About decrees and multilingual inscriptions

In antiquity, news was carried by word of mouth, but legal matters and other important information were cut in stone and placed in a conspicuous spot for everyone to see. 

The majority of inscriptions are Decrees of which I can only mention a selection. 

At the Acropolis Museum, there is a stele with decrees for the construction of the temple and altar of Nike by Kallikrates, for the reorganization of the cult, and for the salary of the priestess of the goddess dated 427-424 BC (side A) and 424-423 BC (side B).

Also a stele with a series of Decrees by which the Athenians bestowed economic, commercial, and military privileges on their ally Methone in Pieria. 

It shows the goddess Athena shaking hands with perhaps Artemis, dated 430-423 BC.

Very broken but still readable is the Athenian Decree honoring Neapolis (modern Kavala) for its support in the war against Thasos and its constant commitment to her. 

In the upper right corner, we recognize the goddess Athena extending her hand towards another figure, probably the goddess Parthenos of Neapolis, dated from 410-409 BC.

A very elegant stele with a horse and an olive wreath carries an inscription in which the Athenians honored King Alcetas of Epirus for his help during their military expedition to Corcyra (modern Corfu) in 373-372 BC.

And finally, still at the Acropolis Museum, there is the long Decree of Chalkis on the island of Euboia in which the islanders were forced to swear loyalty to Athens after failing in their revolt of 446-445 BC. 

The people of Chalkis could punish their own citizens, except in cases that involved death, exile, or the loss of their rights as citizens, where the power of Athens prevailed.

The National Archaeological Museum in Athens has its own rich collection of Decrees. A good example is the honorary inscription from Piraeus dating from 347-346 BC. 

The stele honors the three sons of Leukon (depicted), king of the Cimmerian Bosporus, thanking them for services rendered to the people of Athens and allowing them to import grain free of duty.

A particular stele from 355-354BC was found near the Monument of Lysicrates in Athens. 

It honors Philiskos, son of Lykos of Sestos in the Thracian Hellespont as a public guest and benefactor of Athens. In 356 BC, Philiskos had warned the Athenians of the hostile presence of the fleet of Byzantium that threatened the city’s grain supply.

The Eleusis Museum, in turn, exhibits a decree providing for the construction of a footbridge across Lake Rheitoi on the Sacred Way from Athens to Eleusis, dated 421 BC.

Two fragments from an unidentified monument carry a Royal Decree of Alexander, which defines the limits of ‘land’, meaning the agricultural area that Philippi supervised. 

The (partial) inscription dates from 336-334 BC, just before Alexander started his campaign East. It is kept at the Museum of Philippi.

On a different level, there is a Decree sanctioning the people and city of Iasos for conspiring against King Mausolos of Caria. 

It is kept at the Louvre in Paris and dates to 370-350 BC. 

 

The Foundation Decree of Cyrene in North Africa is a covenant between the citizens of Cyrene in ca. 322 BC and those of their mother-state of Thera. 

The exact purpose is uncertain, but it is thought that the citizens of Thera, including the early settlers of 631 BC, were granted the same rights and freedoms as the Cyreneans, even though Cyrene was wealthier than Thera at the time.

Of another level is, for instance, the trilingual stele from Letoon in the Xanthos Valley found near the Temple of Apollo. It holds a public Decree authorizing the cult of the deities and establishing the provisions for its officers.
The Decree is written in Lycian, Greek, and Aramaic, which are not verbatim translations of each other. Each version contains information that is not translated into the two other tongues. The Aramaic text with 27 lines is the shortest, followed by Greek with 35 lines, and Lycian with 51 lines. Useless to point out that this stele helped to decipher the peculiar Lycian language. This unique document can be seen at the Fethiye Museum.

The story of this stele reminds us of the Rosetta Stone, which helped to decipher the Egyptian hieroglyphs and Demotic script using the Greek version carved on the same stone. The text is a Decree issued by King Ptolemy V of Egypt in 196 BC and was key to deciphering the hitherto unknown hieroglyphic signs. 

Trilingual inscriptions are not isolated cases. In ancient Persia, it was a common practice to leave inscriptions in three languages to make sure everyone in the vast empire would be notified: Elamite, Old Persian, and Babylonian. The best-known lines are carved on the cliff wall of Bisutun, where Darius I celebrates his victory over Gaumata and eight more pretenders to the throne in 518 BC, as represented above.

The trilingual inscriptions on the Palace walls of Pasargadae and Persepolis are mainly continuous reminders of the power of the King of Kings who ruled by the grace of Ahuramazda, repeating their title of Great King. These were defined in full by Cyrus the Great: Great King, King of Persia, King of Anshan, King of Media, King of Babylon, King of Sumer and Akkad, and King of the Four Corners of the World.

Perhaps the most remarkable panels are set in the spectacular landscape close to the fast-running mountain river and lovely waterfalls of Ganj Nameh, some five kilometers southwest of Hamadan. As is customary, each text starts by praising Ahuramazda and continues describing the lineage and deeds of Darius I on the left panel and his son Xerxes on the right. It reads: "The Great God [is] Ahuramazda, greatest of all the gods, who created the earth and the sky and the people; who made Xerxes king, and outstanding king as outstanding ruler among innumerable rulers; I [am] the great king Xerxes, king of kings, king of lands with numerous inhabitants, king of this vast kingdom with far-away territories, son of the Achaemenid monarch Darius." (see: The Bisutun relief of King Darius I).

I’d like to close with the impressive Monument of Opramoas in Rhodiapolis. He was a great benefactor who contributed lavishly to the reconstruction of most Lycian cities after the devastating earthquake of 141 AD. He must have been terribly wealthy, for it seems that every single Lycian city mentioned his name in thanks. The construction blocks of the Monument listing his good deeds were strewn over a wide area until, in 2016, archaeologists managed to sort them out and reconstruct the walls of his Monument (see: The Monument in honor of Opramoas of Rhodiapolis is taking shape).

Its text, the longest ever found in Lycia or perhaps even in all of Anatolia, contains 12 letters Opramoas exchanged with the Roman Emperors and Antoninus Pius in particular, 19 letters to the Roman Procurator, and 33 various documents related to the Lycian League. 

The reasons for leaving an inscription widely vary, and the list is endless. I stopped at a few of the most telling examples that caught my attention.

Restoration or reconstruction?

There is a thin line between the restoration of an object or a building and its reconstruction. A good restorer will preserve the authenticity of the piece like a statue, while strengthening and improving its overall condition. When it comes to monuments, the restoration is meant to improve the visual impression and to help the onlooker imagine how it looked in its days of glory. A reconstruction, however, numbs our imagination and produces a modern rendition instead of recreating what once was. 

An example of excellent restoration is, for instance, the Philippeon in Olympia, Greece. When I first visited the site in the early 1970s, only a few stone blocks outlined the contour of the monument; there was not much to get excited about. When I returned more recently, I was much impressed by the skillful restoration of the Philippeon showing three steps on which three full-size Ionic columns had been reassembled. It does not seem like much but it was enough to complete my mental picture of Philip’s monument. 

Meanwhile, it has become fashionable to create an environment that will attract tourists, meaning to cash in on the money. Plans to that effect have been suggested, for instance, to clear the swamp occupying the old harbor of Ephesos and turn it into a place where tourists can anchor their yachts. A ridiculous idea because it does not help recreating the aspect of the ancient harbor and it truly destroys any possible picture from antiquity. 

There also is the case of the Monument of Opramoas, a wealthy citizen of Rhodiapolis, Turkey. This benefactor contributed largely to the reconstruction of the city that was hit by the severe earthquake of 141 AD. The walls of a monument built in his honor were covered with an inscription – the longest in Lycia - to commemorate his deeds. Archaeologists carefully retrieved these stones and piled them up next to the theater, where I discovered them in 2008.

The plan was to sort them out to reproduce the original inscriptions. Well, the project has materialized but the gaps of the missing stone blocks have been amply filled with bright white marble blocks. The shiny out-of-place square monument draws the visitor's attention away from the theater and other noteworthy monuments. A bad reconstruction. 

[The reconstructed Opramoas Monument]

Very recently the Palace of Aegae (modern Vergina) reopened to the public after being closed since 2007. I agree that it was in dire need to be cleaned and restored. The ruins were covered with moss and dirt after years of neglect and did close to nothing to reflect the wealth and glory of Macedonia’s heyday.

When I saw the first pictures of the Palace as it is presented to us today, my heart sank. The result is a reconstruction. Archaeologists reused the bits of broken columns they found on the spot but the new white marble column drums dwarf the original elements. As they stand mostly around the central Peristyle, they are taking my attention away from the general layout and the precious mosaic floors. The most beautiful mosaic with the Rape of Europa next to the entrance, which was hitherto hidden underneath a tarp, is now exposed to full view. Thank you.

[Picture of Aegae's Palace from The Archaeologist]

The difference between restoration and reconstruction is very thin, I agree. The Palace of Aegae, the scene of so much history, was hardly visited. Not everybody is blessed with the ability to mentally rebuild the missing walls, columns, corridors, and rooms. The present reconstruction will draw crowds of tourists who do not have to make that effort and simply accept what is there. 

[Picture from Smithsonianmag]

This is especially true for the Parthenon on Athens' Acropolis. To see a temple as it would have looked on the day it was built is a major incentive for those who lack imagination or who are too lazy to make the effort. The excuse in Athens is that the Parthenon had been badly restored in the 1930s. The cement parts had to be replaced with marble and the rusted metal clamps had to make way for titanium ones. In the long run, this kind of repair does pay off. Besides, we have much more advanced techniques and deeper insight into the construction of a Classical temple than 150 years ago. Still, it remains debatable whether the transformation of the Parthenon is to be seen as a restoration or a reconstruction.

Oenoanda in the heartland of Lycia

Oenoanda or Oinoanda lies only some 60 kilometers from Fethiye, right next to the modern village of İncealiler. It is one of those untouched sites, clearly off the beaten path of which there are many in Turkey. Such places are always very rewarding to be discovered and to be explored. It is so remote that even a seasoned archaeologist like Cevdet Bayburtluoglu strongly recommends not to venture there by yourself but to take a caretaker or a villager with you to be safe from sheepdogs. These dogs are fiercely defending and protecting the flock of sheep and goats they are supposed to guard and they readily attack any intruder. No kidding!

The climb up from İncealiler to Oenoanda takes about an hour over rough terrain. It seems that, apart from a few days in 1997, the Turkish authorities never allowed the city to be excavated. Yet, that does not make the site less exciting because one can discover it as we walk on.

[Picture: Ansgar Bovet, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons]

The most striking feature in the landscape is, as always, the theater that sits higher up the hill overlooking the valley below and offers a dramatic view of the Taurus Mountains. It has been cut out of the rock and its plan closely resembles that of Myra or Phaselis, for instance.

Inside the city walls, of which many stretches are easily spotted, we find the remains of the ancient city. Unfortunately, these have not been properly documented and only the most striking features catch the eye.

A well-recognizable avenue leads from the theater to the Agora. It has been compared to Harbor Street at Phaselis as it is bordered by two steps on either side. The Agora, which is entirely paved with marble, is another prominent feature. The surrounding buildings have not been identified although we may presume based on the broken columns and stones that there was at least one temple erected alongside as is customary. A series of three distinct arches has been identified as belonging to a Library.

Otherwise, bits of columns, capitals, architraves, cornices, pedestals and stones of all sizes with or without inscriptions are scattered around in great numbers. Another recognizable element in the rubble is the broken pipes and remains of an aqueduct that must have run all the way to the Baths in the northeastern corner of Oenoanda.

The origins of Oenoanda are rather obscure but based on its name which contains the letters “-nd” the foundation could go back as far as the 2^nd millennium BC. In any case, it has been documented that Oenoanda was part of a tetrapolis annexed to Lycia. Together with Kibyra, Oenoanda became part of the Lycian League which was formed in the early 2^nd century BC and they acquired two votes each. The six main cities: Xanthos, Pinara, Tlos, Patara, Myra, and Olympos were the administrative, judicial, military, financial, and religious centers and each received three votes in the meetings of the League.

Pending serious excavations, no evidence has been found about the pre-Hellenistic Era of Oenoanda.

The city gained importance it seems, after the severe earthquake of 144 AD, when they received 10,000 denarii from Opramoas of Rhodiapolis (see: Opramoas of Rhodiapolis) to construct a Bath. It may sound strange because its own citizen, Licinius Langus of Oenoanda donated 10,000 denarii to Myra in order to rebuild their theater and its portico. He could have invested in the reconstruction of his home tome in the first place, no?

Another famous citizen of Oenoanda was the wealthy philosopher Diogenes, who spent his entire fortune on an Epicurean inscription. He had found peace of mind in the teachings of Epicurus and in order to show the people in Oenoanda the road to happiness, he commissioned an inscription 80 meters long and more than 3 meters high which set out Epicurean doctrines in about 25,000 words.  The huge inscription was placed in the agora and its large inscribed letters were painted - nobody could miss seeing them. At that time, in 120 AD, it would have been the largest ancient inscription ever found. The text included a number of instructions, letters, and epitomes defining the basic principles of Epicuraeism. In other words, a guide to happiness.

Unfortunately, the wall disappeared. It may have been deliberately destroyed or hit by an earthquake, but the scattered blocks were mostly reused as building material elsewhere. The wall with whatever remained of Oenoanda fell into oblivion, probably during the 9^th century AD.

During the 19^th and 20^th centuries, many fragments of this precious inscription were found, analyzed and partially put back together like a giant puzzle. That is a gigantic task that is still ongoing.

Oenoanda is surrounded by necropolises on all sides. Rock graves typically appear on both the east and west sides of the city and from the road between İncealiler and Oenoanda many sarcophagi, mostly of the Lycian type, are easily spotted in the landscape.

The ancient city of Phaselis is sinking

It is a well-known phenomenon that the southern coast of Turkey is sinking and this can easily be seen off the coast of Andriake where tourists take tours in boats with a glass bottom to visit the remains of the sunken city of nearby Kekova. This is due to the fact the African platonic plate is pushing against and sliding over the Asian plate.

In antiquity, Phaselis was a privileged anchoring place since sailors could profit from the sheltered Southern Harbor which is generally used by today’s tourists, or the Northern Harbor which was and is accessible under all weather conditions, either by southwesterly and northeasterly winds. The Naval Harbor, in turn, was located deep inside the Northern Harbor and clearly extremely well protected. The harbor slowly silted up (see also: Phaselis and its three harbors).

Thanks to recent studies, geologists now have determined that ancient Phaselis has sunken almost two meters under today's sea level over the past 2,000 years. This is best seen at the entrance of the Northern Harbor where two islets near the entrance are all that remains of the pier that once connected the lighthouse at its far end to the mainland.

Turkey's southern coastline is slowly submerging with averages between three and nine centimeters each year. Once you know what to look for, you can easily find many examples of sunken houses and sarcophagi all along the Mediterranean from Caunos to Patara, to Simena and Side, including Phaselis.

The movement of the tectonic plates generates earthquakes which have hit the areas of Lycia and Pamphylia since antiquity. Especially catastrophic was the earthquake of 141 AD (well-documented because Opramoas of Rhodiapolis donated large sums for the reconstruction of more than thirty Lycian cities between Telmessus in the west and Phaselis in the east) and the one that occurred on the 5^th of August 240 AD when the same cities were destroyed once again.

This means that Phaselis is only one such example, but the phenomenon is worth noticing when walking among the beautiful remains of these once so proud and prosperous cities!

The monument in honor of Opramoas of Rhodiapolis is taking shape

In an earlier post “Opramoas of Rhodiapolis” I mentioned the many benefactions this wealthy man made in his lifetime as recorded on the walls of the monument built in his honor at the heart of this city. All his good deeds have been well documented (see the abovementioned post for his main achievements) although we could not read the full text till the many loose blocks were put together in the correct sequence.

It is a painstaking job and it seems to be taking shape as can be seen in the recent pictures of the reconstruction. It is such a great pleasure to see how this building is rising from its ashes in all its glory!

To summarize the importance of this text, the longest ever found in Lycia or perhaps even in all of Anatolia, we should remember that 12 of these inscriptions contain letters which Opramoas exchanged with the Roman Emperors and with Antoninus Pius in particular, 19 letters to the Procurator and 33 various documents related to the Lycian League.

Opramoas was the richest man in Lycia and moved among other wealthy relatives like C. Julius Demosthenes of Oenoanda and Licinus Langus of Oenoanda. He came from a long lineage of important and influential people who wore such titles as Lyciarch (President of the Lycian League), Strategus (Military Commander), and Hipparch (Commander of the Cavalry). Besides, his brother Apollonios was a scribe of the Lycian League and also occupied the post of Lyciarch.

For more information about the Lycian League, please refer to my post The world’s first Parliament Building in Patara.

[Pictures from Turkish Archaeological News]

Phaselis and its three harbors

Phaselis was colonized by the Greeks of Rhodes, and that was not without reason, for here, their navy could find a safe shelter in one of its three natural harbors to load the wood they needed from the Lycian hinterland to build their ships. When the Persians took Anatolia in 546 BC, they automatically became masters of Phaselis till Alexander the Great changed that in 333 BC. Ambassadors had met him already on his way from Xanthos, and as soon as he arrived in Phaselis, he was welcomed with a golden crown and other gifts as a gesture of friendship. His march through the rough country of Lycia, of which very little is known, must have been pretty heavy, and it is not surprising that Alexander decided to spend the winter of 334-333 BC in Phaselis to rest his troops. He received envoys from Pamphylia, which he planned to cross in the early spring before meeting up with Parmenion near Gordion with the other half of his army.

Meanwhile, the citizens of Phaselis tried to take advantage of their good understanding with Alexander to solve their own deep conflict with Marmara, whose people destroyed their crops regularly and even kidnapped their women. When it came to friendship, Alexander knew no half-measures, and the people of Marmara were well aware of that. The night before the battle, the men decided to send their women, children, and elderly to seek protection in the neighboring woods. The men defended Marmara to the last, and when the end was near, they set the entire city afire and perished themselves. A story for a book, no doubt.

After Alexander’s death, Phaselis remained in the hands of the Ptolemies until 197 BC when the city, like all of Lycia, came under the rule of Rhodes. After 160 BC, the Lycian League collapsed, and with so many other regions around the Mediterranean, the city fell under the control of Rome. Then danger arose from an entirely different angle, piracy. Just like Olympos, Phaselis was under repeated attacks, and in the first century BC, both cities chose to join Zeniketes, the most powerful pirate of his time. Yet in 42 BC, the Romans took Phaselis back as they managed to abolish piracy. This peace didn’t last very long either, for the pirates were back in the third century. In the meantime, the entire region was struck by a series of powerful earthquakes, such as those that occurred in 141 and on the 5th of August, 240, causing widespread damage. When the Roman Empire was divided between East and West, Phaselis’ decline set in. Exporting timber from the hinterland was halted, which meant a significant blow to the city’s economy. The harbor slowly silted up, creating marshy lowlands where mosquitoes thrived and, in turn, caused health problems. Ports like Antalya, Side, and Alanya were on the rise, and by the 11th century, Phaselis was totally impoverished and had virtually disappeared. We had to wait till the 1970s when the first explorers could locate the site.

Today’s Phaselis is not the most exciting place to visit, but its location is quite idyllic. An advantageous approach is from the sheltered Southern Harbor, which is generally used by today’s tourists. The Northern Harbor, on the other hand, is privileged because it was and is accessible under all circumstances, either by southwesterly or northeasterly winds. The two islets near the harbor entrance are all that remains of the pier connected to the mainland with a lighthouse on its far end. It is difficult to imagine that this peaceful cobblestone beach was once a busy harbor, with its Naval Harbor, exceptionally well protected, now a field of waving reeds populated by loud croaking frogs.

Further inland, we find the remains of a Roman aqueduct that brought water from the 70-meter-high plateau down to the city.

From here, it is easy to find the 24-meter-wide Harbor Street, which was entirely paved. On either side runs a sidewalk that can be reached via three steps. Cevdet Bayburtluoğu (see: Lycia) has speculated that there might have been an extra wooden step since the first one is pretty high. Statues of important citizens lined up the street, duly resting on a pedestal engraved with their names or the reason for their presence. The pedestals were put back into place after the Byzantines had removed them to build the pier. Cevdet Bayburtluoğu recovered them from the harbor's depth and put them back in place. This is the reason why some of these stones look so much worn. Notably, this avenue is reserved for pedestrians as the three-step staircase on either end makes cart access impossible.

To the left are the latrines, after a small bath establishment, the Bath of the Theatre, probably built after the earthquake of 240, since recuperation material from earlier periods has been used. The sewage of both complexes went straight into the Naval Harbor, where traces of this system can still be seen. After these small baths, which functioned at least until the 8th century, one reaches the theater, the inevitable eye-catcher in any city. The old staircase to the entrance is still there, but is not very recommendable. Instead, a relatively comfortable wooden construction has been put in place. The theater is typically Hellenistic, although the skene is a pure Roman addition. The walls of the skene have been badly damaged, not so much because of age but because of a severe fire that caused many lintels made of porous stone to collapse. Such a shame for a building that withstood centuries. A theater always touches a soft spot in my soul, for this is a place where people gathered some 2,000 years ago, walked through its corridors, and climbed its steps, with echoes of voices and sounds from times past under the watchful eyes of the snow-capped Tahtali mountain.

The central square or Agora is somewhat puzzling because it is a shapeless space situated halfway the Harbor Street, which continues further along the Agora of Domitian to the Southern Harbor. This Agora is neatly paved, and opposite the theater are the remains of a Nymphaeum – another of those monuments that a trained eye recognizes immediately. There are two more such Nymphaeums on either side of the passageway to the Agora of Hadrian. The left and oldest one (mid-3rd century AD) is rather difficult to make out, as opposed to the one on the right, dating from the end of the 3rd and beginning of the 4th century. In the prolongation of Harbor Street, the stretch between the Agora and the Southern Harbor that also ends with three steps, we find the Gate of Domitian, the entrance to the Agora by the same name. For some obscure reason, the name of Domitian was erased from all official buildings after his death.

We find most of the shops in this part of the city, but since the streets were only accessible to pedestrians, the supplies had to be brought in from the parallel back streets.

At the end of this paved road, next to the steps leading to the harbor, several marble blocks indicate where the large Triumphal Arch for Hadrian once stood. It was built in all its splendor after his second visit to Phaselis in 131 AD, when the city reached its climax. It consisted of one large vault resting on two square pillars decorated with lion paws. The busts of Faustina and Sabina have since long disappeared from the niches, and we can only find blocks with reliefs of fancy vines and drinking vessels.

It is nice to meet my friend Opramoas of Rhodiapolis again, in stone, that is. As mentioned earlier, he is the benefactor who contributed to the reconstruction of Phaselis after the terrible earthquake of 141 AD. In thankful remembrance, the citizens erected a monument in his honor not too far from the Agora of Hadrian. A small part of the accompanying inscription is still visible on the lintel above the gate.

The Southern Harbor, where today’s tourists anchor their boats, is a pleasant green oasis along the dark blue waters crowned by the snow-capped Tahtali Mountain in the background – a picture-perfect setting! According to Cevdet Bayburtluoğu, this is where we should look for the Greek city. No serious excavations were ever carried out in these parts, and the fencing is pretty random. Turkey has too many ruins and areas that require thorough research, making it extremely difficult to set priorities. If this is indeed the site of the original Greek city, which will have to be confirmed by future excavations, we may have a chance to recover the remains of the Temple of Athena, where Achilles’ lance was kept.

This being said, these parts of Phaselis have been recently (2008) threatened by a building project. The owner of the Rixos Hotels intended to build a new hotel, “Dream of Phaselis,” right on top of the ancient city. It was a hard fight, but environmentalists and archaeologists, for once, did win this battle, and in 2015, the project was abandoned!

Walking back, it is worth investigating the remains of the Large Baths and the Gymnasium along Harbor Street, both from the 2nd century AD. A few mosaic floors from Byzantine times are still there, as well as the piles of fireproof bricks that once supported the floors of the Caldarium and the Tepidarium. On the opposite side, several temples stood next to each other, but the remains were vague, and the thickets covered most of the walls from view. This is, however, the place to look for the Temple of Zeus with the inscription Dios Boulaios from the days of Nero and Antoninus Pius, and a little further, one should be able to find the two temples dedicated to Leto’s children, the twins Artemis and Apollo who were highly revered by the Lycians.

The intrepid visitor may still find the energy to scramble uphill to the necropolis, nothing more than broken and crumbled sarcophagi, some of them submerged downhill. About three-quarters of the necropolis seems to lie outside the fenced area and has yet to be excavated. There are imposing remains of a large mausoleum which at first was labeled as a temple because of the stumps of columns, but it is more likely that this was the tomb of a wealthy family from Phaselis.

Once again, it will be interesting to return here at some point in the future and see what new excavations will reveal and what additional information will become available.

The role of benefactors in antiquity

Before any of our modern-day governments set up a help and assistance plan in case of emergency or catastrophe, the only help any citizen could get was from his neighbor. For more serious matters like fire, flooding, or earthquake where more substantial help was needed, the role of a benefactor was of the highest importance.

Even today, we still have millionaires and billionaires who donate all or part of their fortune to a good cause, and in some cases, it may be the only help the recipients are getting. The role of the benefactor has not really changed throughout history, but we seldom connect it to antiquity. This thought hit me while traveling through Lycia in southwestern Turkey where time and again I came across the same names, more particularly in connection with the devastating earthquake that hit the region in 141 AD.

The main benefactor or maybe the best known is Opramoas of Rhodiapolis who contributed approximately 2 billion denarii for widespread activities, an enormous amount considering that the wage of a shepherd or manual worker was about 10 denarii. This man deserved a post of his own. (See: Opramoas of Rhodiapolis).

But there are several others, who definitely merit be mentioned as well:

Licinius Langus of Oenoanda

A wealthy man from Lycia who donated large amounts to the city of Myra. Following the earthquake of 141 AD, Licinius Langus donated 10,000 denarii for the rebuilding of the theater and its portico. 
 

Jason of Cyaneae

Another Lycian philanthropist and a contemporary of Opramoas and Licinius Lanfus is said to have contributed to the development of many cities; 16 Lycian cities issued honorific decrees for him. He is said to have given handsome monetary gifts to the city of Myra. He was an important man and became the Lyciarch (the head of the Lycian League).

Junia Theodora

Theodora was a lobbyist for Lycian interests at Corinth in the mid-1st century AD and a Roman citizen.  The Lycian Federation issued two decrees in her honor and presented her with a crown of gold and her portrait was painted on a gold background and five minas of saffron. Myra, Patara, and Telmessus also honored her with decrees of gratitude for her assistance. According to the decrees, she did excellent work in gaining favor with the authorities for Lycian interests. She also provided hospitality for ambassadors and private citizens from the Lycian Assembly and from Lycian cities at her home. Upon her death, her will favored the Lycian people. Sextus Julius, her agent, and heir assisted her in her work.

Diogenes of Oenoanda

Diogenes of Oenoanda was a philosopher and prominent citizen who lived in the 2nd century AD and is famous for making one of the most extraordinary inscriptions of ancient times. He had found peace of mind in the teachings of Epicurus and to show the people in Oenoanda the road to happiness, he commissioned an inscription 80 meters long and more than 3 meters high which set out Epicurean doctrines* in about 25,000 words.  The huge inscription was placed in the agora and its large inscribed letters were painted - nobody could miss seeing them. This inscription is one of the most important sources for the philosophical school of Epicurus. Today it is broken but its fragments are being studied. Many of its blocks were used for building houses, paving streets, etc. – most probably during the early Christian era. They have been discovered one by one since the late 19th century.

This list is about Lycia alone and only covers the first and second centuries. It makes you wonder how many more benefactors, known and unknown, must have contributed to the well-being and even the survival of so many people at any time BC or AD. All those great men and women deserve a commemoration and a commendation like the one just granted to Opramoas of Rhodiapolis who became an honorary member of the Antalya Industrials and Businessmen Association (ANSIAD) nearly two thousand years after his death (see: Opramoas of Rhodiapolis, posthumously businessman of the year?). Paul Getty and Bill Gates did not come up with a new idea; they only put it in a new context.

* Epicurism assured people that there was nothing to fear from death, for the reason that there is no afterlife: death is the end of us because the only reality is physical reality.  It conveyed the ultimate conviction that individuals can live in serene happiness, fortified by the continual experience of modest pleasures.