Conference of 5-4-2025

[system1988]

https://www.lifo.gr/culture/arxaiologia ... stis-aiges

The result of the digital restoration of the hunting scene,as presented at Saturday s conference . Many details were revealed or seen better.The image can be enlarged.I hope there is the possibility of automatic translation in english
According the scientists the tomb was erected by Alexander -for his assasinated father . Some results :Philip stands at the center with a golden spear , there are Ptolemy , Hephaestion with an axe , and of course the future king Alexander .Rare the presence of the defeated bear . As i said I hope for an automatic translation because there more details revealed

[Alexias]

Hi, thanks for this. Yes, it does translate into English and zooms in.

I still don't like this restoration as it seems rather crude in places eg Alexander's face, the hair, in particular the hair of the axe-wielding figure which looks too bouffant, the three nude figures to the left which seem anatomically incorrect. And I completely disagree with the two figures which have been labelled Hephaestion and Ptolemy. Neither were particularly important at this date, so there is no reason for them to be portrayed on Philip's tomb. As I have said before, the axe-wielding figure is more likely to represent Heracles. The figure wearing a hat or diadem to the left of Alexander might well be Amyntas, and the two cloaked figures forming a triangle with Philip might represent Philip's deceased brothers.

[system1988]

https://www.archaeology.wiki/blog/2014/ ... ch-pihlip/
Also the professor Bartzokas claims that the tomb is of Arridaeos , the brother of Alexander . ( the depicted gazelles pe lived only in Asia not in Greece during that era etc)

[Alexias]

If Tomb II is Philip's, the depiction of Philip in the fresco does slightly trouble me. If you are honouring someone, should he not be in the centre of the composition, and not hidden behind the horse's head and off to the left? Yet if Alexander had ordered the fresco, youthful arrogance and ambition might well place himself in the centre on the composition, relegating his father and his achievements to the past. But if Cassander had ordered the fresco for Philip Arrhidaeus, he would perhaps want to play down Alexander's prominence and emphasise the connection to Philip as Arrhidaeus' father. Or perhaps I am judging the fresco by more modern compositional standards.

[Jeanne Reames]

Jonathan Hall has a very interesting (and think probably correct) supposition that Tomb II was actually begun for ALEXANDER shortly after his death, then construction halted when Ptolemy stole the body. It was repurposed by Kassandros so he didn't have to pay for a new one, in order to bury Arrhidaios and Eurydike. That would explain a lot of things. Not just the nature of the fresco over the door, but the size and the odd lack of interior decor. Also, what Beth Carney described as "emptying the Argead attic" into the tomb (to make way for a new dynasty: his). Repurposed tombs were not uncommon. It's in chapter 6 of Artifact and Artifice. I recommend the book generally. Hall, as always, makes astute observations.

[Alexias]

Jonathan Hall has a very interesting (and think probably correct) supposition that Tomb II was actually begun for ALEXANDER shortly after his death, then construction halted when Ptolemy stole the body. It was repurposed by Kassandros so he didn't have to pay for a new one, in order to bury Arrhidaios and Eurydike. That would explain a lot of things. Not just the nature of the fresco over the door, but the size and the odd lack of interior decor. Also, what Beth Carney described as "emptying the Argead attic" into the tomb (to make way for a new dynasty: his). Repurposed tombs were not uncommon. It's in chapter 6 of Artifact and Artifice. I recommend the book generally. Hall, as always, makes astute observations.

Yes, that does make a lot of sense, thank you.

Although no one mentions it, if Adaea and Arrhidaeus had had a baby, it would have given Olympias even more reason to get rid of them as rivals to Alexander IV. Otherwise, the only other candidate for the baby in Tomb II would seem to be Europa, Philip's last child.