The Indian altars

[Gary]

Arrian says, briefly, that after Alexander agreed to go no further east, he ordered the construction of 12 huge altars; when they were complete, there was quite a ceremony to dedicate them.These altars, which must have been quite a sight, have vanished without a trace; like much of his works in India. This can hardly be because of poor construction, as he set out to honour the gods, and plenty of his other works thrive to this day, from Alexandria to Khodzent.But as far as I know, little if anything remains of the altars, or of the cities he founded there such as Bucephalia, Nicaea, and Alexandria of the Confluence.Does anyone think the Indians strove to obliterate Alexander's works, and even his memory? If so, they appear to have done far better than any other place he went. I recall reading a charming article some time ago from an Indian scholar, who would have us believe that the altars at least were dismantled by the king Ashoka (who deserves recognition for his un-Alexandrian renunciation of war) in the next century, for recycling into his famous inscriptions which still dot India, in particular the column at Sarnath which features on the modern Indian flag.Would anyone care to add to the speculation as to what happened to the altars?

[jan]

Since they were erected on a river bed, there has been speculation that they probably drifted downstream, but the recent earthquake in Pakistan made me realize that most likely, had earthquakes impacted them, they will never be found. I had had the mistaken belief that some remnants could be found if one could find a device to detect materials deep enough underground. It is probably true that there are some remains yet to be discovered if one knew where to look. I find it unlikely that the Indians could have destroyed them totally. Since they were built to impart the look of giants!

[ruthaki]

That sounds like a very logical explanation of their disappearance, Janet.

[nickw]

There is a legend, or speculation, that the famous Iron Pillar in Delhi is a piece from Alexander's altars that was brought to Delhi.http://www.hindu.com writes:
"However, Coryate's impressions were coloured by his fanciful ideas of India, which made him see the Iron Pillar at the Qutb as having being planted there by Alexander the Great with Greek writings."Don't take this too seriously. Just food for thought.Regards ---Nick

[Gary]

Here is the Indian scholar's article:
http://www.geocities.com/ranajitda/askpilar.htmlAnd here is an example of the content I found charming:
"...it is well known that he [Alexander] always carried a small golden lion."Gary

[amyntoros]

The truth is, the loss of altars and artifacts isn't limited to India. Over two thousand years have passed and we shouldn't *expect* anything that Alexander built to have survived, whether or not they were constructed in a place that suffers from frequent natural disasters. Archaeology comes into its own in cities that are known to have existed in Alexander's time, but look how long it took to locate the tombs in Vergina! When whole cities have disappeared without a trace or altars were built in the "countryside" then it isn't surprising that nothing has yet been found. Sometimes archaeolgists get lucky, but Alexander's campaigns covered a huge area, after all.Here, from Cicero, is a good example of monuments of Alexander's that have completely disappeared.Cicero. CCXXXVII (F 15. 4)TO M. PORCIUS CATO (AT ROME) CILICIA (JANUARY)
After these operations we lay encamped for four days on the spurs of Amanus, near the Arae Alexandri*, and all that time we devoted to the destruction of the remaining inhabitants of Amanus, and devastating their lands on that side of the mountain which belongs to my province.
*Some columns put up near the field of the battle of Issus by Alexander, or to mark the line of his march. These columns obviously stood for more than three hundred years, but when we think of all that has happened in the country over the next two millennia - well, it would be amazing if they were still there, wouldn't it?As for India, Philostratus describes various altars and monuments, but scholars consider his Life of Apollonius to have serious questions in regard to particulars provided and sources employed.. For my own part, I don't see why Philostratus couldn't have used the record of a real visit to India as a source even if parts of his story such as the "miracles" were invented. (And here we also find the ancient theological argument about Apollonius' miracles being fiction while the new testament miracles were considered to be true!) Anyway, Philostratus tells of bronze tablets commemorating Alexander at Taxila and also of a triumphal arch in the same city. Then there's this about the altars:PHILOSTRATUS, The Life of Apollonius of Tyana, Book II, Chapter 43. Altars of Alexander after the river Hyphasis. "And having crossed the river Hydraotes and passed by several tribes, they reached the Hyphasis, and thirty stades away from this they came on altars bearing this inscription: "To Father Ammon and Heracles his brothe

[amyntoros]

"To Father Ammon and Heracles his brother, and to Athena Providence and to Zeus of Olympus and to the Cabeiri of Samothrace, and to the Indian Sun and to the Delphian Apollo. And they say there was also a brass column dedicated, and inscribed as follows, "Alexander stayed his steps at this point." The altars we may suppose to be due to Alexander who so honoured the limit of his Empire; but I fancy the Indians beyond the Hyphasis erected the column, by way of expressing their pride at Alexander's having got no further."Now, a column of brass certainly wouldn't have been left intact for thousands of years! One of these days I'm going to go in search of current scholarly articles and publications on Philostratus' work and see what they have to say. I'm not normally romantically inclined, but I do *want* to believe the above. The idea that altars were erected to the Cabeiri is so appealing!Best regards,Amyntoros

[jan]

Hi Gary, Hail to Minerva, Motto of Old! Thanks for the article as I had not yet read it. I appreciated confirmation of some facts. I had an experience of seeing these altars and so the article is well received, as I am certain that marauders probably did do the same to these as Persepolis itself also. The point is that the foundation stones should have sunk into the earth enough to still be found somewhere. I hope that they will someday unearth them.

[Nicator]

Opening a digression here:Anyone care to speculate as to why Alexander didn't create a pillar with himself adorned on the top? Would he have done this had his position been less fragile? Would Philip have missed this opportunity to propagandize himself?later Nicator