More of What Alexander did for us

Approximately ten years ago, I posted a blog about citrus fruit as introduced by Alexander’s Macedonians from India (see: What Alexander did for us). 

This certainly was not an isolated case if we look at the work of Theophrastus, a contemporary of Aristotle and Alexander (see: Theophrastus, philosopher and botanist). He studied plants that came from Persia, Afghanistan, and the Indus Valley. He introduced the Greeks to mangos, cardoons (or artichoke thistle), jujubes (also called Chinese dates), pistachios, and tamarind. Newly imported plants were cinnamon, banyan (a fig typically from India), as well as frankincense and myrrh. 

One day during his invasion of India in 327 BC, Alexander had bananas for dessert and he enjoyed the fruit so much that he wanted to share it. Eventually, bananas traveled to the Middle East, where they earned their Arabic name of banan, meaning finger. 

Arrian revealed that in 325 BC, Nearchus had found sugarcane. He described it as “a reed that brings forth honey without the help of bees”. In antiquity, sugarcane was basically used as a medicine by Greek and Roman physicians, as documented by Pliny the Elder in the 1^st century AD. 

Rice was another food the king introduced into Macedonia after his campaign in Central Asia, and it appears that the well-known dish of Plov or Pilaf spread from Macedonia, throughout Greece and the Balkans (see: The origins of rice in ancient Macedonia). 

Alexander also introduced Europe to the cotton from India. It is said that the Macedonians started wearing cotton clothes which were more appropriate for the Indian climate. 

The colorful floor mosaic of a parakeet from Palace V in Pergamon now on display at the Museum of Pergamon in Berlin (see: The beauty of Alexandrine mosaics) is a rare example of the wide collection of animals and plants Alexander sent to Aristotle from the regions he conquered. The Alexandrine Parakeet was native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. 

As Alexander traveled to modern-day countries such as Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and India, he shared his serious interest in local cultures and habits with the rest of the world.

Alexandria, the first Renaissance

The term Hellenism is often interchanged with Greek, especially in art. Classical Greek art almost unnoticeably merged with Hellenistic art, and we owe it all to Alexander. In the wake of his conquests, Greek culture and language spread all over the ancient world, from Greece to India. Thanks to the common use of the Greek language, trade developed as merchants were always looking for business opportunities. Talking to buyers and sellers in the same language was a considerable asset. 

After the wars among Alexander’s successors were settled, peace returned in one form or another. Traffic and exchanges between East and West soon blossomed to reach a level never achieved before. 

Greek knowledge and culture were mixed and blended with the learning of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Central Asia, and India. In this context, Alexandria became the new center of the ancient world. 

It was in Alexandria that the first Library was created. In today’s words, this could be compared to a university. Ptolemy I Soter initially founded a Museum inside the Temple of the Muses (hence the name Museum), where all art and sciences were brought together. 

It seems that the Library was, in fact, an extension of the temple built by Ptolemy II Philadelphus, his son. Like every other building in Alexandria, we only have a slight idea of what it looked like, as, to this day, very few remains have been unearthed. An outstanding effort to visualize the great Library was made by Kevin Kok, Senior Level Artist at Ubisoft Montreal, to recreate the complex as it would or could have been (see: The Library of Alexandria). In time, the terms Museum and Library were used interchangeably. 

The Library of Alexandria certainly met Alexander’s own desire to create a research center where knowledge from East and West would be collected to be shared by all. The very concept existed already in the Academy and the Lyceum of Athens, but at Alexander’s death in 323 BC, the ancient world had grown into another dimension. We must credit Ptolemy for understanding Alexander’s vision and executing his ambition. 

Eventually, great scientists flocked to Alexandria, exchanging and discussing their understanding and perception of the world. Much research was done at the Museum, which held an astronomical observatory and rooms for anatomical dissections, and where all sorts of experiments were carried out. The site also included botanical and zoological gardens. How modern is that! 

It is generally accepted that Dimitrios of Phaleron was responsible for the organization. With the budget made available by Ptolemy II, he collected all the books he could, including the works of Aristotle and Theophrastus. Ptolemy III continued this trend, and the Library could boast of having half a million parchment rolls. Among them were all the great Greek works from Homer onward! 

After the death of Dimitrios, Zenodotus of Ephesus took over, assisted by Callimachus of Cyrene. This Callimachus is credited with being the first to classify 120,000 works of prose and poetry, sorting them by author and subject. Eratosthenes of Cyrene was appointed around 235 BC as the new head of the Library. He concentrated on mathematics, astronomy, and geography. We’ll remember Eratosthenes’ contribution to calculating the planet Earth's size after Pythagoras had declared that the Earth was a sphere (see: Alexander missed Eratosthenes by less than a century). 

Great scientists widely contributed to the Library. Euclid wrote his Elements of Geometry, which is still used today, and also a book on astronomy and one on perspective, the Optica. Archimedes, a native of Syracuse, probably studied in Alexandria. He is best known for his theory of calculating the volume, which he discovered while bathing. He was so excited about his discovery that he ran out of his house, stark naked, shouting, “Eureka!” - I found it! (see: Archimedes, the most illustrious citizen of Syracuse). The greatest astronomer of antiquity was Hipparchus of Nicaea, who made great use of the Library of Alexandria.  Besides being a geographer and a mathematician, he was also the inventor of trigonometry, and most famous for discovering the precession of the equinoxes in the late 2^nd century BC. 

Lesser known but equally important is Ctesibius of Alexandria, the inventor of toys and devices using air under pressure, i.e., pneumatics. He created automatons such as a water clock, a fire engine, and even a singing statue. He also invented the first keyboard-wind instrument, the hydraulis, a recreation of which is exhibited in the Museum of Dion, Greece (see: Close encounter with an ancient Water-Organ). 

By 62 AD, Hero of Alexandria even invented the first steam engine! Imagine our world if this invention had not been lost. 

The list of scientists, astronomers, mathematicians, physicians, and inventors seems endless. All their knowledge was born in Alexandria, from where it spread over the entire ancient world for more than three hundred years! The famous Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Pharos, was one of the Seven Wonders of the World, shining its light over a great distance thanks to an intricate system of mirrors. How it actually worked remains obscure. It was probably damaged by the catastrophic earthquake that hit the entire coast of North Africa in 365 AD. Repairs never resuscitated this unique structure. 

Alexandria was also the center where Medical Science was born under Herophilus. He was the first scientist to systematically perform dissections of dead people, often in public, to explain his actions to those interested in these matters. His books are lost but were frequently quoted in the 2nd century AD by the physician Claudius Galenus, better known as Galen of Pergamon (see: Hello? Dr. Galen?) 

Other Libraries were known from antiquity (see: Libraries in antiquity, a short overview), but none surpassed the one in Alexandria. 

After centuries of glory, this great Library succumbed to earthquakes and repeated fires. The lack of funds to sponsor and maintain the premises was another reason for its degradation. Eventually, the knowledge was transferred to Antioch, and with the Arab conquest to Baghdad. We owe very much to Caliph Al-Mansur (754-775 AD), who had a vivid interest in Greek science. He ordered the Greek documents to be translated into Arabic. Over the centuries, these translations traveled back west to become available in Latin. In fact, Al-Mansur saved ancient Greek literature and science for us to enjoy today. This entire process is developed in detail by John Freely in his book Aladdin’s Lamp. How Greek science came to Europe through the Islamic World.

An ancient remedy and superfood, sea buckthorn

Ancient sources tell us that Alexander the Great had a thorough knowledge of medicine and ways to treat the wounds and ailments of his troops (see: Alexander caring for the wounded and the dead).

It is great to learn that one such remedy was the sea buckthorn, specifically the orange berries this shrub produces. It is commonly present in cold-temperate regions of Europe and Asia, from the coastal areas of the Netherlands and the Baltic Sea to Afghanistan, India, the Himalayan region, and northern China. In antiquity, it even grew in Greece. 

The pretty orange berries are full of vitamins and antioxidants, qualities that were unknown to Alexander, although he could take advantage of them. Besides, these fruits contained fatty acids, which helped hair and nails to grow and were beneficial for the eyes. It has been reported that after eating these berries, the king's horses had shinier hair, gained in strength, and recovered more quickly from injuries and illnesses. Alexander most probably added these berries to his own diet and to that of his troops, making them stronger and more vigorous. 

The Latin name for the sea buckthorn berries, Hippophae, may well be based on Alexander’s experiences with the horses as the particles hippos and phaos literally mean “shining horse.” This refers to the radiant effect of the berries on his horses’ fur. 

Alexander must have learned about these berries from Aristotle since Theophrastus, one of his pupils developed the healing properties of sea buckthorn in his writings. The interests of Theophrastus were, of course, not limited to these berries and extended to biology, physics, ethics, and even metaphysics (see: Theophrastus, philosopher and botanist). 

Today, as the sea buckthorn is made available as tea and juice or oil, we know that it even boosts the immune system and increases our concentration. A sound immune system, in particular, must have played an essential role in keeping Alexander’s troops in excellent shape.

Theophrastus, philosopher and botanist

Theophrastus lived in Alexander’s days, but despite his elaborate work on the plants and foods he received from Asia, he is hardly mentioned in this context.

Theophrastus was born around 371 BC in Lesbos and was given the name of Tyrtamus. When he was 17 years old, he became a disciple of  Aristotle who changed his name into Theophrastus (spoken by God) because of his exceptional eloquent language. Together they traveled to Lesbos in 347 BC to study the animals and plants of the island.

When Aristotle left for Macedonia to teach the young prince Alexander, Theophrastus continued his botanical study. Yet, the relationship between Aristotle and Theophrastus remained very close, and we may wonder which part each of them played in analyzing and studying the many plant and seed specimens Alexander sent back from Asia.

It is known that Theophrastus maintained a botanical herbarium, something unusual for the time. The array of plants he studied came from Persia, Afghanistan, and the Indus Valley. He introduced the Greeks to the robust argun palms, bananas, citrons, cardoons (or artichoke thistle), mangos, jujubes (also called Chinese dates), pistachios, and tamarind. Pepper arrived in Athens at some time in the 4^th century BC, maybe carried along by Alexander’s troops. Newly imported plants were cinnamon, banyan (a fig typically from India), as well as frankincense and myrrh (the myrrh trees in Gedrosia were taller than anywhere else and Alexander’s mercenaries from Phoenicia readily collected it). Cotton was another novelty that appeared in the Greek world and some say that is was Theophrastus who brought cotton to this country, but his role in this matter is far from clear.

Upon the death of Aristotle in 322 BC, just one year after Alexander’s, Theophrastus inherited his mentor’s entire library, including his manuscripts. Drawing on Aristotle’s concepts and no doubt on his own experiences, he wrote two botany textbooks: the ten-volume Historia Plantarum (Inquiry into plants) and the eight-volume De Causis Plantarum (On the Causes of Plants) covering 550 species in all. Pliny the Elder based his Historia Naturae (Natural History) on Theophrastus' books, which remained primary references throughout the Middle Ages. Great men like Cicero and Seneca often leaned on Theophrastus’ knowledge.

According to Diogenes Laërtius, Theophrastus wrote 227 books, most of which are unfortunately now lost. Ptolemy II, the son of Ptolemy I Soter who had campaigned with Alexander, fully appreciated both Aristotle and Theophrastus, and he transferred their entire collection to Alexandria.

In his long life, Theophrastus worked as a lecturer at the Lyceum in Athens, enlarging and reorganizing the school over time. From the age of 49 until his death at 85, he taught a total of at least 2,000 pupils. He also founded a museum in Alexandria in memory of Aristotle.

[Picture of Theophrastus from NNDB]

The trireme, a ship to remember

The trireme seems to be the most intriguing type of ship built and used in the ancient world. It was, in fact, the most dangerous and effective warship of its time, built for mobility and speed. We know that Tyre had a fleet of triremes when they attacked Alexander to hamper him from working on the causeway to connect the island to the mainland. Arrian clearly states that he “took the quinqueremes and five triremes,” he quickly assembled to meet the Tyrians and eventually “rammed the majority and made them unsailable”.

 [Picture: Greek Reporter]

Triremes were meant to be used as a ramming weapon and were powered by 170 oarsmen arranged in three rows. The bottom row of oarsmen sat hardly 18 inches above the water level, meaning that the ship was not fit to be used in rough weather or to be handled in the open ocean. Yet they were ideal for short battles as they were very fast and maneuverable, a huge advantage during critical encounters. They are known to have been the decisive weapon during the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC when the 371 Greek ships defeated the much larger Persian fleet of 1207 ships.

The first trireme was invented around 700 BC by Ameinocles the Corinthian. It could move fast and under sail under favorable conditions, could even reach a speed of 10 knots. So it is not surprising that these triremes were favorites and were optimized over time to be the fastest ships in antiquity. They were used all over the eastern Mediterranean and the practical Romans sailed them until the 4th century AD.

In the past thirty years or so, there have been a lot of discussions about their shapes, the three levels of oars, and their overall measurements. All we could go by were vase paintings, coins, and pictures of different sculptures, as no wreck was ever found. A few construction details were revealed in ancient texts, like the performances of the rowers or the fact that each oar was handled by one single man. Some building sheds, however, seem to have come to us, providing us with at least the maximum length and beam of a trireme. The length of the oars was a main subject of debate since they plunged into the water from different levels. In the end, a general agreement has been reached to establish the length of a trireme at 120 feet (37 meters). They were manned by 170 oarsmen, of whom 31 sat on the top row, 27-29 on the middle and bottom rows.

By the end of the last century, the debates flared up, and eventually, a Trireme Trust was created in 1982 to rebuild a full-size ship. It took about five years to launch the prototype, which was baptized gallantly as Olympias. I like to believe that was in honor of Queen Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great but I couldn’t find any evidence to support my assumption. The modern replica was born in the shipyards of Piraeus using Oregon pine since adequate Greek pine had declined and was not expected to stand up to the strains. Some 20,000 wooden wedges were used to connect the hull planks, which, according to tradition, were made of beech wood, while the required 25,000 bronze spikes were all handmade. The ramming front was made of cast bronze in two separate pieces. The sails, on the other hand, were made of linen in Scotland, the only place capable of making such sails.

By 1987 sea trials were carried out in the Saronic Gulf around the island of Poros (1 day), in 1988 with a voyage to Methana and the subsequent circuit of Poros (1 day), in 1990 around the coast to Porto Heli when speed records were reached (5 days), in 1992 the first trireme passage through the Canal of Corinth was achieved and the longest voyage to Corinth, via Aegina and Salamis (6 days) and in 1994 the Olympias was used for public relation purposes with several Greek film crews. Remarkably, the ship even sailed up the River Thames in 1993 to mark the 2,500th anniversary of Greek democracy (I wonder why democracy had to be celebrated in London?).

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All these trials led to interesting conclusions in spite of the opposition by the purists who thought that any reconstruction should be based on an archaeological wreck, of which none exists. The Olympias sailed under favorable conditions in a sprint under oar at a speed of 9 knots (very close to the 10 knots mentioned above), while she was rowed continuously for more than 30 miles at a cruising speed of close to 6 knots. She turned out to be extremely maneuverable, and a lot of practical information was gleaned during these trials about the practicalities and logistics of using both oar and (square) sail.

The story of the Olympias has been dormant since, but suddenly I hear that scientists believe to be close to tracing the wood from which these ancient triremes were made. They are actually focusing on the Macedonian fir and pine tree of Olympus in the Pieria area, southern Macedonia, Greece, because their wood, locally known as “liacha” has no knots but is very resistant to salt water. This theory is based partly on Theophrastus, Aristotle’s successor, who recorded that these trees were used in the construction of paddles and ships, and partly on the results of archaeological excavation that were carried out in Methone in 2003. Since 2011, scientists from Greece have been joined by those from the USA, Britain, and Ireland in a collective effort to discover pure pieces of wood from the 8th century at the excavation site of Methone. I can hardly wait for the results of this study, especially since this city is part of Alexander’s homeland!

[Picture from Daily Mail]

Meanwhile, more exciting news comes from recent diving expeditions off the east coast of Sicily near the Egadi Islands, where ten bronze ship-rams have been discovered together with a variety of arms and utensils. The site is where the last battle of the First Punic War (241 BC) was fought between Carthage and Rome, which was won by the Romans thanks to their smart planning. The ten rams, each weighing as much as 125 kg, were mounted on the bow of the triremes or quinqueremes to be used to simply ram the enemy ship to pieces. This find is quite significant considering that till now only four rams have been recovered for all antiquity. Follow the latest developments on The Archaeology News Network. Another interesting article appeared lately in the Daily Mail. 

Alexander’s pleasant body odor

What a subject for discussion! Well, anyway, I want to share my opinion on this matter that seems to have occupied the mind of many ancient and modern authors alike.

Time and again, I read how people around Alexander were surprised by his body fragrance and many ancient writers find it exceptional enough to mention it. But then Alexander is known to have taken a bath whenever possible, using a nearby stream or lake when the comforts of home were not at hand. Examples are plentiful.

Plutarch is by far the most informative on this subject and talks about it at the very beginning of his book “The Life of Alexander the Great”, where he gives us a detailed description of Alexander’s appearance. “… he was fair and of a light colour, passing into ruddiness in his face and upon his breast. Aristoxenus in his Memoirs tells us that a most agreeable odour exhaled from his skin, and that his breath and body all over was so fragrant as to perfume the clothes which he wore next him; the cause of which might probably be the hot and adust temperament of his body.” He proceeds with a rather questionable theory developed by Theophrastus about sweet smells in hot temperatures that doesn’t sound very convincing and then he continues “His temperance, as to the pleasures of the body, was apparent in him in his very childhood, as he was with much difficulty incited to them, and always used them with great moderation; though in other things he was extremely eager and vehement, and in his love of glory, and the pursuit of it, he showed a solidity of high spirit and magnanimity far above his age”. It seems that Plutarch has been widely quoted on this subject, from antiquity to modern times and may well be the only description of Alexander that has come to us.

And then there is the by far best known episode of Alexander bathing in the cold waters of the Cydnus River near Tarsus, in today’s southeastern Turkey. Plutarch tells us that he caught a “sickness that detained him”, “which some say he contracted from his fatigues, others from bathing in the river Cydnus, whose waters were exceedingly cold”.

Arrian in his Campaigns of Alexander the Great (Book 2, 4) is more informative about this episode, which he draws from Aristoboulos. “About this time Alexander had a bout of sickness. The cause of it, according to Aristoboulos’ account, was exhaustion, but others say that he plunged into the river Cydnus for a swim, as he was sweating with heat and could not resist the pleasure of a bathe. The Cydnus runs right through Tarsus, and as it rises in Mount Taurus and flows through open country, its waters are clear and cold; the result was that Alexander was seized by a convulsion, followed by high fever and sleepless nights.”

And finally our newspaper reporter from antiquity, dear Quintus Curtius (History of Alexander, Book 3,14-15), writes a nice story about this event: “The river Cydnus, …, flows through the middle of Tarsus; it was then summer, the heat of which burns no other shore more than that of Cilicia with the sun’s fires, and the hottest time of the day had begun. The clear water of the river tempted the king, who was covered with dust and at the same time with sweat, to bathe his body when it was still heated; accordingly, laying off his clothing in the sight of the army – thinking that it would also be fitting if he should show his men that he was content with attention to his person which was simple and easily attained – he went down into the river. But hardly had he entered it when his limbs began to stiffen with a sudden chill, then he lost his colour, and the vital warmth almost his entire body. His attendants caught him in their arms, looking like a dying man, and carried him almost unconscious into his tent.” The story continues in the same theatrical style, of course.

Whatever the reason for Alexander’s sickness (often assimilated to malaria which prevailed in this area till early 20th century) the fact is that Alexander did plunge into the river. Someone who is not accustomed to it would not have even considered setting a foot in that icy stream.

Plutarch treats us also to another story when Alexander marched from Babylon to Ecbatana and saw “the place where fire issues in a continuous stream, like a spring of water, out of a cleft in the earth, and the stream of naphtha … . This naphtha, in other respects resembling bitumen, is so subject to take fire …”. This was something new and I’m sure everyone in Alexander’s army wanted to play with this fire, although Plutarch blames “the barbarians” for turning the whole street in one continued flame. The interesting passage for me is where he says, “Among those who used to wait on the king and find occasion to amuse him when he anointed and washed himself, there was one Athenophanes, an Athenian, who desired him to make an experiment of the naphtha upon Stephanus, who stood by in the bathing place…”. Well, he set the poor man on fire with one single drop of the stuff causing that “Alexander was in the greatest perplexity and alarm for him, and not without reason; for nothing could have prevented his being consumed by it, if by good chance there had not been people at hand with a great many vessels of water for the service of the bath…”. So here once again, everything was made ready for Alexander’s bath, not just one single jar of water by the way!

  

Diodurus Siculus (Library of History) is very meager when it come to personal information about Alexander. The Cydnus episode is entirely left out and there obviously is no mention at all about the discovering of oil and the experiments involved. In fact, I found only one single sentence about bathing which is right after the Battle of Issus “The royal pages now took over the tent of Darius and prepared Alexander’s bath and dinner ….” (Book 17, 36-3).

It is this repeated bathing and extreme cleanliness that made me think of Alexander’s pleasant body odor. He definitely was an exception and must have been perceived as an eccentric to his servants and army alike. I have never heard of any Macedonian soldier bathing or enjoying a refreshing swim in some river or at the seaside although Alexander’s father, King Philip, had decreed that his men should use cold water only – hot water being the privilege for women who had just given birth (see Ian Worthington – Philip II of Macedonia). This being the case, I doubt that many would have ventured in the cold rivers of Macedonia or Thracia. Most would have stayed out of the water as armies have done over the centuries, only washing up by the time they went home, for instance.

So, in the end, my belief is that Alexander did not have an especially fragrant skin but that because of his regular bathing, he simply carried a pleasant smell among the generally unwashed bodies of his entourage. That even his clothes were impregnated with his body odor is only normal, but it must have been a striking phenomenon in his days.