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  animals and had no Greek equivalents, such as the Apis bull and the

  Buchis bull. These are of course examples of the same devotion he

  frequently showed towards Greek gods, but ones where he clearly

  demonstrated an understanding of the different religious sensibilities of his

  Egyptian subjects. This attitude is also reflected in a papyrus from Saqqara

  containing an order made by one of Alexander’s military commanders,

  Peucestas, the son of Macartatus. This document – written in Greek and

  therefore addressed to Greeks and Macedonians – forbids soldiers to enter

  the necropolis of sacred animals at Saqqara, which the order declares to be

  an area exclusively reserved for priests. One can assume that this order

  was a repetition of the supreme commander’s instructions. By protecting

  the sanctity of the graves of animals worshiped by the Egyptians,

  including Apis bulls, Alexander also eliminated a potential source of

  conflict between his soldiers and the local population. The whole

  programme of investing in temples and the respect shown to the most

  important Egyptian gods indicate that Alexander behaved like the rightful

  pharaoh of the Egyptians and consciously referred to the traditions of the

  independent Egypt Nectanebo II had defended over a decade earlier.

  Alexander was informed of Egyptian culture, tradition and expectations by

  142 Porter, Moss 1929, pp. 44-45; Bell 1985; Raziq 1988; Burstein 1994, p. 382;

  Stewart 1993, pp. 172-178; Menu 1998; Ladynin 1999, pp. 95-96.

  From Abydus to Alexandria

  205

  local advisors, the high-priests of Ptah in Memphis and of Thoth at

  Hermopolis as well as by high-ranking officials. It is to his own credit,

  however, that he willingly made use of this expert knowledge. Thus the

  king was able to proceed in accordance with the Egyptian theological

  concept of ensuring the rule of Maat and thus securing Egypt’s success

  and prosperity. This was achieved when the monarch performed the

  appropriate rituals and sacrifices to release the divine world cycle and

  maintain contact with the sphere of the gods. On the political level this

  legitimised his authority in Egypt among the powerful priestly elite which

  in the 4th century was able to deny legitimity even to some native rulers.

  Alexander’s policy of respecting Egyptian religious sensitivity does not

  prove that he was really crowned pharaoh of Egypt but it does make it

  plausible. The Alexander Romance provides the description of an

  evidently genuine pharaoh coronation. The fact that the book claims the

  ceremony took place at the Temple of Ptah in Memphis may explain why

  throughout the Hellenistic era the post of high-priest at that temple was

  unusually held by members of a single family. Moreover, though his reign

  in Egypt was considerably shorter, Alexander’s name appears in Egyptian

  inscriptions nine times more frequently than that of his predecessor Darius

  III. This would indicate that Alexander was far more accepted by the

  country’s religious elites than the last of the Achaemenid kings.143

  It was during his first stay in the Egyptian capital or after his return

  from Siwah (according to Arrian) that Alexander decided on how Egypt

  should be governed. Arrian states that he appointed two nomarchs or

  rather – in light of what has been found on an Egyptian ostracon from

  Memphis – satraps whose Greek names were Petisis and Doloaspis. The

  names indicate that the first was an Egyptian and the second was an

  Iranian. The nominations show that Alexander intended to maintain the

  Persian system of administration into which he wished to enrol both

  Persian and Egyptian elites. Petisis’s early resignation from his nominated

  position has led some historians to the not entirely justified theory that the

  Egyptian elites had become disillusioned with the Macedonian rule.

  Doloaspis became the sole satrap but his authority was limited to civilian

  and judicial administration. As usual, Alexander entrusted military

  commands in this satrapy to his own officers. He appointed the

  Macedonians Pantaleon and Polemon as commandants of the already

  existing garrisons at Memphis and Pelusium respectively. The Aetolian

  143 Order of Peucestas: Turner 1974. It reflects the will of Alexander referred to in

  Curt., 4.7.5. Thompson 1988, pp. 138-146; O’Brien 1992, p. 86; Stewart 1993, pp.

  171-178; Wirth 1993, p. 191; van Voss 1993; Menu 1998; Ladynin 1999, pp. 86-

  87; Briant 2002, p. 117.

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  Lycidas as well as the Macedonians Peucestas and Balacrus were also

  given separate military commands, while the Nile estuary was to be

  guarded by the Macedonian Polemon with a squadron of 30 ships. Arrian

  notes that Alexander intentionally appointed such a large number of

  commanders only answerable to him in Egypt, so that none of them could

  possibly aspire to take over control of the whole country. Though never on

  such a large scale as in Egypt, this practice would later also be frequently

  applied by Alexander in the eastern satrapies. Nonetheless, there was a key

  figure among the new authorities, Cleomenes of Naucratis, a Greek from

  beyond the circle of Alexander’s hetairoi who most probably acquired this

  important position thanks to his administrative talent and experience he

  had perhaps gained serving Persian satraps. Some sources mistakenly call

  him the satrap of Egypt, though this may result from the informal power

  he indeed held at the start of Macedonian rule in that country. Alexander

  accepted an existing system of administration that had been originally

  formulated during the 26th Dynasty and next adopted by the Persians. It

  was essentially a centralised fiscal bureaucracy headed by an official

  called a senti, or dioiketes in Greek. Apart from being appointed to this

  extremely important position, Cleomenes was put in charge of the building

  of Alexandria as well as the administration of part of Arabia, presumably

  territories to the east of the Nile Delta. As well as the normal procedures

  of collecting taxes, Cleomenes also resorted to unconventional methods of

  extorting from temples loans the government would never pay back on the

  threat of confiscating temple property; this practice had first been applied

  by the Egyptian administration during the last period of independence

  under the rule of the pharaoh Tachos. Cleomenes additionally saved

  money by craftily not paying a month’s wages due to soldiers stationed in

  Egypt. Moreover, he set up a network of informers in foreign markets to

  establish where Egyptian grain could be sold at the most profitable price.

  Cleomenes also ran the mint, most probably at Memphis, which initially

  continued the issuing of coins from Persian times but towards the end of

  his government it started striking tetradrachms and staters with

  Alexander’s portrait. Nominated at the end of 332 or beginning of 331,

  Cleomenes was able to ensure the financing of Macedonian garrisons,

  realize the building and renovation projects commissioned by Alexander

  as well as pay for the very expensive founding of the city of Alexandria.

  A
nd on top of that he was able to amass 8,000 talents in the provincial

  treasury, naturally at the cost of acquiring the reputation of a ruthless

  financier.144

  144 Arr., An. , 3.5.2-7; Arr., Succ. ,1.5; Curt., 4.8.4-5; Arist., Oec. , 1352a-b; [D.], 56.7-8; Diod., 18.14.1; Paus., 1.6.3; Dexipp., FGrH, 100 F8.2; Ps.-Callisth., 1.34.7;

  From Abydus to Alexandria

  207

  From Memphis Alexander went on an expedition up the Nile. We

  cannot be certain whether he reached the Thebaid, though it is possible as

  even with the means of transport in those days the excursion need not have

  lasted longer than a month. On the other hand at some stage Alexander

  did send a separate expedition to discover why the Nile flooded. We know

  this from an account of Alexander’s historian Callisthenes. What we

  cannot be sure of is whether or not this was purely a geographic and

  meteorological fact finding mission or whether its aim also involved

  ascertaining the military strength and resources of the Kingdom of Meroe,

  which was situated to the south of Egypt. A delegation from that country

  visited Alexander at Babylon in 324. Thanks to the findings of this

  expedition, Aristotle was able to formulate a theory that the Nile floods

  were caused by seasonal rains falling in the region of the river’s source in

  Ethiopia.145

  On another journey from Memphis Alexander sailed with elite

  detachments of hetairoi, hypaspists, archers and Agrianians down the

  westernmost (Canopic) branch of the Nile right up to the sea. Before he

  returned to the Egyptian capital in April 331, two important events

  occurred: the founding of Alexandria and the visit to Siwah. Unfortunately

  the ancient sources do not concur as to the chronology of these events and

  there are similar differences of opinion among modern historians. The

  current state of knowledge on this subject makes A.B. Bosworth’s

  hypothesis the most plausible: Alexander selected the site for the new city

  – no doubt on the advice of people with expert knowledge of Egypt, such

  as perhaps Cleomenes of Naucratis – during his first visit there, but the

  actual building began after his return from Siwah. First he had to consult

  the oracle at Siwah and also make appropriate preparations, such as the

  drafting of the city’s plan. That is why a later date, 25th Tybi which in 331

  corresponded to 7th April, was annually celebrated as the day the city was

  founded. Alexandria was not the first city founded by Alexander but

  politically, economically and culturally it was by far the most important.

  The outline of the city’s boundaries resembled a military cloak, the

  chlamys, and measured 80 stades (14.5 km) in diameter. It was marked out

  – in accordance with Macedonian custom – with flour, which a huge flock

  of birds immediately devoured. The king was initially disturbed by this

  phenomenon, but it was then explained to him that this was a good omen

  Just., 13.4.11. Satrap Petisis in a demotic ostracon: Smith 1988; Jasnow 1997, p.

  95, n. 2. Bosworth 1980, pp. 275-278; Atkinson 1980, pp. 364-367; Briant 1996,

  pp. 425, 739, 878-881; Briant 2002, pp. 62-63; Le Rider 1997; Le Rider 2003, pp.

  238-262; Heckel 2006, p. 224.

  145 Callisth., FGrH, 124 F12a; Arist., FGrH, 646 T2a. Burstein 1976a.

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  Chapter IV

  which meant Alexandria would attract many settlers from all over the

  world. Plutarch relates a legend in which the idea of founding this city is

  suggested by Homer, who visits Alexander in a dream. Nonetheless, the

  most important reason clearly appears to have been commercial. Having

  taken control of the eastern Mediterranean and gained knowledge of

  Egypt’s economic potential, Alexander decided to found a major city on

  the site of a trading settlement ( emporion) called Rhacotis, which is hardly

  mentioned in ancient sources. Alexandria became the gateway for trade

  between Egypt and much of the Orient on one side and the lucrative

  markets of the Aegean and later of the whole of the western world on the

  other. This role could not be fulfilled by Naucratis as it was located too far

  from the sea and by then experiencing a period of decline. The ancient

  sources attribute the actual designing of Alexandria to Deinocrates of

  Rhodes, who had been member of Alexander’s circle of friends since at

  least mid 332 and is also famous for planning to convert Mount Athos into

  a huge sculpture of Alexander. The latter plan was rejected, but

  Deinocrates’ talents were employed in the urban design of Alexandria.

  Well positioned on an easy to defend isthmus between Lake Mareotis and

  the Mediterranean Sea, the street grid was planned in such a way so that

  strong winds would cool the inhabitants during Egyptian heat waves.

  Settlers were brought in from the whole of Greece and that nation would

  dominate the city’s ethnic makeup over the next 1,000 years. The native

  populations of surrounding villages were resettled in a separate district of

  the city with its own temple to Isis and no doubt sanctuaries to other

  Egyptian deities.146

  Alexander set off from Lake Mareotis and proceeded via Paraitonion

  (today Marsa Matruh) 600 km south west to the Siwah Oasis – the

  northernmost of the Libyan Desert oases. When Alexander was still by

  Lake Mareotis (according to Curtius) or halfway to Siwah (according to

  Diodorus), therefore most probably at Paraitonion, he received envoys

  from the Greek colony Cyrene in Libya, who brought him a gold crown

  and gifts, including 300 chargers. Later Alexander considered Cyrene to

  146 Arr., An. , 3.1.5-2.2; Plu., Alex. , 26.3-10, 72.5-8; Plu., mor. , 335c-d (architect’s name is mistakenly Stasicrates); Diod., 17.52; Str., 17.1.6; Curt., 4.8.1-6; Vitr., 2,

  pr. 2.3; Fragmentum Sabbaiticum, FGrH, 151 F1.11; Just., 11.11; It. Alex. , 48-49; Ps.-Callisth., 1.31.-33. Welles 1962; Wilcken 1967, pp. 117-120; Fraser 1972, i, pp.

  3-7, ii, pp. 1-11; Fraser 1996, pp. 174-175; Bosworth 1980, pp. 263-266; Seibert

  1985, pp. 85-86; Hammond 1996, pp. 124-126; Hamilton 1999, pp. 66-68; Hölbl

  2000, pp. 9-10; Brown 2001; Nawotka 2003, p. 114.

  From Abydus to Alexandria

  209

  be part of his domain therefore we can presume that this delegation came

  to declare the colony’s fealty and pay a tribute in the form of gifts.147

  Situated in a depression surrounded by chalk mountains, Siwah had an

  ample supply of water (today there are c. 300 wells) capable in ancient

  times of supporting several settlements. This allowed for the existence of a

  small Berber state ruled by a local royal dynasty, though not entirely free

  of Egyptian influence. Its only claim to fame was a temple and the Berber

  oracle of an ithyphallic deity, which for not entirely clear reasons started

  being associated with Ammon. The high-priests of this sanctuary were the

  Egyptianized kings of Siwah. A temple to Ammon was raised at Siwah

  during the 26th dynasty, and it was still active in Alexander’s day. The

  local cult of Ammon as well as the oracle started to interest the Greeks

  towards the end of the 6th century, initially just at Cyrene, which was 600

  km away, but later also the inhabitants of mainland Gree
ce. Of course, in

  keeping with their customs, the Greeks called the Siwah deity Zeus.148 The

  purpose of this long and arduous journey was not to fulfil any Egyptian

  religious or monarchic obligations because pharaohs never visited this

  oasis. The real reason was most probably because Alexander, who always

  attached great importance to religious ritual and the possibility of

  understanding closer the will of the gods, felt an irresistible longing to

  visit an oracle that in the Greek world for a long time had been considered

  infallible. Apart from this desire to ask important questions and, as people

  of that era perceived it, have them answered, Alexander, as usual, also

  wished to compete with his mythological predecessors Heracles and

  Perseus, who had also supposedly visited Siwah.149

  On his journey Alexander was accompanied by a detachment of

  soldiers to protect him from nomads of the Libyan Desert and by baggage

  carrying camels. The first stage of the journey was along the coast, but

  from Paraitonion they had to cross 300 km of open desert. During this part

  of the journey, which took them eight days, the Macedonians experienced

  a violent sandstorm raised by a southern wind called the Khamaseen. After

  this storm the desert landscape was quite altered, but the now lost

  Macedonians were first saved by a shower of rain, which provided them

  with much needed water, and then by a divine sign; Aristobulus states that

  two ravens appeared, but the more imaginative Ptolemy claims they were

  147 Diod., 17.49.2; Curt., 4.7.9; Arr., An. , 7.9.8. Seibert 1985, p. 86.

  148 Parke 1967, pp. 196-219; Bosworth 1977; Kuhlmann 1988, pp. 9-107; Hölbl

  2000, p. 10.

  149 Callisth., FGrH, 124 F14a (= Str., 17.1.43); Arr., An. , 3.3.1. Wilcken 1967, pp.

  121-123; Bosworth 1977, pp. 68-69.

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  Chapter IV

  in fact two snakes speaking human voice. These ravens or snakes led

  Alexander and his companions to Siwah.150

  The first ever visit of an Egyptian monarch must have been a major

 

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