All Alexander's Women (enlarged edition 2025) by Robbert Bosschart

In this new edition of All Alexander's Women (enlarged edition 2025), Robbert Bosschart further develops the role of women in Alexander's life, including their place as equals to men. 

It is fascinating to follow the author as he digs ever deeper into the many oriental sources that are not commonly shared in our Western literature. Besides the Darab-Nama, and the Sikandar-Nama, the Persian versions of the Alexander Romance, he discusses the Liber de Morte, Alexander’s fictional last will, and his role as prophet in the Koran. The Persian viewpoint is unique and worth further investigation, an ongoing process - as it turns out.

Hence Bosschart’s updated and enlarged edition, which is richly illustrated with many rare and very telling pictures. 

The content of his book has been discussed in my earlier blogpost of May 2018 when I commented on his 3^rd edition. The matter of Equality of women and men in ancient Persia has been developed in my recent post with the eponymous title.

Petra's famous Treasury reveals a large tomb

In my post of February 2014, I wrote that archaeologists had discovered a level below the known ground floor of Petra’s Treasury (see: Hellenistic Petra, an indirect heritage of Alexander). It was thought that this meant that the entrance was at least four meters lower than accepted till then. Nothing more was published on the subject till October 2024 – a good ten years later! 

An article published on the site Arkeofil announced that archaeological scans revealed the presence of an underground tomb containing the remains of 12 skeletons buried in separate sarcophagi. It was established that the tomb dates from between the 1^st century BC and the 2^nd century AD. 

The most likely theory is that it was built around 40 AD as a Mausoleum for the Nabataean King Aretas IV Philopatris. It remains hard to prove since the Nabataeans made little difference between classes, meaning the royals could be buried in the same way as the average population. However, the location beneath the Treasury may indicate that the grave belonged to people of high status like a king. 

The skeletons, and the grave goods such as ceramics, bronze, iron, and pottery will allow for narrowing down the dating of the tomb. A DNA test of the skeletons will determine whether they belonged to the same family. 

Equality of women and men in ancient Persia

The thought alone causes most people to frown their eyebrows and stare at me in utter disbelief. Who says this? 

Well, obviously not our Greek and later Roman historians for whom the Persians were the enemy. Persian sources, however, describe their women as enterprising, independent, and resolute. This has been widely researched by Robbert Bosschart in his book All Alexander’s Women on which I commented repeatedly (see: Persia’s historical memory of Alexander). An updated version, his 5^th edition is now available on Amazon. 

His study, based on the in-depth research published by such experts as professors Amélie Kuhrt, Maria Brosius, Jozef Wiesehöfer, Wouter Henkelman, and others is concentrated on the clay tablets found at Persepolis (see: Fire over Persepolis) and saved by the fire as mentioned in his chapter Biographical/Geographical Notes: 

“An unintended consequence of these fires was the preservation of clay archive tablets, cooked and hardened. About a hundred Treasury Archive texts from Persepolis, recording royal payments in silver in 492-458 BC were made available between 1948 and 1965. Other texts, published in 1970, were written in Aramaic. This coincided with the biggest windfall: the discovery of over 8,000 texts, dated between 509 and 493 BC and found on tablets in the Persepolis Fortification Archive. They deal with the royal administration of food commodities. About 7,000 are written in the Elamite language of Susa, with some incrustations of Old Persian. Another thousand were written in Aramaic, but there is also one in Greek, one in Frygian, and a few in Neo-Babylonian.” 

He further underscores how and where women are mentioned performing tasks we would expect were those of men:

 … “the archive tablets routinely register travel rations of wine, beer and grain issued to royal women for extensive journeys throughout the empire on their own behalf. And … to commoner women ... For example, one tablet (… dated to 493 BC), registers a journey by a woman employee from Susa, Mizapirzaka, who has to carry a letter to Persepolis. The text adds that she carries a personal seal (…) that authorizes her to claim provisions at the waystations.” 

Until recently, the ruling opinion was that the Greeks doubted how women “could obtain and exercise power in the Achaemenid monarchy.  How could an empire be ‘well ruled’ if women were influential and even exercised power over the king himself?”…

.. “with the publication, around 1970, of numerous tablet texts from the Persepolis Fortification site … Dr Maria Brosius identifies a particular category of women officials who carry the title of Arashara.  … specifically mentions four Arasharas by name: Dakma, Harbakka, Matmaba and Sadukka. Meat rations are rare, so the issuing of 4 complete sheep to each of these women supervisors confirms their important payment level. …

At least ten more tablets refer to the salary of Arasharas, showing that these highly qualified women were better paid than male personnel of lower professional rank. …

[Achaemenid, maybe Arashara statuette

from Bosschart's book]

750 measures of wine among 65 employees; three Arasharas receive 30 measures each, whereas a male scribe at the same workplace gets only 20. On another tablet we even see an Arashara being issued 50 measures. The sliding scale of payment in order of professional qualification (and not by gender distinction) … distributes wine rations: two men who are called ‘manual workers’ get 10 measures each; two other men who are “doorkeepers” by profession, get 20 measures each; and the Arashara is allotted 30 measures. The highest payment (in grain) of all the tablets in the archive also goes to an Arashara: 75 quarts per month…

… an exceptionally high number of Arasharas worked at the service of queen-mother Irdabama. The circa 7,000 archive texts that have been translated so far mention some 150 places in the region of Persepolis (and in a few cases, beyond) where royal ladies had storehouses or workshops. Usually the personnel working there was overseen by Arasharas.”

...

"The tablets show women in a wide range of occupations in Persepolis: woodworkers and stoneworkers, artisans, winemakers, furniture makers, treasury clerks, storekeepers, carriers, grain handlers. A tablet dated to 502 BC refers to ‘Indukka, mother of Tuku’, stating that she is “the chief of the merchants”. It registers the amount of tax she has paid -in silver- on “the business deal that she has managed”.

 

… “Irdabama regularly orders greater amounts of foodstuffs to be delivered at the palace from her own … storehouses … Irdabama has more personnel working at her various factories. On top, she can direct the royal treasury to make payments in silver” …

As Alexander traveled in the company of Queen-mother Sisygambis from Issus to Susa the equality of royals and commoners must have become apparent. His close company with Barsine undoubtedly confirmed and enhanced the role of women. Dr. Maria Brosius further writes:

“Persian queens were much more than consorts, or than queen-mothers supposedly ruling a palace harem. They had a huge influence in decisions about whom to promote, whom to punish, whom to execute, or whose life to spare. Sisygambis, queen-mother of Darius III, also wielded such power, even after her son had been replaced on the throne by Alexander the Great. He pointedly upheld her status as the most prominent woman in the empire, and treated her as if she were his own mother.” 

There is little doubt about the real meaning behind the mass-wedding in Susa as arranged by Alexander in 324 BC (see: Susa with its unique glazed brick walls). Lacking time and knowledge, he could not personally choose the brides-to-be for his Companions and close friends but Sisygambis could and did. The brides, many of them princesses in their own right, were selected with care, and probably well-prepared by Sisygambis for their new role as wife of one of Alexander’s marshals. Their independence would inevitably trickle down to their children and children’s children. What an ambitious vision! 

Alexander always led by example. His wedding with Stateira, the eldest daughter of King Darius III, and Parysatis, the youngest daughter of King Artaxerxes III was celebrated at the same time as that of 90 court members. Each of the newlywed couples received a dowry from the king and on this happy occasion, Alexander granted a gratuity to his Macedonians who had taken Asian wives during his campaigns. He paid out of his own pocket for the proper education of their children. 

The Susa celebration was Alexander’s first step towards uniting West and East, not limited to Greece and Persia but encompassing the entire then-known world. He laid the basis for one single world in which everybody was equal, East or West, man or woman. What we call today an emancipated woman existed for 2,500 years, not as a dream but a reality! So much time has been lost on the subject! 

Alexander was a visionary, but none of his generals or friends understood his vision. The one exception was Hephaistion, but he died shortly after the wedding, poisoned no doubt. As a result, Alexander’s plans were muffled and erased from history. 

When the king died one year later, his world died with him. Had Alexander lived long enough, we would all speak Greek. What’s more, for 2,500 years our world would have been one where men and women lived on the same foot, with the same rights and the same status. 

The surprise of Myndos

Nowadays, Myndos is probably best-known for its underwater causeway running from the city’s harbor to Rabbit Island, which is guarding the mainland. It is a favorite with the tourists who happily walk across the bay when the sea level is only reaching to their knees. Otherwise, the site has very little to offer with cut stones and column drums strewn around. 

These ruins make it very difficult to imagine that Myndos was once a large prosperous city. In 377 BC, King Mausolos of Halicarnassus established Caria’s independence from Persia. He rebuilt the cities of Myndos and Syangela, and moved all other Carians to Halicarnassus, which he proclaimed his new capital (see: Halicarnassus, capital of Caria). 

Myndos, modern Gümüșlük, had a well-sheltered harbor, well-protected against the prevailing wind. The city had a two-mile-long fortification wall and its most vulnerable southeastern section was strengthened with towers. The green granite used for its construction is the same as the one known from the Mausoleum in Halicarnassus. The quarry providing these stones has been located in Koyunbaba, some three kilometers to the north. 

Otherwise, hardly anything else remains from ancient Myndos. Some rock-cut stairs and foundations of houses are found on the hillside, but the ruins that were present in the early 19^th century have entirely disappeared. They are said to belong to a theater from the 4th century BC, a stadium with 7 columns, vaulted remains of a Bath, and a late Roman/early Byzantine basilica. 

Until the 1990s, there were more ancient stone blocks and bits of columns lying around in the village. Near a school, about 1.5 kilometers inland, some columns and Roman mosaics could be seen. Strangely, the nearby silver mines (hence the name Gümüșlük) are not mentioned in ancient sources. 

When Alexander besieged Halicarnassus in 334 BC, he speculated that Myndos would offer an easier approach. Some people in Myndos had actually suggested that they might open the city gates if he arrived under cover of darkness. Alexander took their word, but when he showed up at the gates there was no sign of surrender. Facing the betrayal, he ordered his Macedonians to attack without much result because he had not brought any rams, artillery or ladders. Myndos put up a vigorous resistance and soon was joined by Halicarnassus’ troops arriving by sea. Alexander was forced to withdraw and returned to besiege Halicarnassus. 

The capital of Caria was not taken so easily because the Persian commander Orontobates had the support of the Persian fleet. For the time being, Halicarnassus was no longer a real threat. Alexander moved on but left Ptolemy and Asander behind to finally take the city and to evict the remaining Persians. It was only a year later, in Soli, that Alexander received the long-awaited news that Halicarnassus had finally fallen!  At the same time, the town of Myndos came under Macedonian hands (see: A two-month-project to excavate the city of Soli). 

After the king’s death, Myndos was ruled by the Ptolemies from 308 until 275 BC. In 96 BC, it became independent and minted its own coins. Myndos was included in the Roman Province of Asia Minor in 133 BC. 

The harbor city was again in the news after the murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BC, after which Brutus and Cassius were expelled from Rome; they took their fleet to safety here at Myndos. By the end of 42 BC, the two murderers lost the battle against Marc Antony and Octavian in Philippi, and Myndos was given to Rhodes (see: Philippi, Macedonia’s gold and silver mines). Not for long though as the Rhodians treated Myndos harshly and unfairly and became independent again. However, it gradually lost its prosperity, although it may have survived till the 7th century AD. 

Myndos is often referred to as a Lelegian town, dating back to the Bronze Age. Except for its name, it has no connection with the classical city discussed in this article and both have a different history. The Lelegian site is nowadays called Old Myndos and lies a good three kilometers southeast of Gümüșlük.