Has anyone published Alexander's letters?

[jan]

I am wondering if there is any edition of a publication where any of the letters that Alexander wrote to either Olympias or Socrates can be found? How many letters are available today from Olympias to Alexander or from Socrates to Alexander? Any?

[amyntoros]

Umm, Socrates died in 399, Jan, so it'd be a difficult for Alexander to have written to him!
As for the other letters, whether from Olympias, Alexander, Philip, Aristotle, etc., most of them aren't written out in full, but are just quoted by various ancient historians. I don't think the letters or references to the letters have ever been collected in a single source. It'd be an interesting project, but would take quite some time to complete.You do know that many of these letters are considered to be fakes, don't you? It isn't thought that people wrote them with the intent to deceive, but that some of them were probably ancient school exercises in rhetoric - something like, "Imagine you are Hephaistion and compose a letter to Olympias commenting on her complaints about you." Frankly, I don't know how any scholar is able to accurately determine which letters are fake and which might be real. There was one person who deliberately forged letters from Alexander, by the way. A Frenchman by the name of Vrain-Lucas who faked thousands of letters from all manner of historical personages and then sold them, ". . .selling over 27,000 to one collector who was a distinguished member of the Academy of Sciences." "There were letters from Cleopatra to Julius Caesar, letters from Alexander the Great to Aristotle, letters to Lazarus from Mary Magdalen and letters from Lazarus to St Peter. Remarkably all these people wrote in French."That last line is just too funny for words! http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~his ... 1.htmlBest regards,Amyntoros

[marcus]

Hi Jan,Not as such. Part of the problem, of course, is that (a) none of the letters exist in their entirety; and (b) it's not absolutely clear whether they are real or made-up.JR Hamilton wrote an article about the "Letters in Plutarch's Alexander", which was published in the Procedings of the African Classical Association, vol 4, 1961, pp.9-20. In that he discusses whether the various letters are likely to be real or made up.(However, I assume you mean Aristotle when you say Socrates?)All the bestMarcus

[Taphoi]

The Diary and the Letters of Alexander the Great by Lionel Pearson in the journal Historia, Vol 3, 1955, pages 429-455, available in all good university libraries. But don't believe everything he says.Best wishes,Andrew

[jan]

HI Linda Ann, Marcus, and Andrew,Thanks so much for the info and the link. I hope I can find the right university soon to be able to read Pearson's work. I appreciated the forgery link as that is most impressive. It is actually quite serious when you consider the truth about the zeal with which these forgeries were purchased, and the apparent transparency of these same forgeries to which the buyer had never even glanced at any of them. I don't know which is funnier, the fact that they were all written in 18th century French or that a great genius could be so naive as to purchase them so readily. Actually, no, I do not believe that a real genius can be that far removed from reality, but apparently so. It is a sad story.And yes, I did mean Aristotle, not Socrates, but I got a smile out of it too.

[Taphoi]

Looks like versand@zellibooks.de is selling a copy for 19 dollars, but they're German:Historia Band III, Heft 4 Zeitschrift f++r Alte Geschichte
Hg. H. Bengtson-K. Stroheker-G. Walser
Bookseller: Zellibooks. Zentrallager Delbr++ck
(Delbr++ck, n/a, Germany) [Shipping Rates & Speeds] Price: US$ 18.98
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Book Description: Franz Steiner Vlg. Wiesbaden 1955. 2 Obr., 386-504 S. Bookseller Inventory #Z 1652

[amyntoros]

"But don't believe everything he says." Could you elaborate on that statement, Andrew? I don't have access to a university library so I'm not likely to find this article in the near future, and I'm curious as to what direction Pearson took that makes you say the above.And on another matter: I spent some time yesterday searching through early Christian writings for mention of Alexander. I wasn't expecting to find anything that adds to our knowledge, but it's always interesting to see how he is viewed by others. I was surprised by the following two quotes though:Minucius Felix: Octavius, Ch. XXI. "Alexander the Great, the celebrated Macedonian, wrote in a remarkable document addressed to his mother, that under fear of his power there had been betrayed to him by the priest the secret of the gods having been men: to her he makes Vulcan the original of all, and then the race of Jupiter."Athenagoras of Athens: Plea for the Christians. Ch. XXVIII.-- The Heathen gods were simply men. "Herodotus, then, and Alexander the son of Philip, in his letter to his mother (and each of them is said to have conversed with the priests at Heliopolis, and Memphis, and Thebes), affirm that they learnt from them that the gods had been men.Now this is either a different interpretation of a "letter" also known to the ancient sources, or one that isn't found anywhere else. I'm curious to know if it has been discussed. Does Pearson make any mention of it, or is he only concerned with those letters found in the major sources?Best regards,Amyntoros

[marcus]

Ooh! Thanks, Andrew. I don't think I had that in my bibliography. I shall have to search for it now!ATBMarcus

[Taphoi]

Hi Linda,Pearson is a well-informed scholar, but I have some problems with some of his theories. His reasons for doubting the authenticity of the Ephemerides are dubious and I would disagree with his time sequence for the primary sources on Alexander.That said, his analyses of the Letters is reasonably sensible. He knows about the letter you have mentioned, which occurs in a number of the works of the Christian Fathers. He says it is in Cyprian, De Idol. van. 3 and Aug. De Civ. Dei 8.5 as well as Min. Felix 21.3.Best wishes,Andrew

[amyntoros]

Hi Andrew, and thanks! I shall have to look for the other writers' versions of the letter. ATBAmyntoros

[jan]

I have placed an order for the book Historia through Interlibrary Loan and so I am hopeful I will get to read it someday soon. Can you tell me something about A.E. Samuel's "Alexander's Royal Journals", please?I found information under Essay Topics: 2001. Thank you so much. Jan

[Taphoi]

Hi Jan,Historia is not a book, but an ancient history journal published in Germany 4 times each year (but many articles are in English). You will need to give the full reference to your library service or you will get 50+ 500-page volumes delivered!A E Samuel's article is in Historia 14, pp. 1-12. It is a bit esoteric and somewhat discredited, though I can see its attraction for cuneiform tablet enthusiasts! Hopefully it is clear that Alexander's journal and his letters are different things?Best wishes,Andrew

[jan]

Thank you, Andrew, for explaining this to me now. I get it. I would have to have it translated also so that will make quite a difference. I have some German friends who could probably read it for me, but I think I will have to let it be. I don't think my Berlitz language book will help much either.Danke! I'll discuss it with the librarian this week. Alexander the Great, the true story, was presented on History Channel again last night. Peter Green was the expert historical authority among others along with narrator Peter Woodward. This dvd can be purchased through the History Channel for anyone interested. It was well done for a general presentation.Aw, shoot! I had wanted to read Leonard Pearson's works, but I see that it will take a long time now.Since so many things no longer exist, I wonder at why and how these seem to be available. I am dubious as to why it is that any such letters would not be kept in a museum somewhere, but I think it a good foundation for a book trite as it is.

[Taphoi]

Hi Jan,Sorry. I seem further to have confused you. The Pearson and Samuel articles in Historia are both in English, despite the journal being published in Germany.You should be able to get them easily through a library service. You just need to give them the full reference: author, title of article, page nos, journal name, journal volume, year of publication.As I noted, there are at least two bookshops on ABE which are selling the copy of Historia containing the Pearson article. So that is another way of getting it.Best wishes,Andrew

[jan]

Thanks, Andrew, I really appreciate your help. I won't cancel the loan now. I trust you. Jan