In 1977, archaeologists announced an exciting discovery: They had found what they believed to be the tomb of Alexander's father, King Philip II of Macedonia. The tomb was located in what is now Vergina, Greece. The objects in the tomb, which included a gold larnax, or ancient Greek casket, a magnificent set of armor, and a gold wreath, came from the fourth century B. C.E. The lid of the larnax was embossed with a starburst, which was the emblem of the Macedonian royal family.
The body in the tomb had been cremated, but the bones had been carefully wrapped in a purple cloth. Scientists were able to use pieces of the skull to reconstruct the face, and they discovered that the right side of the face was distorted. This provided further confirma
Tion that the body was that of King Philip II, since it was known that an injury had caused him to lose his right eye.
More recent research has revealed that the tomb is most likely not that of Alexander's father, however, but of his half-brother, Philip III Arrhidaeus. Scientists were able to more closely date the artifacts in the tomb, and discovered they were from approximately 317 b. c.e., the year Philip III died. Using a technique called macrophotography, they were able to study the skeleton in greater detail than had been possible when the tomb was first discovered. They determined that the distortions believed to have been caused by the loss of any eye were actually caused by the effects of cremation and reassembly of the bones.
Alexandria became its capital. Ptolemy lived to an old age, and his kingdom was the last dynasty of the Egyptian pharaohs. Egypt reached its height of material and cultural splendor under Ptolemy II Philadelphus, who ruled from 285 to 246 B. C.E. After his death, a long period of war and internal strife followed. In 30 B. C.E., the death of the famous Queen Cleopatra VII, Ptolemy’s descendant, marked the end of Hellenistic rule in the region. Egypt became a province of the Roman Empire.
Seleucus, who was given the nickname “the conqueror,” seized the largest territory but was murdered before he could achieve his ambition of seizing the vacant throne of Macedonia as well. His kingdom, however, was continued by his heirs. At its largest, the Seleucid Empire stretched from the Aegean Sea to Central Asia. The Seleucid Dynasty founded the most new cities of any monarchy in history. The Seleucids established many Greek settlements throughout their lands, and their empire lasted more than 241 years. By 129 B. C.E., the Seleucid Empire included Palestine, Syria, and Persia. But it continually lost territory over the years because of wars and rebellions, and slowly crumbled to pieces. The empire’s decline continued as the Parthians, a nomadic tribe from central Asia, gradually captured all of its territories east of Syria. Its western areas were annexed by Rome in 64 B. C.E.
The Antigonid kingdom of Macedonia was continuously involved in wars with other kingdoms and struggles with the Greek city-states. Because Alexander had drained Macedonia of much of its manpower, it was the smallest and poorest of the three kingdoms. Although it was weak, this empire remained prestigious as Alexander’s homeland.
Immediately after the death of Alexander, the generals appointed two kings: Philip III Arrhidaeus (c. 352-317 B. C.E.), son of Philip II and halfbrother of Alexander; and Alexander IV, who was an infant at the time. They ruled jointly until Arrhidaeus’s murder in 317 B. C.E.. Ultimately, the ruthless Cassander (358-297 B. C.E.) became king of Macedonia in 305 B. C.E.. Cas-sander was the son of Antipater, the regent of Macedonia during Alexander’s campaigns in Persia. To help pave his way to the throne, Cassander married Alexander’s half-sister, Thessalonice (346-298 B. C.E.). He had Alexander’s mother killed in 316 B. C.E., and in 310 B. C.E. he executed Alexander’s widow Roxane and his son Alexander IV, who was 13 years old.
In the great struggle for control in the years between the death of Alexander and his only legitimate heir, many others were killed too. These included not only several of the king’s generals but also his sister, his half-brother, his sister-in-law, and a nephew.
World History
