Myth and Polis XI: Hellenistic kings and kinship myth

We have now reached the eleventh part of the series on the use of mythological kinship in Greek diplomatic interaction. Since most of the sources come from the epigraphic material of the Hellenistic period, we have already looked several times at how mythological kinship was used by cities in that period in their interactions with …

Myth and Polis VII: Mythology and the depiction of Alexander the Great

When I visit one of the great archaeological museums of Europe, I always look for two things: how many busts of Alexander the Great are there, and which Greek coins are on display? So when I was at the Altes Museum in Berlin last week, I noticed that whenever Alexander the Great is represented in …

Hellenistic Women III: Berenice I of Egypt

To conclude our weeklong celebration of the women from Greek Antiquity, we are looking at another important queen from the Hellenistic period: Berenice I of Egypt. She was the fourth wife of the founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty but also the most important one as she was the mother of his successor Ptolemy II Philadelphus …

An introduction to the Seleucids II: The (Re)birth of an Empire

This is the second part of the introduction into the seleucid empire, click here to read the first part. This time Guest blogger Nicolaas verhelst introduces us to the founder of the Seleucid dynasty, Seleucos I Nicator. Read on to learn more about the man, the myth and the legend as well the earliest and …

Numismatics and the legend of horned Bukephalos

In her last post, Michelle simon introduced us to Alexander’s horse bukephalos. One of the most famous horses of the ancient world. Despite his famed beauty and nobility, he had a rather common name, since boukephalous in greek means ‘ox-headed’. According to tradition, there were several explanations for his name, the most interesting of which …

The Ptolemies

How many Ptolemies were there? Why was Cleopatra number seven? Where did the custom of brother‑sister marriage come from? This guides delves into the Ptolemaic dynasty who ruled over Egypt from the early years after Alexander’s death in 323 BC until the fall of Cleopatra in 31 BC. Distinct aspects of Ptolemaic rule will be …

Numismatics: the silver coinage of the Achaean Koinon

Today’s coins are actually two coins posing as one. These silver hemidrachms were minted in two cities that were members of the Achaean League: Megara and Aegira. Read below to find out more about the coins of this Greek federal state! Silver coins of the Achaean Koinon Aside from the civic coinage used by member …

Numismatics: Lysimachos’ tetradrachm

This week’s coin of the week is a rather special one as it shows a portrait of Alexander the Great on the obverse. However, he himself did not order the coins to be made. It was in fact one of his successors who had these coins struck: Lysimachos. Read on to discover who he was …

Numismatics: Athens during the Hellenistic period

It’s time again for another post in our series on numismatics. This coin won the numismatic face-off we did on our Instagram account last week, so let us have a closer look at this coin from Hellenistic Athens. Athenian Coins Coins from Athens are among the most easily recognizable of the coins that were made …

Numismatics: Silver turtles from Aegina

Starting this week each week a specific coin will be put into the spotlight. This way you can learn more about the beautiful and diverse coins of the Greek world. I have been doing this on the Instagram account, so check out some of the pictures there or use the #NumismaticThursdays.    The Silver Coin …