New assumptions about the relics of Alexander the Great?

Researchers say an ancient Greek tomb once thought to be of Alexander the Great's father actually belonged to his half-brother.

This means that there may be some relics in the tomb - including a helmet, shield, a silver 'crown' - which may have belonged to Alexander the Great himself. It is thought that his brother declared ownership of these royal properties after Alexander's death.

The tomb was one of three royal Macedonian tombs excavated by archaeologists in the northern Greek village of Vergina.

Excavators at the time discovered rich graves with a number of relics including a unique silver bandage, a helmet, a ceremonial shield, and a set of weapons and objects. The head is defined as the scepter.

According to Eugene N. Borza, an honorary professor of ancient history at the University of Pennsylvania, 'Archaeologists declare the tomb in the main room of a large crypt of Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great, who assassinated in 336 BC. "

But a recent analysis of graves, paintings, ceramics and other antiques found there suggests that these graves are actually a generation closer than most people think.

'In terms of the things we think of Alexander, it seems that no single item is sufficient evidence, but when the information becomes more and more plausible, this argument seems reasonable. We believe this may be Alexander's relic. In terms of tombs 'own dates, this is almost certain.'

Illustrator of the artist depicting Alexander the Great landing on a campaign in Asia.(Photo: Tom Lovell / NGS)
The new analysis of an excavated grave in Greece in the 1970s suggested that this was the resting place of Alexander's half-brother, not his father as everyone had believed before. New inferences mean that relics discovered in the tomb, including a shield, 'crown' , and scepter once belonged to Alexander himself.

Mysterious tomb

The first excavation in Vergina was conducted by Manolis Andronikos, an archaeologist at Aristotle University in Thessaloniki, Egypt. He died in 1992.

His team discovered the first grave is just a simple stone box containing human bones, confirmed by an adult male, a slightly younger woman and a newborn baby.

The second tomb, a domed tomb with 2 rooms, contains the bones of a young woman and an adult male. Tomb III, which has two domed touch rooms, is a resting place for a teenager, potentially male. Both larger graves contain gold, silver and ivory decorations, as well as jars and metal.

'Andronikos presented the hypothesis that the tombs were of Alexander's father and his family with great persuasion, and the whole country of Greece boiled with joy. In fact, I was also one of those, in the first two papers in the late 1970s, agreeing with Andronikos's view that the remnant was Philip II. '

However, Borza began to doubt Andronikos's conclusion when he studied the evidence. He contacted Olga Palagia, an art historian at Athens University, to evaluate the tomb structure, pottery and paintings. Both soon realized the importance of the fact that tombs II and III were built with curved ceilings, called vaulted ceilings.

Borza told National Geographic News, 'The most ancient ancient dome in Greece dates from the late 320 BC, nearly a generation after Philip II's death.'

Palagia also discovered frescoes outside the tomb reflecting themes perhaps from the time of Alexander the Great rather than the time of his father.

The paintings depict an Asian-colored hunting ceremony, showing the influence of Alexander's extensive campaigns to the east.

Treasure

The 2m high scepter in the grave is another proof.

'We have the coins that were issued in his day to this day with the image of Alexander carrying something that looks like a scepter of the same height.'

In addition, some silver vessels discovered in tombs II and III are engraved with their weight, according to a measurement unit set by Alexander himself a generation after Phillip II's death.

'Once we have agreed on archaeological evidence that tomb II appeared after Philip II's death a generation, we can ask the question' Whose tomb is this? '. We have a double royal tomb in this period mentioned by ancient literature. So the tomb was made by Philip III Arrhidaeus, Alexander's half-brother, and his queen, Adea Eurydice. '

Borza and Palagia discussed their evidence at the Archaeological Institute meeting in January. Their findings will be published in the upcoming work of the German Archaeological Institute. Most of the archaeological relics discovered in Vergina are currently on display at the museum at the grave site.

Alexander's death

Alexander died of illness in ancient Babylon, near Baghdad, Iraq today in 323 BC.

Historians argue that Alexander's generals have appointed Philip III to his position, and his half-brother has publicly claimed the ownership of Alexander's royal relics as symbols of validity. chemistry of his power.

Alexander's son, Alexander IV, who was appointed co-ruler with Philip III, was assassinated at about 310 BC. Perhaps he was buried in tomb III in Vergian, the burial place of a young man. Historically, the only known Macedonian royal teenage burial was for Alexander IV.

Alexander's father, Phillip II, was buried in grave I, along with his wife and their newborn child.'Tomb I is probably from Phillip II's time - unlike the graves in the great room, which appeared later - and the bodies of three graves correspond to the assassinations of these three.'

Winthrop Lindsay Adams, a history lecturer at the University of Utah, did not participate in the work, arguing that Borza's work is based on what experts think about various aspects of Vergina tombs.

The work of Borza and colleagues built the hypothesis that tomb II was the resting place of Alexander's half-brother.

'In fact, for fourth-century Macedonian scholars, Andronikos's early contributions have been suspicious. This hypothesis is much more convincing. '