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Alexander’s battle outfit
Except for the famous mosaic from the House of the Faun in Pompeii, now on display at the Archaeological Museum of Naples (see: The Alexander mosaic), we have no picture of Alexander’s outfit. Although...
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Phaselis by Nihal Tüner Önen
Phaselis, Ancient city of Lycian Civilization by Nihal Tüner Önen (ISBN 978-975-17-3775-5) is a hard cover, pocket size guide to the site of Phaselis.The format allows the visitor to carry this booklet...
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The hidden Temple of Artemis in Syracuse
Today’s visitor of Syracuse and more specifically to the island of Ortygia, will stare in awe at the Duomo with its Sicilian-Baroque façade rebuilt in 1728-1754 after several earthquakes had damaged...
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Merv, Alexandria Margiana
The origins of Merv seem to go back to Cyrus the Great, who founded the city in the 6th century BC. As Margu it is mentioned in the Bisutun inscription (see: The Bisutun relief of King Darius I),...
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Flooded area of ancient Smyrna to become open-air museum
Dialogues between archaeologists and government officials are always difficult. That is nothing new, and the situation in Izmir is no exception.After demolishing an old shopping center to construct a...
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Greek statues in blasting colors
We still find it difficult to imagine the buildings and statues in Greek and Roman cities in full blasting colors. In an earlier blog, Ancient Greece in full Technicolor, I marveled about the results...
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Alexander and the gods
Alexander took religion very seriously. He respected the gods and made his daily offerings to them according to the Macedonian laws. We may accept that these references to the gods and the omens are...
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Visiting the tomb of Agios Athanasios
The tomb of Agios Athanasios dating from the late 4th century BC is an absolute gem that is to be found some 15 kilometers"away from Pella. Yet I was not aware that the actual site was open to the...
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Triumphal Arch south of the Cilician Gates
Following the Via Tauri after crossing the Cilician Gates, Alexander was informed that the governor of Tarsus no longer wished to hold the city for Persia and was ready to give up the town. Afraid that...
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Hecatompylos, the end of Darius’ pursuit
After a neck-breaking day and night march over difficult terrain, Alexander finally caught up with Darius at Hecatompylos, near modern Damghan (see: Alexander in hot pursuit of Darius). The exact...
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Excavations resume at the Sanctuary of Samothrace
You would expect that the Sanctuary of the Great Gods at Samothrace is one the frequently visited sites in Greece. It is surprising, however, to learn that the latest excavations took place some...
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Deciphering cuneiform texts
Translating the content of tens of thousands clay tablets is a lengthy and time consuming process that can only be compared with the huge amount of papyri scraps that were recovered at Oxyrhynchus. As...
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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 fifth century...
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An otherwise unknown head of Alexander the Great?
Among the huge amount of debris and parts of statues that have been unearthed in Pergamon, modern Bergama in Turkey, there is this colossal marble head. It probably was decorating the largest room of...
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The Library of Alexandria
Usually, I am not too keen on those artistic renderings of buildings and cities from antiquity. Even the most elegant praising paintings of Alexander the Great by so many artists from the Middle Ages...
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Restoration plans for the lighthouse of Patara
It seems that at last, the plans to restore the unique lighthouse of Patara are going to be materialized. The remains of this lighthouse that was built under Emperor Nero in 64 AD were exposed a few...
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Roman and Byzantine mosaics uncovered at Side
Although excavations in Side have been ongoing since the 1940s, a large number of artefacts and many buildings are still hidden underneath the modern housing. The old city was abandoned by the end of...
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Edge of Empires. Pagans, Jews, and Christians at Roman Dura Europos
Edge of Empires (ISBN 978-0-691-15468-8) depicts the history of Dura-Europos on the Euphrates in a unique way. The book was published by the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New...
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The Moon was not a God
Anaxagoras was one of the first persons to state that the moon was a rock. His theory was that the moon had been flung into space by the Earth. The Sun, in turn, was labeled as being a burning rock....
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Sabratha, an old Phoenician colony in North Africa
Since the toppling and execution of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is left in turmoil. The centralized government he had put into place has totally collapsed, and the country has fallen apart. The old...
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