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140 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Where did civilization begin? |
The fertile crescent |
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Centres of authority in the Near East? |
Palaces |
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Purpose of palaces? |
centresof religious, political, and economic powers, storehouses |
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MinoanSociety |
- 2700-1450 BCE - Palatial society based in Bronze-Age Crete - ended after volcanic eruption |
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Minoan Art (Palace at Knossos) |
- very advanced aesthetic - not war based society - based on trade and profitability |
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Mycenaean Society |
- 1400-1100 BCE - Still palace based, but now fortress - Power based on military dominance and prowess - Hierarchical society, warriors at the top |
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Mycenaean Art |
- war scenes - Military might equated to political and religious power |
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Collapse of the Mycenaeans |
- Late Bronze Age Collapse - Lots of eastern Mediterranean civilizations collapsed - Not sure why - Mycenaeans last to collapse |
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The Dark Ages |
- Circa 1200 BC: Major centres of the Greek mainland destroyed or abandoned - Literacy is gone, and not just in Greece - Fewer material remains - Settlementsare smaller and more isolated smaller scale or power |
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Settlements in the Dark Ages? Examples |
Nichoria and Lefkhandi |
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Structure of the Greek World c. 750 B.C. |
- Network of small villages and towns clustered for protection - Each ruled by a basileus - Warrior assembly discussed and ratified decisions made by the king |
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The "Greek World" in the Archaic Period |
- No political unity, but cultural unity - or at least similarity - roughly the same language - same institutions |
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hoplites |
- Free men of the polis - not aristocratic for the most part - Men of means, middle class - Merchants, tradesmen, landowners - Only part time landowners |
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The Hoplite Revolution |
- generalbroadening of political rights that occurred in many Greek cities between700-500 BC - Inclusion of a wider body of free citizens in the processes and mechanisms of civil government - Wider franchise, more magistracies, power divided among more citizens |
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The Polis (two ideas) |
- The abstract polis of the self-governing community of citizens - Physical polis as the urban centre and rural periphery |
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The Mother Goddess |
- The DaVinci Code - The sacred feminine - Pseudo-science but not without anthropological precedent - Two"Venuses" from Europe |
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The Mother Goddess Theory |
- Primordial mother goddess worshipped by Near-Easternand European cultures - embracing the egalitarian matriarchal society,privilege of women - Introducedby Johann Backhofen |
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Problems with the mother goddess theory |
- Ignores many Mediterranean societies who do not have anthropomorphic deities - Relies on very murky deposits - Glosses over male counterparts of these deities, especially Classical deities |
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Value in the mother goddess theory? |
- Numerous cults of fertility - Numerous maternal cults - Numerous sacred couples, not just one sacred gender |
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Palatial societies |
- Stratified societies, elite vs. non-elite - Dynasty, legitimacy, and heredity - Importance of maternity in this construct |
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Royal Tombs date and location |
Al Nasiriya + 2550-2400 BC Many regular graves, 16 'Royal Tombs' |
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Tomb of Queen Puabi |
- 1928 - discovery of tomb 800 - Death pit containing bodies of human sacrifices, banqueting vessels, oxen and car - Other sacrifices of varying rank, high courtiers and lower attendants, but none were enslaved (high ranking members of society in their own rank - had their own seal) - Sacrifices are adult men and women, 4 men armed with daggers, 10 women with musical instruments - Remains of Queen Puabi |
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Conclusions from Puabi |
- Women of extremely high status, combination of political and religious/social power - Just as elaborate a burial as her male equivalents - Buried near the temple of Nanna (moon-goddess) - Not buried with her husband: some differentiation |
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Tomb II, Queens' Tombs, 750-625 BC |
- Two women buried in one grave on top of one another - Both in their 30s to 40s, healthy diet, easy lifestyle, good teeth |
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Names of the Queens in Tomb II at Nimrud |
- Atalia, wife of Sargon II (721-705 BC) - Yaba, wife of Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 BC) - Syrian names (diplomatic marriages) |
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Elite Women - Themes and Patterns in the Ancient Near East |
- Wealth, status, and visibility - Political importance in marriage and diplomatic relations - Some measure of cultic, public, and economic autonomy - Association of fertility with agriculturalproductivity - But still derivative power - Not necessarily powerful in their own right - Derived their importance from the male figures around them |
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Enheduanna |
- daughter of King Sargon (2300-2245 BC) and wife ofthe moon god Nanna - Princess, priestess, divine consort, and powerful after her father's reign - One of the first works of literature to directly reference author |
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Legacy of Enheduanna |
- Women as legitimizing male reign through religion - Mediator between king/dynasty and gods - Individual power and influence - First named author in human history |
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Epic of Gilgamesh |
- Based on isolated Sumerian poems episodes recorded in the c. 2100 BC from Ur and Babylon |
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Story of Gilgamesh |
- Gilgamesh, King of Uruk, 2/3 divine who oppresses the kingdom, makes men work, and sleeps with brides on wedding night - People ask the gods for help, gods create primitive man, Enkidu, wild but gradually civilized - Gilgamesh and Enkidu become friends, set out to slay the evil god Humbaba in the Cedar Forest |
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Gender in Gilgamesh |
- Male story written for a primarily male audience - Main characters are male, but female characters move the narrative along prominently - Protection of women of Uruk begins the plot as a whole people of Uruk pray to Aruru, birth goddess, for assistance - But still these women revolved around male characters |
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Enkidu and Shamhat |
- Enkidu born and lives among animals, trapper proposes to bring him a prostitute to civilize him - Sexuality, women and civilization - Not just a one sided sexual encounter - Have sex for 6 days, 7 nights, and comes out civilized - Shamat comforts Enkidu after he is rejected by the animals |
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Gilgamesh and Ishtar |
- Promises him lots of stuff if he has sex with her - Lots of material things associated with fertility - Gilgamesh says no - her love is poison |
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Tomb of Menna (1543-1249 BC) |
- Prominent but not royal man - Large tomb in good condition - Both genders represented - Hunting Fresco (Men hunting, women with them in the boats) - Men appear strong, tall robust, and darker - Women smaller, more slight, lighter, and in a supporting role |
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Motifs in the Tomb of Menna |
- Ideal of men as strong, healthy active - Women as slight, elegant, beautiful, passive - Ideal of youth, no blemishes, childbirth never depicted - Women visible and active in society |
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Problems with studying Minoan women |
- Very old society - Lots of ambiguity in reconstruction - can't read their language (linear a) - All ideas about Minoan society is just theories |
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Sir Arthur Evans |
- Excavated Knossos - Finds parallels between his limited evidence and his knowledge of Near East, Egypt - Seeks early basis of later Greek society in Minoan ruins |
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The Mother Goddess/The Great Goddess (minoan) |
- Mother of the major male god - Equivalent of Isis/Hathor, Ishtar - Privileged over all other gods (almost monotheistic) - Goddess of heavens, the underworld, controls the entire universe - A-sa-sa-ra - at the heart of minoan religion |
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Depictions of women in minoan art |
- Emphasis of fertility - accentuated breasts
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Themes in Minoan Women |
- Prominence and visibility of elite women and women more generally - Religious importance of women as spiritual experts, keepers of collective memories and tradition - Seem to be in a mediating/officiating role - Celebration of women as nourishers, transmitters, and producers |
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Mycenaean Culture |
- Greek mainland starting to take a different path than the rest of the ancient Near-East - Palaces based on land, elaborate defences, land-based (as opposed to sea-based), establish military presence - Shift towards male imagery, masculinity of warfare |
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Megaron |
Throne room and centre of Mycenaean palaces |
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Cultural similarities between Minoan and Mycenaean |
- Women depicted in religious ritual - Religious prominence - Roughly the same kind of procession and sacrifice |
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Difference between Minoans and Mycenaeans |
we can read their language (linear b) |
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Linear B |
- Deciphered from 1952 - Presumed it was a predecessor to Greek - Presumed place names would be the same - Don't make distinction between male and female when it comes to occupation - Non-gendered words with symbol for male or female added on after |
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Women at Pylos in linear B |
- Elite women who are property owners and identified by their title - Common women who are referred to generically, workers, laborers, servants, etc. - 9 titles associate with propertied women, 6 are religious, so religious and influence go hand in hand |
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Elite women at Pylos |
Titles include priestess, keybearer, and slave of the gods |
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Non-elite women at Pylos |
- Appear without names, 750 of the 900 attested women - Part of larger groups being directed towards some kinds of labour, listed alongside underage children and slaves - Palace feeds, controls, and directs their labour - No agency |
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Mycenaeans: Elite vs. Non-Elite |
- Elite women appear in active roles and transactions,dispute arbitration etc. - Non-elite women appear as passive workers, labourers, with no autonomy - Even elite women only have titles and rights equivalent to middle-ranking men, so not completely equal - Lifestyle/privileges determined by social status, not necessarily gender |
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The Eve Complex |
In Judeo-Christian tradition, women are evil because of the original sin |
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Women in Hesiod |
Women became fundamentally different, similar to the Eve Complex |
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Hesiod |
Roughly equivalent to Homer |
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Women in Works and Days (Hesiod) |
- Eris, goddess of Strife - Her sister- Eris - good motivation - Bad strife makes people fight each other, good strife is the ambition to make oneself better - Femininity of strife is morally ambiguous |
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Why is life so hard according to Hesiod? |
- The gods hide things from people that would make things easy - Prometheus stole fire: punishment = pandora - Pandora's fault that the life of man is difficult and full of suffering - All women descended from Pandora |
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Who is Homer? |
- We have no idea - Emerged coherent around 750 BC |
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Iliad |
- Fundamental and most important work of Greek literature - Set against the backdrop of the Trojan War, fought c. 1200 |
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Odyssey |
- Iliad "sequel" - Story of Odysseys' travels and return to Ithaka - Also recounts the end of the Trojan War |
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Why do we care about homer? |
- Representative of oral tradition going back to before the written poem - Reflect ideas the predate the composition - Social ideology of the Dark Ages, finally written down - Social ideology of the Dark Ages, finally written down Importance to the Greeks themselves |
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Historical Importance of Homer |
- Homer's world c. 700BCE - divided Greek city states. Greek "Dark Age" - The world Homer Describes - c. 1250 - Bronze age Mycenaean Greece |
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Backstory of Helen and Paris |
- Paris is the Prince of Troy - Zeus makes him choose which goddess is the most beautiful - Chooses Aphrodite -> Owes Paris the most beautiful woman in the world - Helen already married (lots were drawn for her marriage - everyone in the draw had to swear to protect her and her husband - Menelaus) - Paris takes Helen and sails off |
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What is the Iliad really about? |
- The wrath of Achilles, struggle between him andAgamemnon - Abuse of power of the basileus vis-a-vis his warriors - Agamemnon demands Achilles slave girl that the won in the war - Basileus supposed to be generous towards his supporters - When their relationship breaks down, so does the rest of the world |
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The Rape of Helen of Troy |
- Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite promises him Helen - Steals her away from Sparta and her husband, prompts Greek expedition to Troy - The war is not Helen's fault - the gods or Paris - A war fought over the abduction of a woman (retiring property to it's owner) |
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The controversy over Chriseis and Briseis |
- Chriseis: daughter of Chrises, Trojan priest of Apollo, held captive by Agamemnon - Agamemnon returns Chriseis to her father, demands Briseis, Achilles' captive in compensation - Sparks immediate plot |
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Gender and Family in Homer |
- Iliad: Breakdown of the family, marital disharmony, impact od war on wives, women, and children, consequences of infidelity etc. - Odyssey: reconstitution of the family, restoration of the marital and familial harmony, return of Odysseus and faithfulness of Penelope |
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Did Helen leave willingly? |
- Summoned by Iris while weaving a tapestry of the war to come look at the duel between Paris and Menelaus from the city's walls - Iris fills Helen with longing for her old husband and her home (But her feelings or the feelings instilled by the goddess? ) - Aphrodite commands Helen to go to Paris' bedchamber and comfort him |
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Helen confronting Paris |
- Helen questions Aphrodite - reproaches the goddess - Tells her to take care of him herself - Says she will look bad to Trojan women - Going to the bed of a coward and illegitimate husband - "I have constant sorrows in my heart" - Helen goes into the room and reproaches Paris - Says she wished he had died at war - Calls Menelaus a real man - Knows that her reputation is on the line |
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Helen speaking to Hector |
- Hector is the older, stronger brother - Helen has respect for him - Telling him that she would rather be married to him then Paris - More about Paris' failure and shame - Using very strong language against herself (does this indicate that she went willingly or unwillingly) - Indication of regret for something she though was a good idea? |
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Helen after the war |
- Back with Menelaus - Domesticity restored - Casually blames herself for the war |
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Motifs and patterns in Helen |
- Helen as a victim? Aware of grief and loss she has caused - Eros: attraction - Helen herself tries to resist it, even though none around her can resist her own attractiveness - Unwilling pawn in the plot? - Her virtue linked to the virtue of her husband |
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Andromache |
- Wife of Hector - Strong marriage reinforces their virtues - The Anti-Helen - victim of the story |
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Andromache in Book 6 |
- Achaeans overwhelming the Trojans, Trojans anticipate downfall and Helenus (seer) tells Hector to ask his mother to pray for mercy at the temple of Athena - Hector visits his mother, then scorns Paris, who claims he is too bereaved to keep fighting - Hector prepares to return to battle, but first visits his wife Andromache, who is nursing their son Astyanax by the city walls - Andromache begs Hector not to return, but he statesthat he cannot change his fate - Hector departs, Andromache begins mourning him |
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Women of Homer and the Family |
- Women in the epic are completely defined by their families, male relatives, and husbands - She is aware of the consequenceshis death will have on her, tries toprevent this - Has seen what happens when a city falls - Has already watched her family die - If Hector looses, that is it for Andromache - Represents all wives and children who would become collateral damage of the war |
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Hector to Andromache |
- Upset that Andromache will be reduced to slavery - Only thing that guaranteed her status in the world will be gone - She will have to grieve the loss of her husband, but also her status |
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Gender roles and Andromache |
- Ideology of the separate spheres present - Tells her to go back to her loom and take care of the homestead while the men go off and fight - Women have a distinctly different station - Glimpse of what was expected of men and women in society |
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What we learn from Andromache |
- What we learn from Andromache Complete dependence of women on the men in their lives for status and society - Fate of women tied to the fate of their men - Separate spheres of male and female conduct - Andromache's role is to be supportive though the oikos |
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Penelope and Odysseus |
- Reflective of what a good marriage means in the Greek world - Not necessary romantic - more harmonious |
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Homophrosune |
like-mindedness'defines a strong marriage |
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Penelope's intentions |
- Plays a delicate game of protecting not only herself, but Telemachus, and the household if Odysseus ever does return - Must be hospitable to suitors but faithful to herhusband - The stratagem of Penelope's shroud |
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Conversation between Penelope and Odysseus in disguise |
- Gods took her beauty and stature - Weaving a shroud - but undid it at night - Not properly mourned until a burial shroud is woven - Says her reputation would be good again if he came back - Being very honest about her emotions and fidelity Her nights filled with grief and anxiety |
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The Dream of Penelope |
- She decides to marry the man who can shoot an arrow though the holes of 12 axes in a line - Telemachos and Odysseus heroically murder all of the young men |
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Book 23: the test of the bed |
- Idea of the intimacy of a marriage - They know things about each other that no one else could know |
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Penelope: Themes |
- Loyalty, duty, patience, and foresight - Inner turmoil and doubt, but perseverance - Odysseus turns goddesses and princesses to return tohis wife - Ideal marriage: being of one mind, one set of knowledge - Restoration of the families that have been broken by the war, balances the Iliad |
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Cynisca of Sparta |
- Chariot racer - Aware of where her prestige derives from - "Spartan kings are my fathers and brothers" |
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Herodotus |
- Basically only source of history for this time (archaic) - Wrote The Histories, 440 BC - The first work of analytical prose history in the western world |
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Two goals of Herodotus |
- Wants to record great deeds by Greeks and Non-Greeks - Wants to understand why the Greeks and Persians fight each other |
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Herodotus and History |
- Understands human history as a web - A series of interconnected episodes that a connected - Gives some insight on female stories - Giges and Candaulo |
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Gorgo |
- Queen of Sparta - Typical Spartan female upbringing, well-fed, fit, literate, and well-educated - Only surviving heir of Cleomenes when he dies in 490 BC, married to Leonida, her half-uncle |
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Gorgoand Leonidas |
- Already married by 490, as Cleomenes only heir she legitimated Leonidas as king - Instrumental in forming coalition against Persians, travelled to Greek cities with her husband or alone |
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Gorgo - Themes |
- Heredity and legitimation - Political and diplomatic manoeuvring - Potential for external influence - Still male-derived power |
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Pheretime - Background |
- 550-515 BC - Origins unknown but likely elite, married Battus III, King of Cyrene - Two children: Arcesilaus III and Laodice, who married Egyptian Pharaoh - Arcesilaus becomes king in 530, demands more royal power but sparks civil war |
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Pheretime - Diplomat |
- Attempts to gain support of Euelthon - Encourages her son to murder political opponents - She rules the nearby city of Barka while Arcesilaus is fighting for Cyrene, but her son is murdered along with his father in law |
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Pheretime - Vengeance |
- Goes to the Persian governor of Egypt, Arysanders, claiming it was his loyalty that led to his death - She marches on Barka with an army to avenge her son, siege lasts for 9 months |
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Pheretime - Retirement |
- returns to Egypt, gives back the army, and remains inEgypt - Contracts parasitic skin disease and dies in 515 |
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Pheretime - Themes |
- Heredity, legitimacy, and visibility as thecounterpart of a powerful male figure - Family loyalty above all - Potential for political power, but contingent on male delegation or absence - Women like "back-up men" - Women only seem to take power in times of crisis |
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Tragedy |
tragodos - the goat song |
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Mimesis |
imitation, attempt to capture the essence of realityin an artificial form, supposed to be realistic |
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Eleos |
The feeling of pain one experiences when watchingthe suffering of another |
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Phobos |
fear, sense of panic or loss of self in terror |
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Katharsis |
Catharsis, purgation, purification. Tragedy purifiespity and fear so that we only feel these two emotions |
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Euripides |
- 480-406 BC - Athenian tragedian - Prolific and highly regarded playwright - "the most tragic of poets" - Psychological focus, experience, thoughts, and internal conflict of character - Sympathy and empathy for women, victims of society, victims of war, etc. - "scandalous" playwright? - Talks about arrogance of men, experiences of slaves, uncertainty of women towards fidelity |
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The Trojan Women |
- 415 BC, in the midst of the Peloponnesian war |
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Dramatics Personae in the Trojan Women |
Hecuba: Wife of Priam, Queen of Troy Cassandra: eldest daughter of Hecuba, seer but cursed Andromache: we know Helen: We Know Talthybius: Greek Messenger |
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TheSetting of Trojan Women |
- In Troy - Troy has been destroyed - Greek generals trying to figure out who is entitled to what |
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Cassandra |
- Raped by Ajax after being dragged from statue of Athena - Cassandra will be concubine to Agamemnon and return to Argos - Was originally Apollo's virgin, now mistress to Greek King - Knows that the wife of Agamemnon is going to kill her - Excited that she will have the opportunity to avenge her family - Knows she is going to tear apart their house |
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Andromache |
- Astyanax to condemned to die as heir to Hector - Andromache will be concubine to Achilles' son Neoptolemus - Comes full circle - family largely murdered by Achilles |
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Andromache's Lament |
- Rule of custom - Victim of male influence in a variety of ways - Did exactly as she was supposed to do in society - Her reputation was so good it reached Achilles son - Tried to be better than other women in the view of men - One of the only blameless characters in the poem - Buys into male ideology of what women are meant to do - Suffers the worst punishment because of this |
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Helenand Menelaus |
- Menelaus can't decide what to do with Helen - She was the cause of the war, but he needs to keep his reputation - Gives Helen a chance to explain herself, Helen blames Aphrodite |
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Menelaus on killing Helen |
- Masculine ideology of femininity and purity - Wants to make an example of her - Reinforce point that women are to be faithful to their husbands - Irony is that the scene with Andromache came right before - Helen was supposed to be the ideal wife, but Andromache was and still suffered terrible fate - If wife is disloyal, it compromises the mans honour and manliness |
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Hecuba after the murder of Astyanax |
- Almost painted as a victory for Trojan - About sacrifice, resilience and virtue of Trojan women |
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Lessons from the Trojan Women |
- Women struggling against powerful and irrational patriarchal forces, ambivalence and cruelty of the Greeks - The human cost of the war - Trojan women maintain virtue in the face of incomprehensible hardship, each in their own way: |
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Hellenistic |
the ascent of Alexander the great to the death ofCleopatra the 7th |
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Ancient Macedon and the Greek World |
- Kind of Greek but not really - Ancestor of their own society - Kind of speak Greek - Mostly Greek gods - Some of the same institutions - Culturally and ethnically different |
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Philip II of Macedon 382-336 BC |
- Macedonian but grows up as hostage in Thebes, Greek education and experience - Dynastic unrest after his brothers die in 359, becomes regent then kings - Rise of the prominence of Macedon on the Greek stage |
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Marriages of Philip |
- 7 wives - Royal wives used to reinforce diplomatic tires, come with their networks of philia and xenia - Women in charge of their own factions in court - Publicizes all of these relationships - 6 women vying for prominence in the eyes of Philip |
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Alexander the Great on the throne |
- Invades the Persian empire, massive conquest and expansion - No clear successor after Alexander - Almost immediate warfare and rivalry among his generals - First twenty years of constant, shifting warfare |
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Evil Queen: Olympias |
- The mother of Alexander the Great - Bad reception in the ancient world - Originally favoured wife and her son Alexander was the favoured successor, but marriage was rocky after Philip married Cleopatra/Euridike in 337 BC - Goes into exile in Epirus with Alexander |
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Olympias and Alexander's reign |
- Corresponded regularly, she urged him onwards and supported campaign - Wielded great power in Macedonian court while Alexander was gone, secures his interests |
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Olympias review |
- Delicate balance of promotion of her own nuptial family's interests and her son's - Political prominence at court, visibility, "solo" role in public - Solicited as intermediary to the king - Involvement in succession |
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Eurydike II of Macedon |
- granddaughter of Philip II - Married to Philip III Arrhidaios, mentally disabled but legitimate heir to throne of Macedon - Unbalanced Marriage, Eurydike controls the agenda and gains the support of the army - Very involved in politics in a way women had not yet been |
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After Alexander: Factions |
- Alexander IV, son of Alexander by Roxana, born after Alexander's death, supported by Olympias - Philip Arrhidaios supported by Eurydike, both sides begin to arrange their forces - Olympias marries her daughter Cleopatra to Perdiccas, tries to bolser her grandson's claim to Macedon's throne |
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The Good Queen - Phila |
- Celebrated the most virtuous woman of her age, noble and supportive queen - Daughter of the regent of Macedon - marriedto Demetrios Poliorcetes - Much older then her husband, but a great deal of influence over him - Most respected out of all of his wives |
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Phila's career |
- Supports her husband's siege of Rhodes - Tried to reconcile Demetrios and her brother Cassander - Besieged in Cyprus, but treated well and sent to Macedonia - 287 BC: Demetrios ousted from power, she takes herown life |
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TheLegacy of Phila |
- The good wife, the new Andromache or Penelope, harmonious marriage and like-mindedness - Loyalty, support for her husband and his endeavours - First women to be called basilissa (queen) in the Greek world |
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The Ptolemaic Kingdom |
- The Nile was the heart of the kingdom - Young ruler gaining possession as one of the oldest civilizations in the wold - Founded by Ptolemy, general of Alexander, took Egypt in the years after Alexander's death - Ptolemaic king recognized by the Egyptians as Pharaoh |
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Cultural fusion? Or segregation? |
Ptolemy's are consciously Greek but in their public image, they act and look Egyptian |
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PtolemyII and Arsinoe |
- Arsinoe was Ptolemy's sister from both parents - In contrast to Macedonian culture - Not unheard of in Egypt: very old custom but hadn't happened in about 1200 years - Don't hide their incest |
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Theoi Philadelphoi |
- "brother sister gods" - Living gods, brother and sister who are married who are also living gods |
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Incest in the Egyptian Gods |
King = Osiris Queen = Isis Son = Horus |
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Why the incest? |
- Purity of the bloodline - Mimicking marriage of Zeus and Hera - Mimicking marriage of Osiris and Isis - Ptolemies are above human laws, act as gods - Direct claim to their own divinity - Understood that incest was illegal and taboo for mortals |
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Ptolemy III and Berenike II - 240s BC |
- Berenike is the legitimate queen of Cyrene - Cyreneis her dowry - Ptolemy and Berenike referred to as thebrother-sister gods (in both Greek and Egyptian sources) - theoi euergetai - the benefactor gods Commemorating their divine parents |
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Ptolemy VIII |
- fights with his brother for the throne of Egypt,manages to secure despite the influence of his mother - Marries his sister (and his brother's widow) Cleopatra to secure his reign - He kills his nephew (his wife's son) - Ptolemy then seduces Cleopatra III, his wife's daughter (niece) and marries her while also being married to his sister - Murders his oldest son by his sister wife - They are fighting so much within the family that they have to reconcile and declare amnesty |
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Ptolemaic Women |
- Scions of dynastic prestige, embodiment of the family and legitimacy - Combination of pseudo Egyptian and Greek ideas of elite women - Immensely influential at court, rule as regents in times of succession or crisis - Extremely active and visible |
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Seleucus - The Near East |
- Took the part of Alexander's Empire that no one really wanted - Extremely diverse land - Persia, Iranian Desert, Afghanistan/Bactria, Cappadocia, Syria - How to govern so many traditions and cultures? - Best way to control the empire was to build lots of cities |
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Seleucus and Apama |
- Apama: daughter of a Bactrician noble, married toSeleucus at mass - Extremely useful and prominent as a bolster to his eastern claims, pivotal for legitimizing him in Babylon and beyond - Speaks Iranian, knows the culture, absolutely necessary, almost partnership role in ruling |
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Seleucus built network of cities |
- Zeugma lies in critical location - Geographical testament to his marriage - Bank of Seleucia and bank of Apamea with bridge between the two - Can see the importance of his family and in particular the women in his family |
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The Reigning Triad, or the Nuclear Family |
- Very prominent triad emerging of King-Queen-Son - Mixing dynastic ideology and family ideology - Always present themselves as a group of 3, even if there are other people in their family - Sometimes, would show preference |
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Antiochos I Cylinder |
- Prayer to the god, and then prayer for his family - Stratonike (wife) and Seleucus (son) - Even though he has more family - Stratonike identified as a queen, but also with a divine element, and with equal stature to her husband |
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Letterof Laodice |
- Queen Laodice running a city on her own - Refering to Antiochos, the king, as her brother (even though he is not) - Mimicking of Ptolemaic tradition? Reinforcement of the triad? |
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Seleucid Empire |
- Empire that is held together through the marriages of women - Regions brought into the empire through marriage |
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Seleucid princesses |
- Women would often intervene in the houses they were married into - Remained loyal to the Seleucians (the house of their birth) - Women who didn't form the immediate path of succession were very important through their loyalty to their main family - Managed to form an empire |
