Identifying figures from the Alexander Sarcophagus

[ancientlibrary]

Does anyone know a lot about the Alexander Sarcophagus. I came across this photo; I think it's of a plaque in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, although I don't remember it being there. It purports to identify the figures on the sarcophagus. I don't know anything about the scholarship here. I presume someone has thought it through both logically and using other depictions. Is there anything here, or is this totally guesswork?http://rubens.anu.edu.au/raider5/turkey ... CN8614.JPG

[Marilyn]

Didn't someone post a notice of a Turkish book on the Sarcophagus here a while ago?

[agesilaos]

This is all guess work apart from Alexander and Abdolymnos. The figure identified here in the Issos scene is thought by Billows to be Antigonos hence the profile view. Nor does it seem likely that the murder of Perdikkas is depicted.

[amyntoros]

I can't remember who previously posted the information, but the book you are thinking of is probably The Book of the Alexander Sarcophagus, by Alpay Pasinli; published by A Turizm Yayinlari, Istanbul, 1997-á Karl may be right in that it's all "guess work" but there's certainly been plenty of scholarly discussion over the many years since the sarcophagus was recovered and there's a general consensus on who the characters are in the reliefs, although there's one figure commonly thought to be Hephaistion that Pasinli doesn't recognize. And I believe it's Andrew Stewart who credits the figure in "Alexander's" armour from the so-called Death of Perdiccus pediment as being Arrhidaeus. The following books are from the bibliography - finally *I* get to post a list of mostly German books!-á :-)Mansel, A.M. Graeve, Von V., Der Alexandersarkophag und siene Werkstatt, Belleten 36, 1972, s. 99-106 . . . . Schefold K., Seidel, M., Der Alexander Sarkophag, Berlin, 1968 . . . . Kleeman, I., Der Satrapensarkophag aus Sidon, 1st Forsch. 20, 1958 . . . . Mendel, G., Catalogue des sculptures grecques, romaines et byzantines (Musee Imperiaux Ottomans), Vol. I, Constantinople 1912, pp. 171-200 . . . . Winter, F., Der Alexandersarkophag aus Sidon, Strassburg, 1912 . . . . Willrich, H., Krateros und der Grabherr des Alexandersarkophags von Sidon, Hermes 34, 1899 p. 231 fff . . . . Studniczka, F., Uber die Grundlagen der geschichtlichen Erklarung der sidonischen Sarkophage, Jdl 9, 1894, pp. 204-244 . . . . Winter, F., Die Sarkopphages von Sidon, AAI, 1894, s. 1-23 . . . . Judeich, W., Der Grabherr des Alexandersarkophags, Jdl.10, 1895, pp 165-182 . . . . Hamdi, O. Reinarch, Th., Une Necropole Royale a Sidon, Paris, 1892Best regards,Amyntoros

[abm]

Alexander is identified by the lion headdress, but other than that, I thought even Abdalonymus was not certain. I might be wrong, but as far as I remember Billows dismissed the identification of Antigonos in the Issos scene.