Alexandria's founded by Alexander

Alexandria's founded by Alexander the Great (by year BC): 334 Alexandria in Troia (Turkey) - 333 Alexandria at Issus/Alexandrette (Iskenderun, Turkey) - 332 Alexandria of Caria/by the Latmos (Alinda, Turkey) - 331 Alexandria Mygdoniae - 331 Alexandria (Egypt) - 330 Alexandria Ariana (Herat, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria of the Prophthasia/in Dragiana/Phrada (Farah, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria in Arachosia (Kandahar, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria in the Caucasus (Begram, Afghanistan) - 329 Alexandria of the Paropanisades (Ghazni, Afghanistan) - 329 Alexandria Eschate or Ultima (Khodjend, Tajikistan) - 329 Alexandria on the Oxus (Termez, Afghanistan) - 328 Alexandria in Margiana (Merv, Turkmenistan) - 326 Alexandria Nicaea (on the Hydaspes, India) - 326 Alexandria Bucephala (on the Hydaspes, India) - 325 Alexandria Sogdia - 325 Alexandria Oreitide - 325 Alexandria in Opiene / Alexandria on the Indus (confluence of Indus & Acesines, India) - 325 Alexandria Rambacia (Bela, Pakistan) - 325 Alexandria Xylinepolis (Patala, India) - 325 Alexandria in Carminia (Gulashkird, Iran) - 324 Alexandria-on-the-Tigris/Antiochia-in-Susiana/Charax (Spasinou Charax on the Tigris, Iraq) - ?Alexandria of Carmahle? (Kahnu)

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

An update on the tomb of King Hecatomnos

Back in 2010, the discovery of the monumental sarcophagus belonging to King Hecatomnos made headlines due to illegal digging in the area of Milas, Mylasa in antiquity (see: Sensational archaeological find near Milas). 

Nothing much has been heard since as the standard procedure implies closer study, cleaning, restoration, and thorough analysis – that is till now. 

This find is important for two reasons. Firstly, Hecatomnos is the father of King Mausolos, who built the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. Secondly, the tomb of Hecatomnos is found in Mylasa, which was the capital of Caria in his days. Besides, this tomb allows historians and archaeologists to establish a continuity in the architecture and art of Caria before the construction of Mausolos’ Mausoleum. Although he ruled (391 - 377 BC) as satrap over Caria loyal to the Persian king Artaxerxes II, Hecatomnos was fascinated by the Greek culture and respected the religious beliefs of his people. 

The mausoleum of King Hecatomnos was built not unlike the concept used a few years later by his son in Halicarnassus, his new capital of Caria. That does not really come as a surprise since one of the architects for both mausoleums built in the center of the respective capital cities was Piteos.

Unfortunately, the available information does not provide a clear image of the excavation site or the mausoleum itself. The crepidoma with seven steps is being mentioned as running around the entire perimeter of the mausoleum. Still, even the 3D reconstruction is not very helpful to get a comprehensive picture. 

Apparently, the mausoleum stood on top of the stairs of the crepidoma. The building gave access to an underground burial space where the impressive sarcophagus was discovered. It is being mentioned in the article by the Daily Sabagh that the treasure hunters damaged the gold leaf paintings and the sarcophagus paintings inside the tombs (plural?) and that the images on the murals are related to Hecatomnos. It would have been very enlightening to have some photograph or drawing of the layout to imagine what the site looks like. The article also mentions a well-preserved entrance gate and plans to create an open-air museum for visitors to access the tomb.

On the positive side, it may be noted that in 2014 a stela carrying the longest poem from the Classic era was discovered on the site (see: Precious stela with the longest poem from Classical Greece). In 2017, a gold crown surfaced in Scotland said to belong to Hecatomnos. It has been returned to Turkey.

[The picture of the tomb is from the Daily Sabagh. The 3D drawing can be found in an interesting article written by Anna Frascari. The picture of the gold crown is from Archaeology News Network]

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