The use of opium in antiquity

Opium may be best known from the mid-19th-century Opium Wars in China. More recently, it was associated with Afghanistan, which provided nearly the entire world's production of opium, that is, until the Taliban decided in 2022 that it went against their religious beliefs. 

New in this context, however, is to learn that opium was a common good in ancient Egypt! 

[Picture from Phys.org ]

Researchers from the Yale Ancient Pharmacology Program (YAPP) studied the organic residues found on or within ancient vessels, providing insight into the diets and lifestyles of ancient people. 

A close examination of an Egyptian alabaster vase revealed traces of opiates that proved the use of opium in antiquity. This vase carries an inscription in four languages Akkadian, Elamite, Persian, and Egyptian. It is dedicated to King Xerxes I of Persia (486-465 BC), who had conquered Egypt in his expansion wars both westwards and eastwards. Inscriptions on vessels are very rare in ancient Egypt, as fewer than ten examples are known worldwide. This particular vase, 22 centimeters tall, holds a second text in Demotic, a simplified form of Egyptian, indicating that it had a capacity of 1.2 liters. 

The presence of opium has led to further investigation, indicating that far more alabaster vessels contained traces of opiate than expected, including those recovered from the Tomb of Tutankhamun. During its discovery in 1922, Howard Carter had noted the presence of a dark brown, sticky, aromatic substance inside the vessels without being able to identify it. Obviously, it was not some kind of perfume or unguent, but a product important enough to accompany the pharaoh into the afterlife. 

Modern researchers concluded that opium was used well beyond medicinal purposes, as mentioned by Hippocrates (see: A healthy mind in a healthy body – in early antiquity) and Galen (see: Hello? Dr. Galen?). It played a clear ritual role in many cultures, reaching from Mesopotamia to the Aegean. The earliest discovery of opiate residues was made in a merchant’s family tomb in Sedment, south of Cairo, dating back to before the 11^th century BC. 

It is amazing that a full century after its discovery, Tutankhamun’s Tomb has not yet revealed all its secrets and presently helps to clarify the role of opium in antiquity.

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.

Polygyros in Chalcidice

Polygyros in Chalcidice is in the news since its Archaeological Museum has reopened after being closed for twelve years to upgrade it to today's standards. 

Chalcidice is the three-fingered peninsula just east of Thessaloniki in Northern Greece, famous for its exotic beaches and natural landscapes. It is a popular vacation destination for people from Balkan countries, Austria, and Germany. 

Polygyros is situated at the peninsula's center, with easy access to notorious antique sites like Olynthus, Potidea, and Stagira. It is also close to the narrow where King Xerxes I of Persia dug a canal across the most easterly finger (Mount Athos Peninsula) during the Second Persian War in 480 BC (see: Stagira, the Birthplace of Aristotle). 

I vividly remember visiting the Museum of Polygyros when I toured around Chalcidice. I was determined to see the arrowheads from Olynthus (see: Olynthus and its houses), with their unique inscription ΦΙΛΙΠΠO (Philippou), meaning from Philip. It had taken Philip of Macedonia nearly two years to conquer Olynthus, and his army apparently had quite a sense of humor. The siege ended in 348 BC, after which Philip razed the city to the ground. 

Another treasure at the museum is the surviving part of Philip's treaty with the Chalcideans. Alarmed by Philip's policy after he occupied Amphipolis in 357 BC, the Chalcidean allies and the Olynthians concluded a treaty with Philip against Athens, who had refused an earlier proposition. To seal their agreement on the treaty's terms, the two parties solemnly swore by Zeus, Gaia, Helios, and Poseidon. 

Three copies of this treaty were made, and the Chalcideans would display theirs at the Temple of Artemis in Olynthus, and Philip would do the same in the Temple of Zeus in Dion. They jointly would exhibit a third copy in Delphi after having it ratified by the gods. 

Strolling further through this small museum, I discovered several artifacts worth my attention. There was, for instance, a terracotta Niké from Sane, 6^th century BC, a lion spout from the Temple of Ammon-Zeus in Kallithea, 5^th century BC, and a piece of cornice from an archaic sanctuary in Stagira, 6^th century BC. Last but not least, an exciting collection of silver and copper coins that was unearthed in Stagira, mainly carrying effigies of Macedonian kings. There were also coins from other cities like Akanthos (modern Ierissos), Sermyle, Skione, and Ouranopolis on the Chalcidice, and from more distant Amphipolis, Pella, Thessaloniki, Corinth, etc. 

These treasures may be dwarfed in the museum that has been enlarged to accommodate an extensive donation of more than one thousand artifacts. The generous benefactor is Iraklis Lambropoulos, who donated the collection his father, Ioannis, had gathered in the 1930s. In fact, he gave it to the Greek State, provided it would be displayed at the Archaeological Museum of Polygyros. 

Today's visitor will see finding from excavations carried out throughout Chalcidice dating from the Palaeolithic to the Archaic, Classic, Hellenistic, and Roman eras. Special attention is drawn to an unfinished kouros, which may have escaped my attention or is entirely new. Noteworthy is also a marble head of Dionysos from Aphytos, 4^th century BC, two marble grave statues from the Heroon of Stratoni, 1^st century BC, and the artifacts unearthed in Olynthus and its cemetery. 

It is obvious that I should visit this museum the next time I am in Chalcidice.

The Sanctuary of Eleusis

Eleusis has been on my wish list for many years. For some reason or another, my visit was always postponed or canceled. But after much perseverance and determination, the opportunity arose, and I walked through the very entrance to the site. 

It so happens that this was where the Sacred Way ended, the one on which in antiquity the procession had started, leaving the Kerameikos in Athens. All that remains is a large paved area, once framed by two arches. [The picture shows the Sacred Gate at the Kerameikos in Athens]

We owe the earliest version of the Eleusinian Mystery to an unknown poet from the 6th century BC who composed the Homeric Hymn to Demeter. The Hymn describes the abduction of Persephone (or Kore), Demeter’s daughter, by her uncle, Hades, god of the Underworld. Demeter, the goddess of the earth and fertility of the land, set out on a desperate adventure to find her back. On her search, she rested here at Eleusis, where she found hospitality. To thank King Celeos and the people of Eleusis for their kindness, she rewarded them with the knowledge of agriculture and the “Mysteries” – sacred wisdom to be experienced and learned at Eleusis. 

Demeter’s quest continued, however. Overcome by sadness, she searched long and far relentlessly. Immersed in grief and loss, the seasons stopped, and living things ceased to grow and died. Facing the extinction of life on earth, Zeus, the brother to both Hades and Demeter and father to Persephone, intervened, commanding Hermes to bring Persephone back. However, because she had consumed some pomegranate seeds while with Hades, she was obliged to stay with him. As the order given by Zeus could not be ignored, the compromise was that Persephone would spend four months each year with Hades. These are the winter months. With Persephone's return to the surface of the earth comes spring, the planting of the seeds, summer, and the harvest in autumn. 

Over time, the Eleusinian Mysteries were open to everybody, male, female, or even slaves, as long as they followed the prescribed initiation. Eventually, most of Athens’ citizens, among whom we count Pericles and Aristotle, were initiated and joined by prominent Romans like Marcus Aurelius.

We know little about the formalities around the annual Mysteries, but almost nothing about their secret rituals. The celebration, which started in autumn, lasted nine days. This began with preparations, purification rites, and sacrifices in Athens proper. On the fifth day, the procession moved to Eleusis along the 20km Sacred Way. 

Several days of festivities at Eleusis followed, including the initiation proper, lasting an entire night. Otherwise, we have little insight into the rites because the participants were sworn to secrecy, and disclosing the mystery was a capital offense. One thing that transpires is that initiation helps to reduce one’s fear of death. Many writers imply that participating permanently and positively changed their lives. Cicero, for instance, stated that the initiated gained the power not only to live happily but also to die with a better hope. 

The Eleusinian Mysteries remained popular for at least eight centuries. As Eleusis was part of Athens’ territory, the latter gained much prestige and fame. Christianity, here as elsewhere, gradually took over. 

Before entering the Sanctuary through the Greater Propylaea, one cannot miss the Temple of Artemis on the right-hand side. It dates from the 2nd century AD, when much of the Sanctuary was reconstructed and expanded. All that’s left of this temple is the crepidoma and bits of columns, among other pieces of architecture. 

The Greater Propylaea, also from the 2nd century AD, has left more vestiges. This tall entrance gate was a reduced copy of the better-known Propylaea at the Acropolis in Athens, built some 600 years earlier. It was erected by Emperor Hadrian and finished by Marcus Aurelius. 

Slightly behind this majestic gateway is a large cave-like opening in the rock considered an entrance to the Underworld. There was a small temple dedicated to Hades (the Roman Pluto). 

The primary building and heart of the sanctuary was the enormous Telesterion, where the Mysteries were celebrated. It was conceived by Tyrant Peisistratus at the instructions of Athens. Three sides of the inner space were occupied by seven rows of seats, allowing a crowd of participants to observe what happened. Five rows of Ionian columns supported one of the most extensive roofs in the world (50x50m). The entrance on the southeast was protected by a portico supported by twelve columns of white marble, standing in stark contrast with the dark stones of the outer walls. The Telesterion kept the most important element of the megaron, the Adyton, which coincided with the Anaktoron, the sanctum sanctorum. Here, the sacred objects were kept and only shown to those initiates and officials of the Mysteries who were allowed to enter. 

This marvelous construction was destroyed during Xerxes’ expedition, but soon plans arose to rebuild it twice the size of Peisistratus’ concept. Being too ambitious, the Telesterion was reduced to the rectangular shape we recognize today, offering seating for 4,000 people. 

Of course, it takes a lot of imagination to picture this unusual structure since all there is left to see is this wide paved area dotted with a few stubs of columns. The rock-cut tiers of seating are the most remarkable remnant of this striking building. The memory of the place is still there, but only limited evidence of what went on inside.

At the far end of the site is a small museum worth visiting, as always. The most striking relief of Demeter and Persephone has been moved to the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, but a copy is kept within these walls. 

It’s only on the way back that I notice the remains of the Lesser Propylaea, about halfway between the Greater Propylaea and the Telesterion. Noteworthy is the Roman relief on which ears of wheat, Demeter's gift to humankind, are clearly depicted.

Food for thoughts

Strolling through the Graeco-Roman section of a museum, I often come face to face with a statue or a head of Antinoüs, the lover of Emperor Hadrian. His outstanding beauty and the perfect traits of his being are true eye-catchers.

Hadrian, who lived 76-138 AD, was a world traveler in our modern concept. He regularly visited many cities of the prosperous Roman Empire, and the occasion was often thankfully remembered by the citizens who built a triumphal arch. Many such monuments are still visible today. They have become so familiar that I genuinely miss them when they are absent. This was the case, for instance, in Albania. In the historical context, that is not surprising, but as it turned out, I got used to the comforting idea of having Hadrian around.

As the arches remained in place, the statues of the emperor were generally safely removed to a museum. It is there that Antinoüs pops up next to him. In the back of my mind, I am confident that when you see one, you are almost certain to find the other nearby.

In antiquity, a man having a male friend or lover was a way of living. Such relations were commonly accepted, not like today when many people raise their eyebrows, to put it mildly, and condemn the relation entirely. In our modern world, people belonging to LGBTQ groups are still far from being accepted. But that is not the point I want to make, and this is not the place to discuss the matter either.

We’ll find various examples of such relationships in Classical Greece. The Theban Band, which was ultimately destroyed by Alexander at Chaironeia, consisted of elite pairs of lovers. It was a fierce and unbeatable Band of Brothers precisely because they were lovers and would defend their partner to the very end. It was a great honor to belong to this Band famed to be invincible, that is, till they were defeated by Alexander.

Achilles and Patroclus, as described by Homer, is another example. They were so vividly remembered that when Alexander reached the tomb of Achilles in Asia Minor, he and Hephaistion stripped their clothes and ran around the burial mound. They identified themselves with Achilles and Patroclus.

Another famous pair of lovers was Harmodius and Aristogeiton from Athens, who became the symbol of democracy after committing an act of political assassination in 514 BC. They killed Hipparchus, the last tyrant of the city, during the Panathenaic Festival. The Athenians recognized them as the founders of democracy and erected a bronze statue group in their honor. It stood on the Acropolis till it was robbed by Xerxes during the Persian War in 480 BC, and it was installed in Susa. This is where Alexander found the group in 330 BC, and he sent it back to Athens.

Clearly, the friendship/love between Alexander and Hephaistion was nothing new. It was common knowledge among the troops, who accepted it for what it was. The special place Hephaistion occupied in Alexander’s life was, however, a source of envy and even resentment among the other Companions and generals. They must have watched that relationship with Argus’ eyes as they all coveted Hephaistion’s privileged position. Yet, Hephaistion never took advantage of that position. He must have walked a tightrope trying to stay aloft and still accomplish the missions Alexander entrusted to him. He must have been a gifted diplomat, blessed with a huge dose of self-control and endless love for Alexander.

I find it quite intriguing that most of the statues of Hadrian and Antinoüs were made during their lifetime and have survived to this day. This is not the case for Alexander, whose statues were made after his death. Most are Roman copies from the 1^st and 2^nd century AD based on originals by Lysippos, Praxiteles, and other great artists whose works no longer exist. The images of Hephaistion are even scarcer, and one could wrongly assume that his relationship with Alexander was not important enough to be underscored in the art world.

On the other hand, we know that after the death of Hephaistion, many effigies were made. They were presented to the mourning Alexander by his generals. Perhaps they hoped to clear their own conscience or to find a way to console Alexander. It remains to be seen whether that gesture was genuine or only a way to plead their own case to obtain favors. It is not impossible that after Alexander’s own death, his generals destroyed the effigies of Hephaistion in an ultimate urge to satisfy their own desire for revenge.

The fact remains that Alexander and Hephaistion are rarely seen together. I have come across only two such cases. One set of statues stood in a showcase at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens (see: Alexander and Hephaistion side by side). Those statues, found in Alexandria, are a little less than life-size and date from the 1^st century BC. The other example is their respective heads on display at the Getty Museum in Malibu, California (see: Ode to Alexander and Hephaistion). They once belonged to a larger group made as early as 320 BC and found in Megara, near Athens. Both heads have been reworked in antiquity, and Hephaistion’s hair has been trimmed in the process.

Both men are evidently also depicted on the famous Alexander sarcophagus, now at the Archaeological Museum in Istanbul. However, they are not placed next to each other but on either side of the sarcophagus. Alexander is depicted fighting a Persian on one panel and Hephaistion is part of a hunting scene on the opposite side.

Knowledge about atoms in Alexander’s days

The knowledge of people in antiquity, and in this case, of Alexander the Great, never ceases to amaze me.

This time, I came across the ancient Greek philosopher Democritus, who lived in the 5th century BC. The information about this brilliant mind, often called the father of modern science, is very scanty. Some claim he was born in Abdera, in modern Thracian Greece, around 460 BC, whereas others state that he was born in Miletus in 490 BC. His death is also shrouded in mystery, as some sources tell us that he died at the age of 104 or maybe 109. Well, we should not be picky about such details, should we?

Critical, however, is his theory that the universe is made up of tiny “atoms”. On this topic also, historians differ as a similar theory is being attributed to the contemporary philosopher Leucippus, although each one is based on a different principle. Nonetheless, the very concept of ‘atoms’ became the staple of the modern scientific tradition.

According to Democritus, everything in the universe is composed of “atoms”, a kind of invisible building stones. Atoms are in constant motion and are separated by empty space. Their number is endless, and they all differ in shape and size. Noticeable is that Democritus described atoms in different shapes, sizes, and arrangements, connected to each other with some kind of hooks and eyes, balls, and sockets. Most importantly, the concept provided an explanation as to why the idea of a void was necessary in nature. Unlike philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle, who were more concerned about the soul, Democritus looked at the world from the practical point of view.

Democritus came from a wealthy and noble family that had strong ties with the Persian King Xerxes. Eventually, he was influenced and/or instructed by Chaldeans and Magi. Democritus traveled extensively to Asia and Egypt. He may have gone as far as India and Ethiopia. On the road, he may have met Anaxagoras, Hippocrates, and Socrates, although his real mentor was Leucippus of Miletus, who shared his theory of atomism.

As such, Democritus was an incredibly fascinating figure, but when we realize that he lived a good century before Alexander, our view of antiquity takes an entirely different twist. If only because of his teaching by Aristotle, we have no reason at all to doubt that the king was totally familiar with this atomic theory (and many others for that matter).

We still like to file our knowledge away in separate boxes by country or ideology, while in reality, the world in antiquity was at least as vast as ours is today.

Those who want to dig deeper into the atomic theory and the role played by Democritus may want to read this article published in The Universe Today.

[Picture of Democritus from The Universe Today]

Why did Alexander burn Persepolis?

The question of why Alexander burned Persepolis is keeping historians busy for many centuries. Even the otherwise so meticulous Arrian offers no actual response, while Diodorus, Curtius, and Plutarch, in their elaborate recount, do not provide any satisfactory answer either.

The subject was treated recently by Anthony Wright in an article published by academia.eu. Few historians have indeed scrutinized the site of Persepolis. Maybe because archaeological excavations have not provided conclusive elements or because the study of the site has not been as thorough as it should have been.

So far, they have established that some buildings, such as the Apadana, the Hall of the One Hundred Columns, and the Treasury, show extensive evidence of fire, while others – like the small Tripylon that connects the Apadana to the Hall of 100 Columns -, carry no signs of being burned. Since the fire would be concentrated on those palaces built by Xerxes, it seems evident that Alexander meant to take revenge for Xerxes’ burning of the Acropolis in Athens some 150 years earlier. 

Research had shown that the Apadana, the Hall of 100 Columns, and the Treasury had been filled with flammable material before the fire was ignited. In the Apadana, for instance, they found charcoaled remains of ignitable material over a length of eight meters by one and a half meters, 60 cm deep. This discovery would imply that the fire was meant to destroy the contents of the palaces rather than the structure itself.

The next question is whether the fire of Persepolis was premeditated. We know that Parmenion advised against it, which would lead us to believe that the fire was lit on purpose. But what is the value of Parmenion’s opinion in this matter? Would Alexander truly have listened (here and on other occasions) to his general’s counsel? On the other hand, the auteur assumes that if Alexander repented immediately, the fire must result from a drunken revelry – led or not by Thais (see: Fire over Persepolis). Whatever the case, it seems we still have no clear-cut answer to the motive of the fire or Alexander’s repentance. Who knows, after all, Alexander may not have repented at all. 

The general consensus is still that the fire and the sack of Persepolis were meant to avenge the Persian destruction of Athens. This opinion is indeed formulated in most of our Greek sources. What happened to the Persian sources, I wonder? Our history is still being told based on our Western literature, while the Persians most certainly kept their own records. The Cyrus cylinder is the most striking example (see: The Cyrus cylinder and ancient Persia: a new beginning). Another significant clay tablet is the one recounting the Persian version of the Battle of Gaugamela (see: The troops of the king deserted him). Like so many others, this tablet belongs to the Astronomical Diaries that were kept in the temple of the Babylonian god Marduk. Over the past two centuries, millions of clay tablets have surfaced from all over Mesopotamia, and the majority still need to be deciphered, leaving us with wide lacunas. A significant number of them are still resting in the vaults of museums all over the world, but scholars capable of reading and/or deciphering the cuneiform tablets are limited. Consequently, significant texts from these tablets only surface piecemeal.

Some scholars believe that Alexander intended to send a clear message to King Darius (who was still on the run) and the Persians in general that the days of the Achaemenids were over. The fire was an unmistakable message, but I cannot believe it was meant to signal the end of the Achaemenids as such. When Alexander finally caught up with Darius, killed by his own kinsman Bessus, he covered the king’s body with his own cloak – a real sign of respect. He then instructed to take Darius’ remains to Queen Sisygambis for a proper burial (see: Alexander in hot pursuit of Bessus). 

Treating the body of King Darius with such reverence does not fit the message Alexander would have sent from Persepolis to signal that the days of the Achaemenids were over. Besides, Alexander incorporated the Achaemenid empire into the new world he planned to create as part of his plan to unite East and West, sealed during the Mass Wedding in Susa in 324 BC. Both Arrian and Curtius see the destruction of Persepolis as a demonstration of Alexander’s new power, although they may not have understood his true vision.

However, the article does not question why Alexander stayed in Persepolis for four months. All we know is that he led a short campaign into the interior of Persia proper to reduce all the villagers to his power, devastating their fields. He returned about 30 days later. What happened during the remaining three months is everyone’s guess.

In the end, there is no clear answer to why Alexander did burn Persepolis. The Greek allies and our Greek sources would have seen it as the completion of their Pan-Hellenic crusade to avenge Xerxes. But that view may be too simplistic, given that Alexander’s behavior also had far-reaching repercussions for his own future. He was only at the beginning of his conquest of Asia, with many more years of campaigning ahead to forge his new empire.