Seuthes III,
King of Thracia or, more precisely, of the Odrysian tribe, caught my attention
after seeing pictures of his splendid bronze head. The work is of such high
quality that it could easily fit the heyday of Hellenism or Renaissance. Some
scholars claim that it was made by Lysippos or
in his style. It emanates a sense of power as the face stares back with
alabaster and glass-paste-inlaid eyes glancing from under the eyelashes and
brows made of copper strips.
Seuthes’ rule
is roughly dated to 331-300 BC. The news of his ascent to the throne reached Alexander
after he set out for Asia in 334 BC. Antipater certainly informed him of this new power on his northern borders. The King of
Thracia outlived Alexander (see: Thracian Tombs at Doxipara, Greece) and got involved in the War of the
Diadochi.
Seuthes rebelled
against the arrival of Lysimachos, who inherited Thracia after Alexander’s
death. In the early stage, Lysimachos occupied
only the coastal region, but soon his ambition brought him to conquer the
hinterland. He faced Seuthes in combat twice, and
eventually, Lysimachos established his authority, and they
signed a peace treaty.
Seuthes has
preserved his autonomy, although history does not focus much on him after 310
BC. Coins reveal that he still ruled in 297 BC when Cassander
of Macedonia
died. Another source is the inscription from Seuthopolis,
tentatively dated between the 290s and the 280s BC. It mentions Seuthes III, his wife or widow Berenice (possibly
a member of Lysimachos’ family), and their sons, Hebryzelmis,
Teres, Satocus, and Sadalas, treating with King Spartocus
of Cabyle. Cabyle had
been conquered by Philip II in 341 BC and populated with rebellious
Macedonians.
King Seuthes
built his capital of Seuthopolis around 320 BC
(see: Philip’s Macedonia
also included today’s Bulgaria).
It was a well-planned city whose remains were flooded after the construction of
a dam on the Tundzha
River in 1956.
Initially, the king’s tomb was part of a monumental
temple inside the Kosmatka Mound,
one of the largest in Thracia. The mound from the second half of the 5th
century BC is approximately 20
meters high with a diameter of 90 meters! It contains a
corridor, a circular domed room, and a small chamber made of granite blocks. The
space may have been used as a sanctuary for Orphic rites. Shortly before the
death of Seuthes, the construction
was entirely renovated, and the small chamber was converted into a funerary
room. It was closed with a two-folding marble door, not unlike what we know
from Macedonian tombs. After Seuthes’
funeral, the access to the circular room and the grave chamber had been walled;
the corridor had been filled with stones and soil. The very façade had been
carefully buried under the mound.
Seuthes’ tomb
was discovered in 2004 and yielded an impressive number of artifacts. In the
passageway, archaeologists found the skeleton of a horse. Inside the funerary
chamber was a full suit of armor: a bronze helmet showing a picture of Nike, a
pair of greaves, remains of a leather breastplate, two iron swords, and ten
spearheads. Also in the room were two iron strigils,
gold and silver kylices, a bronze and a silver phial, a pair of
scissors (how unique!), a silver and two alabaster jugs, a box with silver and
bronze jewels, and three wine amphorae from Thasos one of which was still
sealed. Smaller items were also recovered, such as golden horse trappings with
pictures of humans, animals, and plants and sword sheath decorations. On the
funeral bed, they found a golden oak wreath, otherwise known from Macedonian
graves.
It is noteworthy that the helmet and some of the
silver objects carried the inscription ΣΕΥΘΟΥ, connecting the tomb to King Seuthes III – also confirmed by the gold coins and the bronze bust
of the owner found some seven meters in front of the façade.
We can only dream about the wealth still hidden inside
the many mounds of Bugaria’s Valley of the Thracian Kings.
But the head of "Filosofo di Porticello" is Seuthes III ??? https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testa_del_Filosofo
ReplyDeleteAt first glance, the Filosofo – who may represent Pythagoras – looks very similar. However, his left eye is damaged and his beard is shaped differently from Seuthes III. Both are clearly high quality craftsmanship!
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