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Alexander the Great and the Mystery of the Elephant Medallions
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2003
About this book
To all those who witnessed his extraordinary conquests, from Albania to India, Alexander the Great appeared invincible. How Alexander himself promoted this appearance—how he abetted the belief that he enjoyed divine favor and commanded even the forces of nature against his enemies—is the subject of Frank L. Holt's absorbing book.
Solid evidence for the "supernaturalized" Alexander lies in a rare series of medallions that depict the triumphant young king at war against the elephants, archers, and chariots of Rajah Porus of India at the Battle of the Hydaspes River. Recovered from Afghanistan and Iraq in sensational and sometimes perilous circumstances, these ancient artifacts have long animated the modern historical debate about Alexander. Holt's book, the first devoted to the mystery of these ancient medallions, takes us into the history of their discovery and interpretation, into the knowable facts of their manufacture and meaning, and, ultimately, into the king's own psyche and his frightening theology of war. The result is a valuable analysis of Alexander history and myth, a vivid account of numismatics, and a spellbinding look into the age-old mechanics of megalomania.
Solid evidence for the "supernaturalized" Alexander lies in a rare series of medallions that depict the triumphant young king at war against the elephants, archers, and chariots of Rajah Porus of India at the Battle of the Hydaspes River. Recovered from Afghanistan and Iraq in sensational and sometimes perilous circumstances, these ancient artifacts have long animated the modern historical debate about Alexander. Holt's book, the first devoted to the mystery of these ancient medallions, takes us into the history of their discovery and interpretation, into the knowable facts of their manufacture and meaning, and, ultimately, into the king's own psyche and his frightening theology of war. The result is a valuable analysis of Alexander history and myth, a vivid account of numismatics, and a spellbinding look into the age-old mechanics of megalomania.
Author / Editor information
Contributor: Frank L. Holt
Frank L. Holt is Professor of History at the University of Houston. He is the author of Thundering Zeus: The Making of Hellenistic Bactria (California, 1999) and Alexander the Great and Bactria: The Formation of a Greek Frontier in Central Asia (1988) and editor of The Greeks in Bactria and India (1985).
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Frontmatter
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CONTENTS
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MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
ix -
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PREFACE
xi -
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ONE. Man of Mystery
1 -
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TWO. A Treasure
23 -
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THREE. Picking a Fight
47 -
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FOUR. Whose Pachyderm, Whole or Halved?
68 -
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FIVE. Another Treasure
92 -
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SIX. A Closer Look
117 -
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SEVEN. A Dark and Stormy Night
139 -
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APPENDIX A. THE PUBLISHED ELEPHANT MEDALLIONS
167 -
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APPENDIX B. SOME POSSIBLE FORGERIES OF THE LARGE MEDALLION
171 -
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APPENDIX C. THE 1973 IRAQ HOARD
173 -
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INDEX
191
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
August 5, 2019
eBook ISBN:
9780520938786
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
Main content:
217
eBook ISBN:
9780520938786
Keywords for this book
alexander the great; elephant medallions; hellenistic culture; european history; historians; hellenistic society; hellenistic period; numismatics; conquests; war; rajah porus; india; battle of the hydaspes river; afghanistan; iraq; historical perspective; supernatural success; theology of war; myths and legends; megalomania; warfare; biographical; retrospective; discussion books; popular history; nonfiction; ancient medallions; ancient history; biography
