Amphipolis article

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Alexias
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Amphipolis article

Post by Alexias »

Pauline asked me to post a link to this Facebook article https://www.facebook.com/amphipolis.tom ... 7562275136 about the frieze painting in the Kasta tomb. It has a link to an article https://www.academia.edu/25356600/the_s ... ulus_Kasta by Antonio Corso. This is not a new article, dated April 2016, but it seeks to give a complete description of the tomb. However it makes huge assumptions and leaps of logic. It seems to be making an attempt to make a neat and comprehensive description with all neat ends tied up. I don't quite know what to make of it and how much to believe.

For example:
In the second phase, the wall dividing room 3 from room 4, which is clearly later than the pebble
mosaic, on which it rests, was set up, the marble door between room 3 and room 4 was made,
the painted frieze was created which implies the function of the complex as an oracle. From that
moment the tumulus worked as a place where a seer predicted the future.
The years when this transformation took place are probably the same years when the seer Peithagoras
came back home from Babylon and may have predicted the deaths of Perdikkas and Antigonus in room
3 of the tumulus, i. e. the year after the death of Alexander the Great, the late 320 BC.
This Peithagoras is the one who predicted Hephaestion and Alexander's deaths. His family were from Amphipolis, but what proof is there that he returned there from Babylon or had any connection with the tomb?
There are two surviving elements of a bronze equestrian statue from Rome which probably were
part of the monument of Hephaestion made by Lysippus and Philon:
• a bronze horse found in Rome and kept there, in the Capitoline Museums, no. 1064,
whose Lysippan pedigree has been established;38 (fig. 26)
• a bronze head once in the Farnese Collection, then in the Collection of king Philip V of
Spain, in San Ildefonso, Palacio Real, now at Madrid, Prado, no. 99 E,39 which has been
recognized to be the portrait of Hephaestion.40 (fig. 27)
It is possible that room 2 of the tomb contained an equestrian statue of Hephaestion, but what about the dimensions? Is it big enough to contain the statue of a horse? What proof is there that this bronze originated in Amphipolis? From the photo the horse looks to be about life size, so it might fit into room 2. However the Prado head comes from a statue that was about 15 feet tall, so the two do not go together. The head has also not been identified by the museum as Hephastion for several years and dates to about 280 BC, the time when the Kasta tomb was sealed.

The piece of the relief from the base of the lion on top of the tumulus is also assumed to be Alexander, nut it is compared to a stele that shows what is plainly a groom holding his master's horse and shield while he makes an offering at an altar. His smaller size denotes his inferior status, and probably his youth. So, since we don't have the rest of the relief, why doesn't the Kasta fragment represent an attendant rather than Alexander? isn't it a bit fortuitous that the only bit that survives represents Alexander? I really don't know what to make of this article.
system1988
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by system1988 »

First of all a big thanks to Alexias for posting this article. I was away from a stable internet conection for a while.

It is clear that this frieze is very important for us to better understand who was/were burried in the tomb and all thiswill properly show once its restoration is complete. There are several opinions ciricling public and informed fora about this issue and the main theme of all this is that we still don't have the official and final publication dedicated to the monument. Professor Corso is a close partner to the excavation and is currently researching the sculptures. More researchers will get their turn on investigating the finding up close in the years to come, possibly coming up with their own different conclusions.

The monument appears to have had different phases. But I will focus on the inscription "I received.... of Hephaestion". The name of Alexander's beloved friend appears to not have been not at all common before or during the time "our Hephaestion" dies. I personally I have never met the name in the entirety of the ancient Greek literature, history,etc. I will of course note here and now that I have not done a deep and extensive research but in my 40 years of reading ancient greek history I have yet to see the name prior to "our Hephaestion." Should someone has already identified the name in an era that predates Hephaestion,Alexander th Great's general, please inform the thread. In contrast to all this, after the death of Hephaestion, the name seems to become a sort of fashion, so we tend to see it here and there. If f the inscription that is on the monument is read correctly, It is for this reason that I believe that the monument has had some connecction to Hephaestion during one of its historical phases.
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sean_m
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by sean_m »

system1988 wrote: Fri Aug 24, 2018 10:13 am First of all a big thanks to Alexias for posting this article. I was away from a stable internet conection for a while.

It is clear that this frieze is very important for us to better understand who was/were burried in the tomb and all thiswill properly show once its restoration is complete. There are several opinions ciricling public and informed fora about this issue and the main theme of all this is that we still don't have the official and final publication dedicated to the monument. Professor Corso is a close partner to the excavation and is currently researching the sculptures. More researchers will get their turn on investigating the finding up close in the years to come, possibly coming up with their own different conclusions.

The monument appears to have had different phases. But I will focus on the inscription "I received.... of Hephaestion". The name of Alexander's beloved friend appears to not have been not at all common before or during the time "our Hephaestion" dies. I personally I have never met the name in the entirety of the ancient Greek literature, history,etc. I will of course note here and now that I have not done a deep and extensive research but in my 40 years of reading ancient greek history I have yet to see the name prior to "our Hephaestion." Should someone has already identified the name in an era that predates Hephaestion,Alexander th Great's general, please inform the thread. In contrast to all this, after the death of Hephaestion, the name seems to become a sort of fashion, so we tend to see it here and there. If f the inscription that is on the monument is read correctly, It is for this reason that I believe that the monument has had some connecction to Hephaestion during one of its historical phases.
Hi system_1988, if I remember her paper from Edmonton correctly,Dr. Jeanne Reames found 10 or 20 references to Hephaistiones in Greek inscriptions before Alexander. You should ask her though, I do not have the energy to dig out her handout from the conference.
My blog (Warning: may contain up to 95% non-Alexandrian content, rated shamelessly philobarbarian by 1 out of 1 Plutarchs)
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Jeanne Reames
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by Jeanne Reames »

Hephaistion (with that spelling) is primarily an Attic-Ionic spelling. It's not present in Macedonia before "our" Hephaistion (nor in Doric/Aeolic areas, which would arguably include Macedonia). Haphaistion/Haphestion is an alternative, but it fades away in the early Hellenistic period, while the Attic-Ionic version really starts to explode in popularity by the mid/late Hellenistic, and spread in the Imperial (Roman) period. Our earliest example of Hephaistion is on Samos, in the mid-600s. The Attic-Ionic spelling is far more common.

Keep in mind that the "epigraphic habit" has somewhat to do with inscriptions--not every Greek city-state/entity practiced it. That said, the simple distinction in spelling, with Macedonia typically preferencing Doric/Aeolic (so Tataki), would suggest the Attic (Hephaistion) spelling to be interesting.

I have backup research for this, and am compiling it to get out for an article in publication + digital mapping project.

Now, all that said--please keep in mind that Amphipolis was an ATTIC foundation. So simply finding "Hephaistion" in a tomb there does NOT mean it's at all connected to "our" Hephaistion. The name--referencing the god of the forge/craftsmanship--is particularly connected to craftsmen. Unsurprisingly. In my onomastic work, I found what looks to be several generations of potters sharing the name in Sinope (S. Black Sea coast), for instance.

Therefore, I would connect the name "Hephaistion" in the tomb with someone involved in making/decorating it--not the occupant.
----
Dr. Jeanne Reames
Director, Ancient Mediterranean Studies
Graduate Studies Chair
University of Nebraska, Omaha
287 ASH; 6001 Dodge Street
Omaha NE 68182
http://jeannereames.net/cv.html
system1988
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by system1988 »

Thank you both for your replies .

As i have said in my frst post ,i have not gone though a deep research on the matter of the name s appearance frequency. I just made the observation that afer 40 ? years of non stop reading of ancient greek literature and epigraphy , the name just never came up
However some cities did not indeed " produced" a large number of epigraphies, also many of the latter have either been lost/ destroyed , or they simply have not been discovered yet

'' Therefore i would connect the name Hephaestion in the tomb with someone involved in making /decorating it -non the occupant"

So we can add to the epigraphy of the peribolos '' I received ...all the decoratives colors, brushes, (etc ) from the seller called Hephaestion ''
The same meaning must be behind the '' HΦ'' inside the rosettes of the tomb interior .He must have been a great bussiness man to be so highly honored and in such a carefully crafted manner , much less so close( !) to the venerable deceased His name was advertising to the echo through the ages ...now that is really a good advertising !

Now keep in mind that the name mayby has relation with craftmen etc. Later studies will reveal the reason for giving a noble s son such a name ...
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gepd
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by gepd »

If the monogram is read correctly as "ΗΦΑΣΤΙΩΝΟΣ", then it is translated "of Hephaestion" not "for Hephaestion", so it would not be appropriate for the contractor or a worker at the site.

But it remains to be seen how the monogram is read, whether there are alternatives and whether it can be contemporary to the peribolos building or it post-dates it, when the marble blocks were used as building materials in Amphipolis during the late roman or byzantine eras.

Regarding the ΗΦ within the chambers' 9-leave rosettes: two sources from the early and late roman period (Antipater of Thesallonica and the poet Kolouthos), choose to refer to the Heroon or Tumulus of Phyllis, which has not been yet identified with an excavated monument. Other Amphipolitan sites named in various sources not yet identified by archaeologists are the tomb of Rhesus, a temple of Apollo and a temple of Artemis Tauropolos (although for the latter there are various indirect indications that it resided within the ancient city). Amphipolis was on a rather bad state, so I assume Antipater and Kolouthos would refer to monuments still standing out as impressive, despite their decline. So, on the balance of probabilities, could the tumulus/heroon of Phyllis be Kastas?

Whether you refer to the monument as "Heroon of Phyllis" or "Hedones Phyllidos" (as Antipater), the HΦ of the nine-leaf rosettes found in the monument also matches. All I am saying is attributing ΗΦ to Hephaestion is a viable but non-unique solution.
system1988
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Re: Amphipolis article

Post by system1988 »

gepd wrote: Sun Sep 23, 2018 2:35 pm If the monogram is read correctly as "ΗΦΑΣΤΙΩΝΟΣ", then it is translated "of Hephaestion" not "for Hephaestion", so it would not be appropriate for the contractor or a worker at the site.

But it remains to be seen how the monogram is read, whether there are alternatives and whether it can be contemporary to the peribolos building or it post-dates it, when the marble blocks were used as building materials in Amphipolis during the late roman or byzantine eras.

Regarding the ΗΦ within the chambers' 9-leave rosettes: two sources from the early and late roman period (Antipater of Thesallonica and the poet Kolouthos), choose to refer to the Heroon or Tumulus of Phyllis, which has not been yet identified with an excavated monument. Other Amphipolitan sites named in various sources not yet identified by archaeologists are the tomb of Rhesus, a temple of Apollo and a temple of Artemis Tauropolos (although for the latter there are various indirect indications that it resided within the ancient city). Amphipolis was on a rather bad state, so I assume Antipater and Kolouthos would refer to monuments still standing out as impressive, despite their decline. So, on the balance of probabilities, could the tumulus/heroon of Phyllis be Kastas?

Whether you refer to the monument as "Heroon of Phyllis" or "Hedones Phyllidos" (as Antipater), the HΦ of the nine-leaf rosettes found in the monument also matches. All I am saying is attributing ΗΦ to Hephaestion is a viable but non-unique solution.
Thanks for clearing up some core issues on the subject. Now as far as ΗΦ on the rosettes is concerned, I dont believe that there is much possibility of it being the Heron or Tumulus of Phyllis because the decoration of the freeze does not match a nymphi/woman. The apotheosis of the warriors and representations of weapons are traditionally non-female except in case the frieze belongs to another historical phase of the monument. The fact of matter is that we still dont have clear visuals from the monument and none of us has had the opportuninity to visit it.
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