ideas and Greek forms. As a rule, however, the diference between the traditional Ancient Egyptian and Greek styles was maintained. Considerably less is known about the art of the Seleucids. Syria is represented by coins of the ruling dynasty (cats 213–225) and by the revolutionary image of a new deity – Tyche of Antioch (cat. 78), protectress of that city. In this region, as in the majority of other regions, the Greek way of life and artistic language were predominant, but, unlike Alexandria, it is quite diicult to talk of the syncretism of local Eastern and Hellenic components. Fragments of architecture and stucco paintings (cats 115–122) demonstrate the use of the Greek order and architectural decoration in the Bosporan kingdom.3 It can be said that their proliferation occurred over the whole of the Mediterranean region, simultaneously with the appearance of a new elite that followed Greek customs in religion and everyday life. The reined taste and sensitivity of the age manifested itself in jewellery, which became more luxurious, massive and exotic. Under Eastern inluence the fashion was for a range of diferent colours, an abundance of large stones and intricate decoration. The conquest of new lands made it possible to use new resources. Along with items of gold and precious stones, there was a signiicant increase in the number of pieces made of silver – formal tableware with igured scenes and delicate engraving (cats 109–112). Historians of Hellenic art often mention the amalgamation of Eastern and Hellenic traditions, the symbiosis of the two cultures. It seems to us that the process of Hellenisation took place in diferent ways in diferent regions Notes and cannot be so categorically described. Hellenistic monuments rarely provide examples of a harmonious amalgamation; on the contrary, they demonstrate the incompatibility of the classical (i. e. Greek) artistic system and those of the East (Egyptian, Iranian or Middle Eastern). Whereas in Central Asian countries there occurred what Daniel Schlumberger calls iguratively a ‘transplanting’ of classical elements, in the Mediterranean we can talk of a new impulse to the development of local culture. Since the archaic period the remote regions of the Mediterranean had been points of contact between Greek colonisation and the local (Eastern or barbarian) environment. In these areas the process of the Hellenisation of the ruling elite began long before Alexander’s conquests. For example, in the opinion of Mikhail Rostovtsev, ‘Hellenism before Hellenism’ existed in the Bosporan kingdom. As early as the 5th and 4th centuries BC Greek masters working on commissions from local rulers in Asia Minor were creating heroon4 complexes that anticipated the altar at Pergamon. Alexander the Great activated the process of Hellenisation in the Mediterranean, or, to be more precise, the movement was provided with a vector and with historic scale. It was this period that saw the formation of the contours of Western European culture, the paths of development of the arts from the Renaissance to the present day. The most important discovery of the Greeks – art as an imitation of nature – remained alien to Eastern understanding, but it formed the basis of Western European artistic language. In the Hellenistic era the Greek artistic style became universal, i.e. it was assimilated by various peoples, regardless of their nationality, religion or state structure. So was born the idea of the cultural unity of the world, which was the main consequence of the Macedonian king’s Eastern campaign. 1 Pierre Lévêque, Le monde hellénistique, Paris, 1968; cited from the Russian translation, Moscow, 1989, p. 122 2 R. R. R. Smith, Hellenistic Sculpture, London 1991, p. 24 3 Greek colonies along the Northern Black Sea coast, conquered by Mithridates VI Eupator (134–63 BC). 4 Tomb of a hero. Plural heroa. 125 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 68 Statue of Dionysus Roman, 2nd century AD, copy of a Greek original of the late 4th – early 3rd century BC Marble; h 207 cm Provenance 1850, Tsarskoye Selo; by 1793 at Tsarskoye Selo; 1785 mentioned by Guattani in the garden of the Palazzo Lucatelli on the Corso in Rome; collection of Marquis Cavalierei; 1698 found at Frascati Inv. GR 3004 (A 104) Literature Troimova 2009, pp. 141–172 For Alexander, Dionysus represented the godhero hypostasis serving, along with Achilles and Heracles, as his mythological prototype. Dionysus was the conqueror’s guiding star in his Indian campaign, for ancient mythology relates that the Greek god of wine-making had gone on a campaign to the East. Dionysus was particularly revered in Macedon, which had a border with Thrace, source of the cult of Dionysus. We know from written sources that Alexander’s mother Olympias was a zealous worshipper of Dionysus. Moreover, Alexander’s motive in imitating Dionysus derived in part from a general Greek belief that Dionysus was a bringer of culture; they had no trouble in combining him with analogical foreign gods – Osiris of Egypt, Sabazios of Lydia, Atis of Asia Minor, Sandon of Tarsus. Historians used the mythical biography of Dionysus to create the myth of Alexander and, conversely, the mythology of Dionysus was enriched by Alexander’s Eastern campaigns. Dionysus became a god of triumph and victory, and his iconography was augmented with subjects from his Indian campaign and the procession held on his return from the East. The band around Dionysus’ head was transformed into Alexander’s diadem – key royal symbol, sign of the Kingdom of the Hellenes which had defeated the Asians. AAT 126 69 Head of Alexander (fragment of a statuette) Asia Minor, Roman, 1st century AD, copy of a Greek original from 175–150 BC Fine-grained marble; h 6 cm Provenance 1830; found in Nicomedia (now Izmit, Turkey) Inv. A.774 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 110, p. 134 Part of a statuette made in one of the cities of Western Asia (possibly Bithynia) in the reign of Augustus (1st century BC – 1st century AD) . The style of the head has much in common with a portrait of Alexander from Pergamum (175–150 BC). In turn, the Pergamum portrait is based on the artistic tradition of Lysippus, one of the Macedonian king’s three ‘court artists’. This marble head was made at a time when reverence for Alexander was of particular relevance: every Roman conqueror made use of his name and his image. Pompey presented himself as the new Alexander: he also adopted the title ‘Magnus’ (‘the Great’) and imitated the Macedonian’s appearance. Parallels with Alexander were also drawn by Caesar, leading Strabo to call him ‘an Alexander lover’. Octavian Augustus founded the city of Nicopolis after the Battle of Actium, just as Alexander had founded Nicopolis after his victory at Issus. The statuette of Alexander may well have been a votive statue dedicated by a prosperous magistrate to the new Temple of Augustus and Dea Roma. It is also possible that it graced the wealthy home of a Roman colonist. We know from written sources that people believed in the magical power of portrayals of Alexander, hoping that some of his good fortune would come their way. AAT 127 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 70 Head of Ptolemy III Euergetes (?) Alexandria, 3rd century BC (?) Marble; h 46 cm Provenance 1919, Academy of Arts; 1774 sent to the Academy by Admiral Grigory Spiridov; from one of the Aegean islands Inv. A.789 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 218, p. 212 In the opinion of Oskar Waldhauer, curator at the Hermitage in the early 20th century, the head was part of a 4th-century tomb relief or statue, but the vivid individuality of the facial features suggests that it should be linked to later images, particularly portrayals of Ptolemy III Euergetes, who ruled Egypt in the 3rd century BC (Vermeule 1981, no. 108, p. 139). Although there is no band around the head (sign of royal power), the iconographic closeness to portraits of this member of the Lagides dynasty and the original style of working the marble, which Walther Amelung once aptly named ‘sfumatto delle forme’ (Amelung 1897, pp. 110–142), make it possible to group the piece with works by Alexandria sculptors of the 3rd century BC. LD 128 71 Head of Mithridates VI Eupator Pergamum, 90–80 BC Fine-grained marble with a yellowish tint; h 38 cm Provenance 1910, Imperial Archaeological Commission; chance ind in Kerch, close to the north-eastern burial vault of Mithridates Inv. P.1909.144 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 111, p. 135 Many scholars support the identiication of this piece as a portrait of Mithridates VI Eupator. It closely resembles the image of Mithridates on coins, his sculptured portraits in the Louvre, and the depiction on a relief from Pergamum, where a king (thought by many scholars to be Mithridates) appears as Heracles liberating Prometheus. In all probability, these portraits had a single prototype – a statue erected in Pergamum around 80 BC. From 120 to 63 BC Mithridates VI Eupator the Great was king of Pontus, a Black Sea state that included the Bosporan kingdom. He was an indefatigable military leader who halted the Romans’ expansion into Asia Minor in the course of the Mithridatic Wars, but in the Third Mithridatic War in 63 BC he was defeated and committed suicide. Like many other portraits of rulers in the Hellenistic age, the Kerch head is based on the iconography of Alexander the Great. The similarity of the images is clearly noticeable on coins minted by Mithridates – the lion’s mane, the characteristic curl raised over the forehead (anastole), the emotional turn of the head. One also inds comparisons of Mithridates and Alexander in written sources, which mention, for instance, that Mithridates could trace his family tree back to Alexander (Justin, Epitoma, XXXVIII, 7). Mithridates proclaimed himself the ‘liberator of Asia’ in succession to Dionysus and Alexander and he was deiied in Pergamum, which became his residence after its liberation from the Romans (Plutarch, Sulla, XI). The king of Pontus appeared as ‘the new Alexander’, heading ‘the ight against Roman dominion and for universal liberation’. AAT 129 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 72 Head of Mithridates VI Eupator Asia Minor or Southern Black Sea coast, 40–30 BC Marble; h 53 cm Provenance 1860, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1860 found in Kerch Inv. P.1860.20 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 112, p. 136 This portrait of Mithridates VI Eupator is reminiscent of idealised images of Alexander and evokes associations with depictions of gods – Helios, Mithras or Dionysus. The long hair with holes is analogous to portrayals of Mithras. The missing attribute – the Phrygian cap – may have been made from another material, perhaps metal. The long hair with apertures for the insertion of rays is characteristic of Helios, whose image was frequently merged with that of Alexander in Hellenistic art. In this instance it seems most probable that the king of Pontus was portrayed as Dionysus: he was revered by both Alexander and Mithridates and his symbols were often used in portraits of them both. The head is dated to the time of Augustus, i.e. after the king’s death. This corresponds with our knowledge of the continued popularity of Mithridates, relected in written sources, on coins and carved stones. Well after his death Mithridates was regarded as a symbol of the independent politics of Bosporus, which his successors endeavoured to pursue in their relations with Rome. AAT 130 73 Bust of a Bosporan queen Southern Black Sea coast, 30–40 AD Bronze with incrustation of red copper and silver; h bust 25.8, h head 13, base 4.2 × 15 cm Provenance 1899, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1898 found 14 km north-west of Novorossiysk in a wide gully on the estate of I. P. Kuleshevich Inv. PAN 1726 A (bust), PAN 1726 B (base) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 113, p. 137 This unique piece is a curious mixture of various cultures – Hellenistic, Eastern and Roman. Mikhail Rostovtsev identiied the bust as a portrait of the Bosporan queen Dynamia and dated it to the irst quarter of the 1st century AD. The main argument in favour of this identiication is the Phrygian cap decorated with suns. A cap like this appears on Pontian coins with the proile of Mithras from the reign of Mithridates VI Eupator. The Pontian emblem of Mithridates – the sun and moon – appear on a gold stater of Dynamia, his granddaughter, and other descendants. Rostovtsev suggested that the queen’s headdress (a tiara orte) was a symbol of power for the Asian kings. In Rostovtsev’s opinion, the Phrygian cap with its symbolic depictions underlines the queen’s origins among the Achaemenid rulers. Dynamia (44–17 BC), daughter of Pharnaces and granddaughter of Mithridates VI Eupator, was the most outstanding of all the Bosporan queens. In the opinion of Arkady Molchanov and Klaus Parlasci, the bust portrays a diferent queen – Hypepiria, who ruled 37–38 AD. A. I. Voshchinina has suggested that it depicts a Roman lady of the Julian-Claudian dynasty – Antonia the Younger, Agrippina or Livia. The question of the queen’s identity cannot as yet be resolved. The bust certainly dates to after the death of Dynamia, for the spiralling curls and ringlets descending onto the neck are typical characteristics of Agrippina the Younger (15–59 AD). The identiication of the bust as a portrayal of Queen Hypepiria is also impossible, for she was from the Thracian dynasty, while the bust features dynastic symbols of the Achaemenids. In terms of style, the bust can be linked to a centre in Northern Syria known for the production of late Hellenistic statues. AAT 131 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 74 Young Dionysus Rome, 1st century BC – 1st century AD, copy of a Hellenistic sculpture Marble; h 36.5 cm Provenance 1979, collection Ivan Tolstoy Inv. A.1325 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 116, p. 140 Roman copy of a now lost group sculpture of the Hellenistic period entitled ‘The Birth of Dionysus from the Thigh of Zeus’. This featured igures of the seated Zeus and the baby appearing from his thigh, holding out his hand to Hermes hastening to meet him. There may have been additional igures of other participants, such as maenads or nymphs. AK 75 Statuette of a goddess 76 Cybele Greek, late 4th century BC Fine-grain marble; h 26.7 cm Provenance 1920, Museum of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts Inv. A.830 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 117, p. 141 Asia Minor, 3rd – 2nd century BC (?) Marble; h 24 cm Provenance 1845, collection Vasily Tatishchev Inv.A.861 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 118, p. 142 Opinions vary as to the identity of the Greek goddess. From the classical period onwards the iconography of the principal Greek goddesses had many common features, making it extremely diicult to diferentiate them. The statuette may show Hera, sister and wife of Zeus. The gesture with the hands supporting the breasts is famous from a statuette of Aphrodite from Samos. The kalathos and the long clothing are reminiscent of depictions of Demeter, goddess of fertility. AAT 132 Cybele was a goddess who originated in Asia Minor – the Great Mother Goddess or Magna Muter, who protected every living thing on Earth. Her sacred animals were mares and lions. Her image was particularly popular in the Hellenistic age, when various Eastern cults were widespread. Statuettes of the goddess are found in various corners of the ancient world. Most of them are relatively carelessly made but they are nonetheless valuable evidence of an active religious and artistic life. LD 77 Head of Achilles Roman, 2nd century AD, copy of a Greek original from 170–160 BC Marble; h 42 cm Provenance unknown Inv. A.585 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 120, p. 144 A fragment of a statue of Achilles that was part of a group showing Achilles and Penthesilea, the original made in Pergamum in the 2nd century BC and frequently copied in the Roman Empire. A reconstruction of the monument was undertaken in the 1970s, using numerous fragments scattered around the museums of the world. The story of the Amazon queen Penthesilea is based on the postHomeric epic poem ‘Aethiopis’. During the Trojan War the queen of the Amazons comes to the Trojans’ aid and perishes at the hand of Achilles. Achilles, enchanted by her beauty, falls in love with the dead Penthesilea. Achilles’ tragic mistake was the main subject of the colossal Hellenistic group sculpture. The dating and origin of the group is still an open question today. Some scholars place it in the mid-2nd century BC, while others relate it to the late Hellenistic period. Yet others have suggested that the mythological cycle is not composed of copies of Hellenistic sculptures, but of free variations produced in the early days of the Roman Empire. The Hermitage fragment demonstrates the longevity of an image that combined features of Alexander, a giant and Achilles. That image was much in demand over several centuries, found in the sanctuaries of Hellenistic kings and in the villas of the Roman elite. AAT 78 Tyche Rome, 1st century AD Marble; h 68 cm Provenance 1862, Campana collection Inv. A.396 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 121, p. 145 In the Hellenistic period this statue of Tyche, goddess of good fortune and happiness, represented a new cult and a new type of sculptural image. Her cult as the goddessprotector of a city was introduced by King Seleucus I in his capital Antioch, on the River Orontes. This explains the geographical references in the sculpture: the goddess sits upon a rock, symbolising the actual landscape around the city, with the head and shoulders of a swimming youth, personifying the Orontes, visible at her feet. The city’s patroness wears a crown in the form of a fortiied tower and holds symbols of wealth and prosperity – a horn of plenty and corn. The cult of Tyche became particularly popular in the newly founded Greek settlements in Asia Minor. A colossal bronze statue by Eutychides served as the basis for sculptures of the goddess of good fortune and happiness made there, and for numerous full- or reduced-scale copies in the Roman period. The Hermitage igure is one of the latter. The restorer who completed the sculpture in the early modern era correctly reproduced the classical type (the head and attributes). AK 133 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 79 Head of a man Campania or central Italy, 3rd century BC Clay; h 25 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.522 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 124, p. 148 The head of a young man with wavy hair falling over the middle of the forehead (an anastole). The physiognomic features correspond to one of the types of iconography of Alexander, a much earlier and better-known example of which is the bone portrait of the king found in the ‘tomb of Philip II’ at Vergina (Archaeological Museum, Vergina). The same image appears in a mosaic in the House of the Faun at Pompeii, depicting the battle of Alexander and Darius, assumed to be a reproduction of a painted original. That would have been the magniicent work mentioned by Pliny, painted by Philoxenes from 134 Eretria for Cassander’s palace in Pella in the last years of Alexander’s life or shortly after his death. At the same time, the treatment of the terracotta to make it look like a work in bronze, such as the use of the chisel to mark pupils and irises, the small lines at the corners of the lips and the manner of portraying locks of hair, are characteristic of Italian work. EK 80 Votive head Etruria, Late 4th – 3rd century BC Clay, traces of white slip and reddish-brown paint; h 31.2 cm Provenance 1852, Pizzati collection Inv. G.73 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 125, p. 149 An example of the votive head, a particular type of Etruscan terracotta sculpture. Such heads, sometimes life-size, served as dedicatory gifts to god-healers. It has been suggested that the donor saw his own image in such a portrayal, but although some terracotta heads do reveal certain individualised portrait features, in this case we see an idealised image inluenced by portraits of Alexander, speciic features of whose iconography can clearly be traced. The inluence of classical Greek art on the Etruscan master’s work is also evident. EK 81 Head of a man Etruria, late 4th – 3rd century BC Clay, traces of white slip; h 23.5 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.468 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 126, p. 150 Similar to the previous head. This duplication, like the presence of similar heads in other museums, conirms that we are dealing not with an isolated product, but with a speciic type of artistic production that enjoyed signiicant popularity in Etruria. EK 82 Head of a youth (fragment of a statuette) Asia Minor, Smyrna, 2nd century BC Clay with numerous incrustations of golden mica, traces of white slip and yellow paint; h 11.1 cm Provenance 1973, gift of Yan Birzgall Inv. G.2797 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 127, p. 151 Probably part of a large statuette of a naked hero or athlete – an image inluenced by monumental sculpture. The subtle moulding betrays the hand of a true sculptor. The conveying of a state of inner turmoil and the play of passions are among the most important themes found in Greek sculpture from the time of Alexander onwards. The great sculptor Lysippus, whose worked in the time of Alexander, made famous statues of Agios and Apoxyomenos, which undoubtedly had an inluence, albeit indirectly, on the image of the young hero that became established in Hellenistic art. The youth’s deep-set eyes are given a particularly dramatic efect by the shadows falling from the sharply protruding arches of the eyebrows and the high bridge of the nose, an efect intensiied by the almost sickly swelling of the lower eyelashes. Masters in Smyrna – a city whose site had, according to legend, been chosen by Alexander on the advice of the goddess Nemesis – specialised in making terracotta copies and replicas of monumental statues. EK 135 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 83 Relief with a depiction of Cybele Asia Minor, 2nd century BC Terracotta, the surface covered with white slip; 24.5 × 17.8 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.406 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 128, p. 152 The relief depicts a small elegant temple, a naiscos, within which a goddess is seated on a sumptuous throne, dressed in a long girdled chiton and cloak and crowned with a stephana. With her right hand she rules the mane of a lion raised up on its hind legs beside her. The lion was the sacred animal of the goddess Cybele, protector and mistress of all living things on earth, whose cult originated in Northern Syria (where she was called Kibeba) and was borrowed in the 8th century BC by Phrygia, whence it spread throughout the Greek world. Cybele was also known as the Great Mother and the Mother of the Gods. At the foot of the throne sits the bald and bearded Silenus. The walls of the temple are decorated with reliefs of dancing maenads, participants in the processions and mysteries of Dionysus. Strabo, the 1st-century BC Greek geographer and historian, remarked, with reference to Pindar and Euripides, that the ‘similarity between the rites practised by the Greeks in the cult of Dionysus and the rites of the Phrygians in the cult of the Mother of the Gods’ formed ‘a link between the two peoples’. Phials – special lat cups with a convex inner bottom – hang on the walls of the temple to either side of the throne. These were used for libations of wine or oil, milk, and sometimes also the blood of sacriicial animals. The sacriicial process is being performed by a naked youth in a knee-length cloak: he pours liquid into a phial in his lowered left hand. This igure has puzzled scholars and at present his identiication is a matter of conjecture. Adolf Furtwängler suggested that he is Attis, Cybele’s divine young lover. Another name suggested is that of Cadmilos, one of the Great Gods of Samothrace, 136 who corresponds to the Greek god Hermes. It has been proposed that the youth represents a statue harking back to a work by Praxiteles depicting a satyr pouring wine. People sought protection and tranquillity from the Great Goddess, these being particularly valued in times of historical upheaval. Alexander’s conquests rocked the ancient world and upset the lives of vast numbers of people, cutting the ground from beneath their feet and shaking their conidence in the future. The cult of Cybele, who was worshipped throughout the Mediterranean, was one of the mystic religions that became extremely widespread in the Hellenistic period, a distinctive feature of which was its stress on individualism. Having undergone a secret ceremony of dedication, each worshipper passed into her protection both in this life and the afterlife. Simultaneously, the syncretistic essence of the Asian Cybele, whose image merged sometimes with the Greek Demeter, and sometimes with Gaia or Rhea, impressed the Hellenistic age with its cosmopolitanism. EK 84 Heracles Pantikapaion, 3rd century BC Clay, traces of white slip; h 15 cm Provenance date of acquisition unknown; 1891 purchased in Kerch by K. E. Dumberg, Director of the Kerch Museum Inv. G.1305 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 130, p. 154 Heracles leans on a club and holds the apples from the garden of the Hesperides. The skin of the lion that had devastated the Nemean valley in Argolis and had been strangled by the hero is tied with the paws knotted across his chest to form a cloak, its face over his head like a helmet. The ‘lion’ helmet is already seen in archaic monuments – on coins and carved stones depicting the hero, and on clay and earthenware vases in the shape of the head of Heracles. In Alexander’s time and after his death, when Hellenistic rulers were trying to imitate him in everything, the image of Heracles took on a special signiicance. Alexander considered Heracles to be his ancestor – a circumstance that was of great political importance to the Macedonian king. He saw in Heracles an example to imitate, and never missed an opportunity to pay public tribute to his heroic forebear. Alexander himself was portrayed in a ‘lion’ helmet, emphasising the succession. This led to numerous statues of Heracles being made, among them the terracotta statuette in the Hermitage. Judging by the characteristics of the clay, the statuette was a local (Bosporan) work. EK 85 Heracles Asia Minor, late 1st century BC – 1st century AD Clay, traces of thick white slip, red and black paint; h 15.7 cm Provenance 1946 Inv. G.2672 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 131, p. 155 Made considerably later than the previous statuette of Heracles (cat. 84), this work reveals many similarities, conirming the stability of the hero’s iconography. There are, nevertheless, diferences that give some idea of the variety there must have been in monumental statues of Heracles, which were then imitated in terracotta. Instead of the ‘lion’ helmet the head is crowned by a garland, its ribbons falling down onto the shoulders. This statuette is a ine illustration both of the stability of artistic traditions and of the methods used in Hellenistic sculpture during the Roman period. EK 137 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 86 Statuette of a woman wearing a garland of lowers and fruit Attica, irst half of the 3rd century BC Clay; h 26.5 cm Provenance 1838, found during excavation of a stone grave at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1838.53 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 133, p. 157 A ine example of terracotta sculpture imported from Attica to the Northern Black Sea coast. The pose relects the inluence of Attic monumental sculpture, although in this case the original was a male statue – a monument to Sophocles for the theatre of Dionysus in Athens, attributed to the sculptor Leochares. That image of Sophocles, standing full length, with hands on hips, strongly inluenced the creators of terracotta igurines, who interpreted the pose in their own way to produce several series of terracotta statuettes – like this one – which came to be known as 138 ‘Sophoclean’. Despite its origins in imitation, the Hermitage terracotta reveals the hand of a true artist. Leaves of ivy, the sacred plant of Dionysus, are woven into the sides of the beribboned garland adorning the igure’s head. As part of the burial rite, this igurine may have made reference to Dionysus as the protector of souls in the world beyond the grave. EK 87 Aphrodite Tanagra, 3rd century BC Clay, traces of white slip, pink and red-brown paint; h 22.4 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.443 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 134, p. 158 This image appeared in Athenian terracotta sculpture in imitation of monumental statues of Aphrodite; the model, created in the 4th century BC, has the conventional title ‘Venus Marina’. Since such images have been discovered in various parts of the Greek world – in Boeotia, Mirina, Tarento, Cyrenaica – they must have been in great demand. They were used as sacriicial oferings in temples and sanctuaries, mostly by women hoping for the goddess’ protection in love and in family life. They were placed in the burials of young unmarried girls, so that Aphrodite would help them to ind matrimonial happiness in the afterlife. Depictions of the goddess of love and beauty were not particularly numerous in Greek terracotta sculpture before the Hellenistic period. Votive statuettes of Aphrodite in the archaic and classical ages were primarily of the so-called Chthonic Aphrodite. This powerful goddess, who was able to descend into the Kingdom of Hades itself – on which depended the fertility of the ields and the course of the cosmic cycles – was never portrayed naked in earlier times. The age of Hellenism, whose literature and art is saturated with exquisite eroticism, was more impressed by a diferent image of Aphrodite – as goddess of love, the personiication of femininity, expressed through the sensual beauty of her naked body. Praxiteles’ Aphrodite of Cnidus provided a creative impulse that found a wide response in Hellenistic art. EK 88 Aphrodite 89 Heracles with a lover 90 Statuette of a woman Tanagra, 3rd century BC Clay, traces of white slip and reddish-brown paint; h 20 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.444 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 135, p. 159 Asia Minor, Smyrna, 3rd – 1st century BC Clay, light-coloured slip, brown ochre, gilding; h 14.4 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.409 Literature Furtwängler 1883–1887, pl. CXXXVI Tanagra, irst half of the 3rd century BC Clay, white slip, pink and red paint; h 26 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.441 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 138, p. 162 Aphrodite is seated on a rock, a detail that led Adolf Furtwängler to suggest that this igurine depicts the goddess in a grotto, but her pose is dynamic and surely suggests interaction with some other character, to whom the goddess is ofering an apple. This must be part of a scene of the Judgment of Paris, the myth of how Aphrodite was victorious in a contest against Athena and Hera and won a golden apple with the inscription ‘most beautiful’. The apple was a symbol of sensual love and fertility. Interest in conveying the complex twisted pose of a seated igure, leaning on one hand with the upper body and right arm turned one way, the lower body and legs turned the other, came at the start of the Hellenistic period. Other examples are to be found in the igure of Dionysus on the shoulders of the famous late 4th-century BC bronze krater from Deverna (Archaeological Museum, Thessalonica) and the Aphrodite painted on a lecan and krater from the last third of the 4th century BC (Aeolian Archaeological Museum, Palermo). EK The bearded naked man can be identiied almost without hesitation as Heracles, whose image had never been as popular as it was among the coroplasts of Asia Minor, but the female igure can be interpreted in various ways. Olivier Rayet was convinced that she was Omphala, one of Heracles’ wives and queen of Lydia, particularly revered in Asia Minor, where she was considered to be the protector of women and was identiied with Aphrodite (Rayet 1878, p. 364; Rayet 1888, pp. 381–382). Another version proposes that Heracles is accompanied by Thespiada, one of the ifty daughters of the Boeotian king Thespis (Trivier 1878, p. 14, pl. 4). While the depiction of a couple seated on a couch is far from unique in small-scale sculpture, especially in Asia Minor, this particular type of terracotta is rare. Only one other similar example is known: a statuette from the collection of Camille Lecuyer that was shown at the Trocadéro in Paris during the Exposition Universelle of 1878. From Lecuyer the terracotta passed into the collection of Alessandro Castellani, who put it up for auction in Rome in 1884, after which its trail is lost. Thus the Hermitage piece is today unique. One argument in favour of its production in a Smyrna workshop can be found in the gilding of the terracotta, a device imitating gilded bronze that was favoured by masters from that city. EK This image of a Greek woman exudes calm and naturalness. It probably shows just how a woman from a prosperous family would have gone for a stroll in a city during the Hellenistic period. One of a particular kind of Tanagra statuette showing various female characters that are both idealised and worldly. An interest in this subject, which had never been observed in previous ages, appears in terracotta statuettes partly as a result of substantial changes in the status of women during the Hellenistic period. They ceased to be recluses who concentrated only on domestic, family matters and left their homes only for religious rituals. Girls of noble families received a good education, even in economics and law, which enabled them in due course to occupy a conident position within their families. In Asia Minor some women, according to epitaphs, participated in the work of the city magistracies and proved themselves as capable as men. They may have found an inspirational example in the Hellenistic queens who took part in embassy receptions and were involved in charitable work, as well as the queens of the Seleucid and Lagides dynasties, who played a key political role. EK 139 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 91 Boy playing with a dog Pantikapaion, 2nd century BC Clay, remains of white slip, blue and brown paint; h 16 cm Provenance 1883; 1883, found during excavations at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1883.2 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 139, p. 163 A naked boy tries to wrest the edge of a long cloak from a puppy standing on its hind legs; he clasps a bird, possibly a duck. On his head the boy wears a double garland, the upper part woven from leaves of ivy, sacred plant of Dionysus. This statuette was found in a grave in the Pantikapaion necropolis, which enables us to link it with the cult of Dionysus, protector of souls in the world beyond the grave. The igure relects a subject that was only really developed in Greek art during the Hellenistic period: it was then that children, with their very 140 speciic physical development and movements, their games and their interaction with the world around, became a subject in their own right. Terracotta statues often portray boys and girls playing with animals. To the extent that particular animals were connected with speciic deities, these portrayals may have had a religious meaning. They are also connected with the interest in nature, relected in the epigrams of Meleagrus and Simmius, that was part of the perception of the world during the Hellenistic period. EK 92 Mime actor Asia Minor, 2nd – 1st century BC Clay, white slip; h 17 cm Provenance 1928, Shuvalov collection Inv. G.1761 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 140, p. 164 With his left hand the actor holds a large oval vessel slung over his shoulder. His only attire is a chlamys of thick fabric. Projecting from beneath this is a phallus – a normal part of an actor’s costume in farces, which were frequently of an indecent character – hanging from a special belt. Judging by the thin face with hollow cheeks and sunken mouth, the actor is not a young man. The turn of the head may suggest a lively conversation with an unseen interlocutor, perhaps another actor in the play. The impression of a playful mood is enhanced by the slightly tilted garland on his bald head. Unlike classical Greek comedy, mimes acted without masks, a change which demonstrated that the public found it more interesting to see a live human face expressing various emotions than some theoretical character. As for content, the move away from pressing political and social problems, which began in the so-called Middle Comedy and continued in the New Comedy, in particular in the extremely popular plays of Menander, found its purest embodiment in mimes. These short plays that featured comic, sometimes spicy situations in the everyday lives of ordinary people enjoyed enormous success among a very wide audience. Even Cicero attended mime shows, though he accused them of vulgarity. EK 93 Head of an old woman Asia Minor, 2nd – 1st century BC Clay, remains of white slip and pink paint; h 3.7 cm Provenance 1877; 1877, found during excavation of the necropolis on Mithridates Hill in Kerch Inv. P.1877.62 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 141, p. 165 On the woman’s head is a massive garland with lowers, reference to which can be found in the work of Theophrastus, one of the irst Greek botanists, a pupil of Aristotle. These golden lowers with white leaves and stems are a variety of immortelle (Helichrysum), similar in shape to the lotus. The plaiting of lowers was a well-established craft in the Graeco-Roman temples of Egypt. One can get some idea of its scale from a papyrus of the mid-3rd century BC that mentions an order of 300 garlands for a celebration. Garlands seem to have been the most popular personal adornment for men, women and children alike, irrespective of their age and position in society. Cumbersome garlands like the one seen here were in fashion in the late 2nd and the 1st century BC. The faint ironic smile frozen on the lips gives the image a particular individuality. Carefully sculpted thick eyelids create the impression that the small eyes are slightly screwed up, and the woman’s face is clearly that of one of the Eastern peoples. In the Hellenistic period the subject of female old age, all of its external unattractive features thoroughly and impassively recorded, penetrated even into monumental art, as evidenced by the famous statue of a drunken old woman in the Glyptotek in Munich, the original of which is attributed to the sculptor Miron, who lived in Thebes in the 3rd century BC. The ethical and aesthetic ideas of the classical period, which had hindered a naturalistic approach, gave way, and portrayals of old women began to appear in terracotta sculpture. These women clearly did not come from the upper levels of society, nor even from the middle classes; it is as if they had been pulled out of a crowd in the street or in the market, in a sanctuary or a temple. EK 94 Head of a mime actor (fragment of a statuette) Asia Minor, Smyrna, 2nd – 1st century BC Clay; h 6.3 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.421 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 142, p. 166 The pointed dunce’s cap was, along with a multicoloured cloak, characteristic of a mime actor’s clothing. The outstanding feature of this expressive, cunning face is the asymmetry of the eyes: the left eye is noticeably higher and more wide-open than the right. This was an accurate way of conveying a symptom of a disease of a facial nerve or of the central nervous system and it is no coincidence that terracottas of this type were carefully studied by doctors at the celebrated Salpêtrière clinic in Paris in the 19th century. Mime actors belonging to the lower classes, dwarves and hunchbacks and people of an indeterminate age, their bodies often distorted by diseases, whose faces combined ugliness with extraordinary expressiveness, were particularly attractive to ordinary people, whom they would entertain in the street in exchange for a piece of bread. No type of art in the Hellenistic period relected this quality more than terracotta sculpture, particularly in Asia Minor and Alexandria. EK 95 Grotesque head of a man Asia Minor, Smyrna, 1st century BC Clay; h 4 cm Provenance 1884, collection Pyotr Saburov Inv. G.419 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 143, p. 166 With his huge, dome-shaped bald pate and his disproportionately large protruding ears, this character calmly looks at the world with his eyes open wide. The large mouth is creased in a cheerful, serene smile. All these elements, particularly the deformed skull, suggest that this terracotta belongs to the group of so-called pathological grotesques that were extremely widespread in the Hellenistic period. Their main centres of production were Smyrna and Alexandria: both cities had large medical centres to which cripples locked in the hope of assistance and cure. The Hellenistic grotesque makes it possible to speak of a hitherto unknown interest in the individuality of the human personality in all its diferent manifestations, regardless of place in society or conformity to aesthetic norms. Hundreds of surviving terracotta pathological grotesques provide proof of mass production, which suggests that they may have been perceived as amulets, accurately relecting the symptoms of ailments against which they were intended as protection. EK 141 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 96 Head of a Hellenistic ruler in a helmet Eastern Mediterranean (?), 2nd – 1st century BC Bronze, brown patina; h 5.7 cm Provenance 1952, Library of the Lvov Academy of Sciences Inv. B.2783 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 145, p. 167 The youth wearing a helmet in the shape of an elephant’s head may be a portrait of a Hellenistic ruler. The elephant’s skin was certainly an attribute of Alexander and other kings, but similar portraits with a female face are usually interpreted as symbols of Africa. NPG 142 97 Dioscuros 98 Dioscuros with a horse Roman Empire, 1st century AD Bronze, dark green patina; h 12.8 cm Provenance 1887, collection F. and M. Golitsyn Inv. B.730 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 146, p. 168 Etruria, 4th century BC Bronze, dark green patina; h 12 cm Provenance unknown Inv. B.1203 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 147, p. 169 The naked standing Dioscuros has a ive-rayed disc on his head, with a band around his forehead to hold back his hair. The hair is lufed up high on his forehead, and his face is framed by curly locks. The extended left hand holds the remains of reins. The artist’s skill and his excellent knowledge of anatomy are clearly revealed in the method of conveying movement and emotion. Imitation of the school of Polycletes is clear in the soft, plastic representation of the muscular system. NPG The Dioscuri (the divine twins Castor and Pollux) were exceptionally popular in the Hellenistic period. They appear on coins of Seleucus VI of Antioch and the Graeco-Bactrian king Eucrates, riding rampant horses like victorious warriors. In Roman Italy the Dioscuri also appeared in the roles of heavenly warriorprotectors. The Hermitage Dioscuros was a decoration for a candelabra; it shows a youth taming a horse rearing up on its hind legs. At a later time such groups were frequently assumed to portray the legendary exploit of the young Alexander in bridling Bucephalus. DA 99 Part of a chariot with the head of a warrior Greece (?), early 3rd century BC Bronze, dark green patina; 16 × 24 cm Provenance 1915, presented by D. I. Tolstoy; according to the donor, purchased in Rostov, discovered in Taman Inv. B.1032a Literature Alexander 2007, no. 148, p. 170 Part of a chariot with the helmeted head of a youth in relief. The head is of a sculptural type characteristic of the work of Lysippus, court sculptor to Alexander the Great. NPG 143 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 100 Fragment of a piece of jewellery made of Heraclean knots Northern Black Sea coast, early 3rd century BC Gold; l links 1.5, 1.6 cm Provenance 1840 found in a burial mound on the Karantinny Road in the necropolis at Pantikapaion (now Kerch; excavations by Damian Kareysha) Inv. P.1840.16 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 149, p. 171 The links are made of short tubes of gold leaf, with illets of ribbed wire at the ends. Eleven of the links are decorated with a ive-petalled rose with a little ball of grain in the centre. The discovery of coins of Lysimachus among objects found in this burial means that the complex can be dated to the irst third of the 3rd century BC. The Heracles knot appeared as a decorative element in the second half of the 4th century BC (see cat. 24) and was a very popular motif during the Hellenistic period (cat. 104). It was clearly regarded as an efective amulet binding evil forces, and was often incorporated into jewellery. The origin of many motifs in jewellery can be explained by their magic meaning: for instance, beads or pendants in the shape of grains or buds may have relected a desire for fertility. With the passage of time, of course, it was a form’s aesthetic properties that came to the fore, but the miraculous potential of jewellery worn on the body was never forgotten. It is revealing that at a time when the customary order of things was being destroyed and ideas were confused, people revived apparently forgotten concepts rooted deep in popular belief. To this they added new knowledge about foreign deities, from whom they also sought protection, adopting their cults and symbols (see e.g. the headdress of Isis in the decoration of earrings – cat. 106). YPK 101 Ring with a cameo: head of Athena 102 Spiral bracelet in the form of a snake Greek, Northern Black Sea coast. Pantikapaion (?), early 3rd century BC Gold, garnet; l cameo 5.4 cm Provenance 1838, found in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch), in the third stone tomb in one of the burial mounds beyond the Karantinny Highway (excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. P.1838.16 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 150, p. 172 Greek, Northern Black Sea coast, 3rd century BC Gold; l 11.3 cm Provenance 1870, chance ind in a stone grave in the irst central burial mound on Vasyurin Hill on the Taman Peninsula Inv. Vas. 29 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 152, p. 173 This massive ring has an oval panel with a relief bust of Athena. After casting, the panel was engraved and the background given a punched patter. A garnet cameo of the goddess’ head en face is inserted in the centre. The pair to this ring, made using the same technique, was also found in the burial (Inv. P.1838.15). There were four rings with gems on each of the buried woman’s hands. ON, EIA 144 Soldered together from strips of gold leaf: the inside is smooth and the outside proiled, with three ribs. Scales are embossed on the S-shaped upper and lower coils of the snake’s body, and on the head – an empty socket which once held an insert of coloured stone. The bracelet is a successful combination of functionality and the naturalistic portrayal of a reptile. Snake bracelets became very popular in the Hellenistic period; this is explained more by a growing interest in magic and amulets of various types (Deppert-Lippitz 1985, p. 268) than by the spread of the cult of Isis (Pfrommer 1990, p. 126). YPK 103 Earrings with Eros pendants Greek, Northern Black Sea coast, third quarter of the 3rd century BC Gold; h 4 cm Provenance 1838, found in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch), in the third stone tomb in one of the burial mounds beyond the Karantinny Highway (excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. P.1838.47 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 153, p. 173 earrings. In Greek art of the 4th century BC Eros was portrayed as a youth with large wings, but these cast igures are in the form of a small boy, even a toddler, with small wings that became the norm in the Hellenistic period. A igure similar to one of these pendants was used to repair the diadem from the Artyukhov burial mound (cat. 104). YPK Each earring consists of a hook and a disc with a igure of a lying Eros. The igures are cast; the wings, arms, cloaks and pitchers were made separately and soldered to the inished igures. The burial can be dated to the third quarter of the 3rd century BC, since together with the earrings and other objects it contained a copper coin of Leucon II, King of Bosporus (c. 240–220 BC), an early Hellenistic ceramic with a painting in the ‘Western Slope of the Acropolis’ style and two 3rd century BC terracottas. Such a date is not contradicted by the style of the 104 Diadem with a Heracles knot Greek, Northern Black Sea coast, 2nd century BC Gold garnet-almandine, glass; Ø 20 cm Provenance 1879, found in grave no. 1 in the Artyukhov burial mound on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Stepan Verebryusov) Inv. Art. 1 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 154, p. 174 The valuable objects in this burial provide no direct indication of the social position of the deceased woman, but she was indisputably a member of the local nobility. Richly decorated with large and small garnets, this diadem is a typical example of jewellery in the Hellenistic period. Similar adornments with a Heracles knot in the centre are encountered on the Northern Black Sea coast as early as the 4th century BC (cat. 24). Later masters made alterations in the decoration of jewellery of this type, but the basic details of the three-part construction remained unchanged. At the centre of the Heracles knot is a group sculpture: an eagle with outstretched wings holding Eros in its talons. There is no such theme in Greek mythology; initially the Greek master probably portrayed the abduction to Olympus by the eagle of Zeus (or Zeus himself in the guise of an eagle) of the boy Ganymede, who had captivated the Thunderer with his beauty. Traces of an ancient restoration on the reverse side of the diadem provide evidence of the replacement of the igure of Ganymede with the igure of Eros. LN 145 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 105 Necklace Greek, Northern Black Sea coast, third quarter of the 2nd century BC Gold, garnet-almandine, amber, enamel; l 47.5 cm Provenance 1879, found in grave no. 1 in the Artyukhov burial mound on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Vladimir Tiesenhausen, Stepan Verebryusov) Inv. Art. 5 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 155, p. 175 This necklace of alternating gold and garnet beads has the embossed heads of steers at the ends. One of these has a loop in its mouth, the other the hook for fastening. Amber bushes in gold frames join the fastening to the beads of the necklace. The smooth gold beads and stones are framed on two sides by iligree rosettes with a ringlet in the centre. This type of setting for stones can be seen on the beads of the pendants of a diadem and a pin from the same burial (cat. 104 and Inv. Art.7). YPK 106 Earrings with pigeon pendants Greek, Alexandria (?), 2nd century BC Gold, hessonite, glass; h 6.3, 6.5 cm Provenance 1879, found in the Artyukhov burial mound on the Taman Peninsula (excavations by Stepan Verebryusov) Inv. Art. 40 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 157, p. 176 Found in one of the three burials in the Artyukov burial mound that had not been robbed, the earrings consist of a disc crowned with an imitation of Isis’ headdress: a round garnet, a sun surrounded by ine wire, and steers’ horns. The two feathers above the round garnet, the petals of the rosette on the disc, and the bird’s head and body are all covered with a thin layer of a glassy mass of various shades. The highly artistic execution, the use of a variety of techniques and materials, and the rich colour range are characteristic of the heyday of Hellenistic art. The use of an Egyptian motif in the design suggests that the earrings may have been made in Alexandria. LN 146 107 Calyx depicting Helios’ chariot Eastern Mediterranean, irst quarter of the 3rd century BC Silver, cast, embossed, engraved; h 3.8, Ø 12.5 cm Provenance 1838, found in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch; excavations by Anton Ashik) Inv. P.1838.25 Literature Ancient Artistic Silver 1985, p. 29, no. 26, p. 27 The sun god Helios rides in his chariot. His facial features resemble portrayals of Alexander: the image of the Alexander-like Helios was extremely popular in Hellenistic art. From the late 4th century BC the iconography of the sun god was strongly inluenced by Alexander’s image, and the prototype of this image, created in Rhodes, was long-lived in the art of antiquity. In the Hellenistic period, thanks to Alexander, the sun god Helios was linked with the idea of kingly power and his attributes became part of monarchic symbols. The comparison of rulers with the sun – from Roman emperors to European kings – became a conventional metaphor, in which the image of Alexander was implicitly present. AAT 108 Phalar with gorgoneion Eastern Mediterranean, Bosporan kingdom (?), 2nd century BC Silver, gilding; Ø 17.5 cm Provenance 1906; 1900 found near the settlement of of Akhtanizov on the Taman Peninsula Inv. Akht.18 Literature Vlasova 2009, pp. 76–78, pl. IV,2 This silver phalar – a horse with a mask of Medusa (gorgoneion) – comes from the Akhtanizov hoard. It is part of a bridle set, which probably also included six smaller round brasses with a cross-shaped relief ornament (Inv. Akht.21). The combination of the high-relief gorgoneion with the carved pattern decorating the frame is typical of Hellenistic metalwork in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, but the iconography of the image of Medusa, representing an ideal model, reveals similarities to earlier pieces. EV 147 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 109 Cup on three shells Eastern Mediterranean, irst half (irst third ?) of the 3rd century BC Silver, gilding; h 11.5, Ø rim 13.2 cm Provenance 1837–1838; 1834 found in a warrior’s burial in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1834.36 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 158, p. 177 A tall round-based cup with rounded sides, set on feet of three silver shells soldered to its underside. The outside of the upper part of the cup below the rim is decorated with a narrow engraved frieze in the form of a garland of leaves intertwined with a ribbon. NK† 110 Calyx Attica (?), late 4th century BC Silver; h 6.6, upper Ø 10, w with handles 15 cm Provenance 1853; 1852 found in a grave in a burial mound in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1852.14 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 160, p. 178 A calyx was a vessel for drinking wine at table. In shape and ornamentation the vessel is similar to ceramic calyxes made by Attic potters, and this similarity is no coincidence. Expensive silver tableware was the prerogative of the nobility. The master ceramicists making mass-produced items – clay vessels covered with shiny black glaze (lacquer) – imitated the shapes of more expensive silver tableware. Whole sets of silver table and toilet vessels are sometimes found in noble graves in the Bosporan necropolises of the Hellenistic period. NK† 148 111 Ladle 112 Amphoriskos with a lid and chain Bosporan kingdom, 2nd half of the 4th – early 3rd century BC Silver; l 29, Ø cup 5.2 cm Provenance 1835; 1834 found in a warrior’s grave in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1834.41 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 159, p. 177 Eastern Mediterranean, early 3rd century BC Silver, gilding; h 12.6, max Ø 5.7, Ø lid 1.6, Ø base of stem 0.8 cm Provenance 1835; 1834 found in a warrior’s grave in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1834.39 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 162, p. 180 A ladle with a deep hemispherical cup and a long vertical lat handle with curved edges; its narrow curved end is tipped with a dog’s head. Silver ladles of this type were used by wine-servers at the meals of prosperous residents of the Bosporan kingdom during the Hellenistic period. NK† An elegant lask for fragrances with a narrow neck and a round body tapering down into a conical stem. The thin S-shaped handles have ducks’ heads at their lower ends. A chain for suspending the vessel is attached to the upper ends of the handles. The surface of the amphoriskos and the lid are richly engraved with gilded ornaments, typical of utensils made of precious metals in the Hellenistic period. NK† 113 Mirror with relief scene on the lid: Dionysus, Ariadne, a satyr, a panther Eastern Mediterranean, Ionia (?), irst quarter of the 3rd century BC Bronze, lead; Ø mirror 25.5, Ø lid 23.7 cm Provenance 1837–1838; 1834 found in a warrior’s grave in the necropolis of Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1834.43 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 163, p. 181 The cast mirror and lid are joined by a hinge. The lid is decorated with an embossed relief with lead on the reverse side (for stability). Despite the now fragmentary nature of the igures in the relief, the scene can clearly be made out. In the middle of the lid is Dionysus sitting on a rock, a cloak spread out beneath him. Behind him is Ariadne. Embracing Dionysus around the waist with her right arm, she supports the streaming cloak with her left. To Dionysus’ right sits a panther; a satyr lies at his feet. Traces of engraving are visible on the inside of the lid – the folds of the clothes of a youth and a girl. This type of mirror, which irst appeared in Greece in the early 4th century BC, was in existence throughout the Hellenistic period. NK† 149 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era MONUMENTAL PAINTING FROM CHERSONESOS (an instrument for the application of wax paints) over a brazier (Rostovtsev 1914, pp. 378, 384–386, pl. XCII). Throughout the city’s history, and especially in its heyday in the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, Greek customs and artistic tastes were natural to the citizens of Chersonesos. Clear conirmation of this is found in the magniicent series of painted monuments. Considerable work was undertaken to preserve the layers of paint on these monuments by T. V. Kovalenko of the State Hermitage’s Laboratory for the Scientiic Restoration of Monumental Painting. In recognition of this the Chersonesos Museum (now the Chersonesos Taurica National Museum-Reserve) presented the State Hermitage with three gravestones and two blocks of a cornice with painting. Literature Fyodorov 1977, pp. 348–352 Yuri Kalashnik In 1960–1961, whilst archaeologists at Chersonesos were investigating the seventeenth corner defensive tower (the so-called Zeno tower), they discovered that in the early 2nd century BC, when the tower was irst built, its inner lining had been made from tombstones and architectural fragments from the necropolis immediately outside the city walls (Strzheletsky 1969, p. 11). Despite the fact that the work had been done in haste in the face of an enemy threat (the very fact that they had used material from their own necropolis is evidence of this), the architectural details had been installed face downwards, so as to avoid damaging the inscriptions and decoration on the stones. This manifestation of respect led to the survival of examples of Hellenistic art unique in the Northern Black Sea coast area, giving us some idea of the use of polychrome decoration in Greek architecture. The tower yielded 345 architectural fragments, including 42 gravestones with painted inscriptions, a great rarity. Wax paints were used, sometimes on a white background, sometimes on a carefully smoothed limestone surface. Encaustic painting, using melted wax paints (from the Greek word έγκαίω — ‘I burn’) was widely used in ancient times. The Hermitage collection includes a painted sarcophagus from the 1st century BC depicting, among other scenes, the workshop of the artist, who sits at his palette, heating a cauterion 150 114 Grave monument of Polycasta 115 Grave monument of Delphos Chersonesos, 3rd century BC Limestone, polychrome wax paint; 159 × 38.5, thickness of wall 18 cm Provenance 1968; 1960–1961 found inside the seventeenth Zeno tower at Chersonesos (excavations by Stanislav Strzheletsky) Inv. Kh.1968.1 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 169, p. 185 Chersonesos, 3rd century BC Limestone, polychrome wax painting; h of surviving piece 131, total h 155, width 35.3, thickness 17 cm Provenance 1968; 1960 found inside the seventeenth Zeno tower at Chersonesos (excavations by Stanislav Strzheletsky) Inv. Kh.1968.2 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 170, p. 187 This stele (arrived in the museum broken in three pieces), which slightly broadens A tall narrow stele with anteixes above the proiled cornice, with traces of wax paint. The letters of the inscription were lightly scratched on the surface of the stone, then picked out in black paint: Δελφòς / Εύκλείδα (Delphos, son of Euclid). Judging by the character of the script, the inscription dates from the 3rd century BC. Delphos was the husband of Polycasta (cat. 114). YPK out at the bottom, is crowned by a pediment with three acroteria. The details of the relief decoration are indicated with wax paints. The same technique was used for the inscription and the usual features of Chersonesos women’s graves: a depiction of ribbons and an alabastron – a vessel for fragrant oil – on a cord. The inscription reads: Πολυκάστα / ‘Ιπποκράτειος / Δελφοữ γυνά (Polycasta, daughter of Hippocrates, wife of Delphos). The shape of the letters is characteristic of the 3rd century BC. The grammatical forms used in the inscription, characteristic of the Dorian dialect, can be explained by the fact that Chersonesos was founded by immigrants from the Dorian city of Heraclea Pontica. Stones from the cemetery were clearly taken in succession, because the gravestones of whole families were used in the building of the tower. It seems likely that the monument to Delphos, Polycasta’s husband (cat. 115) had stood next to this stele in the cemetery. Painted monuments similar in period and style were discovered in the excavation of the Great Burial Mound at Vergina near Aigai, ancient capital of the Macedonian kings (see e.g. Andronikos 1984, p. 84, ig. 44) . YPK 151 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era Monumental painting from Chersonesos 116 Two fragments of a painted cornice Chersonesos, 3rd century BC Limestone, polychrome wax paint; h 15, l façade 29, thickness of wall 58.5 cm Provenance 1968; 1961 found inside the seventeenth Zeno tower at Chersonesos (excavations by Stanislav Strzheletsky) Inv. Kh.1968.4, Kh.1968.5 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 171, p. 188 A slab of a cornice of the Ionic order with a carefully carved proile, painted with wax paints to produce bands of Ionian and Lesbian cymatium and ova. Two strips were left in the warm yellowish tone of the stone limestone. A total of 50 fragments of this cornice were found, 24 of them with the remains of polychrome painting. Reconstructions of Chersonesos grave monuments published by B. N. Fyodorov (Fyodorov 1977, pp. 348–352) suggest that these slabs were part of a U-shaped naiskos, in which the grave stele stood. According to A.V. Buyskikh’s reconstruction, the cornice adorned the funeral peribolos, an enclosed wall. 152 Judging by the slight but noticeable crookedness of the upper surface of the stones, the naiskos had no roof (Fyodorov 1977, p. 351). Its walls were a little taller than a man’s height. The space inside the naiskos surrounded by the wall was occupied by a heroon. The idea of heroisation, i.e. inclusion of the deceased among the demigods, was expressed in the Greek world of the 4th and 3rd centuries BC through the vast Bosporan burial mounds with monumental vaults, through sumptuous funeral rites and by the inclusion of hero’s attributes such as gold wreaths (cat. 18). In Chersonesos, a city with a democratic form of government, where ordinary life was modest and wealth was not launted, this idea was expressed rather in small constructions featuring a harmonious blend of beautiful materials, architecture and ine painting. YPK 117 Three fragments of a cornice Bosporan kingdom, 3rd – 2nd century BC Stucco a. 20 × 23, thickness 11.6 cm b. 19 × 33, thickness 10 cm c. 13 × 21, thickness 9 cm Provenance 1901; 1899 found in room no. 6 in a house at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1899.46 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 172, p. 189 These architectural fragments are carved from stucco – a mixture of limestone and gypsum. The projecting upper part of the cornice, the shelf, has a stepped proile; beneath it runs an ornamental frieze of palmettes and ova, then a band of dentils. In wealthy Hellenistic houses and public buildings this type of decoration was combined with use of brightly-coloured plaster on the walls. NK† 118 Fragment of architectural decoration with the young Dionysus Bosporan kingdom, 3rd century BC Terracotta; 13 × 14.3 cm Provenance 1912; 1910 chance ind at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1910.104 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 173, p. 190 Possibly part of a cornice from the façade of a building. The high relief presents a powerful image of the handsome young god Dionysus. The upper part of the hairstyle, which protrudes from the rectangular frame, falls down on both sides, with corymbs (wooden cones), an attribute of Dionysus, to the sides above the forehead. Ivy leaves can be seen in the luxuriant hair – also characteristic of Dionysian iconography. The Bosporan master probably copied the depiction of Dionysus from an imported model. NK† 119 Anteix with a Gorgon’s head Sinope, 1st century BC Terracotta, traces of red paint; 17 × 16 cm Provenance 1868; 1867–1868 found at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1867/68.1050 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 175, p. 192 Anteixes – roof decorations – often featured relief palmettes, volutes, steers’ heads, the heads of gods and other mythological characters. The portrayal of the head of the Gorgon Medusa was considered to be apotropaic (i.e. it warded of evil), and frightening elements such as the wide staring eyes and the tongue stuck out were stressed. NK† 153 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 120 Fragment of an architectural cornice Bosporan kingdom, 4th century BC Terracotta; 11. 4 × 15.6, thickness 3.3–4.2 cm Provenance 1864, found at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1864.36 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 176, p. 193 This terracotta cornice has relief decoration consisting of typical Greek architectural ornamental motifs: an upper band of meander, then a band of ova, the bottom edge decorated with a row of beading. This fragment is part of a so-called frontal tile (a trace of the join with the tile can be seen on the back of the cornice). Tiles such as these – large lat slabs with an ornamental frieze on the face – were ixed around the edge of the roof, forming an elegant cornice along the top of the building. NK† 121 Fragment of a kalypter with an anteix: head of Dionysus Sinope, 1st century BC Terracotta; l fragment of calypter with anteix 13; h surviving part of anteix 13; w anteix 18.1 cm Provenance 1864, found at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1864.35 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 177, p. 194 Kalypters (long narrow tiles) were used to tile the roofs of buildings along with keramids (large lat tiles in the form of rectangular slabs). A kalypter on the edge of the roof was decorated with an anteix. Tiles of both types were produced in great quantities in the Bosporan kingdom, mainly in the capital Pantikapaion. Supply did not fully meet the demand for these ever-necessary items, however, so tiles were imported from other states. The principal foreign supplier of tiles to the Bosporan kingdom was Sinope, on the southern shore of the Pontus Euxinus (Black Sea). Dionysus is portrayed with the slightly feminine appearance that was characteristic of the late Hellenistic period. NK† 154 122 Fragment of a wall facing with polychrome painting Nymphaion; irst half of the 3rd century BC Plaster, encaustic paint; 70 × 180 cm Provenance 1982 found at Nymphaion (excavations by Nonna Grach) Inv. NF.82.526 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 178, p. 195 A fragment of the wall of a sanctuary connected with the cult of Aphrodite-Isis, patroness of seafarers. Most of the walls are covered with graphic drawings and inscriptions. The texts include appeals to the gods, reports of ships setting out to sea, records by donors of gifts to the sanctuary and the payment of debts, toasts, individual names and lists of names, lines of poetry and inscriptions of a frivolous nature. Among the depictions of people, animals and numerous sailing ships the main drawing is that of a Greek naval vessel 1.2 metres in length, executed in the sgraito technique on a yellow band of plaster. The drawing includes ine details of the ship’s construction and appointments. The ship’s prow bears its name – ΙΣΙΣ or Isis — the name of the most revered goddess in Ptolemaic Egypt. In the Hellenistic period the cult of Isis was widespread among seamen and merchants, as the goddess was the patroness of trade and seafaring, combining the functions of various goddesses, including the goddess of fertility, whom the Greeks associated with Aphrodite. The appearance of this ship on the sanctuary wall may have been connected with its arrival in Nymphaion harbour for the celebrations, described by Apuleius in his ‘Metamorphoses’, held in temples of Isis on the opening of navigation in spring (Semyonov 1995). It may be that the drawing depicts an embassy vessel that had arrived from Egypt to the court of King Perisades II on an important political mission (Grach 1984). It is not impossible that it shows one of the ships whose dimensions and luxury were described in detail by ancient authors – Callisthenes, Athenaeus and Lucian. OS 155 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 123 Intaglio: Alexander the Great as Zeus Greece, 4th – 3rd century BC Cornelian; 3 × 2.1 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.609 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 179, p. 196 124 Cameo: portrait of Alexander the Great Greece, 4th – 3rd century BC Sardonyx; 2 × 1.2 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.320 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 180, p. 196 125 Intaglio: portrait of Mithridates VI Eupator Asia Minor, 1st century BC Double-layered sardonyx; Ø 4 cm Provenance early 19th century Inv. Zh.613 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 472, p. 438 126 Intaglio: Mithridates VI as Dionysus Asia Minor, 2nd – 1st century BC Cornelian; 1.2 × 1.1 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.4625 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 183, p. 197 156 The inluence of monumental sculpture can be clearly traced in the gem’s composition. Some scholars note the similarity of the portrayal to well-known sculptures, particularly the works of Lysippus. Others consider that the intaglio is based on a lost painting by Apelles entitled ‘Alexander with the Thunderbolts of Zeus’. The original of the gem is ascribed to the carver Pirgoteles, whom the king gave the preferential right to portray him in glyptics (engraved gems). The inscription Νεισоυ – the name of Neisos, the gem’s owner – is probably a later addition. ON, EIA If this is not a portrait of the young Alexander, it may be of another Macedonian king in a speciic headdress, a causia. It may depict Philip V (238–179 BC) or his son Perseus (179–168 BC). Certainly the artist based the image on the iconographic model created for Alexander when he was heir to the throne. ON Scholars are not unanimous in their identiication of the portrait: it has frequently been called a portrait of Alexander the Great and thought to be the work of a 19th-century engraver. One can, however, note the similarity of the proile to portraits of Mithridates Eupator on coins, though this intaglio far outstrips them in its artistic merits. EIA This tiny gem with the image of Dionysus probably depicts Mithridates Eupator, king of Pontus. The carver skilfully conveyed all the audacity of this new imitator of Alexander the Great, who dreamed of the glory of conquest and world domination. It was with some reason that the duc d’Orléans, regent of France, chose this piece as his seal from his whole family collection of over 1500 gems. ON, EIA 127 Cameo: Alexander hunting a wild boar Italy, 1st century AD Cornelian; 2 × 2.2 cm Provenance 1805, collection N. F. Khitrovo, St Petersburg Inv. Zh.18 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 185, p. 197 128 Cameo: Zeus Alexandria, 3rd century BC Sardonyx; Ø 6.1 cm Provenance 1850, collection Princess E. I. Golitsyna, St Petersburg Inv. Zh.292 (GR 12679) Literature Zwierlein-Diehl 2007, ill. 234 129 Cameo: The triumph of Dionysus Alexandria, 1st century BC Sardonyx, lined with a cornelian plate; 4.2 × 2.7 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris; formerly collections Pierre Crozat, Paris, and L. Corsi, Rome Inv. Zh.309 (GR 12696) Literature Kagan, Neverov 2001, no. 28 (14) The subject of the hero-king hunting on horseback was repeated many times in sculpture and glyptics. The version closest in time and composition to this cameo is the scene of Trajan’s hunt on the Arch of Constantine in Rome. ON, EIA A rare piece produced in a workshop in Alexandria during the reign of the early Ptolemies. The engraver achieved ine colouristic efects. EIA Such scenes are usually linked with the triumphal procession of Dionysus after his return from his Indian campaign. These subjects became very popular during the Hellenistic age, serving as an allegorical depiction of Alexander’s Eastern campaign, a hint at the new status of the commander himself and his successors, rulers from the Ptolemaic dynasty. EIA 157 The Mediterranean in the Hellenistic era 130 Cameo: Victory in a biga (two-horse chariot) Italy, 1st century BC Cornelian; 4.5 × 3.7 cm Provenance 1805, collection N. F. Khitrovo, St Petersburg; 15th century, collection Cardinal Pietro Barbo (later Pope Paul II) Inv. Zh.249 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 187, p. 198 131 Cameo: Victory with a team of four horses Italy, 1st century BC Onyx; 2.6 × 1.9 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.293 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 188, p. 198 132 Cameo: Victory with a shield by a trophy Italy, 1st century BC Cornelian; 1.3 × 1.2 cm Provenance late 18th century Inv. Zh.24 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 189, p. 198 133 Intaglio: head of Serapis Italy, 1st century AD Cornelian; 2 × 1.45 cm Provenance 19th century Inv. Zh.5892 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 194, p. 199 158 Images of the winged Nike (Victory) became particularly popular during the Hellenistic period. Sumptuous portrayals of triumphs, in which the goddess of Victory herself took part, date back to the time of Alexander the Great and relect the military victories of great conquerors. ON, EIA This cameo and numerous copies of it in intaglio reproduce a lost painting by Nicomachus, a Greek artist of the 4th century BC, briely described by Pliny: ‘Victory enticing four horses into the heavens’ (Pliny the Elder, XXXV, 108). The painting was taken as a trophy by the general Plautus Plancus and hung in the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill. Around the 1st century BC it was reproduced on silver coins minted by the Plautus family. The cameo is a rare example of a work signed by the carver: it bears the signature Poΰφοs έπόει — Rufus made it. ON,EIA This composition is based on Alexander’s gold ring seal. Discovered at Kerch, the ring itself is now in the British Museum; it bears the inscription: ‘from the belongings of the king’. It is known that Mithridates VI collected many relics of Alexander the Great and even claimed to be descended from him. ON The image of Serapis as a syncretistic deity was extremely widespread in Hellenistic glyptics. He was depicted just as frequently in the time of the Roman Empire, sometimes with the epithet ‘the invincible’ and the slogan ‘conquer all!’ Portrayals of this god were clearly supposed to help in the realisation of projects and the attainment of something desired – in a military career, for example. Other military symbols are included to reinforce the efect of the stone: two goddesses of Victory, an eagle and the badges of legions. ON, EIA 134 Drachma 135 Stater 136 Tetradrachma Bithynia, Heraclea Pontica, 364–353 BC Silver; Ø 18 mm; 6.06 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2972/13249 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 197, p. 200 Mysia, Cyzicus, 450–400 BC Electron; Ø 19.5 mm; 15.93 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65 D/1214 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 199, p. 201 Mysia, Cyzicus, 330–280 BC Silver; Ø 23 mm; 13.52 g Provenance 1952, from the State Valuables Reserve of the Soviet Union Inv. ON-2988/34762 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 201, p. 202 Obverse Head of the bearded Obverse Head of Zeus-Amon facing Heracles in a lion’s skin, facing left. left, a tuna ish below. Obverse Head of Cora facing left. Reverse A bull facing left; above and below it – the inscription: HPAK ΛΕΙΑ – Heraclea. YD Reverse Stamped square. YD Reverse Head of a lion facing left, a tuna ish below and a vessel to right. Inscription: ΚΥІ… | ΚΗ… ΩΝ – of Cyzicus (coin). YD 137 Tetradrachma 138 Didrachma Ionia, Ephesus, 387–295 BC Silver; Ø 25 mm; 14.78 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2972/15012 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 206, p. 203 Caria, Rhodes, 304–166 BC Silver; Ø 19 mm; 6.57 g Provenance unknown Inv.ON-2972/16397 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 212, p. 205 Obverse Bee, and to the sides – the Obverse Head of Helios in three irst two letters of the city’s name: E Φ. quarters, facing right. Reverse Protome of a deer facing Reverse Rose. Inscription: ΑΝΤΗNΩΡ – Antenor. YD left, a palm tree behind; to right, the name of the magistrate: ΠΕΛΑΓΩΝ – Pelagon. YD 159 PTOLEMAIC EGYPT THE MACEDONIAN DYNASTY ON THE THRONE OF THE PHARAOHS Andrey Bolshakov After Alexander’s irst victories in the Middle East and the capture of the family of the Persian king Darius, the latter sent envoys to propose a truce and, possibly, territorial concessions. Alexander’s retinue was exultant, but he himself had greater plans, already beginning to see himself as the future ruler of the ecumene. He angrily rejected the ofer and distanced himself from the adherents of peace. His ultimate aim had already been determined: the crushing defeat of Persia. Instead of moving eastwards, however, Alexander headed to the south-west – to Egypt. There were several reasons for this: irstly, it was not advisable to turn one’s back on a large country that was under enemy control, while Darius’ army was disorganised and of no immediate danger; secondly, Egypt was the richest country in the Mediterranean and the world’s largest grain producer, its resources of central importance both for the supply of the army and for the maintenance of a favourable situation in Greece; thirdly, the Greeks saw Egypt as the world’s oldest and greatest culture, and the amalgamation of the spiritual powers of the two civilisations appeared a task worth attempting. This latter motive may seem far-fetched, but Alexander’s exploits in Egypt prove that he was already thinking of the need for cultural synthesis, though those thoughts probably did not as yet encompass the whole world. 160 From a purely military point of view, the annexation of Egypt presented no great diiculty. The Egyptians had hated the Persians since their country’s conquest by Cambyses in 525 BC, and at the irst opportunity had achieved independence, which lasted sixty years. On the second occasion Egypt, now under the rule of the 30th dynasty, had been conquered by Artaxerxes III less than ten years before Alexander’s arrival (341 BC), and strong internal resistance to the invaders had not abated. Mazaces, the Persian satrap of Egypt, realised the precariousness of his position only too well, and agreed to surrender without a ight during preliminary negotiations. Thus, when Alexander arrived in Egypt in 332 BC, he accepted Mazaces’s capitulation and was able to make his triumphant entrance into Memphis, the capital city, as a liberator. This bloodless change of power was undoubtedly a contributory factor to Alexander being recognised as pharaoh and crowned in Memphis without diiculty. As pharaoh he brought oferings to the Egyptian gods, and as a bearer of Hellenic culture he organised sporting and musical contests – the irst example of an oicial combination of the two traditions. Alexander’s coronation gave him an altogether special status: he was acknowledged as the son of the Sun god Ra. According to a concept that had developed at the time of the construction of the great pyramids, every Egyptian king combined both human and divine natures, as his mother conceived him from Ra, who adopted the likeness of her husband for this purpose. This concept provided an explanation for the coming to power of a man who had no connections by birth with previous rulers and in the case of Alexander it could not have been more opportune. It is hard to say whether he reckoned on being accorded divinity when he set out for Egypt, but, having received it, he found himself in possession of the ideological basis for his aspirations to world domination. This was perhaps not particularly important in political terms, since the world beyond the Nile valley was of no interest to the Egyptians, while the Greeks and Persians did not take such strange Egyptian notions seriously. On a psychological level, however, this formal conirmation of his special status by the authority of the most ancient religion, a status of which Alexander had always been aware, was of considerable personal signiicance. He truly started to feel that he was a god. The next step taken by Alexander in Egypt was a purely practical one: at the west end of the Nile delta, on the shore of the Mediterranean, he founded Alexandria – a city he saw as the connecting link between Egypt and the Greek world. Alexander himself drew up the general outline of the city plan and determined the location of the temple of Isis, while the detailed planning and construction was entrusted to leading Greek architects and engineers. Alexandria was conceived as a trading centre, not exclusively for Greeks: although only Greeks had the right of citizenship, Egyptians and those of other nationalities were permitted to settle there. It is unclear whether Alexander speciically proposed that the new city be a centre for the mingling and interaction of peoples and cultures, but that was the result. Alexandria quickly became the capital of the Hellenistic world, a place where the arts and sciences lourished through a synthesis of cultures. In early 331 BC Alexander left Alexandria and headed westwards for the remote oasis of Siwa, location of the revered oracle of the god Amon. The Greeks identiied Amon with Zeus, which explains why Alexander was so keen to consult his oracle, but why was the temple at Siwa chosen for this long and dangerous pilgrimage? There were, after all, plenty of oracles which enjoyed no less respect in the Nile valley. The probable explanation is that, according to Greek tradition, Heracles and Perseus, whom Alexander numbered among his ancestors, had visited Siwa, and Alexander considered that he had to measure swords with the ancient heroes. Moreover, Cambyses had sent his army to Siwa, but it had perished en route; Alexander must have regarded success in a venture that had been beyond the king of a state with whom a decisive battle would be fought within a few months as a good omen. After a diicult march across the desert (accounts of it tell of miracles that saved the travellers from certain death), Alexander and his men inally saw Siwa, a patch of bright green with a rock rising above it, on which stood the temple of Amon and the palace of the ruler of the oasis. The temple survives to this day, so one can still enter its sanctuary, treading on the same stones as Alexander did when he conversed with the god – there is surely no other place like it in the world. We do not know how the oracle spoke, but from the architecture of the temple we may suppose that the words of Amon were pronounced by a priest concealed in a neighbouring room. Amon acknowledged Alexander as his son (which was only natural, since in the New Kingdom Amon had been identiied with Ra) and promised him power over the world. Alexander thus received further justiication for his plans, which were to be conirmed later by a number of oracles he consulted outside Egypt. One speciic feature of the iconography of Alexander is connected with Siwa. Amon was worshipped in the form of a ram or a man with a ram’s head, and twisted ram’s horns became a regular attribute of his son, constantly seen, for example, on his coins; Notes this is also the source of the frequent epithet applied to Alexander – the Two-Horned. Alexander left Egypt in the late spring or early summer of 331 BC. Ahead of him lay more victories, the foundation of a great empire, bending the world to his will, dreams of conquering every land and of the amalgamation of all peoples, an early death and a posthumous return to Egypt. Eight years later, in 323 BC, Alexander’s general Ptolemy took his body to Alexandria and interred it there in a tomb that has not survived.1 For nearly three centuries after the fall of the empire of Alexander, Egypt remained under the domination of the Macedonian dynasty that had originated with Ptolemy and which came to an end with the death of Cleopatra VII, after she and Marc Antony lost the battle of Actium to Octavian in 30 BC. Egypt became part of the Roman Empire. 1 Some descriptions state that Alexander wished to be buried in Siwa. From time to time the discovery of his tomb is announced, but such ‘discoveries’ are mostly sensational declarations by nonserious archaeologists. 161 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 139 Fragment of a clepsydra with the name of Alexander Egypt, 332–323 BC Basalt; h 33.5 cm Provenance 1888, Princes Golitsyn collection; 17th century, in the Museo Gaddiano, Florence Inv. DV 2507 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 215, p. 209 The Egyptian used clepsydrae to determine the timing of nocturnal temple services. The vertical column on our fragment features the name Chema-aa, i.e. Nectanebo I, the irst ruler of the 30th dynasty, and to the right we see a depiction of a pharaoh burning incense before the god Ra-Horakhty (there would originally have been twelve such scenes, one for each month). In front of the king’s face are two cartouches for his names, but they are empty – however, the name Alexander appears in a cartouche in the line beneath the igures. It may be that the clepsydra was made in Alexander the Great’s time, though it did not depict him but his predecessors on the Egyptian throne – kings in general – which may be why there are no names to accompany their depictions. Alexander is included in the line of Egyptian kings that goes back to the beginning of the world, and Nectanebo I is closest to him as the founder of a dynasty. The Hermitage fragment is a declaration of Alexander’s succession to the throne and of his lawful power over Egypt. AB 162 140 One of the Ptolemies Egypt, 3rd – 1st century BC Limestone; h 10.5 cm Provenance before 1891 Inv. DV 736 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 216, p. 210 141 Cast of a portrait of Ptolemy II Egypt, 285–246 BC Plaster; h 26 cm Provenance 1928, Khokhlova collection Inv. DV 3932 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 217, p. 211 The huge scale of religious construction that was characteristic of Egypt required the mass production of statues and reliefs, and this provided a great deal of urgent work for a large number of sculptors. One of the important methods of instruction was the reproduction of models. This limestone head in a royal headcloth with the uraeus snake on the front is one such study. The facial features are conventional and stylised, but numerous stylistic and iconographic features show that the head relates to the time of the Macedonian dynasty and depicts one of the Ptolemies. It continues the ancient tradition of showing the king as an executor of the cult of the gods that survived in the reign of the Macedonians. In this tradition the individualisation of the subject was of less importance and it was essential to show the insignia that made him king. AB Conventionality and stylisation notwithstanding, portrayals of pharaohs were recognisable, and a budding sculptor had to adhere strictly to the rules relating to the facial features of the ruling king. Plaster casts depicting acknowledged models may have been used for this purpose. The Hermitage piece is a cast of the face and neck of a man; the section of headdress preserved on the left shows that the subject was a pharaoh, and numerous stylistic features enable us to relate it to the dynasty of Macedonian rulers in Egypt. The very characteristic full lips, formed into a faint smile, were – to judge by inscribed statues – a distinctive feature of Ptolemy II. AB 163 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 142 Cleopatra VII Egypt, 51–30 BC Basalt; h 104 cm Provenance 1929; formerly collection Maximilian von Leuchtenberg Inv. DV 3936 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 219, p. 213 The double horn of plenty, characteristic of portrayals of Arsinoe II, led some scholars to believe that this statue without an inscription was of that queen of the early Ptolemy dynasty, but its style indicates that it was produced much later. Moreover, Arsinoe was always depicted with two uraei over her forehead, not three. The only one of the Ptolemy queens to wear three uraei was the famous Cleopatra VII, who borrowed the double horn of plenty from Arsinoe. The statue is now thought to show Cleopatra, thus resolving the apparent contradiction between iconography and style. AB 143 Overlay with Alexander as king of Egypt Ptolemaic Egypt, 3rd – 1st century BC Bronze; 6.5 × 4.1 cm Provenance unknown Inv. DV 1516 Previously unpublished This item, depicting the upper part of a male igure in a tunic, a cloak hinting at folds on the left shoulder and an atef crown, probably served as an overlay for furniture. The atef was a regular attribute of the god Osiris, but the facial features are clearly not Egyptian but Greek, and the tunic is not characteristic of Osiris, who was usually depicted as a mummy wearing a shroud. Moreover, the head is noticeably turned to the right and downwards, a typical feature of the iconography of Alexander the Great; the facial features also show some similarity to the face of Alexander in Hellenistic sculpture. Portraying Alexander as the god of the dead was unthinkable, but the atef crown could also be an attribute of other gods such as Ra and Horus. Since the Egyptian king was identiied with Horus, he could also sometimes wear his crown, and this corresponds to Alexander’s status as king of Egypt and son of the Sun. AB 164 144 Fragment of a statue of Serapis Rome, 2nd century AD Marble; h 78 cm Provenance 1852, collection A. G. Lavalle Inv. A.216 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 220, p. 214 The cult of Serapis was established in Rome in the 1st century AD, and from the time of Augustus temples dedicated to this god (such temples being known as a serapeum or serapeion) began to be built throughout the empire. The cult originated in Ptolemaic Egypt – the kingdom founded by Ptolemy I, one of Alexander the Great’s generals – after Alexander’s death in 323 BC. Serapis was a syncretistic god who combined characteristics of Greek and Egyptian gods. From the Greek pantheon he borrowed qualities of Zeus and Dionysus, who, according to tradition, were Ptolemy’s ancestors, and also of Hades and Aesclepius. Egyptian culture introduced aspects of the worship of Osiris, who for the Egyptians was the father of every pharaoh, and of Apis. Serapis was almighty, a healer and saviour, the god of the underworld, the greatest of all the gods. He combined elements of religions popular with the Egyptians and those of the growing Greek population in Hellenistic Egypt. The majestic pose on the throne is typical of statues of almighty gods. In ancient times there was a famous statue of precious materials made in the late 4th century BC by the Greek sculptor Bryaxis for a temple in Alexandria. This statue served many times as a model for monumental sculpture and for smaller forms (on burial reliefs, lamps and gems). AK 145 Bust of Serapis Rome, 2nd century AD Marble; h 83 cm Provenance 1787, collection John Lyde Brown, Wimbledon Inv. A.99 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 221, p. 215 This monumental bust is typical of cult statues of Serapis. The image of the new god is similar in appearance to the patriarch Zeus and is reproduced in a conservative style. He has a concentrated gaze and seems gloomy and forbidding. The headgear in the form of a modius, a measure of grain, is decorated with a relief of olive trees with wide crowns. These canonical features were indispensable in portrayals of Serapis. AK 165 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 146 Isis Rome, 2nd century AD Marble; h 99 cm Provenance 1850, Tsarskoye Selo Inv. A.120 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 222, p. 216 Although the sculptural presentation of Isis in Greek art relates to the Hellenistic period, the Egyptian goddess had long been familiar to the Greeks. Isis was worshipped as the ruler of the irmament, the mother of nature, the goddess of fertility and sovereign of the souls of the dead, as well as the mistress of all the elements, and consequently the patroness of seafarers. There was no single preferred or legitimised image in the cult of Isis. She was sometimes portrayed sitting and feeding her son Harpocrates, but more often in a standing position. She could be holding a situla or a horn of plenty, symbols of fertility; a cornet, a musical instrument whose sounds were supposed to drive away enemies of the deity, or attributes of seafaring – an oar and a helm. Her headdress varied: a moon and a lotus lower, the disc of the moon between two sacred snakes, or a crown with cow’s horns, feathers, a disc and ears of corn. Long spiralling ringlets formed Isis’ hairstyle and explain the hairstyle on Greek statues of the archaic period. AK 166 147 Harpocrates Egypt, 3rd – 1st century BC Terracotta; h 16.8 cm Provenance unknown Inv. DV 2404 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 223, p. 217 Harpocrates was the son of Osiris and Isis in his hypostasis as a child. His distinguishing feature is the inger placed in his mouth. The production of terracotta statuettes in Egypt developed out of Greek tradition, for the Egyptians preferred the so-called Egyptian faience; yet their subjects for their terracotta sculptures were usually Egyptian. Harpocrates was the most popular character for Hellenistic terracotta sculptures in Egypt. This may be explained by the interest of the Greeks in depictions of children during the Hellenistic period. The iconography of Harpocrates showed strong Greek inluence. Statuettes of this type were presented to temples or, conversely, purchased in temples during pilgrimages. MD 148 Statuette of a goddess Egypt, 3rd – 1st century BC Terracotta; 12 × 5 cm Provenance unknown Inv. 7056 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 224, p. 218 indicate a connection with Hathor, goddess of love and gaiety, who was depicted in the form of a cow, while uraei (sacred cobras) were an attribute of gods and pharaohs. MD A naked goddess was one of the most widespread subjects of Egyptian terracotta sculptures in the Hellenistic period. The rounded shapes of the body and the facial features show Greek inluence. The tall headdress shows that this is no ordinary woman, but a goddess: it combines features of various Egyptian deities. The cow’s ears 167 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 149 Oinochoe: head of a negro Alexandria (?), 1st century BC Bronze, dark green patina with brown patches; h 11.5 cm Provenance 1898; according to the seller, discovered in Syria Inv. V.1686 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 227, p. 220 Small bronze vessels of this type were intended for aromatic oils. NPG 168 150 Dancing dwarf-pygmy 151 Ithyphallic Priapus Alexandria (?), 1st – 2nd century AD Bronze, dark brown patina with green patches; h 5 cm Provenance 1852, collection A. G. Lavalle Inv. V.323 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 228, p. 220 Eastern Mediterranean, 1st – 2nd century AD Bronze, brown patina; h 7.1 cm Provenance 1852, collection A. G. Lavalle Inv. V.530 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 229, p. 221 Images of dwarves (pygmies) were popular in the art and mythology of Hellenistic Egypt. In the Roman period bronze statuettes of this type were probably used as amulets to ward of the evil eye. Alexandria was the principal centre for the manufacture of such igures. NPG The god wears a tall headdress in the form of a measure for grain (a modius). Priapus was originally a local deity in the city of Lampsakos in Asia Minor, but from the 5th century BC onwards his cult, as a god of fertility (of gardens, ields and the home), became widespread in the Graeco-Roman world. NPG 153 Statuette of an actor Eastern Mediterranean, 2nd century AD Bronze, dark and light brown patina; h 4 cm Provenance 1926, collection F. and M. Stroganov Inv. V.1923 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 235, p. 225 A igure of a new comedy actor in a comic mask, apparently seated on an altar. This statuette is a typical example of the portrayal of an actor in small sculpture of the late Hellenistic and Roman periods. NPG 152 Head of Zeus-Amon: weight for scales 154 Head of Heracles (fragment of a statuette) Roman Empire, 1st century AD (?) Bronze, lead, dark green patina; h 6.8 cm Provenance 1887, Princes Golitsyn collection Inv. V.728 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 230, p. 221 Alexandria or Asia Minor, late Hellenistic period Clay, traces of red paint; h 8.9 cm Provenance 1891, S. N. Lishin, Russian Consul in Adrianople Inv. G.806 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 239, p. 227 The Egyptian god Amon was accepted by the Greek colonists from Hellenic Cyrenia, located close to the Siwa oasis in Egypt, and became one of their principal gods. He began to be called Amon and was identiied with Zeus, but the rams’ horns remained as a reminder of his Egyptian origin. The cult spread from Cyrenia throughout the whole of Greece. NPG The sense of tragedy and pathos in the image has been achieved by creating well-deined arches above the eyebrows and the use of slightly parted lips. The stylistic features indicate production in one of the workshops of Asia Minor, notably Smyrna, although a similar head was discovered during excavations of the Hadra necropolis in Alexandria. The work of Lysippus undoubtedly provided a source of inspiration for the makers of terracotta sculpture, though possibly indirectly through his school, whose products were in great demand everywhere in the Hellenistic world – from Olympia to Antioch. One proof of this is the convincing similarity between our head and the monumental head of Heracles in the de Young Museum in San Francisco, which is thought to be a replica of a statue of Heracles sculpted by Lysippus between 332 and 326 BC for Tarento in Southern Italy. Moreover, the portrayal of Heracles’ hairstyle is reminiscent of a statue of Sophocles of the so-called Lateran type that is also associated with Lysippus. EK 169 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 155 Cameo: portrait of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Arsinoe II (‘The Gonzaga Cameo’) Alexandria, 3rd century BC Triple-layered sardonyx; 15.7 × 11.8 cm Provenance 1814, gift to Alexander I from Josephine de Beauharnais at Malmaison Inv. Zh.291 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 240, p. 228 An anonymous carver portrayed the deiied royal couple at the moment of their ‘sacred marriage’ – the queen wears a wedding veil and a laurel wreath, and there is a similar wreath on the king’s helmet, with a star and a winged dragon. The aegis of Zeus, adorned with the heads of Medusa and Phobos, is thrown over the king’s shoulders, over the armour of a military leader. The master thus emphasised the ideal image of the deiied king-hero, established under the inluence of the personality of Alexander the Great. The cameo is a brilliant, eye-catching example of the treatment of the dynastic theme in Hellenistic glyptics. Gems of such large dimensions are rare. The celebrated Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens called the cameo the inest of all European double-portrait gems. Indeed, the characters are carved with virtuoso skill into the three layers of the stone: their faces are cut from the central white layer, the helmet, hair and aegis in the upper brown layer. The unevenness of the positioning and colour of the layers of stone discovered by the engraver during his work enabled him to avoid any monotony in the rendering of the faces and armour. His skill is also revealed in the variety of polishing and the richness of the relief’s gradations, emphasising the three-dimensional nature of the depiction and giving it a painterly quality. The king’s vivid, energetic and manly proile contrasts with the calm, softer features of the female face. The cameo has drawn the attention of scholars for centuries. Diferent interpretations of the characters depicted have been put forward, and they have been identiied as ancient rulers from Augustus and Livia, Germanicus and Agrippina, to Alexander the Great and his mother Olympias. Today most scholars are agreed in seeing here the royal couple Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II. Mention should be made not only of the unique dimensions and artistic qualities of the piece, but also of its history, for it has passed through the hands of many famous collectors and celebrated European rulers. The ‘Gonzaga cameo’ was so named after its irst known owners, the rulers of Mantua. The earliest written mention of the gem can be found in the 1542 inventory of the collection of Isabella d’Este, wife of the Duke of Gonzaga. In the 17th century the Cameo was part of the collection of Queen Christina of Sweden, a great admirer of Alexander the Great, who saw in the cameo the renowned military leader and his mother Olympias. After Christina’s death the cameo passed through the hands of numerous celebrated owners, spending time in the collection of the Odescalchi in Rome and in the Vatican. In the 19th century it was not far from Paris, at Malmaison, residence of the Empress Josephine, ex-wife of Napoleon. After the capture of Paris in 1814 she presented the gem to Alexander I, who was a frequent visitor to Malmaison. In the autumn of that year the cameo found a permanent home in St Petersburg. EIA 170 156 Cameo: portrait of Alexander the Great Alexandria, 3rd century BC Triple-layered sardonyx; 2.6 × 1.7 cm Provenance 1792, St Morys collection, Paris Inv. Zh.285 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 241, p. 230 157 Cameo: portrait of Ptolemy II Philadelphus Egypt, 3rd century BC Sardonyx; 2.6 × 1.9 cm Provenance late 18th century Inv. Zh.306 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 242, p. 230 158 Intaglio: portrait of Ptolemy III Egypt, 3rd century BC Double-layered sardonyx; 3.5 × 2.8 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.614 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 245, p. 231 The image of the young military leader with a luxuriant mane of hair falling across his shoulders, held loosely in place by a diadem, is well known and conforms to the traditional iconography of Alexander the Great in glyptics and numismatics. Its previous identiication as Antioch I, King of Syria, was based on an erroneous interpretation of the letters carved on the reverse of the cameo. They should clearly be completed as ‘Αλ[εξάvδροs]’. ON, EIA This type of portrait was widely used in numismatics. It is based on a sculpture by Lysippus of Alexander the Great, who appears to be looking towards the heavens. ON, EIA Scholars have identiied this portrait diferently: it has been seen as a portrayal of the Syrian king Antiochus II, the Egyptian dynast Ptolemy II Philadelphus and as Nicomedes II Epiphanes, the king of Bithynia. A similar gem in Oxford and portraits on coins conirm that it is Ptolemy III Euergetes. This skilful portrait is distinctive for its freedom and drama. ON, EIA 171 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 159 Intaglio: portrait of Berenice II Alexandria, 3rd century BC Cornelian; 3 × 2 cm Provenance 1792, collection Giovanni-Battista Casanova, Dresden Inv. Zh.615 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 246, p. 231 160 Cameo: Berenice II as Isis Egypt, 3rd century BC Sardonyx; 2.3 × 1.4 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.310 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 247, p. 232 161 Ring: portrait of Arsinoe II Greece, 3rd century BC Gold; 3.1 × 2 cm Provenance 19th century Inv. Zh.617 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 248, p. 232 172 The characteristic feature of the queen’s portrait – the hair piled high and forming a tight knot at the back – served as the basis for a beautiful legend. Ancient sources describe how, during her husband’s military campaign into Syria, Berenice dedicated her luxuriant hair to the Temple of Aphrodite for the sake of the safe return of her husband Ptolemy III Euergetes. In a magical way this gift disappeared from the temple to become a heavenly constellation known by the romantic name ‘Berenice’s Hair’. ON, EIA A comparison with the coins of Ptolemy III, on which his wife is depicted sometimes as Isis, sometimes as Hera, conirms that the Hermitage cameo is a portrayal of Berenice II. We should note the similarity between this gem and a portrait in the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, on which the name of the carver has survived – Nikandros. It is highly probable that the Hermitage cameo was also the work of this master. ON, EIA Arsinoe II (316–270 BC) was the daughter of Ptolemy I and Berenice I, and the sister and wife of Ptolemy II Philadelphus. Here the queen is depicted with a fashionable hairstyle of the time in the shape of a melon, the so-called ‘Melonen Frisur’. It has been suggested that this style was devised by Aspasia; it was very popular in the 4th century BC. The predomination of portraits was characteristic for Hellenistic rings, but the development of the cult of sovereigns led to deiied rulers frequently supplanting the gods who were patrons of the seal’s owner. A tradition of kings bestowing gifts with their portraits took shape in Hellenistic Egypt. This ring may have been one such gift. ON, EIA 162 Cameo: a queen of the Ptolemaic dynasty as a personiication of Alexandria Egypt, 3rd – 2nd century BC Sardonyx; 2.8 × 1.9 cm Provenance 1813, collection J.-B. Mallia, Vienna Inv. Zh.155 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 252, p. 233 163 Ring: Ptolemy II Alexandria, 3rd century BC Bronze; 3 × 2.2 cm Provenance 1839, found in excavations near a burial mound on the Churubash road near Nymphaion Inv. P.1839.11 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 257, p. 235 164 Ring: Ptolemy III Alexandria, 3rd century BC Bronze; 2.8 × 2.3 cm Provenance 1900, collection A.V. Novikov, Kerch Inv. V. 2714 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 260, p. 236 Alexandria, founded by Alexander in the Nile delta, became the most important capital in the East. The exotic headdress in the form of an elephant mask, frequently seen in portraits of Alexander and his successors, tells of both the local African fauna and the king’s triumph in the East. ON This is one of the best of the Hermitage’s collection of Hellenistic bronze rings. Particular attention should be paid to the wonderfully preserved colourful decoration of the male bust. The massive shape and decor of the signet is typical of rings of this period, which usually featured portraits of rulers of the Ptolemaic dynasty, as here. Besides the portrait of Ptolemy II Philadelphus on the signet, there is a miniature portrait of the bust of an old man (perhaps a king or a magistrate) on the side. ON, EIA A typical example of the extensive group of Hellenistic rings with portraits of rulers of the Ptolemaic dynasty found along the Northern Black Sea coast. Many scholars have proposed – not without foundation – that these rings were imported to the region from Alexandria. ON, EIA 173 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 165 Cameo: portrait of Cleopatra VII as Isis Alexandria, 1st century BC Sardonyx; 2.8 × 2.2 cm Provenance late 18th century Inv. Zh.152 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 263, p. 237 166 Cameo: Aphrodite and an eagle Alexandria, 1st century BC Triple-layered sardonyx; 2.7 × 1.8 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.301 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 264, p. 237 167 Cameo: lying Victory (fragment) Egypt, 1st century BC Sardonyx; 3 × 2 cm Provenance late 18th century Inv. Zh.303 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 265, p. 238 174 There is no doubting the similarity of the lady portrayed to Queen Cleopatra VII, the last of the Ptolemaic dynasty (around the middle of the 1st century BC). It is diicult to call the queen’s face beautiful, though Plutarch wrote that her appearance cut deep into one’s soul, particularly when combined with a particular conviction of speech and enormous charm that pervaded every word. After the queen was declared to be the new Isis, portraits of her in the guise of the goddess became widespread. Cleopatra VII was one of the most popular characters not only in ancient art but also in art of the modern age, thanks to the dramatic story of her love for the Roman general Mark Antony and the no less dramatic legend of her suicide. ON, EIA This cameo evidently came from the workshop of Sostrates. In the 18th century it was thought to depict Hebe stroking Zeus’ eagle. It represents an expression of the theocratic doctrine of Hellenism: earthly power sanctiied by heavenly power. It may be that the goddess Aphrodite was intended to resemble Cleopatra VII. ON, EIA Probably made in the workshop of the engraver Protarchus. The purpose behind these numerous very popular portrayals of Nike and Victory after Alexander the Great’s campaigns was to echo the triumph of the victorious ruler. ON, EIA 168 Cameo: portrait of Cleopatra-Selena Egypt, 1st century BC Sardonyx; 1.8 × 1.7 cm Provenance 1830, collection K. Veselovsky, Warsaw Inv. Zh.319 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 266, p. 238 169 Intaglio: Cleopatra VII as Isis, breast-feeding Caesarion-Horus Egypt, 1st century BC Chalcedony; 3.4 × 2.5 cm Provenance 19th century Inv. Zh.1244 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 268, p. 239 170 Intaglio: head of Zeus-Amon Egypt, 1st century BC Cornelian; 1.3 × 0.9 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.1420 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 269, p. 239 A miniature masterpiece, probably made in the workshop of Dioscurides, a famous engraver in the reign of Augustus who initially worked at the court of Cleopatra VII. To judge by the halfmoon behind the girl’s back, this is a portrayal of Cleopatra-Selena, daughter of the last queen of Hellenistic Egypt. The throne names of Cleopatra VII’s children – Cleopatra-Selena (West) and Alexander-Helios (East) – merit particular attention, since they allegorically relect the pretensions of the last Ptolemies. ON, EIA In 41 BC Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt entered into an alliance with the Roman general Mark Antony, supporting him in his struggle for power. In return, Antony declared Cleopatra to be Isis, the sovereign of the East, queen of queens, and she was frequently depicted in this guise. Caesarion (Ptolemy XV), the son of Cleopatra and Caesar who was born in 47 BC, was declared to be the son of Isis and a king-god, and for some time he was co-ruler with his mother. Here the little Caesarion is shown in the guise of the sungod Horus, who was often portrayed as a child. This depiction of the deiied queen breastfeeding her baby (‘curotrophus’) can be considered a new experiment in religious art, which subsequently inluenced Christian iconography. ON, EIA It was Zeus-Amon, according to dynastic legend, who appeared to Olympias and who was the father of Alexander the Great. In Ancient Egypt the sun-god Amon was depicted as a man with a ram’s head. In Greece and Rome Amon was merged with Zeus and Jupiter and he appears in art as a mature man with ram’s horns. Ovid calls him ‘stern Amon the horn-bearer’ (Ovid, Metamorphoses, V, 17). Alexander visited the sanctuary of ZeusAmon in the Siwa oasis in 332 BC and was proclaimed the son of the deity. Depictions of Zeus-Amon subsequently became extremely popular, and gems also appeared with portraits of the king as the ‘horn-bearing’ god, serving the purpose of political propaganda. ON, EIA 175 Ptolemaic Egypt The Macedonian dynasty on the throne of the pharaohs 171 Intaglio: Methe – personiication of drunkenness Egypt, 1st century BC Chalcedony; 2.2 × 1.7 cm Provenance 1813, collection J.-B. Mallia, Vienna Inv. Zh.2275 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 270, p. 240 172 Cameo: Cleopatra VII’s heir AlexanderHelios as Horus-Harpocrates Egypt, 1st century BC Sardonyx; 2.5 × 1.5 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. Zh.295 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 272, p. 240 176 Historians have left us descriptions of the seals of many outstanding personalities. We know that this depiction of Methe, goddess of drunkenness, as a girl drinking from a cup served as the seal of Cleopatra VII, last queen of Egypt. As a token of loyalty to the ruler, her followers commissioned copies of the sovereign’s ring with her personal seal. This chalcedony gem from the workshop of the Roman carver Aulus is outstanding for its particular reinement. ON, EIA This son of Cleopatra was to become the ruler of Armenia, Media and Parthia. He later lived in Mauritania at the court of Cleopatra-Selena and Juba II. His fate after the death of his mother is unknown. ON 173 Tetradrachma 174 Decadrachma 175 Tetradrachma Egypt, Ptolemy I, 323–284 BC Silver; Ø 26.5 mm; 14.2 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/23004 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 273, p. 241 Egypt, Ptolemy II, 284–247 BC Silver; Ø 33 mm; 35.59 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/23089 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 274, p. 241 Tinos, Aegean Islands, 4th century BC Silver; Ø 26.5 mm; 15.9 g Provenance 1952, from the State Valuables Reserve of the Soviet Union Inv. ON-2988/34686 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 279, p. 243 Obverse Head of Ptolemy I, facing Obverse Head of Arsinoe II, facing right. right. To left, a monogram. Reverse Eagle on lightning, Reverse Double horn of facing left. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ – King Ptolemy’s (coin). To left, monograms. YD plenty. Inscription: ΑΡΣΙ ΝΟΗΣ ΦΙΛΑΔΕΛΦΟΥ – Arsinoe Philadelphus’ (coin). YD Obverse Head of Zeus-Amon, facing right. Reverse Poseidon enthroned with a trident in his left hand and a dolphin in his right. To left and right, monograms. YD 176 Copper coin Alexandria, Hadrian, 117–138 AD Copper; Ø 28 mm; 14.70 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-A-DG 23628 Literature Previously unpublished Obverse Bust of Hadrian, facing right. Inscription: AΥT KAIΣ TPAIAN AΔPIANOΣ ΣΕB (Emperor Caesar Trajan Hadrian Augustus). Reverse The Alexandria lighthouse. Inscription: LENΔE KATOV (11th year of reign). YD 177 THE GREEK LANGUAGE IN THE EAST Mariam Dandamayeva Spoken and written Greek played an extremely important role in the cultural and socio-political life of Eastern countries – not only in the years of Greek dominion, but also in the post-Hellenistic age. Large ethnically diverse empires have always needed an international language. For Achaemenid Persia it was Aramaic (one of the Western Semitic group of languages), which had been widely used in the Middle East even before the formation of the Achaemenid Empire. With the arrival of the Greeks in the East, Aramaic was, to a large degree, supplanted by Greek. The whole of the world conquered by Alexander began to speak and write in Greek, which became the ‘lingua franca’ that made it possible for diferent peoples to understand one another. To a signiicant extent Greek was the language of the cultural and social elite. Since ethnic diferences between people were not clearly deined and ethnic origin was frequently associated with language, a man who spoke Greek and was familiar with Greek culture was assumed to be a Greek. Greek did not supplant local languages – on the contrary, the founders of ancient civilisations such as the Egyptians and Babylonians did all they could to preserve their traditional spoken and written languages. It was, however, those who spoke Greek who were generally regarded as cultured people. 178 Another very important function of Greek was its use in administration and record-keeping. Greek was used not only for rulers’ decrees and oicial letters, but also for petitions, lists of taxes paid and private legal documents detailing transactions such as loans with interest, the lease of land and the sale of property. Although Greek was used extensively in various Eastern countries, our knowledge of this phenomenon is limited, since the materials most frequently used for Greek texts – papyrus and skin – degrade very quickly. It is only in Egypt that the dry climate has led to the survival of a signiicant number of papyri from the late period. Hundreds of thousands of these papyri are now to be found in museums and libraries around the world. They include fragments of literary texts, administrativeeconomic documents and private letters. The overwhelming majority of these priceless documents came from rubbish heaps into which they were thrown when they were no longer needed. Writing materials could often be reused – we frequently ind calculations on the back of a papyrus with a literary text or a letter. Fragments of papyri from rubbish heaps and papyri used for manufacturing mummy cartonnage or for other utilitarian purposes are often covered in stains or have sufered insect damage, and these are generally only poorly preserved. Nonetheless, thanks to them we today have some idea of daily life in Egypt. The Greeks’ language lasted much longer in the East than in their own dominion. Even during the Roman period the importance of Greek was not diminished. As surviving documents show, it not only remained the language for administration and record-keeping, but was still very popular as the conversational language in which people communicated with relatives and friends. Greek even survived the Roman Empire. We know of a signiicant number of Greek documents from Egypt dating from the 8th century AD, i.e. the period of Arab dominion. Written Greek also had its own unique fate in the East. The Eastern peoples appreciated the simple Greek alphabet, which had just over twenty characters and in which, as a rule, one character corresponds to one sound. This had a huge advantage over the traditional written languages of Egypt and Mesopotamia: they had up to seven hundred characters, and in some periods considerably more than that, and each character could have numerous diferent meanings. Written Greek was also much more convenient than Aramaic, in which there were no special characters for vowel sounds. This probably explains why Greek was used to write down and convey other languages. Some of the evidence leads us to suppose that similar experiments were made in many parts of Asia, but the country where written Greek was destined to enjoy its longest life was Egypt, where Coptic texts began to be written in Greek characters in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. Coptic, the language of the Egyptian Christians, was the next and last stage in the development of the Egyptian language in terms of structure and vocabulary,1 but the Greek alphabet, supplemented with several extra characters to convey sounds that did not exist in Greek phonetics, was used in Coptic texts. Moreover, numerous Greek words and expressions were incorporated into the Coptic language. After the Arab conquest of Egypt, the Arabic system began to be used to convey the Coptic language, which was itself gradually supplanted by Arabic, though elements of spoken and written Greek are still used in the Coptic Church today. The Hermitage collection of Greek and Coptic monuments runs to some nine hundred items, including documents of various types from diferent periods in Egyptian history: the Ptolemaic, Roman, so-called Christian or Byzantine, and Arabic periods. They give us a rare opportunity to reconstruct not only the political history of the country, but also the everyday lives of ordinary people in Egyptian towns and villages. 1 Coptic is a mixture of the last stage of Ancient Egyptian and Greek. It is not a written language. Oicial documents and monuments use Egyptian hieroglyphs. (Editor's note) 177 Ring with a Greek inscription Egypt, 3rd – 1st century BC Gold; Ø 2.3 cm Provenance 1897–1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 8648 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 293, p. 255 This cast ring features the scratched Greek inscription ΕΙΣ ΖΕΥΣ ΣΑΡΑΠΙΣ (‘One Zeus Sarapis’). Sarapis (Latin: Serapis) was a deity of Egyptian origin, whose name is evidently a mixture of ‘Osiris’ and ‘Apis’. Ptolemy I made the cult of Sarapis the state religion, and worship of this god began to spread quickly through the whole of Egypt and beyond. There were several sanctuaries of Sarapis in Egypt, the most important being the Serapeion (Latin: Serapeum) temple complex in Alexandria. The exclamation ‘One Zeus Sarapis’ was traditional for the cult of this deity and features in numerous inscriptions. It relected the oicial ideology of the Ptolemies, who attempted to unite the religions of the Greeks and the Egyptians. For this reason Sarapis was portrayed with the iconographical characteristics of Zeus. MD 179 The Greek language in the East 178 Greek papyrus of the Ptolemaic period Egypt, 3rd century BC Papyrus; 6.5 × 7.5 cm Provenance 1938, USSR Academy of Sciences, from collection Nikolay Likhachev Inv. 13355 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 287, p. 250 A fragment of a household document recording the loan of grain at a percentage. The papyrus was extracted from the outer covering of a mummy. In the Hellenistic period mummies were wrapped not in fabric but in scrolls of papyrus, or were covered with ‘cartonnages’ of papyrus, consisting of several layers of papyrus leaves glued together. They were generally made from papyri that were no longer needed, in the same way that we now use unwanted printed matter for household purposes. Papyri from the Ptolemaic period are usually found in mummy cartonnages of a later time. MD 179 Greek papyrus of the Ptolemaic period Egypt, 244–243 BC Papyrus; 4 × 10.5 cm Provenance 1938, USSR Academy of Sciences, from collection Nikolay Likhachev Inv. 13356 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 288, p. 250 This papyrus, a fragment of a household document, was extracted from the cartonnage of a mummy, and before it was acquired by the Hermitage it was combined in a single mount with another papyrus (cat. 178). MD 180 180 Greek papyrus of the Roman period Egypt, 141 AD Papyrus; 27.5 × 21 cm Provenance 1938, USSR Academy of Sciences, from collection Nikolay Likhachev Inv. 13360 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 289, p. 251 A fragment of a household document relating to rental of a vineyard. MD 181 The Greek language in the East 181 Greek papyrus of the Arabian period, with a seal Egypt, Aphrodito village, 711 AD Papyrus; 48 × 21, seal Ø 1 cm Provenance 1938, USSR Academy of Sciences, from collection Nikolay Likhachev, purchased by him in Paris before 1905 Inv. 13328 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 290, p. 252 This papyrus comes from the village of Aphrodito, founded by the Greeks, which continued to exist in the Arab period. An archive from the Arab period was discovered there, with texts in Greek, Coptic and Arabic. These comprise administrative-economic documents, as well as oicial letters from the Egyptian ruler Qurra ibn Shariq. This papyrus is a letter from Qurra to Basileios, dioiket (governor) of Aphrodito, concerning the capture of fugitives who had led from their places of residence in the previous twenty years. Qurra’s letter, as was usual with such letters, was rolled into a tube and tied with string, the ends of which were secured with a seal. The name of the sender and the recipient were written on the outside of the papyrus, as well as the subject of the letter and other information, such as the name of the courier who delivered it. The seal and address on this letter have been preserved. MD 182 Papyrus with two columns of Coptic text Egypt, middle of the 1st millennium AD (?) Papyrus; 25 × 11 cm Provenance 1897–1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. 3765 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 291, p. 253 Fragment of a text of a theological character, written in Coptic uncial characters. This is a page from a codex that consisted of pages joined in the middle. Codices were the prototype of the modern book and appeared in Rome in the early centuries AD. They usually contained works of religious-theological content – all other texts continued to be written on scrolls. MD 182 183 Fragment of paper with Greek text Egypt, not before the 9th century AD Paper; 31 × 7 cm Provenance 1897–1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. 3793 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 292, p. 254 Fragment of a religious text. The right-hand side has been lost. The text is written in Greek, but in Coptic script. On the back is a prayer in Coptic. The text was written no earlier than the 9th century, since it was only then that paper came from China to the Middle East and to Egypt. It follows that Greek was still being used in the Coptic Church at that time. MD 183 Notes COPTIC EGYPT ANCIENT TRADITION IN THE CHRISTIAN EAST Alexander Kakovkin Anyone who has made a study of the art of Christians in Egypt, the so-called ‘Coptic’ Christians (4th – 12th centuries), especially their weaving, ivory carving and sculpture, is struck by the wealth of images from Greek and Roman mythology, characters from ancient literature, legendary historians and writers. The renowned scholar of medieval art Kurt Weizmann had every justiication in claiming that ancient subjects were the predominant feature in Coptic art. This can be explained by circumstances connected directly with Alexander the Great. After subjugating Egypt, whose distinctive culture, religion, social structure and way of life had enchanted him, Alexander left the local laws and customs untouched. The young king did, however, make radical changes in many spheres of life, particularly in religious culture. An intensive process began in the Nile valley, later known as ‘syncretism’,1 in which Greek gods and heroes came to be identiied with local deities. This trend continued under Alexander’s political successors in the land of the pharaohs, the Ptolemies. As a result over ifty images of gods and heroes of the classical pantheon (Dionysus, Aphrodite, Heracles, etc), no less than a dozen characters from ancient literature (Hippolytus, Leda, Helen, etc) and a number of legendary and historical igures (Aesop, Diogenes, Aratos of Soloi, etc) were incorporated into the 184 works of many generations of Coptic weavers, sculptors, painters, metalworkers, wood and ivory carvers. To these numerous artistic monuments one can also add literary texts (mainly papyri) discovered in Egypt, which have provided us with a great many literary, philosophical and other works by ancient authors. The assimilation of pagan subjects by Christians can apparently be explained by the fact that many characters from Greek and Roman mythology and ancient literature were reinterpreted in accordance with the moralising, didactic and ethical spirit of the new religion, and were widely used as allegories within a Christian context. It is likely that this allegorical concept also explains the nakedness of pagan gods and heroes in Christian monuments: it is a heroised nakedness. The Christians probably linked depictions of immortal ancient heroes with hopes for an eternal life of happiness beyond the grave, since victory over death is the principal theme in the portrayal of deiied heroes, whose lives and fates are determined by the gods. Egyptians certainly remembered that Alexander, according to the Pseudo-Callisthenic legend,2 had been considered to be the last Egyptian king – son of the pharaoh Nectanebo. Evidence of these reminiscences can be seen in two 6th- to 7th-century Coptic woven twin medallions (in the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Washington Textile Museum) portraying two horsemen with genies lying over their heads, on which are woven Greek inscriptions reading ’Alexander of Macedon’. The existence of the image of the celebrated ancient king in a Christian environment may be explained by the fact that theologians found symbolic parallels between it (as with those of Dionysus, Asclepius, Heracles, Orpheus and others) and the image of Christ. 1 A fusion or merging of diferent religious beliefs or traditions. 2 Callisthenes of Olynthus (c. 360–328 BC) was a Greek historian who described the battles of Alexander. In later centuries much purely legendary information was brought together in the 3rd century AD to produce what came to be known as ‘the romance of Alexander’. The author of this later text is known as the PseudoCallisthenes. 184 Lamp with a relief depiction of Marsyas Egypt, 4th – 5th century AD Bronze, cast; h without lid 19 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 13220 Literature Road to Byzantium 2006, no. 143, p. 173 A lamp in the shape of a Roman torch with slit sides, decorated with three relief igures of Marsyas, who was layed by Apollo. This scene was widely used in Roman funeral art. The triumph of the sun-god represented his victory over earthly forces, and that of the cult of the sun and the light of Christianity over the old pagan beliefs. OO 185 Textile: Eros with a cup Egypt, 4th century AD Linen, wool, woven; 19 × 21 cm Provenance 1889, gift of Count A. A. Bobrinsky Inv. DV 13216 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 298, p. 261 Eros lies to left; holding a cup in his outstretched left hand; the folds of his cloak lutter behind his back, and his head is surrounded by a halo. Images of lying genies, Eros, cupids and putti were borrowed by Christian art from the rich ancient heritage. These portrayals are especially characteristic of the Alexandrine school, where they were endowed with a great variety of attributes. The cup in Eros’ hand, which had always been a symbol of fertility, became the prototype of the Eucharist in the Christian period. OO 185 Coptic Egypt Ancient tradition in the Christian East 186 Textile: Gaia-Isis (medallion) Egypt, 4th century AD Linen, wool, woven; Ø 25.5 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 11440 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 300, p. 263 The name of the earth goddess – ГН – is woven into the background of the medallion in Greek letters. She is holding a cup, an Ancient Eastern symbol of fertility. The details of her costume, her headdress and attributes show links between the Greek goddess of the earth and the Ancient Egyptian goddess Isis, a typical feature of the religious-syncretistic views of the late classical period. This medallion is one of a pair (the other, depicting the Nile river deity, is in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow) and served as an adornment on the upper part of a tunic. Conceptions about the Nile pair of gods were still fairly strong, despite the spread of Christianity. The earth goddess represented the soil fertilised by the Nile. Woven images of Gaia and the Nile on medallions served as the personiication of abundance, fertility and the promise of eternal life. OO 186 187 Textile: Dionysus and a maenad Egypt, 4th century AD Linen, wool, woven; 38.5 × 32.5 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 11334 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 302, p. 265 In the centre of the medallion, which is incorporated into a rectangular frame, is the igure of Dionysus, leaning on a column. The rectangular frame features a number of rhomboid igures, with lowers and fruit against an orange background, while to the sides are vine leaves and bunches of grapes. OO 188 Textile: Dionysus and a panther Egypt, 4th – 5th century AD Linen, wool, woven; Ø 8 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 13251 Literature Matthieu, Lyapunova 1951, no. 74, p. 109, pl. XX,1 This 5th-century purple medallion depicts Dionysus with a bunch of grapes and a kantharos in his hand, with Eros hovering above his head. A panther sitting at Dionysus’ feet is drinking wine with its mouth wide open. This subject was extraordinarily popular in the late ancient art of Egypt, probably because of its hidden symbolism as a prototype for the communion of the Eucharist. OO 187 Coptic Egypt Ancient tradition in the Christian East 189 Textile: Heracles, Dionysus and Ariadne Egypt, 5th century AD Linen, wool, woven; 22.5 × 21.5 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 11337 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 309, p. 272 In the centre of the medallion, which is set into a square, are Dionysus and Ariadne in a chariot drawn by three panthers; to the left of the chariot is Heracles. The twelve labours of Heracles are depicted around the square, running clockwise from the top left corner. Six of the labours are deined unanimously by all scholars. Heracles’ labours clearly demonstrate why he was granted immortality. OO 190 Textile: centaur Egypt, 5th century AD Linen, wool, woven; 33 × 23 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 11307 Literature The Road to Byzantium 2006, no. 78, p. 154 The central medallion contains the depiction of a centaur, with another pair of centaurs and a hippocampus in the corner medallions. Centaurs are known to have been linked with the cult of Dionysus and were portrayed in his suite, along with satyrs and bacchantes, promising the owner rebirth in a future life. The bright colours of the fabric emphasise the centaur’s cheerful character. According to the biography of Antony the Great, a centaur and a satyr showed the saint the road to the anchorite Paul of Thebes after he had lost his way. OO 188 191 Textile: Dionysus in a vine Egypt, 6th century AD Linen, wool, woven; Ø 24.5 cm Provenance 1898, brought from Egypt by Vladimir Bok Inv. DV 11153 Literature The Road to Byzantium 2006, no. 77, p. 154 Among the branches of a vine growing out of a kantharos is the igure of the naked Dionysus as god of nature. Birds can be seen; deer stand at either side of the vessel. Later, these various elements came to be understood in a Christian context. OO 192 Textile: Ganymede and the eagle (medallion) Egypt, 10th – 11th century Linen, wool, woven; Ø 14 cm Provenance 1925, purchased from S. Amirov, inhabitant of the village Kubachy, Daghestan Inv. DV 18582 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 308, p. 271 In the middle of the medallion sits Ganymede, giving the eagle a drink. Ganymede, beloved of Zeus, served as cup-bearer on Mount Olympus and was associated in Egypt with the gods of the River Nile. From the start of the irst millennium, Ganymede became a symbol of the ascension of the dead into the heavens. OO 189 ACHAEMENID IRAN Mariam Dandamayeva Alexander’s adversary in Asia was Darius III, the ruler of the Persian Empire and the last of the mighty Achaemenid dynasty. The small state of Persia in the southern part of the Iranian plateau had started rapidly extending its boundaries in the mid-6th century BC. Over the course of just a few decades the Persians had conquered Media and other lands in the Iranian plateau, Asia Minor, countries of Mesopotamia and the Eastern Mediterranean, tribes in Central Asia, and Egypt. At the start of their conquests the Persians had also taken Babylon without diiculty – the once formidable Assyrian state had long lost its inluence, and the Achaemenid Empire had become, to a certain extent, the successor to the Assyrian and Babylonian states, though signiicantly surpassing them in size. The heyday of the Achaemenid Empire came in the second half of the 6th century and the 5th century BC. Their cruel treatment of rebels, their tolerance of other people’s gods and their wellorganised taxation and administration system made it possible for the Persian kings to hold sway over a motley conglomeration of subjects for over two centuries. Detailed depictions of representatives of the peoples included in the Achaemenid state featured on the reliefs that adorned the main staircase of the Royal palace in the ceremonial centre Parsa (named Persepolis by the Greeks). The ancient state capitals of Ecbatana, 190 Susa and Babylon now became Achaemenid capitals. The Persians’ original culture absorbed many elements of the culture of their subject peoples: they borrowed Assyro-Babylonian cuneiform writing, though they simpliied it substantially; in the architecture and particularly in the pictorial art of the Achaemenid Persians a strong Assyrian and Babylonian inluence is noticeable. Egyptian features are also encountered. The breaking down of political borders, the appearance of an international language (Aramaic) and a uniied system of administration and record-keeping, the interpenetration of various cultures, i.e. all the processes that were extensively developed in Alexander’s time and the centuries that followed, actually began in the time of Achaemenid dominion. Alexander’s empire was, in essence, the successor to the Achaemenid Empire, and in some instances he quite deliberately behaved as the heir to the Persian kings. 193 Fragment of a relief with a Persian warrior, one of the guards of Darius or Xerxes Iran, c. 500 BC Limestone; 22.3 × 20.2 cm Provenance 1935, gift from the Iranian government on the occasion of the international conference The Art and Culture of Iran; from the palace at Persepolis Inv. S-461 Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, pp. 26–27 Work commenced on the building of Persepolis, new capital of the Achaemenid Empire in Southern Iran, around 520 BC in the reign of Darius I. The Persepolis reliefs depict processions of tributaries, delegations from the various peoples of the Empire, and also the Imperial guard – Medes, Persians and Elamites. This relief shows head of a warrior in a tall tiara, with a quiver for arrows behind his back and a spear in his right hand. ABN 191 Achaemenid Iran 194 Ring with a seated Persian Asia Minor, second half of the 5th century BC Gold; l signet 2.3 cm Provenance 1855; 1854 found in a plate tomb the necropolis at Pantikapaion (now Kerch; excavations by Alexander Lyutsenko) Inv. P. 1854.26 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 311, p. 275 195 Scaraboid with a Persian warrior with a spear Eastern Greece, Ionia, 4th century BC Chalcedony; 2.5 × 2.1 cm Provenance 1839, excavations of a burial mound near Kerch Inv. P. 1839.8 Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 26 196 Octagonal seal with a Persian king Asia Minor, 5th – 4th century BC Chalcedony, gold; 3 × 1.5 cm Provenance 1860s, excavations of the Bolshaya Bliznitsa burial mound on the Taman Peninsula Inv. BB.123 Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 14 192 The ring mount is three-sided. The oval seal depicts a Persian warrior sitting on a folding chair (en face). A bow rests by his knee and he holds an arrow, checking its sharpness. He wears a soft felt headdress, a belted robe with sleeves, breeches embroidered with patterns and soft leather boots. Over his shoulder, along the edge of the seal, is the signature of the master: ΑΘΗΝΑΔΗΣ, Athenades. M. I. Maximova once suggested that the ring copies the composition of a statue discovered in a city in the Southern Black Sea Coast, possibly Sinope or Amis (Maximova 1956, p. 193). ON Scaraboids of shiny blue chalcedony-sapphire were particularly popular in Greek glyptics of the classical period. Carved depictions from this time combine a natural, calm composition with the intricate working of minute details. This gem was probably carved by a Greek craftsman in an Ionian workshop. The choice of subject – a Persian warrior in traditional clothing – was the result either of inluence from Asia Minor or of a special commission from a Persian customer. EIA The king wears a jagged crown, holding a sword in one hand and clasping a lion by the throat with the other; above is a symbol. ON 197 Scaraboid seal Asia Minor, 5th century BC Cornelian, gold; l 2.3 cm Provenance 1842, excavations at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1842.111 Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 12 198 Scaraboid seal Asia Minor, 5th century BC Gold, stone; l of stone 2 cm Provenance 1853, excavations at Pantikapaion (now Kerch) Inv. P.1852.18 Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 19 199 Carved scaraboid: chariot Asia Minor, Persia, 5th – 4th century BC Colourless stone; 3.1 × 2.4 cm Provenance 1882, purchased by Nikolay Kondakov in Kerch Inv. GR 19353 (Zh.428) Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 17 A scaraboid seal on a movable ring with carving on the lat side: two winged sphinxes in jagged crowns sitting opposite one another, with an inscription in Carian above them: ‘manelim’; between the sphinxes’ paws is the symbol of the owner (?). ON A scaraboid seal on a movable ring with carving on the lat side: a bearded sphinx in a jagged crown sitting on the left with its wings raised. ON Among the most popular subjects in GraecoPersian glyptics were scenes of Persians with horses hunting wild beasts. Unlike the majority of gems, where such Persians are portrayed on horseback, this gem shows the hunters, in long kaftans and hoods, in a chariot drawn by four horses. Above the hunters is a winged disc, the symbol of Ahura Mazdah. EIA 193 Achaemenid Iran 200 Carved scaraboid: warrior Eastern Greece, Ionia, mid- 4th century BC Gold, chalcedony; l 2.9 cm Provenance 1926, Counts Stroganov collection Inv. GR 20772 (Zh.574) Literature Iran in the Hermitage 2004, no. 27 201 Seal (cylinder): Persian king killing an Egyptian pharaoh Iran, 5th – 4th century BC Sapphirine; h 3.5, Ø 1.7 cm Provenance unknown Inv. DV 19499 Previously unpublished 202 Scaraboid: horseman and warrior Iran, 4th century BC Gold, chalcedony; l 2.6 cm Provenance unknown Inv. Gl-887 Literature Loukonine, Ivanov 1996, no. 27 194 Figures of warriors in conical pylos helmets are frequent features on sculptural reliefs from Asia Minor. Depictions of kneeling warriors with a shield and a spear are also well known from coins from Klazomenai and Cyzicus. During the irst half of the 4th century BC, glyptics in Asia Minor included not only animal scenes and multi-igure compositions, but portrayals of individual human igures in complex poses and foreshortening. In stylistic terms, the master who made the Hermitage gem with the warrior defending himself was following the tradition of the late 5th and early 4th century BC, while demonstrating methods characteristic of Hellenistic art. EIA The Persian king runs through a captive Egyptian pharaoh with his spear; alongside are bound prisoners and a date palm with clusters of fruit. MD A Persian horseman strikes a Greek archer with his spear. MD 203 Sword hilt Iran, 5th century BC Iron, gold; l 14.9, w handle 2.8, w crosspiece 5.5 cm Provenance 1865, Imperial Archaeological Commission; 1863, found in the Chertomlyk burial mound, near the River Dnepr (excavations Ivan Zabelin) Inv. Dn 1863 1/448 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 312, p. 276 This sword with a gold hilt was discovered in one of the recesses of the main Chertomlyk burial mound. The shape of the hilt and its numerous analogies in Achaemenid pictorial art (Susa, Persepolis, the Amudarya hoard) leads us to conclude that it was made in the 5th century BC. Motifs linking it with the art of the Median period do not exclude such a date. The sword was given a new iron blade in Scythia in the 4th century BC. It is most likely that this sword came with a scabbard (see no. 31). The sword may changed hands several times before eventually ending up in the grave of a Scythian king. This probably occurred after Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Persian Empire, and the sword itself may have among ambassadorial gifts to the Scythian king. AYA 195 Achaemenid Iran 204 Belt adornment with ighting animals Altay (?). Iran (?), 4th century BC Silver; 5.7 × 4.3 cm Provenance 1948, Sergey Rudenko; 1947 found in the second Pazyryk burial mound in the Altay (excavations by Sergey Rudenko) Inv. 1684/231 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 313, p. 277 The balanced, rhythmic composition is constructed of a combination of two intersecting S-shaped lines that form the bodies of a lioness and a mountain goat. Motifs of this type are encountered particularly frequently in the art of Achaemenid Iran, with whom the ancient inhabitants of the Altay region had contact. The original stylistic treatment of the animals is characteristic not only of the Altay but also of Kazakhstan, 205 Plaque: goat attacked by a vulture Bactria (?), 4th – 3rd century BC Gold, cloisonné polychrome incrustation; h 15.6, w 1.6 cm; 209.76 g Provenance part of Peter I’s Siberian collection – 1859, Kunstkammer; 1727–1859 in the Kunstkammer on Vasilevsky Island, formerly in Peter I’s Summer Palace; 1716 sent from Tobolsk to St Petersburg by Matvey Gagarin, Governor of Siberia; before 1716 taken from an unknown burial Inv. Si 1727 1/131 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 314, p. 278 The purpose of this plaque is unknown but it has been plausibly suggested that it was part of a headdress or, more likely, of a formal set of harness. In technique it undoubtedly belongs to a group of Iranian jewellery items with polychrome incrustation characteristic of the Achaemenid period. Scenes featuring beasts of prey, including attacks by a vulture on a goat or a sheep, were widespread in the ScythianSiberian animalistic style and in the art of Achaemenid Iran; they were connected with mythological and cosmological conceptions, representing life and death and the concept of sacriice. EK 196 Mesopotamia and Achaemenid Iran. One opinion is that this ‘incrustation style’ appeared in the art of Achaemenid Iran under the inluence of the work of nomads who used coloured insets in felt appliqué. Fight scenes – or rather a beast of prey tearing to pieces a hoofed animal – were very popular in the art of Achaemenid Iran. It was from there that the Altay people borrowed the subject and its astral-cosmological character. LB 206 Rhyton with half-igure of a winged ram Iran, 5th century BC Silver; external l 63, internal l 56, widest Ø 14 cm; 675 g Provenance 1876, found in the Prikuban, in Semibratny kurgan no. 4 (excavations by V. G. Thiesenhausen) Inv. SBr.IV.3 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 315, p. 279 The half-igure of a ram is executed in accordance with the strict canon of Achaemenid art. This is the only one of ive objects in the form of vessels found in the Semibratny barrows to have been made in Iran, and the only rhyton. At the start of the Achaemenid period images of goats were frequently used for rhytons, not only for the mount of the cup, but also for the handles. It was thought that the winged ram represented an incarnation of the god of victory, Veretragna. EV 197 Achaemenid Iran 207 Cup with zoomorphic handles Eastern Iran (?), 5th – 4th century BC Gold; Ø 16, h 10.2 cm; 923.85 g Provenance part of Peter I’s Siberian collection – 1859, Kunstkammer; 1727–1859 in the Kunstkammer on Vasilevsky Island, formerly in Peter I’s Summer Palace; 1716 sent from Tobolsk to St Petersburg by Matvey Gagarin, Governor of Siberia; before 1716 taken from an unknown burial Inv. Si 1727 1/71 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 316, p. 280 208 Choker with beasts of prey Eastern Iran (?), 5th – 3rd century BC Gold, turquoise; Ø 25 cm; 617.64 g Provenance part of Peter I’s Siberian collection – 1859, Kunstkammer; 1727–1859 in the Kunstkammer on Vasilevsky Island, formerly in Peter I’s Summer Palace; 1716 sent from Tobolsk to St Petersburg by Matvey Gagarin, Governor of Siberia; before 1716 taken from an unknown burial Inv. Si 1727 1/62 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 317, p. 281 The shape of the cup is typical of Ancient Iranian culture. Similar vessels with zoomorphic handles appear on the reliefs in the apadana in the palace of Darius and Xerxes in Persepolis. Gold and silver cups with handles in the form of various animals on Scythian and Sarmatian monuments enable us to relate such vessels to the religious sphere. EK Many kinds of jewellery were evidently borrowed by nomads from the Persians. In Iranian culture, with which Eurasian Iranianspeaking nomads of the ScythianSarmatian period had maintained very close contacts since the time of the Achaemenids, gold chokers and bracelets had an apotropaic function and served as an indication of nobility and of Imperial dignity (Xenophon, Anabasis, I, II, 27; I, VIII, 29). EK 209 Horse breastplate Iran (?), 3rd century BC Wool, felt, fur, gold leaf; 80 × 7 cm Provenance 1952, Sergey Rudenko; 1949 found in the ifth Pazyryk burial mound in the Altay (excavations by Sergey Rudenko) Inv. 1687–100 (b) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 319, p. 283 198 A magniicent piece of woollen fabric, sewn on to a felt base and used as a horse’s breastplate, this item features ifteen woven igures of lions, walking in procession to right. Walking lions were a well-known motif in Babylonian and Assyrian bas-reliefs and sculptures, but they were particularly popular in the art of Achaemenid Iran, where they appear, for example, on a relief frieze from Persepolis and on the canopy of Darius’ throne. LB 210 Daric 211 Daric Persia, 4th century BC Gold; Ø 16 mm; 8.22 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65 D/1328 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 320, p. 284 Persia, 5th century BC Gold; Ø 14–15 mm; 8.24 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65 D/1330 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 321, p. 284 Obverse A king with a spear and a Obverse A king with a spear and a bow in a kneeling pose, facing right. bow in a kneeling pose, facing right. Reverse A stamped square. YD Reverse A stamped square. YD 212 Double daric Persia, 330–300 BC Gold; Ø 19 mm; 16.68 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-Az-65 D/1336 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 322, p. 284 Obverse A king with a spear and a bow in a kneeling pose, facing right. Reverse A stamped square. YD 199 SELEUCID SYRIA Mariam Dandamayeva Seleucus, who was given power over Asia after Alexander’s death, was far more his successor than the other diadochi. The Seleucid Empire encompassed lands from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf: part of Asia Minor, Northern Syria, Mesopotamia, Media and Persia, Bactria, Parthia and some other regions of Central Asia. The nucleus of the Seleucid state was ‘Syria’, a toponym borrowed by modern scholarship from the Greeks, who used it to designate regions from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates. These territories were not a single state structure: they included numerous small states, none of which were called Syria in local languages. The Greeks irst appeared in these regions when they were part of the Assyrian Empire or were under its inluence, which is why the Greeks took them to be part of Assyria (‘Syria’ is, in all probability, simply a distortion of ‘Assyria’). Subsequently – at any rate from the time of Herodotus – ancient historians were already distinguishing Syria (the western part of Asia) from Assyria (as they called the whole of Mesopotamia), but the use of these toponyms in Greek historiography was often inconsistent, even within a work by a single author. The ethnically diverse Seleucid Empire had no single name, but in ancient times it was frequently called Syria. It may be that this happened at a time when nothing remained of the once huge state except Syria, but the 200 possibility cannot be excluded that the idea that Syria encompassed the whole of Asia was rooted in the consciousness of the Greeks. For this reason ‘Syrian’ in late classical texts sometimes means ‘Asian’. Greek inluence in Syria was always more powerful than in other regions of the East thanks to its geographical location. In Alexander’s time and in the earlier Hellenistic period the most common means of introducing the Greek way of life and culture to the East was the founding of Greek cities. As a rule, they were built alongside local settlements, but were administered in accordance with Greek forms of government and standards of living. There was a particularly large number of Greek cities in Syria, and one of these – Antioch on the Orontes – was considered to be the state capital. Another very important city was Seleucia on the Tigris – in Mesopotamia, north of Babylon. Nonetheless, no city in the Seleucid Empire was ever to become a centre of Greek culture to compare with Alexandria in Egypt or Pergamum. The policy of Seleucus and the early Seleucids was a combination of striving to Hellenise the country with the maintenance of a tolerant, even careful attitude to local traditions. In this they were, voluntarily or involuntarily, following the policies of Alexander and the Achaemenids, whose successors they indeed were. The Seleucid era was, in fact, the last period of the prosperity and of the very existence of the ancient Assyrian-Babylonian culture. In their cuneiform inscriptions the irst Seleucids assumed the titles of Babylonian kings; in recognition of local traditions they took part in ancient rituals, particularly the laying of the irst brick in the foundations of local temples. Not only did ancient temples continue to exist in Babylonia under the Seleucids, but new ones were built. Seleucus, founder of the dynasty, had a marked respect for religion, including the religions of the peoples he conquered. Seleucus and his successors were involved in a constant struggle for territory: they had to go to war with Egypt over Southern Syria (the so-called Syrian Wars), and the inluential kingdom of Pergamum in Asia Minor had aspirations to new lands. In the mid-3rd century BC the Seleucids lost their domains in Central Asia, and some time later the Parthian Kingdom began to grow in strength and to become a threat. In 142 BC the Parthian king Mithridates conquered Mesopotamia, and in the last third of the 2nd century BC the scope of the Seleucids’ authority was reduced to Syria alone. By this time Roman aggression was gathering pace in the West. In 63 BC, after the reigns of a succession of insigniicant rulers, the last of the Seleucids, Syria became a province of the Roman Empire. In the Roman era, as in the time of the Seleucid Empire, it remained one of the most Hellenised regions in the East. 213 Tetradrachma Syria, Seleucus I, 312–280 BC Silver; Ø 28 mm; 16.45 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/18605 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 325, p. 287 Obverse Head of Alexander the Great as Heracles in a lion’s skin. Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. To the left a dolphin. Inscription: …ΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΕΛΕΥΚΟΥ – King Seleucus’ (coin). Beneath the throne and to left – monograms. YD 214 Tetradrachma 215 Tetradrachma 216 Tetradrachma Syria, Seleucus I, 312–280 BC Silver; Ø 27 mm; 16.92 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/18607 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 326, p. 287 Syria, Seleucus I, 312–280 BC Silver; Ø 26 mm; 16.5 g Provenance unknown Inv.ON-2976/18635 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 327, p. 287 Syria, Seleucus I, 312–280 BC Silver; Ø 24 mm; 14.75 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/18652 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 328, p. 288 Obverse Head of Alexander the Great Obverse Head of Seleucus in a helmet, Obverse Head of Zeus, facing right. as Heracles in a lion’s skin. facing right. Reverse Zeus enthroned with a Reverse Nike presenting a sceptre in his left hand and an eagle in his right. Inscription: …ΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΕΛΕΥΚΟΥ – King Seleucus’ (coin). Beneath the throne and to left – monograms. YD trophy. To left an inscription: ΣΕΛΕΚΟΥ BAΣΙ … – Seleucus’ (coin). Below – monograms. YD Reverse Quadriga drawn by four elephants with horns, driven by Athena. Below, an inscription: … ΑΣIΛΕΩΣ… ΛΕΥCΟΥ – King Seleucus’ (coin). Above the elephants, a monogram. YD 201 Seleucid Syria 217 Tetradrachma 218 Tetradrachma 219 Tetradrachma Syria, Antiochus I, 293–280 BC Silver; Ø 29.5 mm; 17.06 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/18696 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 329, p. 288 Syria, Antiochus II, 264–246 BC Silver; Ø 29 mm; 16.87 g Provenance unknown Inv.ON-2976/18749 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 330, p. 288 Syria, Seleucus III, 226–222 BC Silver; Ø 29/27 mm; 16.40 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/18811 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 331, p. 289 Obverse Head of Antiochus I, Obverse Head of Antiochus II, Obverse Head of Seleucus III, facing right. facing right. facing right. Reverse Apollo on an omphalos with a bow and arrow. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟ … – King Antiochus’ (coin). Below the omphalos, a monogram. YD Reverse Heracles sitting on a rock, facing left, with a club. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ – King Antiochus’ (coin). Below, a kantharos and a monogram. YD Reverse Apollo sitting on an omphalos with a bow and arrow. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΕΛΕVΚΟΥ — King Seleucus’ (coin). To the right and left are monograms. YD 220 Tetradrachma 221 Tetradrachma 222 Tetradrachma Syria, Antiochus V, 164–162 BC Silver; Ø 30.5 mm; 16.47 g Provenance 1928, Keller collection Inv. ON-2988/33266 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 332, p. 289 Syria, Alexander I, 152–144 BC Silver; Ø 31.5 mm; 16.25 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/19058 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 333, p. 289 Syria, Demetrius II, 130–125 BC Silver; Ø 29/27 mm; 15.95 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/19116 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 334, p. 290 Obverse Head of Antiochus V, Obverse Head of Alexander I, Obverse Head of the young facing right. facing right. Demetrius II, facing right. Reverse Zeus enthroned, with a sceptre in his left hand and a Nike in his right. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ ΕVΠΑΤΟΡ – King Antiochus Eupator’s (coin). To the left, a monogram. YD Reverse Zeus enthroned, with a sceptre in his left hand and a Nike in his right. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ… ΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟV ΟΕΟΠΑΤΟΡΟΣ ΕΥΕΡΓΕΤΟΥ – King Alexander Theopator Euergetes’ (coin). Below, a monogram. YD Reverse Apollo sitting on an omphalos with a bow and arrow. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΗΜΗΤΡΙΟV ΟΕΟVΣ… ΙΛΑΔΕΛΦΟV ΝΙΚΑΤΟΡΟΣ – King Demetrius Theos Philadelphus Nicator’s (coin). Below, a monogram and date. YD 202 223 Tetradrachma 224 Tetradrachma 225 Tetradrachma Syria, Demetrius II, 130–125 BC Silver; Ø 29/27 mm; 16.37 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/19231 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 335, p. 290 Syria, Cleopatra Thea and Antiochus VIII, 125–121 BC Silver; Ø 30.5/28 mm; 15.75 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/19290 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 336, p. 291 Syria, Antiochus IX, 116–95 BC Silver; Ø 29 mm; 16.25 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-2976/19344 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 337, p. 291 Obverse Head of the bearded Obverse Heads of Cleopatra Thea and Obverse Head of Antiochus IX, Demetrius II, facing right. Antiochus VIII, facing right. facing right. Reverse Zeus enthroned, with a sceptre in his left hand and a Nike in his right. Inscription: … ΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΗΜΗΤΡΙΟΥ ΘΗΟΥ… ΙΚΑΤΟΡΟΣ — King Demetrius Divine Victor Theos Nicator’s (coin). To the left, beneath the throne and below, monograms. YD Reverse Zeus enthroned, with a sceptre in his left hand and a Nike in his right. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΙΣΣ… ΚΛΕΟΠΑΤΡΑΣ ΘΕΑΣ ΚΑΙ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ – Queen Cleopatra Thea’s and King Antiochus’ (coin). To the left, beneath the throne and below, monograms. YD Reverse Altar with a deity standing on a horned lion, facing left. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙ ΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ ΦΙΛΟΠΑΤΟΡΟΣ – King Antiochus Philopator’s (coin). To the left, monograms. YD 203 Notes PALMYRA Alexander Nikitin Palmyra1 was once a prosperous city, but is now a poor village in Syria, famous for its ruins of majestic buildings – monuments from the last period of Ancient Roman architecture. The ruins of the ancient city lie in the Syrian desert. Legend has it that Palmyra was founded by King Solomon (reigned c. 975–925 BC) as a defence against the incursions of Aramaic hordes into his domains, which extended to the banks of the Euphrates. In fact, the irst mention of Tadmor – the Aramaic name for Palmyra – dates from the irst half of the 2nd millennium BC (in Cappadocian tablets and documents from Mari). At the end of the 2nd millennium BC Palmyra was destroyed by the Assyrians, but was subsequently rebuilt by Solomon in the 10th century BC. In the early 6th century BC King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed the city during his descent on Jerusalem, but shortly afterwards, thanks to its advantageous location between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates valley, it was again rebuilt and became a stopping-place for trade caravans and stores of goods travelling from West to East and vice versa. The city was the capital of a state called Palmyrena, which had its own sovereigns, senate and people’s assembly. Palmyra was destroyed by Roman troops in the Emperor Trajan’s reign, but rebuilt by Hadrian, who named it Adrianopolis. In Caracalla’s reign (c. 212 AD) Palmyra was declared a Roman colony 204 and placed under the control of the senator Septimius Odaenathus, a native of the city. The senator’s revolt against Rome led to his murder by one Ruinus. Odaenathus was succeeded by his son Hairan, who died soon afterwards, and then by his other son Odaenathus II, who took the side of the Romans in their war with the Persians. After the Roman Emperor Valerian had been taken into captivity by the Persians, Odaenathus proclaimed himself ‘king of kings’ in 260 AD. After his victorious campaign against the Persians, Odaenathus was murdered by his nephew Maeonius (267 AD), and Maeonius’ wife Zenobia (Bat-Zabbai) succeeded to the throne (266/267–272 AD). Palmyra reached the height of its prosperity in her short reign. In 273 AD Emperor Aurelian forced Palmyra to surrender. Zenobia became Aurelian’s prisoner, her capital sufered devastation after an unsuccessful rebellion (273 AD) and her domains reverted to being a province of the Roman Empire. Diocletian, and subsequently Justinian, attempted to rebuild the destroyed city, but were unable to return it to its former splendour. In 1678 a group of English visitors came to Palmyra. Five years later the Dutch painter Cornelis de Bruyn tried to visit the site without success. The English Rev. William Halifax and the Dutch G. Hofsteder van Essen were able to reach the almost inaccessible ruins and describe them. Fifty years later, they were investigated and described between 1751 and 1753 by Robert Wood and James Dawkins.2 The ruins that have survived relate to the irst three centuries AD. Of all the Aramaic, Greek and Latin inscriptions found at Palmyra, none can be dated earlier than the birth of Christ or later than the time of Diocletian. At the eastern extremity of the area covered by the ruins is the Temple of the Sun (Baal-Helios). Opposite the north-western corner of the temple is the entrance gate, similar to a triumphal arch. From the arch a road stretched through the whole city, a distance of 1,135 metres, lined with four rows of columns. The four colonnades divided the road into three sections along the whole of its length: the central, wider section was for carriages and horsemen, while the two narrower side sections were for pedestrians. There were 1,400 columns in all, i.e. 375 in each row. The whole territory of the former city is scattered with parts of capitals, sculptured friezes and other architectural fragments. A building from Justinian’s time has survived in a small valley beyond the ruined city wall: a necropolis with numerous burial caves and family vaults, constructed in the form of towers of huge trimmed stones. On top of one of the neighbouring hills is a castle of later, Arab, construction. 1 Aramaic Tadmor, i.e. city of palms; Greek name Palmyra – an incorrect etymology of the word “tadmor” from the Semitic “tamar” – date palm. 2 See e.g. R. Wood, The Ruins of Palmyra, Otherwise Tedmor, in the Desert, London, 1753 226 Funerary relief: woman in a tall headdress (fragment) Syria, Palmyra, second half of the 2nd – early 3rd century AD Limestone; 23 × 20 × 18 cm Provenance 1914, Russian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople Inv. 8848 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 338, p. 293 A woman’s head in a tall turban with a diadem on her forehead. The upper part of the relief is uninished, and in the surviving fragment (i.e. at the level of the neck and above) there are none of the usual traces of transition to the background. This head probably came from a igure in a composition on the lid of a sarcophagus. ABN 205 Palmyra 227 Funerary relief of the legionnaire Hairan Syria, Palmyra, second half of the 2nd – early 3rd century AD Limestone; 45 × 60 cm Provenance 1914, Russian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople Inv. 8840 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 339, p. 294 The bust of a middle-aged man with curly hair and a short clipped beard. The man is dressed in a chiton with folds, fastened at the right shoulder with a ibula. He holds a stylus in his right hand and a writing-board in his left. There is an inscription to either side of his head. ABN 228 Funerary relief depicting Bosh and Shalma Syria, Palmyra, second half of the 2nd – early 3rd century AD Limestone; 59 × 48 cm Provenance 1914, Russian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople Inv. 8839 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 340, p. 295 Standing igures of a man (left) and woman (right) in long chitons with folds. The married couple – Bosh, son of Taima, and Shalma, daughter of Maliku – are holding hands. The man holds a bunch of grapes. Between the couple’s heads is an inscription with their names. ABN 206 230 Funerary relief of a woman with a child (fragment) Syria, Palmyra, 2nd century AD Limestone; l 53 cm Provenance 1913, gift of the Patriarch of Antioch Inv. 4176 Previously unpublished The bust of a young woman with a shawl on her head. Behind her left shoulder is the igure of a child in a tunic. ABN 229 Funerary relief for a brother and sister Syria, Palmyra, 114 AD Limestone; h 22 cm Provenance unknown Inv. 4177 Previously unpublished Inscription: ‘Ah! Baalatga and Olaisa, children of Bonne, son of Sokai. In November 426 these two portrayals of Olaisa and Baalatga, Son of Sokai, son of Belshur, son of Hairan’. The standing igures of a man (left) and woman (right) in long chitons with folds are holding hands. The man holds a bunch of grapes. ABN 207 THE SACAE AND ALEXANDER THE GREAT Asan Torgoev The people identiied in ancient sources as the Sacae arrived in the area between the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers from the east of Central Asia no earlier than the beginning of the 7th century BC. That was when they appeared at Tien Shan and occupied the mountainous regions of Pamir. The Sacae’s native land was probably in the heart of Central Asia. The most ancient currently known monuments, left – to all appearances – by the earliest tribes of the Scythian-Sacae community, are in Tuva, Mongolia and eastern Kazakhstan. In the 6th and 5th centuries BC ancient and Persian sources mention two major confederations of Sacae. The irst of these, the Sacae Haomavarga (those who worshipped haom1), occupied the western regions of Central Asia. Because of their custom of wearing high conical hats, the second group was known as the Sacae Tigraxauda (literally ‘with pointy hats’); it occupied the territory from Tien Shan to the Aral Sea2 This group is quite often identiied by scholars as the Massagetes, a tribe settled directly in the area between the Amudarya and Syrdarya (the ancient Oxus and Jaxartes rivers). By the time of Alexander the Great’s campaign in Central Asia (329–327 BC) the Sacae were the most efective power in the whole Central Asian region, thanks to their progressive armaments and well-established nomadic 208 ighting tactics, which consisted of constantly engaging the enemy in minor skirmishes and avoiding major battles. In a moment of real danger the Sacae detachments would instantly withdraw and scatter over the terrain. Settled peoples often adopted armaments copied from the Sacae: their arrowheads, for instance, were in common use by settled peoples from the Caspian to the Euphrates. Arrianus explained the Sacae penchant for all types of military action thus: ‘It is an easy matter to induce these Scythians to engage in one war after another, because they are pinched by poverty, and at the same time have no cities or settled abodes to give them cause for anxiety about what is most dear to them.’ 3 Alexander captured all the territory of Sogdiana and Bactria (the border between Sogdiana and the Sacae’s lands ran along the Jaxartes – Tanais – Syrdarya) . According to Arrian, Alexander waged only a week-long punitive expedition on the actual territory of the Sacae, after which a truce was declared. The Sacae took part in Spitamen’s uprising, ighting against the Macedonian army. After the battle, however, they killed Spitamen and presented his head to Alexander. Evidently Alexander came into conlict with the tribes that ancient sources called ‘the Sacae beyond Sogdiana’, whose native lands lay beyond the Syrdarya at Tien Shan, Pamir and the Altay and the broad lowland area around the Fergana valley. Some idea of how the Sacae looked at the time of Alexander’s campaigns is provided by the celebrated burial of the ‘golden man’ in the Issyk burial mound near Almaty, which dates from the 4th – 3rd centuries BC. The young warrior was dressed in a tall pointed hat, decorated with depictions of wild animals in gold. His short coat, belt and boots had plaques of gold foil sewn all over them. Formal weapons and a large quantity of crockery were found with him. Kemal Akishev, who led the excavations, was of the opinion that the burial belonged to one of the leaders of the Sacae Tigraxauda. In less wealthy burial mounds of this time the adornments are also in characteristic animal style, but here they are not of gold but of bronze foil, similarly sewn on to the clothing. Bronze stitched adornments, absolutely identical to those at Issyk, were found in one of the mounds in the Barskoon burial ground on Lake Issyk-Kul. Some inds of Sacae ritual utensils also date back to the time of Alexander. They include large bronze cauldrons, incense-burners on tall bases and large sacriicial tables in the form of trays on four legs. The only full set of utensils was discovered in 1937 in the vicinity of Kyrchin on Lake Issyk-Kul. It included two bronze sacriicial tables, two incense-burners and two large cauldrons, suggesting that two full sets of ritual utensils were hidden together. Finds of religious items are concentrated only in Tien Shan and the Semirechye; as a rule, they tend to be found in places close to large Sacae necropoli. We can suggest only an approximate reconstruction of the nature of Sacae rituals, since virtually no written sources have survived to provide further evidence. At the present time, it can only be surmised that the Sacae may have had a range of religious precepts close to Zoroastrianism, which was widespread among their settled neighbours. Alexander the Great’s conquests were relected in the culture of the nomadic Sacae to a lesser extent than in that of settled peoples, primarily the Bactrians and Sogdians. The territory occupied by the Sacae was incorporated neither into Alexander’s state, nor that of his heirs. In the 2nd century BC the Usuns, crowded out from the north-west of China by the Huns, captured Tien Shan and the Semirechye and subjugated the Sacae tribes, who were henceforth no longer referred to as an independent people in sources. Nonetheless, the Arsacid royal dynasty in Parthia traced its ancestry to the Daae, one of the Sacae tribes. Some of the Sacae joined the Yuezhi in their crippling campaign against Graeco-Bactria, which resulted in the foundation of one of the empires of the Ancient World – the kingdom of Kushan. Notes 1 Sacred plant and its divinity in IndoIranian religions. 2 Historical region in southern Kazakhstan, south of Lake Balkhash, and northern Kirghizia. 3 Arrian, IV, 17, 5 231 Figure of a horseman with a bow Iran, 5th – 4th century BC Gold; h 3.6 cm Provenance 1735 brought to St Petersburg; found in Siberia Inv. Z-548 Literature Ivanov, Lukonin, Smesova 1984, p. 19 The clothing and arms of the warrior possibly convey the appearance of a Sacae nomad. The purpose of this piece is unclear. As small plates are soldered to the legs of the horse, it may be supposed that the igure was attached to another object. MD 209 The Sacae and Alexander the Great 232 Incense-burner 233 Cauldron Central Asia, 4th – 3rd century BC Bronze; 24.8 × 24 × 28 cm Provenance 1939, Pedagogical Institute, Frunze (now Bishkek); found at Kyrchin on Lake Issyk-Kul Inv. N CA-3187 Literature Bernshtam 1952, pp. 40–43, Ill. 18,5 Central Asia, 5th – 3rd century BC Bronze; h 62; maximum Ø 47.5 cm Provenance late 19th century; 1893, chance ind on the River Kargalinka near Almaty Inv. GE 1654/1 Literature Dawn of Art 1974, p. 176 We cannot say in just what rituals incense-burners of this type were used. They were clearly linked with the Sacae’s ire cult, as indicated by the tubes for wicks attached to the base. The igures of animals on the side of the base, in this case a hoofed animal being torn to pieces, a scene of the kind that was widespread among the Sacae, had a speciic cosmogonical meaning, possibly connected with the concept of the eternal rotation of life. In the culture of the Sacae’s settled neighbours – the Sogdians and Bactrians – there were clay incense-burners of similar shape but smaller dimensions. This incense-burner is also reminiscent of the Sogdian ire altars depicted in the paintings of early medieval Pendjikent, and it is not impossible that the Sacae incense-burners were their early prototypes. AT A three-legged cast cauldron representing protomes of mountain sheep with camel’s feet. The vertical handles are in the form of goat kids. This zoomorphic motif was common in the design of large bronze cauldrons of the Scythian period and in other territories of Eurasia. Three-legged cauldrons were quite rare and were used only by Central Asian nomads. LB 210 234 Figure of a tiger from a sacriicial table Central Asia; 4th – 3rd century BC Bronze; 17 × 12 × 6 cm Provenance before 1917, found Almaty District, Kazakhstan Inv. SA-3190 Literature Samashev, Grigoryev, Zhumabekova 2005, p. 58 This igure of a tiger was once attached, along with a number of similar igures, to the side of a very large sacriicial table. Realistic cast igures of animals were characteristic of the art of the Semirechye Sacae at the time of Alexander’s campaigns. The tiger’s inely modelled broad face with its almond-shaped eyes and the wing on its back ending in a scroll enable us to relate it to similar igures on the largest surviving sacriicial table, the so-called ‘Great Semirechye Altar’, discovered near Almaty in 1884 and now in the Hermitage. Beasts of prey on sacriicial tables were, to all appearances, intended to guard the ritual performed on the table against any danger. AT 235 Hilt of an akinakes Central Asia, Sacae Culture, 6th century BC Iron, bronze; 15 × 6 × 1.7 cm Provenance 2009, Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of the History of Material Culture; 1952, found Eastern Pamir, Akbeit burial ground, mound 3 (excavations by Alexander Bernshtam) Inv. A-2704 Literature Litvinsky 1972, p. 113, photo 20, pl. 40,4 When the dagger was discovered, it had a 22-centimetre long iron blade (subsequently lost). The bronze elements – the crosspiece and the top in the shape of a goat – are hafted on to the iron rod of the hilt. On the sides of this rod are brackets featuring the heads of mountain goats. This akinakes was one of the earliest bimetallic swords in Central Asia and is a unique monument of Sacae art. The top features a realistic igure of a mountain goat, made in a style speciic to the Sacae of Pamir. The characteristics of this style are the strongly twisted branched horns of the hoofed animals, the very schematically produced faces of the animals, combined with the precisely worked hooves. These details are typical of the still small group of objects obtained from the 6th-century BC Sacae burial grounds of Pamir. AT 211 Notes THE HELLENISED EAST Grigory Semyonov † The Hermitage collection of items from Central Asia relects various ages and examples of cultural interaction over an extensive area from modern Kirgizia in the east to the borders of Iran and Afghanistan in the west and southwest. Among the oldest items are works by Sacae nomads, which represent the early stages of the traditional way of life of the majority of the Farsispeaking population. When the Greeks arrived in Central Asia they came up against nomads on the one hand and an ancient urban culture on the other. Of the cities mentioned in historical sources describing Alexander’s campaign, Merv (Alexandria) and Maracanda (Samarkand) can be deinitely identiied, Kiropolis (Ura-Tube) with less certainty. A new period in the history of Central Asia began after Alexander’s campaign and the formation of the Hellenistic states (3rd – 2nd centuries BC). In the mid-2nd century BC the largest Hellenistic state in Central Asia, GraecoBactria, came under attack from nomadic tribes. The conquering nomads were now forming new political unions on the territory of the former Hellenistic states. In the irst centuries AD the powerful kingdom of Kushan arose in the southern part of Central Asia, also encompassing part of northern and central India. The lands to the west of Kushan belonged to the Parthian kingdom, well known as a result 212 of accounts of the Parthians’ wars with Rome by ancient authors. In the 5th century the greater part of Central Asia was conquered by other Hephthalite nomads or ‘White Huns’, and in the mid-6th century by Turkic nomads. In the early 8th century it was conquered by Muslim Arabs and became part of an Arab caliphate. For a long time art of the Hellenistic period in Central Asia was virtually unknown, but over the last 40 years two outstanding discoveries have been made: excavations have revealed Ai Khanoum, a Hellenistic city in Northern Afghanistan, and a temple at Takhti Sangin in Southern Tadzhikistan. The temple was dedicated to Iranian deities and to the worship of ire and water, but was also open to Greeks, who brought oferings to the altars in the courtyard. According to Paul Bernard, this was a new model of the adaptation of Hellenism in Eastern society.1 Ai Khanoum, an ancient settlement at the conluence of the Panj and Kokcha rivers, was explored by French archaeologists between 1965 and 1978. It has been identiied by various scholars as Alexandria on Oxus and as Eucratidea. It was the residence of the royal administration and the metropolis of the whole province. Among the buildings discovered at Ai Khanoum were the ruler’s palace, the Temple of Zeus and such typically Greek establishments as a theatre, a gymnasium and a heroon.2 The city originated in the last quarter of the 4th century BC and was destroyed towards the middle of the 2nd century BC when, together with other cities in Bactria, it came under attack from nomads. Takhti-Sangin is situated 100 kilometres downstream from Ai Khanoum, on the opposite bank of the Amudarya. The temple that was discovered is a combination of an Eastern ground plan and Greek columns. The huge number of oferings brought to the temple over several centuries (more than 8,000 items have been found) relects Greek, Eastern and combined styles, with items relating to the Achaemenid, Hellenistic and Kushan periods. Amongst the early medieval monuments (5th – 8th centuries) with clearly deined ancient characteristics in the Hermitage collection we should particularly note the depictions of an ancient head on a silver tankard (cat. 252) and scenes from the tragedies of Euripides on a silver cup. 1 P. Bernard, ‘Тахт-и Сангин: подведение итогов’, [Takhti-Sangin: Conclusions], Центральная Азия. История, археология, культура [Central Asia. History, Archaeology, Culture], Moscow, 2005, p. 71 2 Monument to a dead hero with a small altar; plural heroa. 236 Tetradrachma 237 Tetradrachma 238 Tetradrachma Bactria, Diodotus, 250 BC Silver; Ø 28 mm; 16.3 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/6 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 341, p. 298 Bactria, Demetrius, 190 BC Silver; Ø 31 mm; 16.12 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/28 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 342, p. 298 Bactria, Anthimachus, 140 BC Silver; Ø 29 mm; 16.7 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/46 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 343, p. 298 Obverse Head of Diodotus, facing Obverse Head of Demetrius in an Obverse Head of Anthimachus in a right elephant’s skin, facing right. hat, facing right. Reverse Zeus, facing left and hurling lightning. To left, a garland and an eagle. Inscription: ΒΑ ΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΙΟΔΟΤΟV – King Diodotus’ (coin). YD Reverse Heracles standing with a club and a lion’s skin. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔΗΜΗΤΡΙΟV – King Demetrius’ (coin). To the left, a monogram. YD Reverse Poseidon with a trident and a palm branch. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΘΕ… ΑΝΤΙΜΑΧΟ… — King Theos Anthimachus’ (coin). To the right, a monogram. YD 239 Tetradrachma 240 Hemidrachma 241 Stater Bactria, Eucratides, 180 BC Silver; Ø 32 mm; 15.68 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/64 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 344, p. 299 Bactria, Apollodotus, 100 BC Silver; Ø 16/15 mm; 2.35 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/129 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 345, p. 299 Bactria, Hermias, 40 BC Silver; Ø 25 mm; 9.66 g Provenance unknown Inv. ON-3182/219 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 346, p. 299 Obverse Head of Eucratides in a Obverse An elephant facing right. Obverse Bust of Hermias facing helmet, facing right. Inscription: ΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΠ°ΛΛ°ΔΤΥ ΣΩΤΕΡ Σ – King Apollodotus Soter. right. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΕΡΜΑΙΌΥ – King Soter Hermias’ (coin). Reverse An Indian bull (zebu). Indian Reverse Zeus enthroned with a sceptre. Indian inscription: Maharajah Soter Hermias. To the right, a monogram. YD Reverse The Dioscuri on horseback with palm branches. Inscription: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟV ΕVΚΡΑ ΤΙΔ… – King Great Eucratides’ (coin). To the right, a monogram. YD inscription: Maharajah Apollodotus Soter. YD 213 The Hellenised East 214 242 Phalar with a ighting elephant Eastern Iran (?), 3rd – 2nd century BC Silver, gilding; Ø 24.7 cm Provenance 1859, Kunstkammer; found before 1725 Inv. S-64 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 349, p. 303 The Hermitage has a pair of phalars (adornments for a horse’s harness) with the elephants moving in diferent directions (see also cat. 243). The clothes and appearance of the driver seated on the elephant’s neck are of Asian, probably Indian, origin. On the animal’s back is a defensive construction like a tower, with two men visible behind it: a Greek in a helmet and an Asian. The piece was discovered during tomb robberies in the irst quarter of the 18th century in Siberia or the Volga Region, to where it was probably taken in antiquity as war booty or through commercial exchange. Judging by its iconography, the phalar was made in Central Asia. It is an organic blend of Greek and Eastern features, and it is therefore customary to link it with the Bactrian kingdom, which was a crossroads of cultural inluences from the Western world and Asian traditions. MD 243 Phalar with a ighting elephant Eastern Iran (?), 3rd – 2nd century BC Silver, gilding; Ø 24.7 cm Provenance 1859, Kunstkammer; found before 1725 Inv. S-65 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 350, p. 305 Pair to cat. 242. MD 244 Bowl with female heads Eastern Iran (?), 2nd century BC (?) Silver, gilding; Ø 14 cm Provenance 1859, Kunstkammer; date and place of discovery unknown Inv. S-73 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 351, p. 306 Around the outside of the bowl are four embossed relief female heads with Greek facial features. Each of them wears a crown in the form of a city wall. They were probably the goddess-patrons of cities, a popular theme in Hellenistic art. An Eastern lavour is created by the rosette decorating the bottom of the cup and the shape of the bowl itself. Iconographic analysis has led the cup to be grouped with pieces from Hellenistic Bactria, but there is also an opinion that it was made on the territory of the former Bactria in the early Middle Ages, since Greek artistic traditions survived there for many centuries after the Hellenistic period. MD 215 The Hellenised East 245 Medallion with a winged goddess Eastern Iran (?), 2nd century BC Silver, gilding; Ø 12 cm Provenance 1894, Imperial Academy of Sciences; date and place of discovery unknown Inv. S-76 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 352, p. 307 This medallion was apparently once soldered to another object, possibly the bottom of a dish. In the centre is an embossed depiction of a winged goddess. The facial features and the modelling of the neck and breasts under folds of clothing are signs of strong Greek inluence, while the pomegranate in her hand gives the portrayal an Eastern lavour. The goddess possibly combines the features of the Greek Nike, the winged goddess of victory, and the Hellenistic goddess Tyche, the patroness of cities. MD 246 Medallion with a goddess holding a bow Eastern Iran (?), 2nd century BC Silver, gilding; Ø 9.8 cm Provenance 1886; 1886, found in Tobolsk Region with several bronze and iron objects Inv. S-77 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 353, p. 308 A decorative element from some unidentiied object. The whole surface is occupied by the embossed igure of a woman holding a bow, the hilt of a dagger visible over her right shoulder, and a cross-belt stretched across her chest. Her right breast is uncovered, prompting reminders of the Greek Amazons, and this is indeed likely to be a portrayal of a huntress or an Amazon. The face, hair and folds of the clothes show Greek inluence, but the arms are bent unnaturally and the portrait has been roughly and clumsily executed, probably by an Eastern craftsman imitating Greek examples. MD 216 247 Decorated cup Northern India, 4th century AD (?) Silver; Ø 15.5 cm Provenance 1903; 1903, found in the Kustanay district, Kazakhstan Inv. S-62 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 354, p. 309 A solid cup completely covered with images. The minor details (faces, legs and other body parts) were made on separate plaques and set into hollows in the cup. The several scenes here were probably illustrations to a literary or folk tale that would have been well known to contemporaries. The rounded shapes, drapery and sense of motion demonstrate signiicant Greek inluence, though on the whole the cup has a strong Eastern lavour. We know of several cups made in a similar style; they were manufactured in Northern India, possibly on the territory of modern Pakistan. MD 248 Cup with a lion hunt Northern India, 4th – 5th century AD (?) Silver; Ø 14 cm Provenance 1922, Counts Stroganov collection; 1872 found in the village of Vereino, Perm Region, with Iranian cups of the Sassanid era Inv. S-8 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 355, p. 310 A solid cast cup featuring two hunting scenes separated by a tree. In the irst a horseman pierces a tiger with his spear, while the second group consists of two horsemen facing each other and shooting from bows at two lions whose bodies intersect. The hunting of beasts of prey on horseback was a popular theme in the art of the ancient and early medieval East. The dynamism of the portrayal and the working of the details demonstrate the inluence of ancient art. MD 217 The Hellenised East 249 Tile (metope) Parthia, 2nd century BC – 1st century AD Terracotta; 25.3 × 14.4 cm Provenance 1936, Turkmen Scientiic Research Institute; between 1930 and 1935 discovered in Nisa (Turkmenistan; excavations by Alexander Marushchenko) Inv. SA-8064 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 359, p. 314 A metope with a relief depiction of a lion’s head with its mouth open, a shaggy mane, deeply set eyes and a broad, slightly lattened nose. The mould for these metopes was made by a highly skilled master. The tile has precise parallels with lion masks in Greek art of the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. ANN 218 250 Architectural detail: acanthus leaf Parthia, 2nd century BC – 1st century AD Clay; 28 × 22.5 cm Provenance 1936, Turkmen Scientiic Research Institute; found between 1930 and 1935 (excavations by Alexander Marushchenko) Inv. SA-8060 Literature Pilipko 2001, pp. 234–239 Ancient Nisa – a settlement located 18 km from Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, was called Mihrdatkirt in ancient times (evidently after King Mithridates I of Parthia). For the Parthians it was the holy city of the dynastic cult, conirming the concept of the divine provenance of the Arsacids. Along with other architectural details and clay sculpture, acanthus leaves adorned the buildings of the Central Complex at Nisa. Made from ired clay, sometimes painted, acanthus leaves, shoots and volutes formed part of Corinthian capitals. Similar capitals made of marble and limestone were used in Central Asia in ancient times in the construction of monumental secular and religious buildings. AO 251 Capital Parthia, 1st century BC – 1st century AD Terracotta; 23 × 13, thickness 4–6 cm Provenance 1961, gift from Alexander Marushchenko; 1936 found in the remains of a Parthian naos on the territory of New Nisa (excavations by Alexander Marushchenko) Inv. SA-15045 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 361, p. 316 A capital of the Ionic (proto-Ionic) order in the form of a rectangular terracotta slab. On the obverse is a relief depiction of two voluteshaped scrolls with an eightpetalled rosette between them. This slab was probably the capital of a pilaster. The two holes under the cornice are evidence that the slab was attached to the brick wall of a sanctuary. ANN 252 Silver tankard Chach (modern Tashkent Oasis) or Semirechye (modern Kyrgyzstan), 7th century AD Silver; Ø mouth 9.5, Ø base 8.5, h 8.5 cm; 498 g Provenance 1925, purchased from I. P. Maslennikov; discovered in an ancient settlement near the village of Pokrovka (now Novopokrovka), Chu Valley (modern Kyrgyzstan) Inv. S-71 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 362, p. 317 A proile head in the ancient style appears in a circular medallion on the handle. The medallion is bordered by two tri-partite semipalmettes. The portrait in the medallion imitates the coins of a Graeco-Bactrian king. Ancient motifs frequently featured in Sogdian metalwork until the 8th century. The depiction of tri-partite semi-palmettes also derives from ancient Mediterranean culture. BM† 219 The Hellenised East 253 Fragment: youth as Alexander the Great 254 Decorated basin Northern Bactria, late 2nd century BC – 1st century AD Clay, red-brown slip, stamping; Ø rim 24.5, Ø base 12.5, h 7 cm Provenance 2009, Russian Academy of Science Institute of the History of Material Culture; between 1955 and 1959 discovered in the Tulhar burial ground in Northern Bactria (Bishkent Valley, Southern Tadzhikistan; excavations by Anatoly Mandelshtam) Inv. A-2024 Literature Mandelshtam 1966, pp. 96–97, pl. XXVII Sogdia, 1st century BC – 1st century AD (?) Clay; 4.8 × 3 cm Provenance 1938, collection B. N. Kastalsky; found in Afrasiab (now Samarkand, Uzbekistan) Inv. SA-158 Literature Lascaratos, Damanakis 1996 A number of details link this fragment of a statuette with numerous Near Asian portraits of the Macedonian king in marble, bronze and terracotta, which are thought to be based on the works of Lysippus. This relates above all to the set of the head and its inclination to one side, not only giving the portrayal dynamism but also relecting Alexander’s ‘visible torticollis’ (possibly the consequence of a combat injury). Other characteristics are the hairstyle with a lock of hair over the forehead, the oval face, the outline of the eyes and the powerful neck. AO Elements of Eastern Hellenism, the syncretistic culture that became established after Alexander the Great’s campaign to the East, is particularly clearly relected in ceramics (the most widespread type of archaeological ind). The fairly monotonous jar-shaped tableware of the preceding period was replaced by open and closed forms inluenced by Greek ceramic traditions. Goblets, glasses, ‘Megara’ cups, ‘ish dishes’ and amphora-shaped vessels were covered with thick slip in imitation of the famous Greek lacquered ceramics and decorated with carved ornamentation, and some types featured stamped impressions of palmettes. AO 255 Conical vessel Margiana, 6th – 4th century BC Clay, pale slip; Ø rim 15.3, h 21.2 cm Provenance 1956, found at Yaz-tepe, Southeastern Turkmenistan, during excavations by the 14th detachment of the Southern Turkmenistan Archaeological Expedition Inv. A-1555 Literature Masson 1956, pp. 61–67 In the time preceding Alexander the Great’s campaign to the East (in the pre-Achaemenid and Achaemenid periods) a speciic kind of ceramic set consisting primarily of jar-shaped vessels of various sizes with cut down bottoms was characteristic for the central and southern regions of Central Asia. Ceramics of this type were widespread among the adherents of cultures of the Yaz type (stages Yaz-II and Yaz-III), which scholars link with the Eastern Iranian settlement of the region by people from Parthia, Margiana, Choresmia, Bactria and Sogdia. AO 220 256 Decorated phial 258 Pitcher with two handles Northern Bactria, 1st century BC – 2nd century AD Clay, red-brown slip, glaze with loop ornament; Ø rim 15, h 4 cm Provenance 1964, Russian Academy of Science Institute of the History of Material Culture; 1960 and 1962 found in the Babashov barrow, South Eastern Turkmenistan (excavations by Anatoly Mandelshtam) Inv. 2325/27 Literature Mandelshtam 1975, p. 112, pl. XXVIII,1 Northern Bactria, 3rd – 4th century AD Clay, red slip, vertical banded glazing, carved and stamped ornament; Ø rim 10.6, Ø bottom 9.3, h 24 cm Provenance 2009, Russian Academy of Science Institute of the History of Material Culture; between 1972 and 1986 found at Zar-tepe, Surhandar Region, Uzbekistan (Bactria-Tocharistan) (excavations by the Bactrian Expedition of the Leningrad Department of the Institute of Archaeology) Inv. A-2519 Literature Zavyalov 2008, Ill. 83, 10, p. 206 The nomads that left the Babashov burial ground belonged to a particular ethnic group that settled in the steppe area of Northern Bactria after the fall of the GraecoBactrian Kingdom. AO In shape and dimensions the vessel is similar to a Greek pelike. The forms and methods of ornamentation of pottery from Zar-tepe derive from a previous Kushan archaeological complex and exhibit many elements of the clay (terra sigillata), glass and metal tableware of the Roman world. This was in large part due to the links between the Kushan state (whose original nucleus was Bactria) and Rome, which strengthened during the heyday of the empire and continued right up to the end of the ancient era. AO 257 Pitcher Northern Bactria, late 2nd century BC – 1st century AD Clay, red-brown slip, carved and moulded ornament; Ø rim 6.5, Ø base 7.9, h 22.5 cm Provenance 1963, Russian Academy of Science Institute of the History of Material Culture; between 1955 and 1959 found in the Tulhar burial ground, Bishkent Valley, Southern Tadzhikistan (excavations by Anatoly Mandelshtam) Inv. 2296/35 Literature Mandelshtam 1966, pp. 89–90, pl. XIII,2 The handle of the pitcher has conical projections in the upper part and at the bottom, evidently imitating a metal prototype. Closed pitchers of this type were not at all typical of Central Asian ceramics in the Achaemenid period (before Alexander’s campaign). AO 221 The Hellenised East 259 Composite capital Northern Bactria, 1st BC – early centuries AD Limestone; 31 × 52 × 48 cm Provenance 2009, Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of the History of Material Culture; between 1972 and 1986 found in Zar-tepe, Bactria-Tocharistan, Surhandar Region, Uzbekistan (excavations by the Bactrian Expedition of the Leningrad Department of the Institute of Archaeology) Inv. A-2077 Literature Zavyalov 2008, Ill. 10 The capital of a column of the Corinthian order with three rows of acanthus leaves. The base of the column is circular. Materials from excavations at the multilayered settlement of Zar-tepe, 26 kilometres north-west of Termez, relate mainly to the 3rd and 4th centuries AD, the Sassanid period in Bactria-Tocharistan. Nonetheless, scholars date the city’s foundation to the last century BC and the irst centuries AD, which was evidently when this capital was made. AO 260 Relief: Gorgon head Central Asia, 1st BC – early centuries AD Clay, traces of dark slip; 5.6 × 8.9 cm Provenance 1930, Archaeological Commission; 1908 purchased by S. M. Dudin from the collection of I. M. Stolyarov; found at Zar-tepe, Bactria-Tocharistan, Surkhandarya Region, Uzbekistan Inv. AFR-3810 Literature Trever 1940, p. 60, Ill. 5 An elongated face with large, deep-set eyes, a jutting forehead and a straight nose; the hair in the form of snake-strands winds around the face; on the lat side is a relief band. AO 222 261 Medallion: Gorgon head Central Asia, 1st century BC – early centuries AD Clay, traces of dark slip; 3.9 × 3.3 cm Provenance 1937, collection B. N. Kastalsky; found in Afrasiab (now Samarkand, Uzbekistan) Inv. SA-329 Literature Meshkeris 1977, pl XXV,31 A broad face, slightly deep-set eyes with heavy lids, steep arches over the eyebrows, a small full mouth, a small rounded chin, and a small forehead framed by wavy hair; the dark area conceals a hairstyle or a diadem. AO 262 Decorative ornament: head of Heracles Northern Bactria, 3rd – 4th century AD Clay, red slip; 6.7 × 5.4 cm Provenance 2009, Russian Academy of Science Institute of the History of Material Culture; between 1972 and 1986 found at Zar-tepe, Northern Bactria (modern Southern Uzbekistan) (excavations by the Bactrian Expedition of the Leningrad Department of the Institute of Archaeology) Inv. A-2594 Literature Zavyalov 2008, p. 103, insert 5, 3 (last century BC – early centuries AD) and later periods all produced bronze rings, as well as terracotta statuettes and mouldings, depicting Heracles. AO Apparently based on copies of the famous 4th-century BC sculpture of Heracles by the circle of Lysippus that were widespread in the ancient world. The reverence for Heracles in Central Asia was connected with the personality of Alexander the Great himself. The tradition continued in the period of GraecoBactrian dominion: Heracles features on the coins of King Demetrius (c. 200–185 BC). Coins depicting the Greek hero continued to be minted in Central Asia even after the Greeks had left the area. The Yuech-zhi and Kushan period 223 The Hellenised East 263 Fragment of a vessel: Silenus Central Asia, 1st century BC – early centuries AD Clay, black slip, glaze; 11.6 × 12.5 cm Provenance 1937, collection B. N. Kastalsky; found at Afrasiab (now Samarkand, Uzbekistan) Inv. SA-862 Literature Shishkina 1965, p. 181, Ill. 1 Coroplastics were virtually unknown in Central Asia in the early Iron Age. The drawing of Central Asia into the Hellenistic world led to the spread of the worship and adaptation of non-Iranian (Greek and Near Asian) cults. Among the most popular of these, judging by depictions in sculpture, coroplastics and metalwork, were those connected with the circle of Dionysus, which had much in common with local fertility cults. The arrival of a large number of immigrants from Greece and Asia Minor inevitably inluenced the development of monumental and small sculpture. AO 264 Decorated handle of a vessel Central Asia, 1st century BC – early centuries AD Clay, red slip; 4 × 2.8 cm Provenance 1937, collection B. N. Kastalsky; found at Afrasiab (now Samarkand, Uzbekistan) Inv. SA-746 Literature Meshkeris 1977, pp. 34–35, pl. XXVII,56 In the irst century BC the decoration of the handles of vessels with stamped impressions became widespread in Central Asia. In the 3rd and 4th centuries AD stampmouldings were used for the bases of the handles. Similar methods and depictions were also characteristic of Roman ceramics and glass at that time – yet more evidence of the existence of trading and cultural contacts between remote regions of the ancient Ecumene. AO 224 265 Seal: Fortuna Rome (?), early centuries AD Agate; 2.6 × 2.3 cm Provenance 1955; 1885, purchased by Nikolay Veselovsky from the Samarkand merchant Mirza Bukharin; found at Afrasiab (now Samarkand, Uzbekistan) Inv. SA-14765 Previously unpublished A seal in the form of an oval plate, convex on the obverse side, with a carved depiction of Fortuna holding a branch in her left hand and a sceptre in her right. The seal was evidently a Roman import. AO 266 Gravestone Semirechye (modern Kyrgyzstan), 1302 (?) Stone; 38 × 31 × 13 cm Provenance unknown Inv. SA-14296 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 369, p. 324 On the surface of a heartshaped rounded stone, against a background created by the working of the stone surface, is a complex reserved composition. A lotus lower rests on top of a base of six rectangular slabs, with a Nestorian cross above. To either side are angels bowing to the cross. Rounding round the top and sides is an ornamental border. The SyrianTurkic inscription reads: ‘In the 1302nd year of [the era of] Alexander (1613) the expounder-exegetist Nestorius, son of the Blessed Caria (?), died and left this world’ (translation by Pavel Kokovtsev). Since the 1870s and 1880s we have known of the existence of two 13th- and 14th-century Christian cemeteries in Kyrgyzstan, near the cities of Bishkek and Tokmak. They have yielded several hundred gravestones with crosses and Syrian or Syrian-Turkic inscriptions, published by the Russian orientalists Daniil Khvolson, Vasily Radlov and Pavel Kokovtsev. These inscriptions conirm the existence of a large Nestorian community in the Semirechye region. The names etched into the stone are either Christian or Turkic. Gravestones were dated from the era of Alexander the Great (often in accordance with the 12-year animal cycle customary for the Turks). The era of ‘Khan Alexander’, which was the accepted origin of chronology at the time of the Seleucids, was borrowed and preserved by the Nestorian church. The earliest evidence of the existence of Christianity in this area dates from the 8th century, and the latest to the 14th century. Besides the inscriptions on gravestones, we know of Sogdian inscriptions with a Christian content on ceramics, several silver vessels with scenes from the Old and New Testaments, and two Christian churches excavated at Suyab-ak-Beshim, one from the 8th century, the other from the 10th to 11th centuries There is no evidence of Christianity in the Semirechye after the 14th century. GS† 225 THE ‘INDIAN CAMPAIGN’ ITS CONSEQUENCES FOR THE WEST AND FOR INDIA Olga Deshpande The irst deinite date in Indian history is 326 BC, the year of Alexander the Great’s ‘Indian campaign’. After the subordination of northwest India, Alexander proceeded to divide the subjugated territory into satrapies, placing his associates or local rulers in charge of them. Greek inluence was restricted, however, to the north-west and west of the country, and afected only the highest echelons of society. Alexander had planned to advance further and capture the whole country, but his weary troops, exhausted by their long and diicult campaign, demanded to return home. The irst signs of rebellion in the ranks had been detected. Alexander was obliged to turn back, although individual detachments of Greek-Macedonians remained in India for a number of years. The campaign marked a new stage in the ancient world’s knowledge of India and in the development of links between India and the outside world. From that time forth links between Europe and India became stronger and more direct. Trade – particularly maritime trade – lourished. Greek colonies were established in Bactria, Afghanistan and north-west India, and Greek was spoken there for more than a hundred years. In the ‘embassy period’ (late 4th – early 3rd centuries BC) ambassadors of Hellenistic states were sent to the courts of Indian kings. The Seleucid ambassador Megasthenes, who 226 spent a number of years at the court of the rulers of Maurya (314/313 – 180 BC), wrote a celebrated work entitled Indica, which remained the principal source of information about India throughout the Hellenistic and Roman periods. At this time of crisis for ancient culture, both ‘pagan’ thinkers and Christian authors showed an interest in various Indian religions, inding there support for their own views. After the fall of the Roman Empire and the spread of Islam across a huge territory from India to Spain, Arab-Persian culture served an important role, being the medium via which many of the achievements and monuments of Indian culture came to the Western world – from chess and ‘Arabic’ numerals to literary monuments and heroes that can be traced back to Indian prototypes. Thus Alexander the Great’s relatively short ‘Indian campaign’ marked a watershed in relationships between India and the ancient world and all subsequent Western culture. Since that time the attraction that this centre of Eastern civilization has had for the Western world has never waned. But what were the consequences of the campaign for India itself? After Alexander left India, the Greek garrisons he had left behind were expelled from the country. His short-lived conquest had no direct inluence on art and culture in the rest of India. In the 1st century BC, however, the province of Gandhara in north-west India1 was captured by the Turkic nomads of Kushana; it gradually grew more powerful and eventually became the huge Kushan Empire which remained in existence until the early 4th century. The Kushan people quickly became ‘Indianised’ under the inluence of the more advanced Indian culture, and in the reign of the celebrated King Kanishka (second half of the 2nd century AD) the Kushan state became one of the most powerful in the ancient world. In the Kushan period Gandhara was a major centre for science, religion and art. With the aim of spreading Buddhism the Kushans built temples and monasteries and set up numerous sculptures across the country. The most important legacy of the art of Gandhara, to judge from late antique examples, was the establishment of an iconography of images of Buddha and bodhisattvas.2 Sculptures were made by local indianised Greeks and their Indian pupils. Thus the Gandhara school of sculpture, which was during its early stages much closer to antique examples, generally reveals a pronounced Indo-Hellenised character. In the late 5th century the Gandhara region sufered a destructive invasion by Hephthalite nomads and the Gandhara school of art ceased to exist. Although Gandharan art had lourished for over ive centuries, it inluenced only the neighbouring regions of north-west India and had no efect on Indian culture as a whole. Beyond the frontiers of India, however, the Gandhara school exerted a huge inluence on the development of Buddhist art in other Asian countries. The limited inluence of the art of Gandhara within India becomes particularly obvious if one compares Gandhara depictions of Buddha with the Buddhist sculpture of another, no less renowned Kushan school of the same period – the Mathura school. In this major cultural and religious centre the anthropomorphic image of Buddha was created in parallel with and yet independently of Gandhara, perhaps somewhat earlier. Mathuran art developed not on the basis of foreign traditions, but taking up local Indian traditions that had developed in the region over many centuries, with the result that the images were given a purely Indian interpretation. Alexander’s ‘Indian campaign’ thus cannot be said to have had profound consequences for Indian culture, even if it did give the world Gandhara sculpture, but in terms of its establishment of links between India and Western states, the campaign was one of the most important events in ancient times. Notes 1 More precisely, in modern day Afghanistan north of Pakistan. 2 Bodhisattva – one who has achieved enlightenment but has chosen to remain in the world to help others ind the true path. 267 Head of a bodhisattva Mathura, late 1st century AD Red sandstone; h 28 cm Provenance 1999, gift of Krishna Riboud Inv. IS-2127 Literature Previously unpublished In the Kushan period the image of the bodhisattva blended easily into the traditional portrayals of various Hindu characters – deities, yakshas, naga. Its distinctive characteristic is the turban (one of the symbols of royal power in India since ancient times). This head is similar, both in style and iconography, to reliefs on the wall of a snake temple in Sonkha, 30 km from Mathura (c. 100 AD; Mode 1986, pl. 4). Even more obvious is its similarity to two other monuments: the bodhisattva on the right of the Kapardin Buddha on a relief in the Mathura Municipal Museum (late 1st century AD; Mode 1986, pl. 10), and the head of a statue of a bodhisattva in the Cleveland Museum of Art (also late 1st century AD; Klimburg-Salter 1995, pl. 79). The Hermitage piece can therefore conidently be dated to the late 1st century AD. OD 268 Head of a Buddha (fragment) Mathura, late 2nd century AD Red sandstone; h 19 cm Provenance 1999, gift of Krishna Riboud Inv. IS-2126 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 380, p. 340 This head relects the period of the formation of the Buddhist canon in Mathura, when many features of Buddha – the ushnisha (the threedimensional oval on the top of his head) and the way his hair is curled – had not yet taken on precise canonical form. For this reason the way the hair is portrayed is a great aid in dating. Here the hair is arranged in six horseshoe-shaped rows of short parallel curls; one row, in the shape of a small triangle, grows down his temple. This treatment of the hair appeared in Mathura art in the 2nd century. In the middle of the century rows of hair only covered the head, but several decades later they began to be shown growing down the temples (as in the Hermitage piece). This method disappeared at the very beginning of the 3rd century. This enables us to date this head to the late 2nd century. OD 227 The ‘Indian campaign’ Its consequences for the West and for India 269 Head of a Buddha (fragment) Gandhara, Hadda (now in Afghanistan), 3rd – 4th century AD Plaster; 27 × 20 cm Provenance 1957, gift of King Muhammad Zahir-Shah of Afghanistan Inv. GA-2997 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 375, p. 340 The heyday of plaster, which replaced stone as the most popular material for sculpture in the irst centuries of the Kushan Empire, came to Hadda in the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. Since plaster is softer than stone, however, virtually no complete plaster sculptures have survived. Sculpture in Gandhara gradually became more Indianised, attaining great reinement. This head of a statue of Buddha is a typical example of the sculpture that developed in the Afghan part of Gandhara. The gently outlined face exudes perfect beauty and spirituality, and was made with profound concentration. All the principal concepts of Buddhism are depicted in concentrated form: despite the fragmentary nature of the portrayal, the head extraordinarily expressively conveys the state of Buddha as a supreme, perfect being who has reached nirvana – enlightenment. OD 228 270 Head of a Buddha (fragment) Gandhara, Takht-i-Bahi (now in Pakistan), 2nd – 3rd century AD Slate; 15 × 9 cm Provenance 1914, gift of the orientalist A. N. Koznakov Inv. GA-937 Literature Previously unpublished This head of the Buddha has regular Hellenistic features. The ears and nose have been broken of and although the ushnisha is clearly visible, the urna is missing. The face is impassive, the eyes are half-closed and looking down, expressing profound contemplation. The absence of adornments is typical of Buddha, who renounced all pleasures and earthly happiness. A virtually complete igure of Buddha originating from the same place is in the British Museum (Sérinde 1995, p. 37). YIE 271 Head of a bodhisattva (fragment) Gandhara, 2nd – 3rd century AD Slate; 30 × 26 cm Provenance 1957, gift of King Muhammad Zahir-Shah of Afghanistan Inv. GA-2996 Literature Dyakonova 1959, pp. 60–61 The edge of the halo is decorated with triangular geometric ornament, symbolising the radiance emanating from the sculpture. The bodhisattva wears a turban, his face is impassive, with a moustache and with an urna between the eyebrows (a feature typical in later iconography only for Buddha) . It was in Gandhara that the iconography of the principal deities in the Buddhist pantheon was formed, so various inaccuracies were tolerated. YIE 229 EMBROIDERIES FROM NOIN-ULA (NORTHERN MONGOLIA) Yulia Elikhina Among the most famous archaeological monuments of the Asiatic Huns (Xiongnu) are the tombs in the Noin-Ula mountains in northern Mongolia. Between 1924 and 1926 eight barrows were excavated by members of the MongolTibetan expedition under the leading Russian explorer and scholar of Central Asia Pyotr Kozlov (1863–1935). All of the inds can be divided according to their provenance into three groups: Xiongnu, Chinese and Central Asian / Iranian.1 The construction of all the excavated barrows is more or less similar. They had a square earth mound arranged to face the diferent points of the compass, and a square burial pit reaching a depth of between 6 and 13 metres. At the bottom of each pit was a plank loor, set upon which was set a double log chamber with a wooden coin inside the inner chamber. The loors were laid with carpets, the walls draped with textiles. Burial objects were placed in the corridors between the chambers. The Noin-Ula barrows are all very similar in date and inventory and can thus all be placed at around the start of the irst millennium. This date is arrived at thanks to the inscription on a glazed cup from barrow 6, which gives the date of production as the ifth year of ‘Tsian Pin’, i.e. 2 BC.2 Much has been written of the Xiongnu by both Russian and foreign scholars. The irst information about the Xiongnu is to be found 230 in Chinese writings from the last decades BC.3 At the turn of the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC the Xiongnu established a nomadic empire, headed by a chanyu, who combined the functions of supreme ruler, commander-in-chief, chief judge and high priest. The Xiongnu were a strong ighting force, persistently raiding neighbouring territories and keeping China in perpetual fear. The result of Xiongnu expansion into the West was the considerable spread of trading and other contacts with the Western world. There was much activity along the routes to the West via the northern oases of eastern Turkestan and northern Mongolia, and then the routes to the south, to northern China. It was via these roads that noble Xiongnu received ine pieces from the Hellenistic Near East. Finds in the barrows of Noin-Ula include wool textiles, tapestries, embroidery and bronze items brought to northern Mongolia from Sogdia, Bactria and Syria.4 Pieces and fragments of wool embroidery using satin stitch and long stitch, found in mound no. 6,5 formed part of the curtain in the burial chamber. This curtain probably once adorned the ceremonial abode of the chanyu who was buried in this tomb. Kamilla Trever thought that one of the embroidered portraits depicted a member of a Central Asian people and identiied it as a work of Graeco-Bactrian art,6 Sergey Rudenko felt that this and similar embroideries might have been made by foreign and Bactrian masters (male or female) living amongst the Xiongnu, in the camp of the chanyu. The latter were related to the Wusun, and from or via them might have been able to establish contact with craftsmen with a knowledge of the art, motifs and techniques of the Central Asian peoples with ancient traditions. Evgeny Lubo-Lesnichenko came to the conclusion that the inds by Galina Pugachenkova of sculptural compositions of the Garaev family in the Chalchayan palace in southern Uzbekistan make it possible to identify Bactria as the place of production of the embroidery. It may come from Sanginiana. Lubo-Lesnichenko emphasised the undoubted likeness between the Noin-Ula embroidery and the sculptural head of one of the Garaev princes. The Xiongnu had many imported items, as is described in diferent sources. Thus Du Du, author of ‘Thoughts on the Border’, wrote: ‘The Xiongnu came to ask the acceptance of their capitulation. The wool covers, patterned curtains, hangings, carpets and fur goods they brought lay in piles like mountains.’7 Further information regarding the development of links between the Xiongnu and the West along the steppe road can be found in the description left by Zhang Qian, who lived in the west of the Xiongnu empire and visited the Ferghana valley, Bactria and Central Asian Mesopotamia.8 Notes 1 E. I. Lubo-Lesnichenko, Китай на шелковом пути [China on the Silk Road], Moscow, 1994, p. 43 2 Ibid. 3 V. S. Taskin, Материалы по истории сюнну [Material on the History of the Xiongnu], issue 1: Moscow, 1967; issue 2: Moscow, 1973 4 S.I. Rudenko, Горноалтайские находки и скифы [Finds in the Gorny Altay and the Scythians], MoscowLeningrad, 1952, pl. LIII–LXIX; S. S. Minyaev, ‘Бактрийские латуни в сюннуских памятниках’ [Bactrian Bronze in Xiongnu Monuments], Бактрийские древности [Bactrian Antiquities], Leningrad, 1976, pp. 109–110 5 Lubo-Lesnichenko 1994 (note 1), p. 230 6 K. V. Trever, Памятники грекобактрийского искусства [Monuments of Graeco-Bactrian Art], Leningrad, 1940, p. 145 7 Lubo-Lesnichenko 1994 (note 1), p. 230 8 Ibid., p. 231 272 Wool embroidery (fragment) 273 Wool embroidery with the face of a youth Central Asia, 1st century BC – 1st century AD Wool; 39 × 28 cm Provenance 1934, Ethnographic Department of the Russian Museum; 1924–1925 found in burial mound no. 6 at Noin-Ula (excavations by Pyotr Kozlov) Inv. MR-1951 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 382, p. 343 Bactria, 1st century BC – 1st century AD Wool; 50 × 32 cm Provenance 1934, Ethnographic Department of the Russian Museum; 1924–1925 found in burial mound no. 6 at Noin-Ula (excavations by Pyotr Kozlov) Inv. MR-1232 Literature Trever 1940, p. 145 This fragment with a ish, turtle and loral ornament is the corner of a piece of wool embroidery. The fabric of gros de Naples weave is of a red-brown colour but was probably initially purple. The embroidery technique involved placing slightly twisted threads on the fabric and then stitching them to the surface with very thin threads (Rudenko 1962, pp. 97–105). This is a fragment of a carpet or drape which covered the burial chamber. Rudenko considered that analogies for all the patterns on this fabric could be found in Greek and Persian art of the second half of the irst millennium BC. Altogether nine fragments of a ceiling carpet were discovered in burial mound no. 6 (Rudenko 1962, p. 120). YIE The fabric support is of canvas weave. The portrait head of a youth is turned through 270 degrees. The embroidery features the face and part of the igure of a man. The image combines a ixed gaze, a straight nose with a small hump and prominent cheekbones. The hair above the forehead is held back by ribbon, and there is no moustache or beard. Twelve fragments of dark red fabric embroidered with wool of various colours were discovered under a coin, this portrait among them (Rudenko 1962, p. 122). YIE 231 Notes CERAMICS FROM KHOTAN Yulia Elikhina Khotan was one of the southern oases on the Great Silk Road, inhabited by diferent peoples: Iranians, Indians, Chinese, Turks and Tibetans. The traditions and cultures of these peoples were to exert considerable inluence on the development of the region’s art. The Khotan pieces in the State Hermitage come from the collection of Nikolay Petrovsky (1837–1908), Russian consul in Kashgar 1882–1902, and were acquired by the Hermitage in 1897. Most of the collection consists of terracotta items, some two and a half thousand pieces in all, which were found in Yotkan. It includes some 40 whole vessels and over 800 fragments. Scholars normally date pottery from Yotkan to the 2nd to 6th centuries AD.1 Khotan had links with China, with the Mediterranean world and the states of Central Asia, and thus the pottery reveals much in common with Bactrian and late Central Asian post-Kushan ceramics.2 Some parallels are also to be found with Chinese bronze vessels and ancient vases. In Khotan vases were made of ine clay with an admixture of loess, which took on a light red or yellowish-red colour after baking. The vessels were shaped on a foot-operated potter’s wheel that was characteristic of advanced craftsmanship – the body of the vessel was made together with the neck. The bases were also 232 made on the wheel, but separately, then stuck to the body of the vessel with liquid clay. The simply shaped handles were moulded by hand. Complex pieces – in the form of birds, for example – consisted of two halves (left and right): impressions were made in open moulds and aixed to surfaces that had been notched in advance, then the seams were smoothed out. The small details were completed with a punch or a stick after the impressions had been aixed. All the moulded ornaments were pressed in lat moulds.3 These igured vessels are reminiscent of ancient vases only in their shape. According to Gosta Montell, the face vessels are based on ancient prototypes.4 They are characterized by a combination of moulded and stamped relief, sculpture and lat ornament, individual elements of which are typical of both Bactrian and Kushan ceramics. The originality of Khotan pottery lies primarily in its artistic ornamentation. Khotan vases were probably made in imitation of metal (gold or silver) vessels.5 Their purpose is unknown. 1 N. V. Dyakonova, S. S. Sorokin, Хотанские древности: Каталог хотанских древностей, хранящихся в Отделе Востока Государственного Эрмитажа, vol. 1: Терракота и штук [Khotan Antiquities: Catalogue of Khotan Antiquities in the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage Museum, vol. 1: Terracotta and Stucco], Leningrad, 1960, p. 33; B. A. Litvinsky, ed., Восточный Туркестан в древности и раннем Средневековье [Eastern Turkestan in Antiquity and in the Early Middle Ages], Moscow, 1995, p. 123; G. Gropp, Archäologische Funde aus Khotan, Chinesisch Turkistan. Die Trinkler Sammlung im Übersee Museum, Bremen, Bremen, 1974, p. 298 2 Litvinsky 1995 (note 1), p. 123 3 Dyakonova, Sorokin 1960 (note 1), p. 25 4 G. Montell, ‘Sven Hedin’s archaeological collections from Khotan’, Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities 7 (Stockholm 1935), pp. 158–159 5 Dyakonova, Sorokin 1960 (note 1), p. 12, nos 1–32, pl. 1–5 274 Vase with Two Faces Khotan, Yotkan (now in Xinjian, China), 3rd – 4th century AD Terracotta; h 7 cm Provenance 1897, collection Nikolay Petrovsky Inv. GA-2158 Literature Caves of a Thousand Buddhas 2008, p. 50 The body of the vessel is formed of by two female faces made from the same mould but facing in opposite directions. Characteristic features are the narrow slanting eyes, broad face, straight nose and small mouth with dimples at the corners. The hair is straight and parted in the middle, and there are earrings in the ears. The vessel’s neck is short and slightly widened towards the top. This is the only bifacial vessel among the Khotan inds. YIE 233 Notes BYZANTIUM THE THIRD ANCIENT WORLD Vera Zalesskaya Byzantium was the last Hellenistic state, in which ‘peoples, ideas and religions were blended and interwoven into a vast unity, from which a new civilisation emerged… The Greek vase was smashed, and the ideas it contained spilled out over the whole world.’1 As early as the 4th century AD Alexander the Great was regarded in the Eastern Roman Empire as the great forerunner of the Byzantine emperors. Ammianus Marcellinus (Ammian; c. 330 – late 4th century), the oicial ideologue of Julian the Apostate (361–363) 2, presented his patron as a reincarnation of Alexander, which subsequently led to a Christian interpretation of the latter’s image. The Byzantine iconography of the Macedonian king, shown to its best efect in the compositions on a 12th-century silver dish that feature the scene of Alexander’s ascension into the heavens on gryphons (cat. 280), is distinguished by a ceremonial compositional structure intended to express, on the one hand, the unity of the world despite the passing of time, and, on the other hand, ‘the moral universum of virtues and vices’.3 In this way the Byzantine emperors, these new Alexanders, came to appear both as cosmocrats and as the successors to the greatest of the Greek heroes. With the passage of time, Alexander’s pagan past, like that of most ancient heroes and gods, was relegated to the background, and he came to be perceived in a 234 Christian moralising spirit. In a poem about Digenis Akritas (10th century), a fearless warrior and defender of the eastern borders of the empire, Alexander igures amidst such Old Testament characters as Samson, Moses and Joshua. The image of the Macedonian king is reinterpreted and linked with the manifestation of Divine Revelation; his ascension is treated as embodying the idea of salvation upon which the faithful can depend. For the Byzantines, Alexander was a personiication of strength and protection. It is no coincidence that his portrait adorned the portals, walls and capitals of temples, the inclusion of the gryphons only serving to reinforce the concept of protection that lay behind the overall composition. Even after several centuries, a number of the cultural phenomena that had typiied the Hellenistic era were still found in Christian Byzantium. This refers primarily to the appearance of syncretistic pagan cults with a Christian interpretation – for example, that of the thrice-reincarnated Egyptian Dionysos in ‘The Dionysiaca’, a poem by Nonnus of Panopolis (5th century), or the Dionysos of Asia Minor, leader of the sea-monsters and personiication of the cosmos (see the fragment of a clay plate with Nereids and a quote from the Christmas homily of Father Gregory of Nyssa, cat. 276) or the silver dish with a maenad feeding a sacred serpent (cat. 277). Reverence for the serpent became typical on both a cosmogonic4 level – in the ‘Christian Cosmography’ of Cosmas Indicopleustes a serpent surrounds the earth like the ocean – and on an apotropaic5 level, demonstrating that Alexander was regarded as a protector from evil. In the Byzantine consciousness Alexander the Great continued to be an almighty ruler to whom one could apply for help, just as one could apply to the Archangel Michael. St John Chrysostom (344–407) wrote that in his time miraculous power was attributed to ancient coins bearing Alexander’s proile, which were worn on headdresses or attached to the feet. Greek ethnographic material reveals that in the new age it became customary for Greeks to wear coins with Alexander’s portrait as amulets. 1 Pierre Briant, De la Grèce à l’Orient. Alexandre Le Grand, Paris, 1987, cited from the Russian edition, Moscow, 2003, pp. 139, 143 2 Roman emperor Flavius Claudius Iulianus or Julianus Apostata became famous during his short reign for his insistence on the worship of Roman gods. 3 B. I. Marshak, ‘Серебряное блюдо со сценой полета Александра Македонского’ [A Silver Dish with a Scene of the Flight of Alexander of Macedon], Византинороссика [Byzantine-Rossica], St Petersburg, 2003, vol. 2: Деяния царя Александра [The Acts of King Alexander], pp. 32–33. 4 Cosmogony – theory relating to the origin of the universe. 5 Apotropaism – intended to warn of evil. 275 Dionysus Rome, 2nd – 3rd century (statuette), 8th – 9th century (inscription) Bronze; h without base 32, with base 37 cm Provenance 1864, chance ind on a bank of the River Don Inv. Do 1862/2 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 387, p. 350 Engraved on the belt is a verse from Psalm 28, which is part of the liturgy of St Cosma of Maiuma and is intoned during the consecration of water at Epiphany. This text regularly appears on pitchers from the 8th and 9th centuries that were used for storing holy water. The cross-shaped monograms on Dionysus’ chest and thighs conceal the phrase ‘Lord, help Bartholomew, son of Timothy’. The statuette probably contained a capsule of holy water. The image of Dionysus, like the grapevine, was often used in early Christian symbolism. VZ 235 Byzantium The third ancient world 276 Dish with nereids (fragment) Asia Minor, late 4th century Clay; 12 × 24.5 cm Provenance 1938, Institute of Books, Documents and Letters; formerly collection Nikolay Likhachev; 1907 bought by Likhachev in Alexandria Inv. ω 823 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 390, p. 353 The dish portrays fantastic water creatures and characters from the Dionysian mysteries that once surrounded the head of an old man (broken of) personifying the world ocean-cosmos. The Greek inscription on the side is part of the Christmas homily of Gregory of Nyssa: ‘Lord, help us, as we contemplate the cave in which Thou art born, to see Thy star in the cavernous darkness.’ This type of composition, combined with a phrase from the Christmas sermon, was a symbolic parallel of Christmas. VZ 277 Dish with maenad feeding a snake Asia Minor, 6th century Silver, gilding, embossed, engraved; Ø 26 cm Provenance 1911, gift of Princess M. G. Shcherbatova; formerly collection Prince Grigory Stroganov; 1873 purchased by him in Russia; probably found in the Kama Valley Inv. ω 285 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 394, p. 357 The obverse shows a maenad feeding a snake, the reverse – the head of an old man surrounded by fantastic sea creatures. Both scenes are linked to the cult of Dionysus as the leader of the sea demons, which in the 3rd century AD began to be interpreted as the embodiment of the cosmos. An invariable feature of Dionysian festivities were sacred snakes, carried by the participants in processions in special baskets called ‘cista mystica’. The snake was also an attribute of the syncretistic deity Sabazios, who combined several of the functions of Attis and Dionysus. YP 236 278 Amphora 279 Trulla with Neptune on the handle Constantinople, 6th century Silver, gilding, embossed, forged, cast; h 48.5, Ø bottom 12.5 cm Provenance 1912, found near the village of Malaya Pereshchepina in the Poltava Region with other Byzantine, Sassanid and barbarian monuments in the burial of Kuvrat, Khan of Great Bulgaria Inv. ω 828 Literature Zalesskaya 2006, no. 23 Constantinople, 641–668 Silver, gilded, embossed, engraved; h 6.8, Ø 13.5 cm Provenance 1927; 1870s, collection Mikhail Obolensky; probably found with a hoard discovered in 1853 in the village of Peshnigort, Solikam District, Perm Region Inv. ω 292 Literature Zalesskaya 2006, no. 50 The amphora is decorated with three embossed friezes of loral ornaments. In the middle of the amphora is a frieze of acanthus tendrils with masks and vases of fruit and roses. The amphora has handles in the shape of dolphins; this corresponds with Hellenistic and Roman traditions, in which this image, symbolising salvation, appeared in the decoration of vessels for grain, oil or wine. On the bottom is a 6th-century assay mark and part of a weight inscription. VZ On the outside of the trulla is a frieze with ishing scenes: ishermen with tridents, harpoons and nets among ish and seashells. On the handle is Neptune spearing a ish with his trident. Along the edge of the trulla are relief igures of dolphins and ish, divided by a seashell. On the bottom are ive control stamps from the time of Emperor Constantine II (641–668). VZ 237 Byzantium The third ancient world 280 Dish with the Flight of Alexander the Great Byzantium, 12th century Silver, gilded, embossed, engraved; h 5.3 – 6, Ø 28 cm Provenance 2003, gift of the government of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Region; 1982 found with a hoard of silver items in the village of Lopkhari in the Shuryshkar District of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Region Inv. ω 1501 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 404, p. 366 In artistic merit, this dish is an exceptional example of Byzantine metalwork from the time of the crusades. The subject of King Alexander’s light on gryphons is set within a whole series of other images and scenes, among them personiications of earth and water, Bellerophon and Pegasus, a character in a chariot, King David enthroned, a horseman at the moment of attack, a horsemanspear carrier, and a youth wearing a crown on a saddled eagle with the disc of the sun in his hands. The so-called ‘populated vine’ forming 281 Cup with the ascension of the prophet Elijah Bulgaria, Boboshevo, 1593 Silver, gilded, embossed, engraved; h 4.5, Ø 18 cm Provenance 1885, collection A. P. Basilewsky, Paris Inv. ω 34 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 409, p. 371 The medallion on the bottom of the cup depicts the prophet Elijah being borne into heaven by a team of four horses. It is surrounded by two rows of arches containing the igures of twelve prophets with open scrolls and full-length depictions of the twelve apostles with codices in their hands. Elijah the prophet on his iery chariot is presented as ‘the Christian Helios’. On the side of the cup is an inscription in Slavonic: ‘This cup was forged in the year 7 thousand 101 [i.e. 1593] on the third day of the month of April in the village of Boboshevo. Master Peter the Scribe, son of Valuzhernich.’ VZ 238 medallions was an old Dionysian motif that came to be identiied in the 12th and 13th centuries with the Tree of Jesse, which in turn was identiied with the Tree of Life. On the reverse of the dish is a cryptogram consisting of twelve symbols, in which one assumes the name ‘Alexander’ can be read. VZ 282 Portrait of a youth 283a Votive hand (hand of Sabazios) Eastern Mediterranean, 5th century (?) Limestone; h 23 cm Provenance 1931, Museum of the Russian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople Inv. ω 91 Literature Zalesskaya 1994, p. 93, no. 80 Eastern Mediterranean, 3rd – 4th centuries Bronze; h 17 cm Provenance 1900 from the Yekaterinburg Region Inv. V. 972 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 388, p. 351 The image demonstrates little individualisation. In style it is deinitely related to portraits from Palmyra. VZ The hand, whose ingers are arranged in the sign of blessing, and whose wrist and palm are covered with portrayals of chthonic creatures and apotropaic symbols, was a tribute to the Asia Minor (originally Thracian) god Sabazios. The depiction of a reclining woman feeding a baby indicates that this ex voto was made in connection with the birth of a child. Magic symbols and depictions of turtles, frogs, lizards and snakes were commonly used on amulets as protection from the evil eye. The cult of Sabazios was connected with the worship of Sol Invictus. NG 283 Plate with Nike, goddess of victory (fragment) Egypt, 4th century AD Jade; Ø 7 cm Provenance 1938, collection Nikolay Likhachev Inv. ω 1296 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 391, p. 354 A bust of Nike in a Corinthian helmet is carved on the inside of the plate; on the side is an ornament of winding palmettes. On the reverse is a rosette with many petals and radiating arrow-shaped leaves. We know of more than twenty plates of a similar shape and structure; they were all found in Egypt and were originally used in the performance of the cult of Serapis, but by the 4th century these plates with images from the Graeco-Roman pantheon that were interpreted as having magical powers had come to be used for the preparation of medicines. Plates in various collections in Germany and the USA that are close in style to the Hermitage piece have been dated to the turn of the 3rd and 4th centuries (Spätantike und frühes Christentum 1984, pp. 476–477, no. 79; pp. 504–505, no. 125). VZ 239 ISKANDER ALEXANDER IN ISLAMIC ART 284–286 Miniature from the Khamse of the Persian poet Nizami (1141–1209), copied by Mahmud in Herat for Sultan Shah Rukh on 10 Rabi’ II 835 (16 December 1431) Paper, gouache, gold; 23.7 × 13.7, text area 17 × 8.7 cm Provenance 1924, Museum of the Baron Stieglitz Central School of Technical Drawing Inv. VP-1000 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 437, pp. 382–384 Nizami’s ‘Khamse’, written in 1431, is one of the most famous works to emerge from the capital city of Herat, which in the 1420s and 1430s was the most important centre for the production of artistic manuscripts in the whole of the Near and Middle East. These three miniatures from the manuscript illustrate the ifth and last poem in the ‘Khamse’: the ‘Iskander-name’ (‘Book about Alexander’). ATA 240 284 Iskander and Nushabe f. 385 b News reaches Iskander of Nushabe, the powerful ruler of Barda. He sets out to visit her in the guise of an ambassador. The queen, however, recognises him as the Macedonian king, orders her maid to bring a portrait of Iskander painted on silk and asks her guest to look at it. The shamefaced Iskander admits his deception. The meeting of Iskander and Nushabe is depicted in most copies of Nizami’s ‘Khamse’, and in the main the Hermitage miniature follows the accepted way of portraying this scene. The queen is seated on the throne in her palace, while Iskander sits before her on a gold chair, holding his own portrait. The picture accurately recreates Nizami’s descripton of the scene, in which the centre of attention is a psychological analysis of the two principal characters, Iskander and Nushabe. 285 Iskander and the hermit f. 393 a In the Derbent Gorge Iskander’s army is besieging a castle where brigands are holed up. The mighty castle walls do not yield. Iskander asks for the assistance of a hermit living in the mountains: the hermit’s prayers prove to be more powerful than the battering-rams – the castle walls collapse. Even in the very earliest manuscripts featuring this subject artists preferred to depict Iskander meeting the holy hermit rather than the collapse of the impregnable stronghold. As the text around the miniature says, the king reverently fell to his knees on entering the cave. The mountainous landscape, with crags descending diagonally to the left, the black cave on the right of the page and the silvery stream in the foreground, creates an appropriate mood. Alongside the cave stands a servant with a candle to light Alexander’s way to the cave. The event occurs at night, as shown by the moon and stars in the dark sky. 241 Iskander Alexander in Islamic art 286 Iskander sees the sirens f. 484 a On his journey around the world Iskander arrives in China, where he learns about the mythical sirens who come to the shore every night, sing songs and play, and is told that anyone who hears their singing loses his reason. Iskander goes to the coast, where he sees the sirens and listens to them. The star-studded night sky, the unusual clifs, the golden sand and the silvery sea correspond to the mystery and extraordinary nature of the event taking place. The appearance of the sea-maidens with their long lowing black hair, the bands of leaves around their hips and wings on their elbows, evidence of their supernatural origin, is traditional. Nizami’s text describes how the sirens’ bodies shone like the sun and moon. The red trunk of the tree in the miniature appears to shine in the light relected from their bodies. 242 287 Iskander and the dying Darius Miniature from the Khamse of the Persian poet Nizami (1141–1209), copied by Hasan alHusseini al-Khatib ash-Shirazi in 948 (1541) Paper, gouache, gold; 27.5 × 17, text area 17.5 × 9.6 cm Provenance 1945, purchased from V. R. Gardin Inv. VP-999, f. 276a Literature Alexander 2007, no. 438, p. 385 Learning that King Darius of Persia has been mortally wounded, Iskander hurries to him and, placing the head of the dying king in his lap, utters words of consolation. This is one of the most popular subjects in illustrations of the ‘Iskander-name’, especially in copies made in Shiraz in the 16th century. The large igures of warriors of the opposing Greek and Persian armies, the light brown colour of the hill shining towards the edge and the blue sky with clouds in broad white strips are characteristic features of miniatures of the Shiraz school. ATA 243 244 329 Mantle clock: The vigil of Alexander the Great Russia, St Petersburg (?), 1830s–1840s (?) From an original by Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1810–1815) PHOTOGRAPHY AND IMAGE MANIPULATION Erwin Olaf ALEXANDER THE GREAT IN WESTERN EUROPEAN AND RUSSIAN ART OF THE MODERN AGE 245 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age THE ‘ALEXANDER ROMANCE’ OF THE PSEUDOCALLISTHENES IN THE WESTERN EUROPEAN LITERARY TRADITION Mikhail Khimin Much was written about Alexander in the classical era. The oicial history of the Macedonian king’s war with Darius III was composed by Callisthenes, Aristotle’s nephew, while reminiscences of the Eastern campaign were written by eyewitnesses: Alexander’s general, Ptolemy, who subsequently became the ruler of Egypt, the naval commander Nearchus, the helmsman Onesicritus, the architect Aristobulus and the master of ceremonies Chares. These accounts, along with the travelling journals of the royal oice (the ephemerides) and the king’s personal letters, later formed the basis for numerous compilatory works: those that have survived are by Curtius Rufus, Diodorus of Sicily, Arrian, Plutarch and Pompeius Trogus (in a synopsis by Justin). A literary tradition about Alexander developed in parallel, inding its apotheosis in the ‘Romance of Alexander’, the irst version of which, entitled ‘The Life of Alexander of Macedon’, appeared in Alexandria in the 3rd century AD. With the passage of time the romance underwent certain thematic alterations. As a result, there were three versions that succeeded one another – researchers have labelled them α, β, δ. In ancient times this later work was wrongly attributed to Callisthenes, who accompanied Alexander as his oicial historiographer, which explains the name given to the text in scholarly literature: the Pseudo-Callisthenes. 246 The Pseudo-Callisthenes’ romance is a complex one: it combines the political pragmatism of the Ptolemy dynasty, the passion of the Ancient Greeks for the unknown, the Hellenistic fashion for anything exotic, particular ideas about man’s destiny in this world, and a tragic sense of fate. According to the Pseudo-Callisthenes, Alexander was the son not of King Philip of Macedon, but of the Egyptian pharaoh Nectanebo, who had lown over from Egypt and appeared to Olympias in the guise of the god Amon. A similar ictitious genealogy, apparently drawn up in the 3rd century BC, was intended to legitimise the power of the Ptolemies, the new Egyptian ruling dynasty: as the successors of Alexander, the son of a pharaoh, they became the lawful potentates of Egypt. In its account of the campaign the romance is also guilty of serious divergences from historical reality. The king begins his conquest of the world in the West with a victorious procession through Sicily and Italy, culminating in the subjugation of Rome. This tale probably appeared in Alexandria after the annexation of Egypt by the Roman Empire. The Alexandrians, who had been forced to exchange their native city’s great past for inglorious dependence on the Romans, sought solace in invention: as a result, their hero Alexander was portrayed as the conqueror of the Romans. As a consequence of this embellishment of the tale, the irst half of Alexander’s campaign headed in the opposite direction. From Rome he proceeded through Africa – irst to Libya, where he visited the oracle and was acknowledged as the son of Amon, then to Egypt, where he founded the city of Alexandria and liberated the people from the Persians, then subjugated the Phoenician city of Tyre, defeated Darius at the Battle of Issus, proceeded through Asia Minor to Ilion, paid homage to the principal heroes of the Trojan War (Achilles and Hector), and, inally reaching Greece, destroyed Thebes (which, however, he ordered to be rebuilt shortly afterwards) and won a victory over the Spartans. Of course, nothing would have prevented the Pseudo-Callisthenes from placing the war against Thebes before the start of the campaign to the West, so partially maintaining chronological accuracy, but he was possibly attempting to link the destruction of Thebes with the war of Sparta against Macedon. Despite the fact that Alexander took no part in this conlict, the challenge of Sparta, under the leadership of Agis, to Macedonian hegemony in Greece in the late 330s BC was part of the history of Macedon, which is why in the pseudo-historical tradition the king himself had to take part in such an important event. The description of the second half of the campaign is more historically accurate. Alexander’s crossing of the Euphrates, his defeat of Darius, the assassination of the Persian king by satraps, the pursuit and execution of the murderers, the war with Porus, the return to Babylon and Alexander’s untimely death – in all these events the historical route is largely adhered to. It is in this part of the campaign, however, that Alexander’s most miraculous adventures occur. Alexander meets all kinds of strange wild beasts on his way: lynxes, tigers, leopards, rhinoceroses and enormous foxes; people with six legs that strike cold fear into the king and the whole of the Macedonian army, and female warriors – the Amazons. In subsequent versions of the romance the presentation of the world of Eastern nature becomes ever more fantastic: animals with six eyes and six heads, crawish the size of a ship, people without heads, with eyes and mouths on their chests or with fur like wild animals, and so on. New tales of the Macedonian king’s exploits are also added. Having become master of the East, Alexander attempts to go beyond the limits of the earth: he is lowered into the sea in a huge transparent box, sets of for the land of darkness where light never penetrates, and is raised up to the sky in a basket pulled by gryphons. The hero is unsuccessful in all these undertakings, however: either he is attacked by a sea monster and cast ashore or his way is barred by birds that speak human language and order him to turn back, though the king does succeed in conining the wild cannibal giants Gog and Magog behind an iron gate he has constructed between the Caspian mountains. Alexander’s series of fantastic exploits is cut short by his death. While still in India, Alexander had visited an unusual oracle in the form of two talking trees draped with the skins of wild animals. From this oracle he learnt of his imminent death at the hand of one of his close friends, and heard that he would never see his homeland and his mother Olympias again. The theme of Alexander’s death is interspersed in the romance with philosophical discourses on the futility of all human aspirations. Conversing with an Indian philosopher, Alexander promises to grant him anything he wishes. The hymnosophist (sadhu) asks Alexander to endow him with immortality, but the Macedonian replies that he cannot do this, being mortal himself. After receiving this refusal, the Indian sage puts this question to Alexander: why does he wage so many wars, spill so much blood and bring people so much sufering if death can take away everything he has in a moment? These words are a vivid relection of the spiritual situation at the time the romance was written. After a comparatively short heyday, all the Hellenistic states had been seized by the Romans: freedom had given place to humiliating dependence, and they were left with only nostalgic reminiscences of their glorious past. This is why Alexander’s indefatigable movement forward and his desire to possess the whole world is contrasted in the romance with the ascetic life of the hymnosophists, who live in an organic union with nature and prefer inaction to the futility of human eforts. The Pseudo-Callisthenes, seeking justiication for the king’s actions, puts into his hero’s mouth the words that it is not man who chooses his path in life but Providence, because even if he, Alexander, had wished to stop the war, Providence would have been bound to resist. In the Middle Ages the ‘Romance of Alexander’ was not only not forgotten, but it was given a brilliant literary development. Arabic, Coptic, Ethiopian, Armenian and many other versions of the Pseudo-Callisthenes’ work were written in the East. Alexander occupied a special place in the Persian tradition, according to which he was the son of Darius II and the lawful successor to the Persian throne. In Western Europe, however, despite the fact that the Pseudo-Callisthenes’ romance was translated into Latin – initially by Julius Valerius in the 4th century AD and later – in the 950s – by the Neapolitan archpriest Leo, the story of Alexander’s life and exploits was not particularly popular among medieval Western readers until the late 11th century. Moreover, under the inluence of Paulus Orosius’ ‘Seven Books of History Against the Pagans’ (early 5th century), in which the Christian historian painted Alexander as a man who could never ‘have his ill of human blood, whether of enemies or allies’ and therefore ‘constantly thirsted for fresh blood’,1 the image of the Macedonian king became far from spotless. The situation changed unexpectedly in the late 11th century, when a very lively interest began to be shown in Alexander. The following two centuries saw the appearance of an extraordinary number of poetic works devoted to the Macedonian king: Alberic de Besançon’s ‘Alexandria’, Lambert de Tort’s ‘Alexander in the East’, Alexandre de Bernay’s ‘The Alexander Romance’, Gautier de Chatillon’s ‘Alexandria’, and many others. This unprecedented burst of interest in the personality of Alexander the Great resulted from the general military and political situation in Western Europe, and most particularly from the Crusades. The principal source for most of the poems was Leo of Naples’ translation of the ‘Romance of Alexander’, entitled ‘A History of Battles’ (Historia de proeliis). While the basic theme of the romance was preserved, Alexander’s exploits were given a new philosophical slant. Discourses on the futility of human life occupied a central place in the medieval poets’ works. It is no coincidence that great popularity was enjoyed at that time in Western Europe by the Talmudic tale of Alexander’s journey to the walls of Paradise. As he approached Paradise, the Macedonian king demanded tributes from its inhabitants. Instead they carried out to him a small stone with a human eye carved into it. For a long time Alexander could not understand what this meant, but then an old Jew by the name of Papas ordered a set of scales to be brought; he put the stone in one cup and an innumerable quantity of gold and precious stones in the other, and they still could not outweigh the stone, but when Papas sprinkled a handful of earth on it, the cup immediately went up. The wise man explained to Alexander that the stone was like a man’s eye: when it is open, nothing can satisfy it, but when it is closed, a handful of earth is suicient. From the late 13th century the number of works devoted to Alexander the Great diminished considerably, and by the 15th century the Pseudo-Callisthenic tradition had virtually completely run its course. But then the Renaissance provoked an interest in authentic ancient history. It was at this time that the irst translations of ancient works about Alexander made their appearance. The legendary image of Alexander that had been formed over the centuries was shattered, and the Macedonian king appeared before European readers as an historical igure, though the thirst of readers for a literary form of narrative was not entirely eliminated and was now satisied by Curtius Rufus’ ‘History of Alexander the Great’, with its dramatic descriptions of battles and speeches rich in emotion. It was viewed as a sort of historical novel, which accounts for its particular popularity. In 1438 the leading Italian humanist Pietro Candid Decembrio translated Quintus Curtius Rufus’ book for Filippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan. A little later it was translated in France by Vasco Fernandes and presented to the young Charles the Bold in 1468, whom he called ‘the Alexander of his day’. There is a legend that provides eloquent evidence of the regard in which the Roman historian was held. King Alfonso V of Aragon and Narva once fell seriously ill and doctors were powerless to cure his ailment. In an attempt to distract himself the king started reading Curtius Rufus. The work lifted his spirits to such an extent that the illness passed, and the king exclaimed: ‘All hail to my saviour, Curtius!’ Centuries later, in the second half of the 19th century, Curtius Rufus’s popularity declined. Many people criticised the Roman historian for his superluous rhetoric and his insuiciently discriminating use of material. A meticulous scholarly study of the history of Alexander’s conquest of the East was initiated, the main source now being Arrian’s ‘Alexander’s Campaign’ by Arrian – a dry account, but the most reliable exposition of historical facts among the surviving ancient works about Alexander. The age of fascination with literary myths about the great Macedonian king has now passed. Today, in the light of numerous scholarly studies of the history of Alexander, those myths appear childishly naïve. Nevertheless, the fantastic image created in the ‘Romance of Alexander’ and developed by subsequent Western European variations still retains its allure. For the Pseudo-Callisthenic literary tradition accumulated universal concepts of the ideal hero, creating an image that was in demand over many centuries, within very diferent historical and cultural contexts. Notes 1 Orosius, III, 18 247 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 288 Quintus Curtius Rufus Q. Curtii Rui Historiae Alexandri Magni Libri superstites ex accurata recognitione Nicolai Blancardi philosophiae et historiarum professoris ordinarii accedunt eiusdem cura lectissimi commentarii Leiden, David Lopez and Franciscus Moiardus, 1649 [21], 1088 pp., map of Alexander the Great’s campaign, three engravings of the oasis of Amon, the constructions of Ancient Greek shields, and a slinger; engraved map of Alexander the Great’s campaign Bound parchment; 18 × 12 cm Provenance 1937, from old reserves Inv. 118348 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 493, p. 468 The ‘History of Alexander the Great’ with commentaries is an early work by the well-known Dutch historian Nicolai Blancardi (1624–1703). Blancardi began his publication of a series of works by ancient authors (Tacitus, Arrianus, Hippocrates) with Curtius Rufus, one of the most popular ancient historians in the 17th century. MK 248 289 Quintus Curtius Rufus Quinte Curce, de la vie et des actions d’Alexandre le Grand. De la traduction de M. de Vaugelas. Edition nouvelle enrichie de igures. Avec les supplemens de J. Freinshemius. Traduits par feu M. du Ryer Amsterdam, Henrij Wetstein, 1696, [12], 612 pp., 10 engravings on separate sheets: The Birth of Alexander, Alexander in Apelles’ Studio, The Magnanimity of Alexander, The Battle of Gaugamela, The Death of Darius, Alexander’s Meeting with the Amazons, The Murder of Parmenion, Alexander and Roxana, Alexander’s Battle in the Fortress of the Oxydraces, and The Death of Alexander Dark brown leather binding, the edges speckled and tinted light brown; 16 × 10 cm Ex libris of Evgeny Lissenkov: ‘EL’ Provenance after 1965, collection Evgeny Lissenkov Inv. 250387 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 494, p. 469 irst conquests in the East, was reproduced in a supplement by the German philologist Johann Freinsheim (1608–1660). His work, published under the title Supplementum in historiam Curtii in 1639, was acknowledged to be the best supplement to Curtius Rufus. MK Dutch edition of Curtius Rufus in a translation by the French grammarian Claude de Vaugelas (1585–1650). The lost beginning of the work, encompassing events from Alexander’s birth to his 290 Fulvius Orsinus (Ursinus) Illustrium imagines, Ex antiquis marmoribus, nomismatibus, et gemmis expressae: Quae exstant Romae, major pars apud Fulvium Ursinum Editio altera, aliquot Imaginibus, et I. Fabri ad singulas Commentario, auctior atque illustrior. Theodorus Gallaeus delineabat Romae ex archetypis incidebat Antuerpae 1598 Antwerp, Plantin, 1606, 8, [4], a total of 168 engravings with portraits of Ancient Greeks and Romans by the Dutch artist Theodoor Galle Light brown leather binding with gold stamping, restored in 1989; the edges tinted brown; 21.5 × 16 cm Ex libris: Императорская эрмитажная иностранная библиотека (Imperial Hermitage Foreign Library). On the reverse of the title page the ex libris of Jan Bucher (?) Provenance 1917, with the Imperial Foreign Libraries Inv. 21374 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 496, p. 471 outstanding Italian philologist and antiquarian Fulvio Orsini (1529–1600) entitled Imagines et elogia virorum illustrium et eruditorum. Using a wide range of material – coins, gems, sculpture, and also narrative sources – Orsini laid the foundations for the comparative method of studying ancient portraits, which subsequently led to him being called ‘the father of ancient iconography’. A second, more comprehensive edition of his work was published in 1606; it included detailed commentaries by the Italian anatomist and botanist Giovanni Faber (1570–1640), a member of the Accademia dei Lincei. Page 5 is engraved with a portrait of Alexander the Great from a coin of Lysimachus. MK Interest in ancient iconography was aroused in the Renaissance period. Andrea Fulvio’s book Illustrium Imagines was published in 1516 and in 1570 came – a work by the 249 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 291 Samuel von Pudendorf Введение въ гисторию европейскую Чрезъ Самуила Пуфендорфия, на немецкомъ языке сложенное, Также чрезъ Иоанна Фредерика Крамера, на латинский преложенное. Ныне же повелением Великаго Государя Царя, и Великаго Князя, Петра Перваго, Всероссийскаго Императора, на российский съ латинскаго переведенное. Печатано въ Санктъпитебурхе, 1718, Декабря въ 5 день (An introduction to European history by Samuel von Pudendorf, set down in the German language, also by Johann Frederick Kramer in Latin. Now by order of the Great Sovereign the Tsar, and Grand Duke, Peter the First, Emperor of all the Russias, translated from Latin into Russian. Printed in SanktPieterburkh, 1718, the 5th day of December) ‘An Introduction to European History’ by the famous German historian Samuel von Pudendorf (1632–1694) was published in a Russian translation by the churchman Gavriil Bestuzhev in 1718 at Peter I’s behest and republished in 1728. The historian Pyotr Pekarsky (1828–1872) deined the place of Pudendorf’s book in the history of Russian enlightenment as ‘the irst guide to general history published in Russia’ (Pekarsky 1862, p. 325). The chapter ‘Concerning Ancient States’ includes an account of Alexander the Great’s campaign and his death. MK St Petersburg, 1718, [2] f., 558, [16] pp. Black leather binding, restored; 29 × 20 cm Provenance 1985, purchased from Akademkniga book shop Inv. 359045 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 498, p. 473 292 Catherine II Продолжение начальнаго учения. В Санкт-Петербурге, при Императорской Академии Наук, 1783 года (Continuation of Primary Instruction. In St Petersburg, at the Imperial Academy of Sciences, 1783) St Petersburg, Imperial Academy of Sciences, 1783, 24 pp., 8 engravings (Cyrus, Justice, The Temple of True Glory, Alexander, Julius Caesar, Snail, The Portrayal of Human Knowledge, map of Greece and the Archipelago) Golden pasteboard binding, the edges tinted pale green; 20 × 13 cm Ex libris: Императорская эрмитажная русская библиотека (Imperial Hermitage Russian Library) Provenance after 1917, with the Imperial Hermitage Libraries Inv. 111222 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 499, p. 474 The ‘Continuation of Primary Instruction’ was published in a series of seven books, compiled by Catherine II for the instruction of her grandsons, the Grand Dukes. All the books were illustrated, but scarcely more than ten copies were printed. In 1783 the ‘Continuation of Primary Instruction’ was published 250 separately – 600 copies without engravings – for primary schools. Alexander the Great occupies the central place among the historical igures mentioned. In Catherine II’s description he assumes the characteristics of an ideal ruler, a worthy example for her grandsons to imitate. In the fourth engraving Alexander is depicted with Aristotle. This subject was presumably not chosen by chance: Catherine used to liken herself to the great Ancient Greek philosopher. MK 293 Quintus Curtius Rufus Квинта Курция история о Александре Великом царе македонском съ дополнением Фрейнсгейма и съ примечаниями Переведена съ Латинскаго языка вторично, Степаномъ Крашенинниковымъ Академии Наукъ Профессоромъ В Санктпетербурге, при Императорской Академии Наукъ, 1809 года. Т. I–II (Quintus Curtius’ History of Alexander the Great, King of Macedon, with a Supplement by Freinsheim and with footnotes. Translated from the Latin by Stepan Krasheninnikov, Professor in St Petersburg, at the Academy of Sciences, 1809, vols I–II) The sixth edition of Curtius Rufus in a translation by Stepan Krasheninnikov (1713–1755). The lost irst two books of Curtius Rufus, covering events from the birth of Alexander to the early events of his Eastern campaign, are covered by the supplement by Johann Freinsheim. Supplements were also written by Christopher Bruno, Christopher Cellari and several others, but Freinsheim’s was the most popular work with publishers of Curtius Rufus in the 17th and 18th centuries. MK St Petersburg, Imperial Academy of Sciences, 1809, vol. 1 [XXI], 519 pp.; vol. 2 [IX], 468 pp. Pasteboard binding, marbled; 2.5 × 12.5 cm Ex libris of Nicholas II; stamps of the Tsarskoye Selo library: BIBLIOTHÈQUE de TSARSKOE SELO Provenance 1917, with the Imperial Library; formerly Nicholas II’s personal library Inv. 107472 (vol. 1), 107473 (vol. 2) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 500, p. 475 294 Elias Herckman Der zeev-vaerts lof Der Zeevaert lof handelende vande gedenckwaerdighste Zeevaerden met de daeraenklevende op en onderganghen der Voornaemste Heerschappijen der gantscher wereld. Zedert haere beginselen tot op den dagh von huyden in VI Boecken beschreven door E. Herckmans Amsterdam, Jacob Pietersz Wachter, 1634, [20], 235, [8] pp., engraved title page, 17 engravings: 16 by Willem Basse, 1– by Rembrandt van Rijn (The Ship of Fortune) Parchment binding; 35 × 20.5 cm Provenance 1946, among displaced cultural valuables Inv. 169226 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 501, p. 476 and headed by Nearchos, along the western coast of Asia from the mouth of the Indus to the mouth of the Tigris. This voyage, subsequently described by Nearchos in the composition ‘Παράπλου ’ (‘Sailing along Coasts’), was the irst encounter of the Greek world with the Indian Ocean and made an indelible impression on contemporaries. The text was illustrated with an allegorical engraving by the Dutch artist Willem Basse showing Alexander the Great receiving a crown from Poseidon. MK The poem by the Dutch traveller Elias Herckman (1596–1644) ‘In Praise of Seafaring’ features the most signiicant events in world history connected with man’s subjugation of the waves. The second chapter of the book, which is devoted to the history of seafaring, opens with an account of the Macedonian naval expedition, sent by Alexander 251 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 295 Flavius Arrian Histoire des expéditions d’Alexandre; Rédigée sur les mémoires de Ptolémée et d’Aristobule, ses lieutenants; Par Flave Arrien de Nicomédie, Surnommé le nouveau Xénophon, consul et géneral romain, disciple d’Épictète. Traduction nouvelle P. Chaussard, Paris, Imprimerie de Charles Pougens, 1802, [VI], 196 pp. Dark brown leather binding with gold stamping, marbled endpapers; 26 × 21 cm Ex libris: Императорская эрмитажная иностранная библиотека (Imperial Hermitage Foreign Library) Provenance after 1930, with the Imperial Hermitage Libraries Inv. 7300 Literature Alexander 2007, cat. 503, p. 478 From the late 18th century ‘Alexander’s Campaign’ (‘Anabasis Alexandri’) by the Roman historian Arrianus was the subject of serious scholarly study by Schmieder (Leipzig, 1798), Ellendeg (Konigsberg, 1832), Kruger (Berlin, 1835, 1848), Geyer (Leipzig, 1851, with 296 Pietro Antonio Domenico Bonaventura Trapassi (Metastasio) Alessandro nell’ Indie. Dramma per musica da rappresentarsi nel teatro da S. Agostino, Il Carnovale dell’ Anno 1785 Genoa, Stamperia Gesiniana, [1785], 71 pp. Pasteboard binding covered with pink silk; 14.5 × 10 cm Ex libris: Count Nikolay Petrovich Sheremetyev Provenance after 1964; formerly collection Count N. Sheremetyev Inv. 259131 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 505, p. 481 The drama ‘Alexander in India’ – about the Macedonian king’s conlict with Porus and their love for the Indian queen Cleophis – was written by the Italian playwrightlibrettist Pietro Trapassi (1698–1782) and dedicated by the author to Countess Weissenwulf Durazzo. The work became extraordinarily popular. Set to music by major composers of the time (Pacini, Hosse, Bach and Handel, among others), the drama was staged in all the countries of Europe and in Russia. An opera with the same title by Francesco Araia, Empress Elizabeth’s court 252 composer, was performed several times in St Petersburg: in 1743, in 1755 (on the occasion of the Empress’ birthday) and in 1759. MK commentaries in 1851) and Sintelis (3rd edn Berlin, 1860, text in 1867). In addition to these, numerous translations were published for the general public. In France the translation by the Parisian writer Pierre Chaussard (1766–1823) was particularly popular. MK 253 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 297 Richard Brompton (c. 1734–1783) Portrait of Grand Dukes Alexander and Constantine, 1781 Oil on canvas; 210 × 146.5 cm Signed and dated bottom right: R. Brompton pinx. 1781 Provenance 1918; from the mid-19th century in the Romanov Gallery in the Winter Palace; commissioned by Catherine II Inv. GE 4491 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 439, p. 388 This portrait of Empress Catherine II’s grandsons, Alexander Pavlovich (1777–1825) and Constantine Pavlovich (1779–1831), painted by Brompton at the ages of four and two respectively, accompanied by symbols of their high distinction – the ribbon and star of the Order of St Andrew – is an outstanding example of the ‘propagandist’ painting of Catherine’s reign. The portrait was produced at the height of Catherine’s enthusiasm for her ‘Greek project’, which included the restoration of the Byzantine Empire, the extension of the borders of the Russian state and the inal expulsion of the Turks from Europe. The project was born after the successful campaigns against Turkey on land and sea in 1770 and the conclusion of a peace treaty of 1775. Catherine’s two grandsons were intended to be the principal characters in the project in the future. Thus the irst-born, heir to the Russian throne, was named after Alexander the Great, while his brother was named in honour of Emperor Constantine of Byzantium. Catherine dreamed of putting Alexander on the Russian throne – bypassing the lawful heir, her unloved son Paul, and Constantine was destined for the throne in Constantinople. The concept embodied in the painting was obvious to contemporaries and the work served as a political declaration. ER 254 298 Sebastiano Ricci (1659–1734) Apelles painting Campaspe, 1713–1714 Oil on canvas; 300 × 261 cm Provenance 1931 from Antikvariat; 1918 in Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow Inv. GE 9639 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 442, p. 392 Pliny the Elder (XXXV, 10) records how Alexander the Great commissioned a portrait of his favourite concubine Campaspe from the celebrated Greek painter Apelles. The artist fell in love with her. Noticing this and admiring the master’s work, Alexander presented his lover to Apelles. The scene was very popular in Western European art in the 16th and 17th centuries, especially in the Netherlands and Italy. The painting was acquired by the State Hermitage with an attribution to Francesco Fontebasso, under whose name it remained for a long time. Later A. Mariuts suggested (1996, personal communication) that the painting should correctly be given to Sebastiano Ricci, based on a comparison with two preliminary sketches by the artist in the Accademia in Venice. Although the painting arrived in the Hermitage only in the 20th century, it came to Russia very early, during the period of the formation of the very irst collections of Western European art in the 18th century. It has been suggested that the painting was produced in England and could subsequently have come into the possession of the Russian ambassador Prince Kantemir, who commissioned and owned paintings by the best-known Venetian artists of the time. We cannot exclude, however, that Ricci had the painting in Venice, since there a copy was made by Antonio Guardi (auctioned in Venice, 14 December 1986). IA 255 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 299 Johann Felpacher (1639–1678) Apelles’ studio (Apelles painting Campaspe in the presence of Alexander the Great), mid-17th century Oil on canvas; 108 × 153 cm Provenance 1919, State Museums Fund; formerly collection Vladimir Dmitrievich Nabokov Inv. GE 6348 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 444, p. 395 256 The scene, based on an account by Pliny the Elder (XXXV, 10), was very popular in Western European art in the 16th and 17th centuries, especially in the Netherlands and Italy. As was the wont with Flemish painters, Felpacher portrayed in detail the interior of the artist’s studio, with sculptures and paintings everywhere, some of which depict episodes from the life of the great general. In the centre is a large equestrian portrait of Alexander being crowned with laurels by Cupid after his latest victory; to the left stands the painting ‘Alexander and Diogenes’. Behind the easel (in the foreground to left) hides Cupid with a bow, iring an arrow into Apelles’ heart. Another version of this composition, though without the artist’s signature, in which the igures of Campaspe on the couch and Cupid to the left were obviously painted later, is in the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, where it is entitled ‘The Studio of a Dutch Artist’. NIG 300 Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696–1770), studio Alexander and Diogenes, 1770–1780 Oil on canvas; 47 × 60 cm Provenance 1925, Yusupov Palace-Museum, Leningrad; in the second half of the 19th century at the Yusupovs Arkhangelskoye Estate, near Moscow; before 1815 purchased by Nikolay Yusupov Inv. GE 5370 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 443, p. 394 According to Plutarch, Alexander, who was well educated and had studied philosophy, dreamed of meeting Diogenes of Sinope, the most radical representative of the cynic school. Striving for simplicity, Diogenes walked the street semi-naked, performed his natural functions in front of everybody (‘What is natural is not shameful’) and lived in a large vessel for grain (‘Diogenes’ barrel’). He became a living sight of Corinth on account of his way of life. According to legend, the Macedonian king visited the philosopher in his strange refuge and ofered to fulil any wish he cared to make. In reply, Diogenes asked Alexander not to stand in the way of the sun. Astonished by the cynic’s reply, the king exclaimed: ‘If I were not Alexander, I should like to be Diogenes!’ The Venetian master Giovanni Battista Tiepolo turned to the story of Alexander the Great on several occasions, both in monumental frescoes and in smaller oil paintings. The original on which the Hermitage canvas is based is currently in a private collection in Bologna (coll. Ettore Modiano). IA 257 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 301 Pietro Antonio Rotari (1707–1762) Alexander the Great and Roxana, 1756 Oil on canvas; 243 × 202 cm Provenance 1769, collection Heinrich von Brühl, Dresden; mid-19th century – 1926, Gatchina Palace Inv. GE 2223 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 445, p. 396 Plutarch relates how, in an attempt to win the approval of the Persian nobility, Alexander married Roxana, captive daughter of a noble Bactrian satrap, the union between Hellas and the East being thus reinforced by the union of two loving hearts. Rotari took up the subject of the moment of Alexander’s meeting with Roxana on a number of occasions, in paintings for Maria Theresa of Austria, Augustus III of Poland and his powerful minister Heinrich von Brühl. The version painted for Augustus III’s gallery in Dresden was a trompe-l’oeil work, a picture with a historical subject over which a semi-transparent veil with interwoven lowers had apparently been thrown. This painting, sold by the Dresden gallery after 1841, appeared recently on the art market, allowing us to conirm that the composition of the two pictures is identical. They difer only in the Hermitage painting’s lack of the veil which chastely concealed, as it were, the secret agreement between Alexander the Great and the beautiful Roxana. It seems likely that Brühl commissioned the Hermitage picture as a variation of the painting in his monarch’s gallery. TB 258 302 Sébastien Bourdon (1616–1671) Augustus at the tomb of Alexander the Great, 1655–1665 Oil on canvas; 44.5 × 56.5 cm Provenance 1772, Crozat collection, Paris; formerly collection Pierre-Jeanne Boyer d’Aiguilles, Aix-enProvence Inv. GE 2111 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 446, p. 398 Suetonius recounts that when Augustus arrived in Egypt he headed for Alexander’s tomb in Alexandria, and ‘inspected the grave and the body of Alexander the Great, which he ordered to be removed from the burial vault; he expressed his reverence for his memory by laying a golden wreath and lowers’. Bourdon’s painting sticks close to Suetonius’ text. For a long time it was thought to be a sketch for a larger painting, now in the Louvre, but Jacques Thuillier has rightly pointed out that both works are versions of the same composition, difering in minor details. The depiction of a man apparently peeping out from behind the right edge of the composition in the Louvre painting has always been thought to be a self-portrait of the young artist. The same igure appears in the Hermitage version, where he is somewhat older, leading to the supposition that the Hermitage canvas represents the artist’s later reworking of a successful composition. NS 259 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 303 Gaspare Diziani (1689–1768) Alexander the Great before the body of Darius, n.y. Oil on canvas; 42 × 62 cm Provenance 1946, via Leningrad State Purchasing Commission Inv. GE 8581 Literature Children of the Gods 2009, no. 95, p. 126 260 Two moments in the story of the confrontation between Alexander and the Persian king Darius were particularly attractive to artists and their clients: Darius’ family thanking Alexander for his magnanimity towards the relatives of his defeated enemy (allowing them to keep all their wealth and privileges), and the victorious Alexander’s discovery on the battleield of the body of Darius, which he ordered to be accorded royal honours. Two famous paintings depicting these scenes from Alexander’s life were in the same Venetian palace, the Palazzo Pisani Moretta. The irst – The Family of Darius before Alexander the Great – was by Paolo Veronese, and the second – Alexander before the Body of Darius – by Giovanni Battista Piazzetta. These two compositions were a source of inspiration and an example for imitation for many Venetian artists, including Gaspare Diziani. In the mid-1740s the artist painted a series of four pictures devoted to Alexander the Great (Balcani collection, Paris) – they include a version of Alexander before the Body of Darius that is close to that in the Hermitage. The latter, however, is more sketchy and rather smaller. Another painting by Diziani on the same theme, also more sketch-like and of similarly small dimensions, is now in the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm. IA 304 Marcantonio Raimondi (c. 1480–c. 1534), after Raphael Alexander ordering the preservation of Homer’s manuscripts, c. 1520 Burin engraving; 26.1 × 40.2 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-272030 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 447, p. 400 This rare subject was depicted by Raphael in grisaille below his ‘Parnassus’ fresco in the Vatican Palace, in the famous Stanza della Segnatura, i.e. the Pope’s study, a holy place from where papal decrees emerged. The fresco itself portrays the greatest poets of all ages, demonstrating the connection between Ancient Rome and modern Rome, which had inherited the greatest spiritual values from the ancient pagan world. The Catholic faith, it proclaimed, had transformed this heritage, and a new Golden Age had begun in papal Rome. Raphael’s chosen theme illustrates accounts by ancient writers of Alexander’s love of Homer. Aristotle ordered a manuscript of the Iliad for the young Alexander, which the king always carried with him. This manuscript came to be known as ‘The Iliad from the Casket’ because, after Alexander received a casket of great value captured from the camp of Darius, he could not decide which of his possessions was most precious to him and therefore worthy to be kept in it, until at last he realised that far more than an royal regalia, he prized his copy of the Iliad – and it was this that he placed in the casket. Later versions describe how Alexander ordered Homer’s manuscripts to be placed in a irmly soldered tomb in Alexandria, so that they would survive for his descendants. This painting fuses the two themes demonstrating that Alexander valued the great poet above anything. In portraying the Macedonian king’s reverence for the legacy of Homer, Raphael was appealing to the authority of the ancient world and of the great conqueror, thereby conirming his own status in papal Rome. AI 261 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 305 Ugo da Carpi (1480–1532), after Parmigianino Diogenes, 1520–1530 Chiaroscuro in three colours; 47.9 × 35 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-120429 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 448, p. 402 In response to the deinition of Plato (of whom Diogenes was not over fond) that man was a two-legged animal without feathers, the philosopher Diogenes grabbed a cockerel and plucked it, mocking Plato’s pretentious profundity. This engraving contains numerous allusions to Diogenes’ life: the barrel, the cloak that did not hide his nakedness but emphasised it, the books, the plucked cockerel. This portrayal of Diogenes is unique – Parmigianino’s iconography was probably devised by the artist himself, with the aim not only of depicting a nihilist who rejected everyone and everything, a ‘raving Socrates’ (in Plato’s expression) and a halfmad eccentric, as he was frequently subsequently portrayed (especially by northern artists), but as a man of creativity, endowed with titanic strength. AI 262 306 Antonio Tempesta (1555–1630) Alexander cutting the Gordian knot, 1596 Etching; 20.2 × 28.3 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-284389 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 449, p. 404 In the second half of the 16th century, after the High Renaissance had formed the image of Alexander as a magnanimous, wise and enlightened king, as beautiful as a young god, numerous frescoes series with scenes from his life appeared in Rome, gracing the castles and palaces of aristocrats seeking to draw parallels with their own activities. The Greek Alexander was far more popular than any Roman emperor. The series of twelve etchings by Antonio Tempesta, a popular late 16thcentury Roman draughtsman and engraver, is conirmation of this Roman fashion for the story of Alexander. Published in 1596 and devoted to Alexander’s campaign into the depths of Asia, consisting of battle and hunting scenes, it was the irst printed series that was not an illustration of a text, but itself the narration of a tale, like a story book. The irst etching shows how Alexander, having already conquered half of Asia Minor, arrived in the city of Gordium, where there was a chariot with its shaft held fast to the yoke by a complicated knot. Nobody had ever been able to unravel this knot, and legend had it that whoever managed to do so would become ruler of the world. Sensing that he also would not be able to unravel the knot, Alexander cut through it with his sword, an act which has come to symbolise the rapid and simple solution of a diicult problem. AI 263 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 307 Domenico del Barbieri (1506–c. 1566), after Francesco Primaticcio Alexander’s banquet in Persepolis, mid-16th century Etching, burin; 24.9 × 36.5 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-368577 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 450, p. 406 Primaticcio depicted this rare subject in the apartments at the chateau of Fontainebleau belonging to the king’s mistress, the Duchesse d’Etampes. The use of episodes from Alexander’s life was inspired by Italian fashion in Rome, where numerous paintings on the subject adorned the palaces of the Roman nobility, but the life of Alexander 264 also had special signiicance for the French king, himself an admirer of Italian art. Since the time of Gothic art, of wandering minstrels and the French version of the ‘Alexander Romance’ by Lambert le Tort, Alexander had represented for the French the epitome of ancient gallantry and chivalry. In the French interpretation of the story of the Macedonian king, beauty, youth and reinement were more important than courage, intellect and magnanimity. French kings were lattered by comparison with Alexander as a powerful ruler, but they were perhaps even more interested in the more intimate details of his biography than in his conversations with philosophers and his numerous battles and victories. Plutarch, describing the banquet in Persepolis, related that the warriors’ lovers feasted with them. The choice of such a subject for the duchess’ apartments is thus particularly itting. AI 308 Gérard Audran (1640–1703), after Charles Le Brun Alexander the Great crossing the Granicus, 1672 Etching, burin, printed on four sheets; 71.8 × 139.3 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-131356 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 451, p. 408 Le Brun painted his series of canvases ‘The History of Alexander’, also known as ‘The Triumphs of Alexander’, for Louis XIV in the irst half of the 1660s. Their purpose was the gloriication of the king as the new Alexander. In 1665 Jean Racine, following the nascent ideology, dedicated his play ‘Alexander the Great’ to Louis XIV. Le Brun’s celebrated series was an allegory of the reign of the Sun King and its fame soon spread. Huge tapestries based on the paintings were made at the Gobelins factory and the canvases were reproduced on numerous occasions. Engravings from ‘The History of Alexander’ were oicially distributed throughout Europe by the French Crown as part of the famous ‘Cabinet du Roy de France’. DO 265 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 309 Gerard Edelinck (1640–1707), after Charles Le Brun The magnanimity of Alexander the Great (The tent of Darius), 1670s Engraving, printed on two sheets; 70 × 91 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-132528 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 452, p. 410 Engraving, in reverse, of the painting of the same name at Versailles. Le Brun’s painting was the irst of a series, and its success led the king to commission further canvases. As can be traced from 266 the inscriptions in the engraving, Le Brun worked on ‘The tent of Darius’ at Fontainebleau, to which he was invited by the young Louis XIV in 1661, shortly after the artist was irst presented to him by Cardinal Mazarini. Le Brun was given rooms in the palace and invited to paint a picture on any subject, as long as it was connected with the story of Alexander the Great. As an astute courtier, Le Brun chose a subject that would latter the king with its high-lown morality. The moralising signature beneath Edelinck’s engraving reveals the idea behind the canvas: the valour by which a ruler is known lies in his victory over himself. Félibien devoted a whole essay to the painting in 1663, in which his moral interpretation was set forth in detail: in his gesture of magnanimity, he declared, Alexander had surpassed even himself, the victor of all peoples. DO 310 Gérard Audran (1640–1703), after Charles Le Brun The Battle of Arbella (Issus), 1674 Etching and engraving, printed on four sheets; 72 × 158.5 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-131357 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 453, p. 412 The engraving faces in the same direction as the painting in the Louvre. It shows Alexander’s second decisive victory over Darius, following which Alexander could be proclaimed rightful sovereign of Asia. The course of the battle had been described in detail by Quintus Curtius, and Le Brun followed the text almost word for word. Alexander is shown with a sword in his hand, ighting his way through to Darius’ chariot, which is decorated with sculptures of Persian gods. The eagle of victory hovers above his head. Le Brun’s complex composition brilliantly conveys the tension and chaos of a critical moment in a great battle. Our attention is drawn to a Persian rider and horse at the far right of the picture, who seem to be covered in strange protective scales. DO 267 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 311 Gérard Audran (1640–1703), after Charles Le Brun Alexander the Great’s triumphal entry into Babylon, 1675 Etching and engraving, printed on two sheets; 72 × 93.2 cm Provenance unknown Inv. OG-132616 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 454, p. 413 Engraving in reverse of the painting in the Louvre, which Le Brun completed in about 1665. Alexander is shown triumphantly entering the city in a chariot drawn by elephants. Warriors carry captured trophies. In the background are the famous gardens of Semiramis. DO 268 312 Gérard Audran (1640–1703), after Charles Le Brun The wounded Porus before Alexander the Great, 1678 Etching and engraving, printed on four sheets; 71.2 × 159.1 cm Provenance unknown Inv.OG-131358 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 455, p. 414 The last two engravings after Le Brun’s paintings deal with the victory over Porus and relate to Alexander’s Indian campaign as described by Arrian. This was one of Porus’ irst appearances in art of the modern age. The engraving is in the same direction as the painting in the Louvre, which was originally intended to show the death of Darius. Le Brun subsequently altered the theme, possibly after the publication in 1665 of Racine’s play ‘Alexander the Great’, which ends with Alexander’s magnanimous command that Porus remain ruler of all his lands. In reply Porus was forced to admit that Alexander possessed greater virtue than he did: ‘Your gallantry is equal to your glory’, he says to Alexander (for Alexander – read Louis XIV, ‘the new Alexander’) . Thus the series of pictures from the history of Alexander ended on a high note. Although several years later Le Brun thought of adding a sixth canvas, ‘The Courage of Porus’, the idea was never fully realised. DO 269 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 313 Bernard Picart (1673–1733), after Charles Le Brun The courage of Porus Etching and engraving, printed on three loose sheets; 70.2 × 49.2 cm (1st sheet), 70.6 × 55 cm (2nd sheet), 70.1 × 49.8 cm (3rd sheet) Provenance unknown Inv. OG-272693, OG-272694, OG-272695 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 456, pp. 415–417 ‘The courage of Porus’ was Le Brun’s last painting on a subject from the history of Alexander the Great. Started after all the others in the series, it remained uninished and the original is now lost. Drawings and engravings are the only surviving evidence of the artist’s idea. The composition gloriies Porus, Alexander’s alter ego, and the moralising inscription beneath the engraving develops the theme of virtue. As a good king should, the valiant warrior Porus ights for his people to the last drop of his blood. The engraving is printed on three sheets, which are usually stuck together to form a single image. In this case, the sheets are not joined, allowing us to see parts of the composition around the edges that are not usually visible. DO 270 271 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 314 Francesco Solimena (1657–1747) Alexander taming Bucephalus, n.d. Red chalk, red wash, over a black chalk sketch; 20.5 × 32.2 cm Provenance 1769, collection Heinrich von Brühl, Dresden Inv. OR 7738 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 457, p. 418 Philonicus the Thessalian sold Philip the horse Bucephalus, but none of the king’s retinue could cope with the beast. Angry, Philip decided that it was impossible to mount the horse and wished to return it to its owner but Alexander volunteered to tame Bucephalus and obtained his father’s reluctant consent. Despite his father’s lack 272 of faith in his abilities, Alexander had observed and understood the reason for the horse’s behaviour – it was frightened of its own shadow. He turned Bucephalus round to face the sun, after which the horse obeyed its trainer. Alexander returned to the royal retinue, proud of his victory, and his father was moved to pronounce the phrase that was to be repeated by all historians and writers after Plutarch: ‘Seek a kingdom for yourself, my son, for Macedon is too small for you’ (Plutarch, Alexander, VI) IG 315 Unidentiied Netherlandish (?) artist, after Perino del Vaga Alexander cutting the Gordian knot, c. 1600 316 Unidentiied Netherlandish (?) artist, after Perino del Vaga Alexander and the Family of Darius, c. 1600 Pen and brown ink, brown wash, white heightening and gouache on greenish-blue paper; 34.8 × 26.7 cm Provenance 1768, collection Count Charles Cobenzl, Brussels Inv. OR 7210 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 458.1, p. 420 Pen and brown ink, brown wash, white heightening and gouache on greenish-blue paper; 35.4 × 22.3 cm Provenance 1768, collection Count Charles Cobenzl, Brussels Inv. OR 7209 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 458.2, p. 421 273 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 317 Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778) Monte Cavallo, 1750 Etching; 39 × 54 cm (image), 55.2 × 80 cm (sheet) Provenance unknown Inv. OG 122382 Previously unpublished This etching from Piranesi’s series ‘Vedute di Roma’ shows a panorama of the Piazza di Monte Cavallo (literally ‘Horse Mountain Square’) , as the square on the highest of the seven hills of Ancient Rome, the Collis Quirinalis, was known in the Middle Ages. It was so named because of the two gigantic sculptures that have stood on the hill since the days of the Roman emperors. The pair of naked heroes 274 taming horses were well known from the Middle Ages onwards; they have never been moved and are still one of the sights of Rome. In the 15th century the legend arose that they were the work of Phidias and Praxiteles and that they were based on the story of the taming of Bucephalus by Alexander the Great, as recounted by Plutarch (see cat. 314). Moreover, although Phidias died before Alexander was born, it was said that Phidias and Praxiteles had sculpted their groups in a creative competition for the title of irst sculptor at the court of Alexander. This attribution to the Greek sculptors was retained in the inscriptions beneath Piranesi’s engraving describing the points of interest in the square, though even in the 16th century many experts on the ancient world were already expressing doubts about their authorship and the correct identiication of the subject. AI 318 Guillaume Coustou the Elder (1677–1746) Horse tamer (America), before 1785 Bronze; h 59 cm Provenance 1785, heirs of General-Adjutant Alexander Lanskoy Inv. N sk. 211 (pair to cat. 319) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 460.1, p. 423 319 Guillaume Coustou the Elder (1677–1746) Horse tamer (Europe), before 1785 Bronze; h 59 cm Provenance 1785, heirs of General-Adjutant Alexander Lanskoy Inv. N sk. 212 (pair to cat. 318) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 460.2, p. 423 These bronze statuettes are slightly altered versions of marble statues made by Guillaume Coustou between 1740 and 1745 for a terrace in the park at Marly. His idea was based on the marble equestrian sculptures on the Quirinale Hill in Rome which were until the 18th century often seen as portrayals of Alexander the Great and his faithful steed Bucephalus. The identiication of the ancient monument has changed over the centuries (other names include the The Hermitage bronzes, distinguished by the high quality of their execution, are early copies of the celebrated Marly horses. AV Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux; The horses of Diomedes; The horse tamers from Monte Cavallo). Coustou’s group enjoyed considerable success. It avoided destruction during the French Revolution and in 1794 was installed in Place de la Concorde in Paris near the start of the Champs Elysees (it is now in the Louvre). Its concept – based on Alexander’s taming of Bucephalus and his role as founder of a world power – struck a special chord in Napoleonic France, becoming a symbol of the newly created empire. The Marly horses are undoubtedly among the masterpieces of 18th-century French sculpture. They were copied many times in the 18th and 19th centuries, most frequently in the form of small bronze casts. 275 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 320–325 Antoine-Marin Melotte (1722–1795) Six reliefs: The military triumphs of Alexander the Great Luik / Liège, c. 1777–1780 Boxwood Provenance 1919, Marble Palace Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461, pp. 424–429. Little is known of the life and work of the wood-carver and cabinetmaker Melotte. These reliefs, based on compositions by Charles Le Brun for Louis XIV, were possibly commissioned by Catherine II. 276 The Marble Palace, from whence the reliefs entered the Hermitage, was intended by Catherine II for her favourite Grigory Orlov. The decoration of the palace gloriied the military exploits of the Orlov brothers: the reliefs featuring the greatest warrior of ancient times would thus have itted perfectly into the overall scheme. IY 320 The magnanimity of Alexander the Great 72 × 95 cm, in four sections Inv. N. sk. 1426 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.3, p. 427 One of the most famous episodes from the life of Alexander. After victory over the Persians, Alexander and Hephaestion visited the tent of the Persian queens. Darius’ mother, wife and two unmarried daughters, who had been taken prisoner along with their servants, were treated with all royal honours, which brought Alexander almost as much renown as his military victories. 321 Alexander the Great’s entry into Babylon 72 × 95 cm, in two sections Inv. N. sk. 1427 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.4, p. 427 From Arbella (Issus) Alexander proceeded directly to Babylon, which threw itself on his mercy. He was warmly greeted by the Babylonians, passing through the city along luxuriously appointed streets strewn with lowers and adorned with silver altars, on which incense burned. 277 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 322 Alexander the Great crossing the Granicus 81 × 160 cm, in two sections Inv. N. sk. 1428 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.1, p. 425 In both composition and detail this relief corresponds to the engraving by Gérard Audran after Le Brun’s painting (cat. 308). The Hermitage also has an engraving after the same Le Brun composition by Pieter van Gunst. 278 This is the irst composition of a series glorifying Alexander’s exploits and encapsulates the belief that bravery overcomes all diiculties. After crossing the Granicus, Alexander attacked the greater Persian army and succeeded in putting it to light. 323 Alexander the Great’s victory over Porus 81 × 160 cm Inv. N. sk. 1429 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.6, p. 429 Le Brun’s painted composition was engraved by Gérard Audran (cat. 312). The scene captures the moment when the wounded Porus was brought before Alexander. In admiration of his courage and determination Alexander not only treated him with respect, but also gave him a kingdom greater than that he had previously possessed. 324 Porus deserted by his army 81 × 160 cm, in three sections Inv. N. sk. 1430 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.5, p. 428 Le Brun’s composition was engraved by Gérard Audran (cat. 313). The scene shows a dramatic moment in the battle against the Indian king Porus, who was betrayed by his troops. The brave king managed to kill and wound several of them, and even his elephant fought furiously. 325 Alexander the Great’s defeat of Darius Persian Empire, opening the way for his conquest of the world. 81 × 160 cm, in three sections Inv. N. sk. 1431 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 461.2, p. 426 Le Brun composition’s composition was engraved by Gérard Audran (cat. 310). The relief depicts the famous Battle of Arbella (Issus), which ended with the utter rout of Darius’ army. After numerous victories, Alexander inlicted such a defeat on Darius that he brought an end to the 279 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 326 Draughtsman: Alexander the Great Germany, 12th century Walrus ivory, carved; Ø 5.5 cm Provenance 1885, collection A. P. Basilewsky, Paris Inv. F.21 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 464, p. 432 Draughts was commonly played across Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. The pieces were made from various materials including ivory and the most precious sets featured delicate carving. Here we see a fantastical treatment of a legendary subject in the story of Alexander: his apotheosis and his light into the sky. He was said to have sat in a basket pulled by eagles, with horses’ livers suspended in front of them to encourage them to strain forwards and thus ly upwards. In this medieval interpretation – the only known depiction of the subject on an ivory draughtsman – Alexander is shown sitting on the two birds, his legs wrapped tightly round their necks. 327 Aquamanile: Aristotle and Campaspe Northern Germany, late 14th – early 15th century Bronze, cast; h 32.6 cm Provenance 1885, collection A. P. Basilewsky, Paris Inv. F 92 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 462, p. 430 The subject of Aristotle and Campaspe (Phyllis) appeared in medieval Europe in the early 13th century in the ‘Lay of Aristotle’. In the Lay, Aristotle warns the young Alexander of the temptations of the lesh, advising him to shun the society of his favourite concubine. Alexander follows these instructions, but tells everything to Campaspe, who decides to take her revenge. She makes the old philosopher fall in love with her so that he completely loses his head. She then demands that he take her through the palace gardens riding on his back. Alexander watches through a window and Aristotle, unabashed, exhorts him to learn his lesson from this example. In some grotesque forms the theme is interpreted as a parody of courtly love. EN 280 Stylistic features such as the face, wings and ornamental border link this draughtsman with others made in Cologne in the mid-12th century. MYK 328 Plate: Alexander conversing with Diogenes Italy, Urbino, Francesco Durantino, in the studio of Guido di Merlino, 1540–1550 Maiolica; Ø 26.5 cm Inscription on the reverse in blue: Alesander cum diogine / loguitur (Alexander conversing with Diogenes). Along the top the marriage coat-of-arms of the Augsburg families of Hörwarth and Schellenberg Provenance before 1826, collection D. P. Tatishchev Inv. F 851 Literature Kondakov 1891, no. 187, p. 188 The plate is part of a service made for Johannes Hörwarth and Helen Schellenberg, who married in 1528. Both of them came from wealthy merchant families in Augsburg and Nuremberg, who traded extensively in Italy. The service has been attributed to the Urbino studio of Guido di Merlino, where Francesco Durantino was working in the 1540s. There are thirteen items with this coat-of-arms: one in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, three in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Olga Mikhailova attributed this plate to the studio of Guido di Merlino. The inscription on the reverse of the plate is similar to that on a cup by Francesco Durantino, also in the Hermitage, depicting the embarkation of the army of Scipio the African. EI 281 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 282 329 Mantle clock: The vigil of Alexander the Great Russia, St Petersburg (?), 1830s–1840s (?) From an original by Pierre-Philippe Thomire (1810–1815) Bronze, cast, embossed, gilded; 70 × 30 × 70 cm Provenance 1938, State Museums Fund Inv. Erg 5016 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 463, p. 431 This clock, made by Russian artists in bronze, is based on a well-known work, Mars, by the French master Pierre-Philippe Thomire. Instead of Mars, however, the Hermitage piece portrays the military leader and conqueror Alexander the Great (with a round shield). The story is taken from Ammianus Marcellinus. Having cultivated strength of will and diligence during his studies, the young Alexander would prevent himself falling asleep by holding a ball in his hand: as soon as he felt sleepy and his hand relaxed, the ball would fall into a copper cup with a crash, waking Alexander up. AG 330 Wine goblet with The magnanimity of Alexander the Great Germany, Augsburg, master Esaias II Busch, before 1705 Silver, copper, embossed, gilded, enamelled, painted; h 13.2, Ø upper edge 9, Ø base 7.9 cm Provenance 1922, collection Counts Stroganov Inv. E 9200 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 465, p. 433 Conical goblet on a short round base with embossed loral ornament, the copper body painted in enamel with the magnanimity of Alexander the Great (otherwise known as the family of Darius before Alexander the Great), based on an engraving by Gerard Edelinck after the painting by Charles Le Brun (c. 1660–1661), now in the Louvre. Helmut Seling dates this piece to 1708–1710 (see Lopato 2002, no. Ag 164), but the character of the city stamp suggests an earlier date. Esaias Busch II (1641–1705) was the son of the jeweller Esaias Busch I; he became a master in c. 1670 and an assay master 1689–1692. ML 283 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 331 Tankard with Alexander conversing with Diogenes Poland, Gdansk, Peter Rode III, 1707–1717 Silver, forged, cast, embossed, gilded; h 39, w (with handle) 34.5, Ø base 26 cm Provenance 1908, collection Grand Duke Alexey Alexandrovich Inv. E 443 Literature Polish Silver 2005, p. 78 The body is embossed with the depiction of a thick forest, against the background of which Alexander the Great stands amongst his soldiers, standing before Diogenes sitting in his barrel. The Polish coatof-arms of Sulima is engraved in the centre of the lid with the letters ST; on the other side of the coat-ofarms are the letters SU. The handle is in the shape of a double scroll with stylised shells and with a cast head at the top. ML 284 332 Plaque with the Battle of Issus Italy or France, second third of the 19th century Porcelain (biscuit), polychrome painting; 17.5 × 34.4 cm Provenance since 1859 in the Imperial Hermitage Treasure Gallery Inv. E.32 Previously unpublished A vast mosaic depicting Alexander the Great’s battle with the Persian king Darius III, discovered on 24 October 1831 during excavations in Pompeii and since 1843 in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, is one of the best-known works of ancient art. Its discovery immediately inspired reproductions on a reduced scale and using simpler techniques to satisfy the desire of numerous famous tourists for souvenirs for their own collections. LL 333 Figure of Alexander the Great from the series Four Kingdoms Meissen Porcelain Factory, model by Johann Joachim Kändler and Peter Reinicke, c. 1750–1753 Porcelain, overglaze painting, gilding; h 21.5 cm Provenance 1941, collection B. A. Shelkovnikov Inv. Z.F. 25259 Literature Butler 1977, no. 175 his power. For Nebuchadnezzar it was a winged lion, for Cyrus – a bear, for Alexander the Great – the four-headed dog Cerberus, and for Julius Caesar – a dragon. LL The subject of the Four Kingdoms derives from the Bible (Daniel, VII, 1–28) . In Europe – including in Saxony – during the irst third of the 18th century the symbolism of the four Biblical monarchies was used as a means of demonstrating the ambitions of the ruling elite. It was then, for instance, that Dresden master Hans Schiferstein made a cabinet of black wood for the Elector of Saxony Johann Georg I (1611–1656), decorated with four ivory igures representing the kingdoms of Assyria, Persia, Greece and Rome. Each of the kingdoms is personiied by a prominent ruler of ancient times: Assyria by Nebuchadnezzar, Persia by Cyrus the Great, Greece by Alexander the Great and Rome by Julius Caesar. Each monarch is accompanied by an attribute, a mythical symbol of 334 Snufbox with portraits of Grand Dukes Alexander and Constantine France, Paris, Louis Cousin, 1781–1782 Gold, lapis lazuli, glass, pearls, ivory, rock crystal, enamel, embossed, painted; 2.2 × 6.8 × 5.2 cm Marks: Paris – S – 1781–1782, master Louis Cousin, charge-décharge Henri Clavel, 1780–1789 Provenance since 1859 in the Imperial Hermitage Treasure Gallery Inv. E-4490 Literature Previously unpublished or monograms, is based on the portraits of the Grand Dukes (see cat. 297) painted by Richard Brompton, who worked in St Petersburg from 1778 to 1783. OK The centre of the lid features a miniature portrait of Grand Dukes Alexander and Constantine as children, with the ribbons of the Order of St Andrew. The snufbox was probably commissioned by someone at Russian court, and its decoration has a great deal in common with works by both French and Russian contemporaries. The miniature on the lid, which does not bear any inscriptions 285 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 335 Intaglio: bust of Alexander the Great Germany, Nuremberg, Johann-Christoph Dorsch (1676–1732), irst third of the 18th century Sard, gold; 3.5 × 2.9 cm Provenance 1788 (?), collection Joseph Angelo de France, Vienna Inv. I 4286 Zvz 5784 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 466, p. 434 Eight-faceted intaglio with Alexander the Great’s proile in the centre, busts of Seleucus, Antigone, Cassander and Ptolemy on the four corner facets and multi-igure compositions based on episodes from the history of the legendary ruler. It formed part of the famous collection of engraved gems purchased by Catherine II that had once belonged to Joseph Angelo de France (1691–1761) – diplomat, banker, antiquarian, collector and General Director of the Imperial Treasure-House, Kunstkammer and Gallery in Vienna. In the mid-18th century the compositions on the side facets were linked to engravings based on Charles Le Brun’s celebrated series of paintings on the history of Alexander (1661–1669; now in the Louvre) : above the bust of Alexander the Great we see Alexander and Hephaestion in the tent of Darius’ wives, to the right is the Battle of Arbella, to left Alexander Crossing the Granicus, and below is Alexander’s Triumphal Entry into Babylon. Although the irst and last of these carved scenes convey the original with incredible accuracy, the battle scenes difer signiicantly from the prints. The portrayal of Alexander in the centre relates to a type that was widespread in glyptics and medals from the Renaissance onwards. Prototypes for the busts on the corner facets may have been found in ancient coins or engravings of them known from the volumes of prints that were so popular in the 18th century. SK 336 Intaglio: Alexander the Great and Hephaestion before the family of Darius (The magnanimity of Alexander) Italy, Giulio or Giovanni Fabbri, late 18th – early 19th century Sardonyx; 7.3 × 10.2 cm Signature bottom right (in reverse): FA BBRI Provenance 1925, State Museums Fund; 1919–1924 Yusupov Palace-Museum, Petrograd; formerly Princes Yusupov collection Inv. I 12475 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 467, p. 435 The multi-igure composition is based on Charles Le Brun’s 1661 painting, engraved by Gerard Edelinck (cat. 309). Gem-engravers frequently took up this image, although it was diicult to accommodate all twenty igures of the original on the tiny surface of a stone. Like a number of similar but smaller 18th-century gems, well-known from casts made by James Tassie (Raspe 1791, nos 9728–9732), the Hermitage intaglio is somewhat schematic and static. Details of the clothes, trees and tent in which the action takes place are only 286 outlined, and many elements of the landscape are omitted. The intaglio evidently attracted Prince Nikolay Yusupov, who had a clear partiality for large carved stones, because of its grandeur and moralising content. It is not clear whether the engraver whose name features on the gem was the father or the son. From 1796 they had a joint studio in the Via del Babuino in Rome, moving to the Corso in 1800 and in 1804 to the Via Gregoriana, where it remained active until 1818. YOK 337 Cameo: bust of Alexander the Great Italy or Germany, 17th century Agate, rock crystal, gold; 4.5 × 3.2 cm Provenance c. 1785, Imperial Academy of Sciences, on a cup from the collection of Peter I Inv. K 417 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 468, p. 436 Alexander appears as Minerva. The bust is carved in high relief and particular expressiveness achieved through the complex plumage of ostrich feathers on his helmet. Covering Alexander’s chest is a shield with the mask of Dionysus. The cameo has an interesting history. What we see today is a ‘second reworking’: the original piece was fragmented, cut along the contour of the igure and aixed to a well-polished convex piece of rock crystal. It was evidently in this form that the cameo (with over two hundred others) was set into the outer surface of a cup that was presented to Peter I on 12 July 1716 by King Christian VI of Denmark, during a ceremonial dinner in Copenhagen. The cameo can be seen on a watercolour depiction of this cup by Otto Elliger. This unusual baroque item was transferred to the Kunstkammer by Catherine I only after her husband’s death in 1725. In 1785, however, Princess Ekaterina Dashkova, who had recently assumed the post of Director of the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences, gave the cameo cup to Catherine II. Despite her veneration of the memory of Peter I, the Empress ordered the cup to be broken up so that she could add the cameos to her collection of engraved gems. YOK 338 Cameo: bust of Alexander the Great Italy or Germany, late 16th – 17th century Sardonyx, gold; 3.1 × 2.4 cm Provenance before 1794 Inv. K 2565 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 469, p. 436 As in cat. 337, it is easy to identify here the image of the young Alexander, known not so much from ancient monuments as from the later mythologised iconography that associated him very closely with the image of the goddess Minerva. It also reveals the inluence of Charles Le Brun’s great series of historical paintings depicting the exploits of Alexander the Great. YOK 287 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 339 Intaglio: portrait of Demosthenes Italy, late 17th – early 18th century Cornelian; 1.6 × 1.2 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. GR 25098 (Zh.4903 ) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 470, p. 437 340 Intaglio: Alexander hunting a lion France, 18th century Glass; 2.4 × 3.7 cm Inscription: T. RANIANI Provenance 1885, Princes Golitsyn collection, Moscow Inv. GR 25384 (Zh.5189) Literature Alexander 2007, no. 471, p. 437 341 Intaglio: Alexander the Great with the horn of Amon Great Britain, William (1748–1825) and Charles (1749–1795) Brown, c. 1796 Cornelian, gold; 3.4 × 2.9 cm Signature (in reverse): BROWN Provenance 1796 Inv. I 3710 Literature Kagan 2010, no. 189 288 There are numerous portrayals of Demosthenes in which the orator is depicted with a beard and slightly receding hair, the stamp of meditation and concern on his face. For a long time this gem was thought to be an ancient work, until doubts were rightly expressed by the American scholar Gisela Richter. ON, EIA There are numerous depictions of Alexander on a lion hunt. This intaglio is a glass cast of a gem in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Alexander is depicted on a rearing horse, his cloak luttering out behind him, his spear raised above the snarling beast, a customary iconography for portrayals of the king during the Hellenistic period that also found expression in later Christian iconography. A similar subject features on the Arch of Constantine in Rome, where the hunter is a Roman Emperor. ON, EIA The brothers William and Charles Brown worked in London producing commissions for Catherine II for over ten years. During that time they sent to Russia more than two hundred engraved gems, produced singly or jointly, which today form a ‘collection within a collection’ in the Hermitage’s celebrated gem cabinet. Their image of Alexander the Great was based on that on a tetradrachma minted in the reign of Lysimachus, King of Thrace, or one of the many other gems that copied it. YOK 342 Cameo: Alexander the Great with a diadem Italy, Giovanni Pichler (1734–1791), second half of the 18th century Double-layered sardonyx, gold; 2.4 × 2.1 cm Signature: ΠΙΧΛΕΡ Provenance irst third of the 19th century Inv. K 1811 Literature Fersman 1961, vol. 2, p. 192, pl. II, 2 343 Intaglio: Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great and Alexander I Italy, Giuseppe Pichler (c. 1760 – after 1820), early 19th century Sard; 2.4 × 2.1 cm Signature (in reverse): ΠΙΧΛΕΡ Provenance 1873, collection L. A. Perovsky, St Petersburg Inv. I 4017 Literature Forrer 1979, p. 522 Antique pieces – not so much gems as sculptures and frescoes – inspired most of the works of Giovanni Pichler, the best of a dynasty of carvers founded by Antonio Pichler, who left the Tyrol with his family and settled in Italy. Giovanni, Antonio’s son and pupil, won fame as the leading exponent of European glyptics in its last great period, the second half of the 18th century. Pichler departed from the iconographic traditions of the baroque age to depict the general as a handsome youth with a diadem set upon his long curly hair. He repeated the same head on a gem now in the Berlin museums. YOK Part of the modest creative legacy of Antonio Pichler’s second son Giuseppe. Portraits of three renowned ruler-commanders who played a special role in ancient and modern history appear in the capita jugata form, the proiles facing in the same direction, set one immediately behind the other. Each portrait is supplemented with its subject’s symbols and attributes: in front of Julius Caesar, who wears a garland of ears of corn on his head, are a star and a lituus, and behind Alexander I’s head is a caduceus. YOK 289 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 344 Cameo: Alexander the Great conversing with Diogenes Italy, 17th century Onyx, gold; 2.9 × 2.1 cm Provenance 19th century Inv. K 5469 Previously unpublished 345 Cameo: Diogenes in his barrel Italy, 18th century Agate, gold; 2.6 × 2.3 cm Provenance before 1794 Inv. K 1951 Previously unpublished 346 Intaglio: Bust of Aristotle Italy, mid-16th century Sard, gold; 2.7 × 2.2 cm Provenance 1787, collection duc d’Orléans, Paris Inv. I 3632 Literature Kagan, Neverov 2001, no. 123/26, p. 91 290 Diogenes of Sinope, the great philosopher of cynicism, usually appears on European engraved gems sitting in his barrel and reading, talking to other philosophers or conversing with Alexander the Great. The sources for these images were probably ancient carved stones or, as in the case of this cameo, contemporary prints. SK Diogenes, who advocated a life without luxuries and a return to nature, is usually shown as a mature, balding man with a beard, his identity made clear by the inclusion in the image of the barrel which served as his refuge. SK, EIA The image of Aristotle (384–322 BC) that appears on this intaglio was widespread in glyptics and small bronze sculpture in Italy during the irst half of the 16th century. There are, for instance, similar intaglios in the Hermitage and the Museo degli Argenti in Florence. The iconographic source, a ‘portrait’ of the outstanding Greek philosopher who was Alexander the Great’s teacher which appeared on late 15th-century Italian medals, may have been based on ancient reliefs. SK 347 Cameo: Alexander and Olympias Italy, Rome, Johann Baptist Weder (1742–1808), 1780s Sardonyx, gold; 4.4 × 3.8 cm Inscription under the shoulder: WEDER F Provenance before 1794 Inv. K 1852 Literature Cammeo Gonzaga 2008, no. 90 Johann Weder was one of a large colony of German artists resident in Rome. He enjoyed Europe-wide fame, mostly for his cameos. In creating this replica of the celebrated Gonzaga Cameo (cat. 155), the engraver clearly did not have at his command the original – by then in the Palazzo Odescalchi. He must have been using one of the number of engraved reproductions that were in circulation, which explains why the image is in reverse: the proiles face right, not left. Moreover, the gem-engraver introduced numerous small changes in the details of the robes and attributes, for instance replacing the scaly aegis with a cloak fastened with a ibula. 348 Two drawings of cameos depicting Alexander the Great Great Britain, Lorenz Natter, late 1750s Paper, pencil; a) 19.3 × 12.1 cm, b) 19.2 × 12 cm Below: the natural sizes of the cameos and the signature L. Natter Provenance 1764 with the papers of Lorenz Natter, after his death during his second visit to the Russian capital State Hermitage Archive, Fund I, Opis 6 ‘C’, delo 13, chast 3, f. 31–32 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 474, p. 439 The drawings come from Natter’s unpublished manuscript ‘Museum Britannicum’, which contained hundreds of drawings of gems, mostly in English collections. The two sheets are similar both in style of execution and in iconography, for both show Alexander the Great as he was usually depicted on engraved gems in mannerist and baroque art. The accompanying notes reveal that Natter himself was the owner of the two cameos, and the manuscript catalogue of his extensive collection, which was to be sold shortly afterwards, The Hermitage collection includes more than a dozen signed works by Weder, including portraits of Peter I and Catherine II. His name appears in the latter’s correspondence with her courtiers and others; she wrote of him to Baron Melchior Grimm and to Nikolay Yusupov. In 1788 she wrote to Yusupov, then in Italy, to get him to order a number of engraved gems for her: ‘Give gems to be engraved by Pichler, Weder and Marchand. The subjects? I shall note them on a separate sheet…’ Sadly, the separate sheet has not survived, but it may have included this work, for in the celebrated original Catherine, very much a daughter of her time, saw the image of her hero Alexander the Great, with whom she liked to associate herself. The following year she wrote to Yusupov in Rome: ‘I received your two letters and the three cameos…’. Whatever the history of the Weder copy, it arrived in the Hermitage long before the original. YOK indicates that they came from the collection of Queen Christina of Sweden. She identiied herself with the Macedonian ruler and took his name when she converted to the Catholic faith (it is worthy of note that another female ruler, Catherine II, also took Alexander the Great as her idol, writing to Baron Melchior Grimm that gem engravers had taken images of Alexander as their inspiration in producing portraits of her). The subsequent fate of the cameo reproduced in the irst drawing cannot be traced. That in the second drawing went to the Dutch Royal Cabinet of Medals, Coins and Gems. YOK 291 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 349 Cameo: Alexander the Great and Olympias Italy, 17th century Agate, gold; 3.7 × 3.2 cm Provenance before 1794 Inv. K 2559 Literature Cammeo Gonzaga 2008, no. 89 This is a typical example of European baroque gem-engraving, in which the Italian carver did not produce a slavish copy of the Gonzaga Cameo, but was undoubtedly inspired by it. He must have seen the original only second hand, however, and indeed the capita jugata was in common use by that time. His image also relects modern images of Alexander and Olympias – which is how the portraits were interpreted by the Gonzaga Cameo’s owner, Queen Christina, and contemporaries. This explains not only such general baroque characteristics as the dynamic composition and exquisite design, but a number of deviations from the prototype: the aegis on the hero’s chest is replaced by a coat 350 Medal in honour of Queen Christina of Sweden Italy, Giovanni Battista Guglielmada, between 1665 and 1689 Silver, embossed; Ø 61 mm; 97.75 g Provenance before 1850 Inv. IM 6056 Literature Bildt 1908, pl. IX, ig. 35 Queen Christina of Sweden (1626–1689) appears in the guise of an ancient ruler on the obverse of this medal struck in Italy from a die by the Italian engraver Giovanni Battista Guglielmada (his monogram ‘G’ is visible on the end of a lock of hair falling on to the queen’s right shoulder). It is based on the work of the medallist Gioacchino Francesco Travani. When she converted to Catholicism, Christina chose Alexandra as her new name, probably as a sign of her spiritual ainity with Alexander the Great, one of her most admired historical characters, whose presence was relected in her collection of ancient coins. On this medal she wears an ancient helmet with the face of a lion and a laurel wreath tied with a ribbon. OC 292 of chain mail, the helmet features the winged Pegasus, and the visor is in the form of a mask of the god Amon. These details refer to the cult of the legendary conqueror and suggest that the 17th-century gem was based on Charles Le Brun’s series of the life of Alexander the Great, painted in the early 1660s. YOK 351 Tapestry: Alexander the Great and the family of Darius From the series The Story of Alexander the Great, from the paintings by Charles Le Brun Flanders, Brussels, workshop of Jan Frans van den Hecke, 1661–1695 Wool, silk, silver thread, 8–9 threads on a warp of 1; 451 × 690 cm Bottom right the weaver’s signature: I.F. van DEN HECKE Left the Brussels mark BB Below centre: the Russian coat-of-arms, woven at the St Petersburg Imperial Tapestry Factory, 1745 Provenance 1745, Winter Palace Inv. T 2931 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 475, p. 440 Le Brun produced a series of scenes from the life of Alexander the Great that were woven at the Gobelins tapestry manufactory. The literary source for the series was Quintus Curtius’ History of Alexander the Great (see cat. 288). The tapestry series consisted of eleven pieces, which were subsequently copied eight times at Gobelins, as well as at the Aubusson factory and in many workshops in Brussels. In the late 17th century Le Brun’s series was woven at one of the largest tapestry workshops in Brussels, that of Jan Frans van den Hecke. TL, dating of the coat-of-arms – EY 293 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 352 Burgonet helmet 353 Burgonet helmet Italy, Milan, 1550–1560 Steel, copper, forged, embossed, gilded, engraved; h 28 cm Provenance 1885, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal Inv. Z. O. 3393 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 476, p. 442 Italy, 1550–1560 Steel, forged, embossed; h 26 cm Provenance 1885, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal Inv. Z. O. 3410 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 478, p. 444 All the sections of the helmet are covered with engraved, embossed and gilded stylised loral ornament, images of weapons, armour and fruit; two oval cartouches at the sides show Heracles with his club and Atlas holding the irmament on his shoulders. The distinctive characteristic of this burgonet is the crest, an imitation of ancient prototypes, with four small tubes projecting to house feathers. Attached to the back of the helmet is a large tube with an engraved coat-ofarms, including a tree, three lilies and three lions standing on their hind legs. YGE On the front of the helmet is the embossed image of a naked faun. To the sides are the baby Heracles strangling the serpent and the abduction of the cattle of Geryon, one of the labours of Heracles. YGE 294 354 Burgonet helmet Italy, 1570–1580 Steel, copper, velvet, forged, embossed, gilded, gold incrustation; h 29 cm Provenance 1885, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal Inv. Z. O. 6148 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 479, p. 445 On the front of the helmet is the embossed image of a warrior in armour, with a shield and spear. To the sides are weapons and mascarons; two igures to right, a woman scorching a satyr to left. YGE 355 Breastplate from a cuirass Italy, late 16th century Steel, ivory, forged, carved; h 42 cm Provenance 1885, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal; formerly collection N. A. Kushelev Inv. Z. O. 3067 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 481, p. 447 This steel breastplate is covered with curving ivory plaques or scales and carved images of mascarons and lion masks; in the centre is the ivory proile portrait of a warrior in a helmet with a crest in the form of a hydra. The cuirass imitates chain-mail, a common piece of defensive armour from ancient times. YGE 295 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 356 Rondache shield Italy, Milan, 1560–1570 Steel, forged, embossed, gilded; Ø 60.5 cm Provenance 1885, Tsarskoye Selo Arsenal Inv. Z. O. 3508 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 482, p. 448 In the centre is the embossed image of a warrior on horseback in ancient clothing, surrounded by foot soldiers; around the edge runs stylised loral ornament. The subject is the taming of Bucephalus, a legendary episode in the life of Alexander the Great (Plutarch, Alexander, VI). YGE 357 Oval shield Italy, 1560–1570 Steel, forged, embossed; 53 × 64 cm Provenance 1885, collection A. P. Basilewsky, Paris Inv. Z. O. 3519 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 483, p. 449 In the centre is an embossed scene from the Trojan Wars: King Agamemnon sits on a throne in a crown and with a sceptre, with Ajax and Odysseus on either side; in the background is a battle taken place outside fortress walls. Running around the edge of the shield is stylised loral ornament with weapons and human igures. YGE 296 358 Unknown engraver Russian folk print: Wild men discovered by king Alexander of Macedon, 1800–1825 Copper engraving, hand-coloured; 28.8 × 41.8 cm Provenance 1948, State Museum of Ethnography Inv. ERG-4826 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 487, p. 453 Alexander the Great had long been known in Russia from translations of the medieval tale ‘Alexandria’, embellished with fantasies about monsters and unusual peoples that he is supposed to have met during his military campaigns in the East. In the Russian perception, Alexander was on a par with the fabulous bogatyrs or mighty heroes of old Russian folk tales. The irst version of this particular folk picture dates from the 18th century, but a number of new editions appeared in the 19th century. This picture is printed on paper from the irst quarter of the 19th century and, to judge by the style of engraving, dates from around that time. The text at the bottom describes Alexander’s meeting with amazing people in the mountains. He wished to take them back to his kingdom, but the captured people refused to eat and died. One of them, a man with a single eye, managed to escape from the king and his army. AC 297 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age 298 359 The Triumph of Alexander the Great Russia, Archangel, Nikolay Vereshchagin (circle), late 18th century Walrus ivory, wood, carved, engraved; 24 × 19 × 13.5 cm Provenance 1960, via the Hermitage Purchasing Commission Inv. ERK-1004 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 488, p. 454 Alexander the Great, wearing full armour, a plumed helmet and a long cloak, rides the magniicent Bucephalus. Seated irmly on the rearing horse, he holds out his right hand, in which he clasps his commander’s baton. On the lower level of the stepped base is a kneeling igure of Atlas supporting the Earth upon his shoulders. The ivory carver based himself on a graphic source, probably a print by V. Yakovlev, produced under the guidance of I. Sokolov, published in the Russian translation by Stepan Krashenninikov of Quintus Curtius’ life of Alexander (1750). IU 360 Panel: Alexander the Great’s battle with the Indian king Porus Russia, 18th century Block-printed panels, oil on canvas, with additional ochre; 124 × 232 cm Provenance 1941, State Museum of Ethnography; formerly Galnbek collection Inv. ERT-973 Literature Alexander 2007, no. 489, p. 455 Printed from diferent plates showing diferent subjects. At the centre of the composition are the armies of Alexander the Great and the Indian king Porus. Between them in a cartouche is a poorly legible text with an interpretation of the scene. The panel shows the inluence of folk prints on paper, but the border is in the style of printed textiles of the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. The central composition is framed above and below with a repeated architectural landscape. In the corners are female igures, allegories of Spring and Summer. TK 299 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age ALEXANDER THE GREAT AND HEROES OF THE TROJAN CYCLE IN CAMEOS FROM YEKATERINBURG 361 Cameo: the young Alexander the Great in a diadem Russia, Ekaterinburg, before 1818 Orsk jasper; 2.4 × 1.8 cm Provenance 1826 Inv. K 5836 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 256, p. 471 YOK 362 Cameo: head of Alexander the Great in a helmet Yulia Kagan One of the most original aspects of Russian engraved gem production was the production of cameos at the imperial stone-grinding and carving manufactories. This developed into an independent art form during the late 18th and early 19th centuries at the Imperial Lapidary Works in Yekaterinburg in the Urals, known as ‘the stone storehouse of Russia’. The Ural Mountains are rich in multilayered varieties of minerals that are ideal for the carving of cameos. Among the craftsmen attached to the works were artists who made a particular study of miniature relief carving. Models were sent from St Petersburg to be imitated, usually copies of ancient and later engraved gems from the Cabinet of Casts (running to many thousands of items), commissioned by Catherine II from the London studio of James Tassie. It was thanks to these casts that the range of subjects on cameos produced in a far-of region of Russia, at the boundary between Europe and Asia, included images of Alexander the Great and heroes of the Trojan War. 300 Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1829–30 Orsk jasper; 2.1 × 1.5 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5669 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 263, pp. 476–477 YOK 363 Cameo: bust of the dying Alexander Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1835–36 Orsk jasper; 2.7 × 2.2 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5841 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 264, p. 477 YOK 301 Alexander the Great in Western European and Russian art of the modern age Alexander the Great and heroes of the Trojan cycle in cameos from Yekaterinburg 364 Cameo: Cassandra with a snake Russia, Ekaterinburg, Dmitry Petrovksy (1806 – c. 1848), 1824–1825 Chalcedonyx; 1.7 × 1.1 cm Provenance 1826 Inv. K 5805 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 225, p. 463 YOK 365 Cameo: bust of Menelaus 366 Cameo: head of Paris Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1831–1832 Orsk jasper; 3.7 × 3.2 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5764 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 227, p. 463 YOK Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1829–1830 Orsk jasper; 2.8 × 2.1 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5798 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 223, p. 462 YOK 367 Cameo: Iphigenia in Aulis Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1838–1839 Onyx; 1.8 × 2.5 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5804 Literature Kagan 2003, p. 138 YOK 302 Page 304 368 Cameo: bust of Achilles Russia, Ekaterinburg, Semyon Odintsov, Vasily Kalugin, Yakov Khmelinin, Ivan Galkin, 1840–1841 Yamskaya jasper; 4.4 × 3.7 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5765 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 231, p. 464 YOK 108 Phalar with gorgoneion Eastern Mediterranean, Bosporan kingdom (?), 2nd century BC PHOTOGRAPHY Erwin Olaf 369 Cameo: bust of Ajax Russia, Ekaterinburg, Semyon Odintsov, Kirik Ponamaryov, Ivan Galkin, 1840–1841 Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1840-41 Yamskaya jasper; 4.4 × 3.7 cm Provenance 1851 Inv. K 5766 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 232, p. 465 YOK 370 Cameo: head of one of Laocoon’s sons Russia, Ekaterinburg, 1831–1832 Orsk jasper; 3.4 × 2.4 cm Provenance 1851 (as ‘Head of a gladiator’) Inv. K 5800 Literature Kagan 2002, no. 237, p. 465 YOK 303 304 BIBLIOGRAFICAL REFERENCES Cammeo Gonzaga 2008 Grach 1984 Loukonine, Ivanov 1996 Cammeo Gonzaga. Arti Preziose alla Corte di Mantova, Milan, 2008 V. Loukonine, A. Ivanov, L’art persan, BournemouthSt Petersburg, 1996 Пещеры тысячи Будд [Caves of a Thousand Buddhas], exh. cat., Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2008 N. L. Grach, ‘Открытие нового исторического источника из Нимфея (Предварительное сообщение)’ [The Discovery of a New Historical Source from Nymphaion (Preliminary Communication)], Вестник древней истории [Herald of Ancient History], 1984, no. 1, pp. 81–88 Chernenko 1973 Iran in the Hermitage 2004 E. V. Chernenko, ‘Оружие из Семибратних курганов’ [Arms from the Semibratny Barrows], Скифские древности [Scythian Antiquities], Kiev, 1973 A.T. Adamova, A.B. Nikitin, eds, Иран в Эрмитаже. Формирование коллекций [Iran in the Hermitage. The Formation of the Collections], exh. cat., St Petersburg, 2004 Children of the Gods 2009 Ivanov, Lukonin, Smesova 1984 Дети богов. Античные герои в древнем и новом искусстве [Children of the Gods. Classical Heroes in Ancient and Modern Art], Hermitage-Kazan Exhibition Centre, Kazan, 2009–2010 A. A. Ivanov, V. G. Lukonin, L. S. Smesova, Ювелирные изделия Востока. Древний, средневековый периоды. Коллекция Особой кладовой Отдела Востока Государственного Эрмитажа [Jewellery from the East. Ancient and Medieval Periods. The Collection of the Treasury of the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage Museum], Moscow, 1984 Caves of a Thousand Buddhas 2008 Danilenko 1969 V. N. Danilenko, ‘Надгробные стелы’ [Tomb Stele], Сообщения Херсонесского Музея [Proceedings of the Chersonesos Museum], 1969, issue IV, pp. 29–44 Davydova 1997 L. I. Davydova, ‘Голова юноши IV в. до н. э. из собрания Эрмитажа’ [A Head of a Youth of the 4th Century BC from the Hermitage Collection], Памятники культуры. Новые открытия: Ежегодник 1997 [Cultural Monuments. New Discoveries. Annual for 1997], Moscow 1998, pp. 218–224 Kagan 2010 J. Kagan, Gem Engraving in Britain from Antiquity to the Present, Oxford, 2010 Kagan, Neverov 2001 Yu. Kagan, O. Neverov, Судьба одной коллекции: 500 резных камней из кабинета герцога Орлеанского [The Fate of One Collection: 500 Engraved Gems from the Cabinet of the duc d’Orléans], St Petersburg, 2001 Dawn of Art 1974 The Dawn of Art: Palaeolithic, Neolithic Bronze Age and Iron Age Remains Found in the Territory of the Soviet Union, Leningrad, 1974 Kakovkin 2004 Deppert-Lippitz 1985 A. Y. Kakovkin, Сокровища коптской коллекции Государственного Эрмитажа: Каталог [The Treasury of the Coptic Collection in the State Hermitage Museum: A Catalogue], St Petersburg, 2004 B. Deppert-Lippitz, Griechischen Goldschmuck (Kulturgeschichte der antiken Welt, vol. 35), Mainz, 1985 Klimburg-Salter 1995 Dyakonova 1959 D. E. Klimburg-Salter, Buddha in Indien: die fr̈hindische Skulptur von K̈nig Áoka bis zur Guptazeit, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna; Milan, 1995 This list gives full bibliographical data for all sources referred to in the object descriptions. N. V. Dyakonova, ‘Дар короля Афганистана Мухаммада Захир-шаха Эрмитажу’ [A Gift from King Muhammad Zahir-Shah of Afghanistan to the Hermitage], Сообщения Госудаствнного Эрмитажа [Proceedings of the State Hermitage Museum], XV, 1959, pp. 60–61 Alexander 2007 Fersman 1961 N. P. Kondakov, ed., Императорский Эрмитаж: Указатель Отделения Средних веков и эпохи Возрождения [The Imperial Hermitage. Index of the Department of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance], St Petersburg, 1891 Александр Великий. Путь на Восток [Alexander the Great. The Road to the East], ed. A. A. Troimova, Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, 2007 A.J. Fersman, Очерки по истории камня [Essays on the History of Stones], 2 vols, Moscow, 1961 Kovalenko 1974 Kondakov 1891 Mandelstam 1966 A.M. Mandelstam, ‘Кочевники на пути в Индию’ [Nomads on the Road to India], Труды Таджикской археологической экспедиции Института Археологии Академии Наук СССР и Института Истории им. А. Дониша АН Таджикского ССР [Papers of the Tadzhik Archaeological Expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of the USSR Academy of Sciences and the A. Donish Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republic], vol. V, Материалы и исследования по археологии СССР [Materials and Research in Archaeology of the USSR], no. 136, 1966 Mandelshtam 1975 A.M. Mandelstam, Памятники кочевников кушанского времени в Северной Бактрии. Труды Таджикской археологической экспедиции Института Археологии Академии Наук СССР и Института Истории им. А. Дониша АН Тадж.ССР [Monuments of the Nomads of the Kushan Period in North Bactria. Papers of the Tadzhik Archaeological Expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of the USSR Academy of Sciences and the A. Donish Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republic], vol. VII, Leningrad, 1975 Masson 1956 V.M. Masson, ‘Поселения поздней бронзы и раннего железа в дельте Мургаба’ [A Late Bronze and Early Iron Age Settlement in the Murgaba Delta], Краткие сообщения института материальной культуры [Brief Proceedings of the Institute of Material Culture], no. 64, 1956, pp. 61–67 Matthieu, Lyapunova 1951 M.E. Matthieu, K.S. Lyapunova, Художественные ткани коптского Египта [Artistic Textiles of Coptic Egypt], Moscow– Leningrad 1951 Maximova 1956 M.I. Maximova, Античные города юго-восточного Причерноморья: Синопа. Амис. Трапезунт [Ancient Towns in the South-East Black Sea Area: Sinope. Amis. Trapezunt], Moscow–Leningrad, 1956 Meshkeris 1977 V.A. Meshkeris, Коропластика Согда [The Coroplastics of Sogdia], Dushanbe, 1977 Ancient Artistic Silver 1985 Furtwängler 1883–1887 T. V. Kovalenko, ‘Метод реставрации античных расписных стел из Херсонеса’ [The Method of Restoring Ancient Painted Stele from Chersonesos], Консервация и реставрация памятников культуры и искусства: Научная конференция. Краткие тезисы докладов [Conservation and Restoration of Cultural and Artistic Monuments: A Scholarly Conference. Brief Summaries of Papers], State Hermitage Museum, Leningrad, 1974, pp. 14–16 Античное художественное серебро. Государственный Эрмитаж: Каталог выставки [Ancient Artistic Silver. The State Hermitage Museum: Exhibition Catalogue], by N. L. Grach, L. I. Davydova, V. N. Zalesskaya et al, Leningrad, 1985 A. Furtwängler, Die Sammlung Sabourof. Kunstdenkmäler aus Griechenland, 2 vols, Berlin, 1883–1887 Lappo-Danilevsky, Malmberg 1894 Pfrommer 1990 A.S. Lappo-Danilevski, V.K. Malmberg. ‘Курган Карагодеуашх’ [The Barrow of Karagodeuashkh], Материалы по археологии России, issue 13: Древности южной России [Materials on the Archaeology of Russia, issue 13: Antiquities from Southern Russia], St Petersburg, 1894 M. Pfrommer, ‘Untersuchungen zur Chronologie früh- und hochhellenistischen Goldschmucks’, Istanbulische Forschungen, no. 37, 1990 Forrer 1979 Amelung 1897 W. Amelung, ‘Dell’ arte Alessandrina a proposito di due teste rinvenute in Roma’, Bulletino della Comissione Archeologica comunale di Roma, 1897, pp. 110–142 Andronikos 1984 M. Andronikos, Vergina, Athens, 1984 Bernshtam 1952 A.N. Bernshtam, Историко-Археологические очерки Тянь-Шаня и Памиро-Алая [Historico-Archaeological Essays of Tien Shan nd Parmi-Alay], Moscow–Leningrad, 1952 De Bildt 1908 C. Baron de Bildt, Les Medailles romaines de Christine de Suède, Rome, 1908 L. Forrer, Biographial Dictionary of Medallists, Coin-, Gem-, and Seal-engravers, Mint-masters, &c., Ancient and Modern, with references to their works BC 500 – AD 1900, 8 vols, London, 1904–1930; reprinted 1979 Fyodorov 1977 B.N. Fyodorov, ‘Три монументальных надгробия Херсонеса IV–III вв. до н. э.’ [Three Monumental Tombstones from Chersonesos of the 4th to 3rd Centuries BC], Памятники культуры. Новые открытия: Ежегодник 1976 [Cultural Monuments. New Discoveries. Annual for 1976], Moscow, 1977, pp. 348–352 Galanina 1977 L.K. Galanina, ‘Скифские древности Поднепровья (Эрмитажная коллекция Н.Е. Бранденбурга)’ [Scythian Antiquities of the Dnepr Region (the Hermitage Collection of N.E. Brandenburg)], Свод археологических источников [Collection of Archaeological Sources], 1977, pp. 1–33 Butler 1977 K. S. Butler, Мейсенская фарфоровая пластика XVIII века в собрании Эрмитажа. Государственный Эрмитаж. Каталог [18th-century Meissen Porcelain Sculpture in the Hermitage Collection. State Hermitage. Catalogue], Leningrad, 1977 Lascaratos, Damanakis 1996 J. Lascaratos, A. Damanakis, ‘Ocular torticollis: a new explanation for the abnormal head-posture of Alexander the Great’, The Lancet, no. 347, 1996, pp. 521–523 Litvinsky 1972 B. A. Litvinsky, Древние кочевники «Крыши Мира» [Ancient Nomads of the ‘Roof of the World’], Moscow, 1972 Mode 1986 H. Mode, Mathurā. Metropole altindischer Steinkultur, Berlin, 1986 Pekarsky 1862 P.P. Pekarsky, Введение в историю просвещения в России XVIII столетия [Introduction to the History of the Enlightenment in Russia in the 18th century], St Petersburg, 1862 Pilipko 2001 V.N. Pilipko, Старая Ниса: Основные итоги археологического изучения в советский период [Old Nisa: Key Conclusions from Archaeological Study During the Soviet Period], Moscow, 2001 Polish Silver 2005 Польское художественное серебро XVII – первой половины XIX века в Эрмитаже [Polish Artistic Silver of the 17th to First Half of the 19th Century in the Hermitage], St Petersburg, 2005 Lopato 2002 Golitsyn Museum 2004 Голицынский музей на Волхонке [The Golitsyn Museum on the Volkhonka], exh. cat., Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow, 2004 M. N. Lopato, ‘Собрание аугсбургского серебра XVIII в. в Эрмитаже’[The Collection of 18th-century Augsburg Silver in the Hermitage], Западноевропейское искусство XVIII в. Публикации и исследования: Сборник Статей [18th-century Western European Art. Publications and Research: Anthology of Articles], Leningrad 1987, pp. 183–192 305 Bibliographical references Poroshin 1844 Treister 2007 Семена Порошина записки, служащие к истории его императорского высочества благоверного государя цесаревича и великого князя Павла Петровича наследника престолу российского [Notes of Semyon Poroshin, Serving for the History of His Imperial Highness the Just Sovereign Tsesarevich and Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich, Heir to the Russian Throne], St Petersburg, 1844 M.J. Treister, ‘Некоторые наблюдения о вещах и их декоре в инокультурных контекстах (на примере памятников художественного металла с территории Боспорского царства и сопредельных областей)’ [Some Observations on Objects and their Decoration in the Context of Alien Cultures (Using the Example of Monuments of Artistic Metalwork found on the Territory of the Bosporan Kingdom and the Neighbouring Regions)], Боспорский феномен: Сакральный смысл региона, памятников, находок. Материалы междунарордной научной конференции [The Bosporan Phenomenon: The Sacred Meaning of the Region, Monuments and Finds. Materials from an International Scholarly Conference], vol. 1, St Petersburg, 2007 Raspe 1791 R.E. Raspe, A Descriptive Catalogue of a General Collection of Ancient and Modern Engraved Gems, Cameos as well as Intaglios, taken from the Most Celebrated Cabinets in Europe. Cast by J. Tassie, 2 vols, London, 1791 Trever 1940 Rayet 1878 O. Rayet, ‘L’art grec au Trocadéro. 2e et dernier article’, Gazette des Beaux-arts, no. 18, 1878 K.V. Trever, Памятники греко-бактрийского искусства [Monuments of Graeco-Bactrian Art], Moscow–Leningrad, 1940 Trivier 1878 O. Rayet, Études d’archéologie et d’art, Paris, 1888 S. Trivier, ‘Hercule et une des Thespiades. Groupe de terre-cuite’, Gazette archéologique, 1878 Rayevsky 1977 Troimova 2009 D. S. Rayevsky, Очерки идеологии скифо-сакских племен [Essays on the Ideology of the Scythian-Sacae Tribes], Moscow, 1977 The Road to Byzantium, exh. cat., Hermitage Rooms at Somerset House, London, 2006 A.A. Troimova, Imitatio Alexandri. Портреты Александра Македонского и мифологические образы в искусстве эпохи эллинизма. Диссертация на соискание степени кандидата искусствоведения [Imitatio Alexandri. Portraits of Alexander of Macedonia and Mythological Images in Art during the Age of Hellenism. Dissertation for the qualiication of Candidate of Art History], St Petersburg, 2009 Rostovtsev 1914 Vermeule 1981 M. I. Rostovtsev, Античная декоративная живопись на юге России [Ancient Decorative Painting in the South of Russia], 2 vols, St Petersburg, 1914 C. C. Vermeule, Greek and Roman sculpture in America, Berkeley–Los Angeles–London, 1981 Rayet 1888 Road to Byzantium 2006 Vlasova 2009 Rudenko 1962 S. I. Rudenko, Культура хуннов и ноинулинские курганы [The Culture of the Xiongnu and the Noin-Ula Barrows], Moscow–Leningrad, 1962 E. V. Vlasova, ‘Ахтанизовский клад’ [The Akhtanizovsky Hoard], Вестник древней истории [Herald of Ancient History], 2009, no. 3, pp. 73–74 Zalesskaya 1994 Samashev, Grigoryev, Zhumabekova 2005 Z. Samashev, F. Grigoryev, G. Zhumabekova, Древности Алматы [Antiquities of Almaty], Almaty, 2005 Semyonov 1995 G. L. Semyonov, ‘Праздник Плойафесии в Нимфее’ [The Ploiafesia at Nymphaion], in: Эрмитажные чтения. Памяти В. Г. Луконина, 1894–1994 г. [Hermitage Readings in Memory of V. G. Lukonon, 1894–1994], St Petersburg, 1995, pp. 222–227 Sérinde 1995 Sérinde. Terre de Bouddha. Dix siècles d’art sur la Route de la Soie, exh. cat., Paris, 1995 V. N. Zalesskaya, Скульптура, рельефы и архитектурные фрагменты. Коллекция музея Русского Археологического Института в Константинополе в Эрмитаже [Sculpture, Reliefs and Architectural Fragments. The Collection of the Russian Archaeological Institute in Constaninople in the Hermitage], St Petersburg, 1994 Zalesskaya 2006 V. N. Zalesskaya, Памятники византийского прикладного искусства IV–VII веков. Каталог коллекции [Monuments of Byzantine Applied Art of the 4th to 7th Centuries. Catalogue of the Collection], St Petersburg, 2006 Zavyalov 2008 Shishkina 1965 G.V. Shishkina, ‘О датировке некоторых терракот Афрасиаба’ [On the Dating of Some Terracottas from Afrasiab], История Материальной Культуры Узбекистана [The History of the Material Culture of Uzbekistan], no. 6, 1965 V. A. Zavyalov, Кушаншахр при Сасанидах. По материалам раскопок Зартепа [The Kushan-Shahr Under the Sassanids. From Material from the Excavations of Zar-tepe], St Petersburg, 2008 Zwierlein-Diehl 2007 Spätantike und frühes Christentum 1984 Spätantike und fr̈hes Christentum. Altar Plastik, exh. cat., Liebighaus Museum, Frankfurt am Main, 1984 Strzheletsky 1969 S.F. Strzheletsky, ‘XVII башня оборонительных стен Херсонеса (башня Зенона)’ [The 17th Tower in the Protective Walls at Chersonesos (the Zeno Tower)], Сообщения Херсонесского Музея [Proceedings of the Chersonesos Museum], no. 4, 1969, pp. 7–29 Strzheletsky 1969a S. F. Strzheletsky, ‘Живопись и полихромные росписи’ [Painting and Polychrome Wall Paintings], Сообщения Херсонесского Музея [Proceedings of the Chersonesos Museum], no. 4, 1969, pp. 77–89 306 E. Zwierlein-Diehl, Antike Gemmen und ihr Nachleben, Berlin, 2007 CLASSICAL TEXTS AND LITERATURE Arrian Pliny the Elder Lucius Flavius Arrianus ‘Xenophon’, The Campaigns of Alexander [Anabasis Alexandri; Αλεξάνδρου Ανάβασις] Gaius Plinius Secundus, Natural History [Naturalis Historiae] Athenaeus Plutarch, Alexander, Sulla, Pompey, Isis and Osiris Athenaeus of Naucratis, The Sophists’ Dinner [Deipnosophistae] [e.g. in Rec. G. Kaibel, Lipsiae, 1923] Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus [Plutarchos], Parallel Lives [Βίοι παράλληλοι] Cicero, Brutus Pompeius Trogus Marcus Tullius Cicero, Brutus - see Justin, Epitoma Cicero, De oiciis Ps. Libanios, Progymnasmata (Foerster 1915) Marcus Tullius Cicero, De Oiciis [On Obligations] Cicero, On the Nature of the Gods Marcus Tullius Cicero, On the Nature of the Gods [De Natura Deorum] Libanios [Libanius], Progymnasmata [Libani opera, ed. R. Foerster, Leipzig, 1915, vol. VIII: Progymnasmata. Argumenta orationum demosthenicarum] Sophocles, Philoctetes Clement of Alexandria, Stromata Sophocles, Philoctetes [Φιλοκτήτης] Titus Flavius Clemens [St Clement of Alexandria], Miscellanies [Stromata] Strabo Strabo, Geography [Γεωγραφικά] Curtius Rufus, History Quintus Curtius Rufus, The History of Alexander the Great [Historiarum Alexandri Magni Libri qui Supersunt] Thucydides Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War [Ιστορία του Πελοποννησιακού Πολέμου] Diodorus, Alexander Diodorus Siculus, The Library of History [Bibliotheca historica] (Alexander is dealt with in vols VIII and IX) Euripides, The Trojan Women Tzetzes, Chiliades Ioannes Tzetzes, Chiliades or The Book of Histories [Historiarum variarum chiliades; in: P. L. M. Leone, Ioannis Tzetzae historiae, Naples, 1968] Eurpidides, The Trojan Women [Τρωάδες] Velleius Sextus Julius Frontinus, Strategems [Strategemata] Marcus Velleius Paterculus, Compendium of Roman History [Historia Romana] Herodotus Xenophon, Anabasis Herodotus, Histories [Historiae] Xenophon, Anabasis [Άνάβασις] Frontinus, Strategemata Hesiod, Theogony Nearly all of these classical sources have been published in numerous editions, in their original language and in translation. They are also available online in original and / or translation. A published edition is cited where this edition is particularly respected and cited by scholars. Hesiod, Theogony [Θεογονία] Himerius, Orationes Himerius, Orationes Hieronymus of Kardia apud Athenaios Aelian, Varia Historia Hieronymus of Kardia (Hieronymos Cardianus) apud Athenaios, 5, 206 d–e [Athenaei Deipnosophistrarum libri XV, ed. G. Kaibel, Leipzig, 1908]; FGH – C. Müller et al, Fragmenta historicum Graecorum, 4 vols, Paris, 1841–1872 Claudius Aelianus, Various History [Varia Historia; Ποικίλη Ίστορία) Iliad Iliad [Ίλιάς], traditionally given to Homer Ammianus Marcellinus Ammianus Marcellinus, Roman History [Rerum gestarum libri qui supersunt] Justin, Epitoma Anacreon Marcus Junianus Justinus, Epitome of the Philippic History of Pompeius Trogus [Trogi Pompei Epitoma Historiarum Philippicarum] Anacreon, Lyric verse [Lyricus] [e.g. in T. Bergk, Poetae Lirici Graeci, Leipzig, 1882] Leo of Naples Antologia Graeca Leo of Naples, A History of the Battles of Alexander the Great [Historia de preliis Alexandri Magni] Antologia Graeca epigrammatum Palatina cum Planudea, H. Stadtmüller, 3 vols, Lipsiae, 1894–1906 Lucian, Imagines Lucian of Samosata, Imagines Apollodorus, Epitome Apollodorus, Epitome of The Library [Bibliotheca; Βιβλιοθήκη] [Apollodorus, The Library, translated by Sir James George Frazer, Cambridge (MA)-London, 1921, Loeb Classical Library vols 121 & 122] Orosius Paulus Orosius, Seven Books of History Against the Pagans [Historiarum Adversum Paganos Libri VII] Ovid, Metamorphoses Apuleius Publius Ovidius Naso, Metamorphoses Lucius Apuleius, Metamorphoses or The Golden Ass [Metamorphoses (Asinus aureus)] Pausanias, Description of Greece Aristoteles, Physiognomica Pausanias, Description of Greece [Hellados Periegesis; Έλλάδος περιήγησις] Aristoteles, Physiognomica [Φυσιογνωμονικά] [Scriptores physiognomici Graecae et Latini, ed. R. Fortser, Leipzig, 1893] Plato, Symposium Plato, Symposium 307 EXHIBITION CREDITS EXHIBITION COMMITTEE State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg Prof. dr Mikhail Piotrovsky Director Prof. dr Georgy Vilinbakhov Deputy Director Dr Vladimir Matveev Deputy Director Dr Svetlana Adaxina Deputy Director, Chief Curator Dr Mariam Dandamayeva Academic Secretary Dr Anna Troimova Head of the Department of Classical Antiquities Natalya Koslova Head of the Oriental Department Prof. dr Andrey Alexeev Head of the Department of Archaeology of Eastern Europe and Siberia Prof. dr Sergey Androsov EXHIBITION WORKING GROUP State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg Anna Troimova Project Manager Maria Akhmadeeva Andrey Alexeev Dmitry Alexinsky Igor Arsentyev Elena Arsentyeva Mariam Dandamayeva Yuri Eimov Irina Etoeva Ivan Garmanov Vera Guruleva Olga Ilmenkova Arkady Ippolitov Mikhail Khimin Andrey Kuznetsov Anastasia Miklyaeva Andrey Nikolaev Daria Vasilyeva Head of the Department of Western European Applied Art Vyacheslav Fedorov Head of the Department of the Russian Culture Vitaly Kalinin Head of the Numismatic Department Hermitage Amsterdam Birgit Boelens Project Manager Vincent Boele Swetlana Datsenko Heleen van Ketwich Verschuur Sebastiaan Lagendaal Julie Vegter Evgenia Makarova Head of the Reseach Library Dr Dmitry Lyubin Head of the Arsenal Hermitage Amsterdam Ernst W. Veen Director Cathelijne Broers Deputy Director Frans van der Avert Head of Communication, Education & Marketing The restoration of the exhibition items was undertaken in the Conservation Laboratories of the Department of the Scientiic Restoration of the State Hermitage museum led by Tatyana Baranova RESTORERS E. M. Andreeva, K. N. Blagoveshchensky, N. A. Bolshakova, N. V. Borisova, S. G. Burshneva, J. A. Chekhova, G. G. Fedorova, M. G. Gambalevskaya, E. N. Gerasimov, I. V. Guruleva, V. I. Khovanova, V. A. Klur, V. A. Kozyreva, N. V. Krachun, K. V. Lavinskaya, L. N. Loginova, S. N. Makeev, I. K. Malkiel, V. A. Mashneva, M. V. Matveeva, V. M. Medvedkov, V. S. Mozgovoy, K. F. Nikitina, N. A. Panchenko, S. L. Petrova, N. A. Petushkova, M. G. Popova, A. I. Pozdnyak, E. V. Rudakas, T. A. Sabyanina, O. L. Semenova, O. Yu. Senatorova, S. A. Sevastyanina, E. I. Shashkova, T. V. Shlykova, O. M. Shuvalova, D. A. Smirnova, E. F. Tatarnikova, N. B. Yankovskaya EXHIBITION DESIGN Ger Feijen, Rhoon Head of the Department of Western European Art Dr Tamara Rappe RESTORATION AND CONSERVATION GRAPHIC DESIGN UNA designers, Amsterdam CONSTRUCTION Keijsers Interieurprojecten, Horst WALL LETTERS Riwi Collo Type, Amsterdam TEXTS With thanks to Sergei Godovalov Natascha Heijne Catharina Koerts Michelle Pitti Simon van Slobbe Lisa Wiersma Vincent Boele DUTCH-ENGLISH TRANSLATION Michèle Hendricks EDITING Femke Foppema Arnoud Bijl EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME Fennanda Eleveld Roelof Jan Minneboo AUDIOTOUR Antenna Audio Tour, Amsterdam Marlies Kleiterp Head of Exhibitions MULTIMEDIA APPLICATION AND EDUCATION Museumstudio, Amsterdam PACKING AND TRANSPORT Original exhibition concept State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg Anna Troimova Exhibition Commissar Exhibition concept for Hermitage Amsterdam Anna Troimova Exhibition Commissar Birgit Boelens Project Manager Vincent Boele Curator 308 Khepri Ltd, St Petersburg Kortmann Art Packers & Shippers BV, Schiphol INSURANCE Ingosstrakh Aon Art Scope INSTALLATION Vincent Boele Project Manager Renske Dooijes Sergei Godovalov Walter de Gruiter Natascha Heijne Marianne Inkelaar Josée Lunsingh Scheurleer Arjen Smolenaars CATALOGUE CREDITS Concept and editing Anna Troimova YGE Yury Eimov PHOTOGRAPHY STATE HERMITAGE MUSEUM YIE Yulia Elikhina Leonard Heifets Konstantin Sinyavsky Svetlana Suetova Andrey Terebenin Vladimir Terebenin LG Ludmila Galanina Editing of the Dutch and English versions Vincent Boele AG Anya Geiko IG Irina Grigorieva NIG Natalya Gritsay NPG Natalya Gulyaeva Publisher Heleen van Ketwich Verschuur AI Arkady Ippolitov EI Elena Ivanova YOK Yulia Kagan Text editors Dmitry Alexinsky Arnoud Bijl Swetlana Datsenko Femke Foppema Catherine Phillips YPK Yury Kalashnik MK Mikhail Khimin SK Svetlana Kokareva EK Elena Korolkova TK Tamara Korshunova AK Alexander Kruglov Articles Andrey Alexeev Yulia Balakhanova Mariam Dandamayeva Arkady Ippolitov Mikhail Khimin Dmitry Nikitin Mikhail Piotrovsky Anna Troimova Introductions Dmitry Alexinsky Andrey Bolshakov Mariam Dandamayeva Olga Deshpande Yulia Elikhina Alexander Kakovkin Mikhail Khimin Alexander Nikitin Grigory Semyonov † Asan Torgoev Anna Troimova Vera Zalesskaya The Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf photographed and ilmed a number of objects from the exhibition for Hermitage Amsterdam. These objects were then mixed with shots of a real face, visualizing the immortal Alexander. EK Elena Khodza OK Olga Kostyuk AUTHORS PHOTOGRAPHY AND IMAGE MANIPULATION Erwin Olaf (cover, pp. 14, 84, 244, 301, 304) The project Morphing Alexander, Erwin Olaf for Hermitage Amsterdam was produced with the support of the Hermitage Friends in the Netherlands and with an additional contribution from the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts. MYK Marta Kryzhanovskaya MAP NK † Nina Kunina † UNA designers, Amsterdam NASA Earth Observatory, The Blue Marble: Next Generation TL Tatyana Lekhovich LL Lydia Liackhova ML Marina Lopato TRANSLATIONS ANN Andrey Nikolaev Michèle Hendricks (DU-EN) David Hicks (RU-EN) Madeleine Mes (RU-DU) Catherine Phillips (RU-EN) Aai Prins (RU-DU) Gerard van der Wardt (RU-DU) Peter Wezel (RU-DU) Paul Williams (RU-EN) AO Andrey Omelchenko GRAPHIC DESIGN OO Olga Osharina UNA designers, Amsterdam BM † Boris Marshak † LN Ludmila Nekrasova EN Ekaterina Nekrasova ON Oleg Neverov ABN Alexander Nikitin DO Dimitry Ozerkov AP Anna Petrakova PRINT Kunstdrukkerij Mercurius, Westzaan YP Yury Pyatnitsky ER Elizaveta Renne TR Tatyana Ryabkova GS † Grigory Semyonov † NS Natalya Serebryanaya OS Olga Sokolova AT Asan Torgoev AAT Anna Troimova IU Irina Ukhanova AV Anna Vilenskaya EV Elena Vlasova Object entries ATA Adel Adamova AYA Andrey Alexeev DA Dmitry Alexinsky EBA Elena Ananyich EIA Elena Arsentyeva IA Irina Artemieva LB Ludmila Barkova AB Andrey Bolshakov TB Tatyana Bushmina AC Anton Chebotarev OC Olga Chizhevskaya MD Mariam Dandamayeva LD Ludmila Davydova OD Olga Deshpande YD Yury Dyukov EY Elena Yarovaya IY Irina Yetoeva VZ Vera Zalesskaya 309 PUBLISHED BY Museumshop Hermitage Amsterdam CATALOGUE FOR THE EXHIBITION The Immortal Alexander the Great. The Myth, The Reality, His Journey, His Legacy, from 18 September 2010 to 18 March 2011, organised by the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg and the Hermitage Amsterdam. ISBN 978 90 78653 219 Dutch ISBN 978 90 78653 226 English NUR 640 COPYRIGHT © Stichting Publieksfaciliteiten De Nieuwe Kerk en Hermitage Amsterdam © State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in an automated retrieval system, or published in any form or by any means, whether electronic,mechanical, in the form of photocopies or in any other way whatsoever, without the prior written permission of the editors. Auteur 311 Titel Subtitel 312