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Exhibition:Ancient Macedonia & Alexander the Great at Louvre
13. October 2011. | 08:50
Source: Emg.rs, ANSAmed
Previously unseen treasures and splendorous objects which express the wealth and elegance of ancient Macedonia under the rule of Alexander the Great will be going on show at Paris' Louvre Museum from Thursday.
Previously unseen treasures and splendorous objects which express the wealth and elegance of ancient Macedonia under the rule of Alexander the Great will be going on show at Paris' Louvre Museum from Thursday.
More than five hundred items of sculpture, vases, ceramics, jewellery, golden crowns and precious objects, some of which had been conserved in tombs only recently discovered in the Thessaloniki region. The show is a testimony to the wealth and high levels of craftsmanship that flourished in this northern Greek kingdom from the 15 th century BCE until its decline in the face of the growing might of the Roman Republic.
As the collection's curator, Sophie Deschamps, explains: "Thanks to the finds made in Vergina, in 1977, of several royal tombs, which included the intact tomb of Phillip II, father of Alexander the Great, and to the discovery in 2003 of a sanctuary dedicated to Zeus at Dion, a holy city of the Macedonians, it has truly become possible for us to comprehend the extraordinary archaeological potential of Northern Greece". Ms Deschamps continued: "These finds, along with those from many other Macedonian burial sites, have revealed the pomp of a class of nobles and of an elite close to the king, as well as of a particularly refined courtly culture. The have also confirmed the intensity of trade between Macedonia and the other areas of the Grecian world".
On show are funereal decorations, weapons, mosaics, gold and silver jewellery and objects of painted earthenware. There is a marble sarcophagus weighing seven tonnes, gold masks under bronze helmets and a golden crown dating back to the second half of the 4 th century BCE, which was found at Aigai, the present day Vergina, "in an incredible place: on the agora, enclosed in a cylindrical golden casket which contained the burned bones of an adolescent, perhaps Hearcles, the illegitimate son of Alexander the Great". The many facets of Macedonian civilisation are evoked, from its artistic production, the organisation of the kingdom, its architecture, its education system, its daily life, its religion and death rites. There is also the genesis of the legend of Alexander the Great in antiquity, a short but glory-filled life, spanning the years 356 to 323 BCE. His birth in Pella, the capital of Macedonia, his legendary genealogy from Hercules and Achilles, his teacher Aristotle, the first military victories in Asia Minor, the heroic charge across the Steppes of Asia, the conquest of the Babylonian empire and his dream of conquering Africa, until his death at the age of 32, in the thirteenth year of his reign.
As the Curator put it: "While Alexander the Great, the young Grecian conqueror, has left a legend behind him with his glorious destiny, his charisma and the quality of his strategic thought that allowed him to overturn the geo-political equilibrium of the ancient world in the space of ten years, Macedonia, this wealthy land has been largely ignored. Indeed, archaeological excavations have concentrated on the Peloponnese, where ruins are clearly to be seen. In Northern Greece, however, there are few visible remains because the temples were not built of marble but were brick and timber constructions".
Comments (9)
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13. October 2011. 14:40:05
| Ime
5
Macedonians were a distinct nation they fought against the ancient Grreks. Greece occupied Macedonia in the late 19th century does not mean today that Greece can automatically monoplolize everything Macedonian.
13. October 2011. 18:32:48
| Otto
3
Macedonia as a part of ancient world is something different then ancient Greece.
I do not know who was this dummy who wright this article, but if we all today spoke English, it do not mean that after 2000 years some people may say that "All people who live on this planet in this time was Englishman's!?!?"
Grak was living in "democracy" in tens of "city state's", Macedonians have monarch and country with then's of city's.
Macedonians , and Alexander itself spoke Macedonian, Greek spoke Greek...
Macedonian DNA is related with many mediteranian's, Greek DNA is directly connected with Sudanese today - simply if You do not know read what is written on "Rosetta stone", the most visited single artifact from British museum. It say that Ptolomy will role Greeks from Greece and from upper Neil!!! Upper Nile is today Sudan.... Last DNA test show clearly link, and if You visit Grace You will find, people south from Macedonia, with black sken, black hear , and short legs... Tipikal for sub Sahara people...
There are more things, but last will be, Macedonians who translate and pot vocals on middle text of "Rosetta stone" and read it , clearly understand what is written, without translation, and it sound like "ancient Slavic" from old church books...
Macedonians was those who go after Darius, who have in service 30000 foot soldier's and thousands of horsemen from Greece on his side. Greeks was those who was fighting the most gains Macedonians...
Greece may hold gold of Ancient Macedonia, but cant change DNA...
13. October 2011. 18:32:48
| MK
4
I think you have missed a large portion of Classical history where the area known as Greece was made up of different independent Greek city states. On many occasions they went to war against each other, Athens and Sparta being the most well known example, but that does not make them any less Greek.
13. October 2011. 22:16:11
| Ime
4
If you are anyone looks at any historical events they all state how the Greeks were always split up Alexander was the first to unify the greeks, its like asking a greek today or in the past where are you from they will say Athens, Macedonia, Sparta and so on. Go back to the days of Tito to find your history. And oh by the way only 20% of Fyrom in in ancient Macedonia so maybe you should get your facts straight of where you came from .( this is for the people who wrote above)
14. October 2011. 20:12:48
| Karalambro
2
Once again, this Greek endeavor, to go along with the previous Greek attempts, is to portray the Ancient Macedonians as Greeks. It has nothing to do with anything else. Once again, this debt-ridden nation spends millions of dollars to convince the world that Alexander was Greek. If he really were a Greek national, then why trying so feverishly to prove to the world audience that he was? It reminds me of a comment made by a scholar, who will remain nameless here, that when Greece celebrates a foreign conqueror as its own king, that is analogous to Poland celebrating Stalin as its own general. Poles and Russians come from the same "primordial stock" of people; as Greeks are inclined to remind us that the ancient Macedonians came from a "Greek stock" of peoples. Are there any individuals left in this world that cannot see through this poorly veiled Greek ruse? Are there any takers left out there to still believe in Greek hockus-pockus brewed mythology?
15. October 2011. 15:01:28
| Ime
4
The language of Phillip the II, father of Alexander the Great, was Greek. This is confirmed by the findings in Vergina. The Slavs came to the Balkans in the 6th century. Also both Phillip and Alexander tried to unite all Greeks - which they considered themselves to be - and history tells us that ancient Athens resisted. Once they united Greece, Alexander undertook the war against the Persians on behalf of all Greeks. History speaks by itself.
16. October 2011. 09:20:50
| Ime
2
Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and brother people, to fight one another. I do not feel happy for this victory of mine. On the contrary, I would be glad, brothers, if I had all of you standing here next to me, since we are united by the same language, the same blood and the same visions.
(Alexander the Great addressing the dead Greeks of the battle of Chaeronia. Curtius Rufus, "Historia")
16. October 2011. 09:20:50
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2
Do the folks from the FOrmer Yugoslav Republic read history books that weren't published in Skopje? please don't pollute these pages with nonsense. History has been written and can't be retrofitted to suit the ethnically dissatisfied modern day residents of VARDAR. Exactly when did the conversion of the MAKEDONES from Hellenism to Bulgarism occur?
19. October 2011. 23:06:54
| Mk
0
If the wars between Macedonia and Greeks was an internal affair, than the similar rhetoric would be used when Sparta fought against other Greeks. Namely there would be a lot of texts where the Spartans would address in the same manner the rest of the Greek people. In the literature you cannot find an article where Sparta goes in war against Greeks or Athena goes in war against Greeks. It is always wars between Athena and Sparta. So why would
the historians describe the wars as wars between Macedonia and Greeks if they were to follow the same pattern of describing wars between Greek city -states.