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Now then, now then... I wonder whether anyone can recommend any book(s) that contain(s) plans and/or descriptions of the city of Ephesus, most notably as it was when Alexander visited?I realise that, despite my large library, I have virtually nothing on Asia Minor - and the books on Alexander tend to say little more than the fact that he went to Ephesus, and what he did there.Thanks in advance for any recommendations.All the bestMarcus

Hi MarcusYou could start with Freya Stark - The Lycian shore and Alexander's Path. They are a mixture of travel and history. I've also got a rather strange book by Naomi Mitchison, too - the Corn God and the Spring Queen, set around those times in the Black Sea, Sparta and Ptolemaic Egypt. It draws heavily on ideas from Fraser's Golden Bough, so inevitably everyone ends up dead in gory ritual.I recently found a curiosity from the website of a Turkish hotel:
http://www.atamanhotel.com/princess-ada.htmlI don't know if there's any truth in it being Ada, though.RegardsSusan

Thanks, Susan. I hadn't considered Freya Stark, but she's always good for info.I like the piece about "Ada's" tomb - well, it might be her, I suppose, but I'm sure there are plenty of other contenders. Perhaps it's the princess that Arrhidaios was supposed to marry?All the bestMarcus

Hello,
It is nice to hear from you.
At the moment I am ploughing my way through the long "History of the Persian Empire" by W.M.Olmstead.
In it there is the account of Alexander's visit there although off hand I don't know if the author goes into detail about the location.
It may be worth a try.
Best wishes,
Dean.

Thanks for the information about the Ataman Hotel. Incredible! I enjoyed her wanting to spoil Alexander as his newly adopted mother. It was rather choice, and I wondered at the veracity of it. WAs it Manfredi's imagination? Or is there some element of truth in her wanting to have Alexander eat her delicious desserts? Anyone know? Thanks. Jan

Hi Janet,If I recall correctly, the most detail about Ada is in Plutarch, and he does mention that she sent Alexander tidbits. Manfredi obviously fleshed the relationship out - much as I dislike the books, I have to be fair and say that I thought the episode with Ada was pretty believable, and quite nicely developed.All the bestMarcus

Hi Dean,Thanks - I'll have a look at Olmsted. I was flicking through that book at the weekend, and I don't remember that it went into much detail - certainly not in the way it does about Pasargadae, Susa and Persepolis - but I'll have a proper look this weekend.All the bestMarcus

I've been to Ephesus a few times. An amazing site!
I did some research on it too, for my novel, and if I can sort through my notes I'll see if there are any reference books listed you might check out. I think the Stark 'travelogue' is good. As for the princess who Arridaios was supposed to marry. I believe she was a Karian satrap's daughter and was only 8 years old at the time this betrothal too place (which was for political reasons of course, and never happened in the end.)

Hi Ruth,I didn't think we had any evidence of Pixodarus' daughter's age, do we?After the betrothal to Arridaios broke down, Pixodarus married her off to Orontobates, who I believe was satrap when Alexander eventually got to Halicarnassus. What goes around, comes around!All the bestMarcus

The part in my novel where I mention the proposed marriage of Arridaios and the Karian princess was written quite some time ago. I know I read many books, research papers etc in the course of my research and can't remember the particular reference to her being "8 years old" but I wouldn't have grabbed that number out of a hat so it is there somewhere. If I run across it in my notes I'll let you know. (Althought I'm writing historical fiction I do try to keep as many of my facts and details straight as possible.)

Hi Ruth,I know the problem, when you've done loads of research in the dim and distant past, and are suddenly expected to drag it up - and it's always for the tiniest little detail, too!Still, if you happen to dig up the reference (without spending days looking for it) do let us know! I certainly haven't come across it before, but I'll be interested to add it to my own bulging research file!All the bestMarcus