New book by Robert Green

[jan]

I found another book on Alexander by Robert Green, published in 1996. It is a children's book, containing lots of illustrations, including one of Achille's shield. Also just saw a preview of the upcoming movie, and the theatre is sporting posters of Colin as Alexander all over the place, as well as one with all the major players.All looks good.A picture in the book which is of the Throne Room at the Persepolis leads me to believe that Alexander's height can be measured by the panels of the reliefs on the entry way. His eyes probably reach the middle or second panel. I think he is taller than most authors depict him to be.I like the photo for showing the relationship of the entryway to the throne room. And it is in color!

[jan]

On page 30 of the Green book is a portrait of Alexander performing a ritual sacrifice the evening before the battle of Gaugemela. On a low pedestal table is placed a helmet with plume, and a sword. The helmet is exactly the same as the one worn by Colin Farrell in the trailer to be found on Yahoo movie groups, or Warner Bros. I thought it interesting to note how exacting in details that Stone is being in his movie.

[dean]

Hello Janet,It is a relief to me also that Mr Oliver Stone is going to so much trouble to be precise historically etc.etc. especially after the Troy movie, which probably has caused Homer to turn over in his grave or Hades as you prefer.I wonder what is Stone's motivation for making the film- I don't know a lot about the man- just from Platoon I suppose. But then again, he made the Jim Morrison film- Jim Morrison who apparently read Plutarch's parallel lives and was "enamored with Alexander's mental and physical accomplishments." I understand that Jim even went to the extreme of adopting the slanting of the head to the left or is (it the right? I never remember)Are there any dates for the film's release in Europe Jan?
By the way, the book you mentioned seems delightful.
Best regards,
Dean.

[marcus]

Jan, Jan, Jan,At the risk of sounding patronising, how on earth can we make any assumptions about Alexander's height from an illustration in book? The artist could just as easily have made his eyes level with the bottom of the lowest panel, or with the eaves of the roof.All the bestMarcus

[dean]

Hello Marcus,Yes that is a good question- the general impression that one gets is that Alexander was quite short however in the sources I don't remember ever reading any entry that actually gave any kind of height measurement- although I am sure that Plutarch would be the man for that kind of detail.Best regards,
Dean.

[marcus]

Hi Dean,There does appear to be enough in (some of) the sources to indicate that Alexander wasn't that tall. There was a thread on this a short while back, in which Tre very succinctly put forward the argument that Alexander was probably around 5 foot 6. (I can't remember exactly what she said, but have a check in the archive.)I've always liked this, being 5 foot 6 myself! :-)all the bestMarcus

[amyntoros]

Nick added a page on Pothos with Tre's excellent assesment of Alexander's height. Under the general heading of Alexander the Great there is a link for "body and height.":-)Linda Ann

[marcus]

As opposed to "body and length"

[amyntoros]

So many jokes about such a "little" thing!

[marcus]

I won't make the obvious rejoinder ...

[jan]

Marcus, You are making me laugh. ! I have read everything from 5'2" tall to 5'6" now. I believe that it was once mentioned that discovery of a suit of armor is why many believed him to be short. Since Tsouras has said that Macedon means land of tall people, I gathered that anything about 5'7" or shorter could be considered short. Alexander was only shorter than Hephaestion is the only reference to height that I have read consistently. The photograph is a picture of the entry way into the Throne Room. Artists depictions are not any way to assess height, but are usually indicators of what may have been in the artist's mind. If people truly believe Alexander's estimate of his height, one would have to use the site of the twelve altars to agree that he is giant size. He is said to have wanted people to believe that he is a giant.His achievements match that quality of his mind. So like the song thumbelina, (which I spect is too old for your to remember) in his heart he was 6'feet tall. (Probably more like 7' feet to his mind after meeting up with King Porus.)I am only 60 inches tall myself now! So 5'6" is a good height. Jan

[Kit]

Yes, the Jim Morrison imitation of Alexander the Great is quite well recorded and Oliver Stone captured it quite accurately in the film 'The Doors'. Mr Morrison even copied the Alexandrian hair style, as well as the tilting of the head!Kit.

[jan]

Hi Dean,Yes, Oliver Stone did do a story on Jim Morrison, in which he superimposed a bust of Alexander over that of Jim Morrison in the movie. I did not know as much about Morrison as you do. The book is a first book and is full of great illustrations and photos. There is an illustration of Alexander and Kleitos that I had never seen in which Alexander has just flung the spear into Kleitos's chest. All the men around Alexander have heads hung low,and Kleitos is pictured standing at the door with the spear imbedded in his chest, and a really angry Alexander is fascinating to see. This is a great picture in itself. The one of the sacrifice before the battle of Gaugemela is a thoughtful Alexander looking a lot like Rodin's The Thinker. A fire is the central focal point of this artist's rendition, but it is an interesting study of the intensity of Alexander's sacrifice.Most of the illustrations are new to me, and that is one of the reasons I recommend this book. The copy is basically the same, but the photos and portraits are uncommon. I have read that this is Oliver Stone's greatest attempt. On that note, I imagine that it will be quite entertaining and rewarding. Using the musician of an Oscar winning movie makes me think that he is looking for awards and honors. I just bet that he will win something for this movie.