Cultural depictions of Alexander the Great

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The coronation of Alexander depicted in medieval European style in a 15th-century English-Flemish illuminated manuscript containing the romance The History of Alexander's Battles The coronation of Alexander.jpg
The coronation of Alexander depicted in medieval European style in a 15th-century English-Flemish illuminated manuscript containing the romance The History of Alexander's Battles

Alexander the Great's accomplishments and legacy have been preserved and depicted in many ways. Alexander has figured in works of both high culture and popular culture from his own era to the modern day. Some of these are highly fictionalized accounts, such as the Alexander Romance .

Contents

Ancient and Medieval literature

Alexander and Augustus depicted in a Byzantine style painting from 1568. Written on the left is 'Alexander, King of the Hellenes' and 'Augustus, Emperor of the Romans' on the right. From the Katholikon of Docheiariou Monastery, Mt. Athos, Greece. Kings Alexander & Augustus (Byzantine Painting).JPG
Alexander and Augustus depicted in a Byzantine style painting from 1568. Written on the left is 'Alexander, King of the Hellenes' and 'Augustus, Emperor of the Romans' on the right. From the Katholikon of Docheiariou Monastery, Mt. Athos, Greece.

In the Bible

Daniel 8:5–8 and 21–22 states that a King of Greece will conquer the Medes and Persians but then die at the height of his power and have his kingdom broken into four kingdoms. This is sometimes taken as a reference to Alexander.

Alexander was briefly mentioned in the first Book of the Maccabees. All of Chapter 1, verses 1–7 was about Alexander and this serves as an introduction of the book. This explains how the Greek influence reached the Land of Israel at that time.

In Middle Persian literature

Alexander is mentioned in the Zoroastrian Middle Persian work Arda Wiraz Nāmag as gizistag aleksandar ī hrōmāyīg, literally "Alexander the accursed, the Roman", [1] [2] [3] due to his conquest of the Achaemenid Persian Empire and the burning of its ceremonial capital Persepolis, which was holding the sacred texts of Zoroastrianism in its Royal Archives. The book Arda Wiraz Nāmag was written in the late period of Sassanid Persian Empire, when the rivalry with the Romans was intense.

They say that, once upon a time, the pious Zartosht made the religion, which he had received, current in the world; and till the completion of 300 years, the religion was in purity, and men were without doubts. But afterward, the accursed evil spirit, the wicked one, in order to made men doubtful of this religion, instigated the accursed Alexander, the Roman, who was dwelling in Egypt, so that he came to the country of Iran with severe cruelty and war and devastation; he also slew the ruler of Iran, (6) and destroyed the metropolis and empire, and made them desolate.

Book of Arda Viraf , I 1.1–6.

In the Qur'an

Alexander in the Qur'an often is identified in Islamic traditions as Dhul-Qarnayn, Arabic for the "Two-Horned One", possibly a reference to the appearance of a horn-headed figure that appears minted during his rule and later imitated in ancient Middle Eastern coinage.[ citation needed ] Accounts of Dhul-Qarnayn in the Qur'an, and so may refer to Alexander. Noteworthy is the fact that his favorite horse was named Bucephalus, which means "ram's head", alluding to the shape of a horned ram at its forehead.

In Persian literature

15th century Persian miniature painting from Herat depicting Iskander, the Persian name for Alexander the Great Iskandar.JPG
15th century Persian miniature painting from Herat depicting Iskander, the Persian name for Alexander the Great

The Shahnameh of Ferdowsi, one of the oldest books written in New Persian, has a chapter about Alexander. It is a book of epic poetry written around 1000 AD, and is believed to have played an important role in the survival of the Persian language in the face of Arabic influence. It starts with a mythical history of Iran and then gives a story of Alexander, followed by a brief mention of the Arsacids. The accounts after that, still in epic poetry, portray historical figures. Alexander is described as a child of a Persian king, Daraaye Darab (the last in the list of kings in the book whose names do not match historical kings), and a daughter of Philip, a king. However, due to problems in the relationship between the Persian king and Philip's daughter, she is sent back to Rome. Alexander is born to her afterwards, but Philip claims him as his own son and keeps the true identity of the child secret.

His name is recorded as both Iskandar (اسکندر) and Sikandar (سکندر) in Classical Persian literature.

He is known as Eskandar-e Maqdūnī (اسکندر مقدونی "Alexander the Macedonian") in modern Iranian Persian.

Other references

He is known as al-Iskandar al-Makduni al-Yunani [4] ("Alexander the Macedonian Greek") in Arabic, אלכסנדר מוקדון, Alexander Mokdon in Hebrew, and Tre-Qarnayia in Aramaic (the two-horned one, apparently due to an image on coins minted during his rule that seemingly depicted him with the two ram's horns of the Egyptian god Ammon), الاسكندر الاكبر, al-Iskandar al-Akbar ("Alexander the Great") in Arabic, سکندر اعظم, Skandar in Pashto.

Alexander is one of the two principals in most versions of the Diogenes and Alexander anecdote.

Cities

Around twenty towns or outposts were founded by Alexander the Great. [5] Some of the main cities are:

The Italian city of Alessandria is not named for Alexander the Great but for Pope Alexander III. However, the Medieval choice of this name was likely influenced by the example of the above cities.

As city planner

By selecting the right angle of the streets, Alexander made the city breathe with the etesian winds [the northwestern winds that blow during the summer months], so that as these blow across a great expanse of sea, they cool the air of the town, and so he provided its inhabitants with a moderate climate and good health. Alexander also laid out the walls so that they were at once exceedingly large and marvelously strong.

Literature

Alexander the Great conquering the air. Jean Wauquelin, Les faits et conquetes d'Alexandre le Grand, Flander, 1448-1449. Alexander the Great conquering the air.jpg
Alexander the Great conquering the air. Jean Wauquelin, Les faits et conquêtes d'Alexandre le Grand, Flander, 1448-1449.

Television

Radio

Film

DateTitleCountryNotesIMDB
1941 Sikandar IndiaStarring Prithviraj Kapoor as Alexander, directed by Sohrab Modi and depicting Alexander's conquests in northwestern India.
1956 Alexander the Great United States / SpainStarring Richard Burton as Alexander, directed by Robert Rossen, and produced by MGM.
1965 Sikandar-e-Azam IndiaA Hindi movie, directed by Kedar Kapoor and starring Dara Singh as Alexander, depicts Alexander's battle with the Indian prince Porus.
2004 Alexander Germany / United States / Netherlands / FranceStarring Colin Farrell as Alexander, directed by Oliver Stone. Based on the biography Alexander the Great ( ISBN   0-14-008878-4) by Robin Lane Fox. It was released on November 24, 2004.
2006AlexanderItalyAn animated film directed by Daehong Kim, and starring Mark Adair-Rios as the voice of Alexander.

Music

DateTitleArtist/GroupNotesLyrics
1973"Iskander" Supersister This Dutch prog band dedicated a full album to the story of Alexander. Track titles include 'Alexander', 'Dareios The Emperor', 'Bagoas', 'Roxane' and 'Babylon'.
1986"Alexander the Great" Iron Maiden From the heavy metal album Somewhere in Time . The song describes Alexander's life.
1998"Alexandre" Caetano Veloso Brazilian epic song about Alexander the Great from the album Livro.
2000"Alexander the Great" bond String quartet release on the album Born.
2005"Alexander the Great" Iron Mask Song about Alexander the Great from the album Hordes of the Brave by Belgian band Iron Mask.
2009"Iskander Dhul Kharnon" Nile Song from the album Those Whom the Gods Detest .
2013"Age of Glory" Serenity This song, from the album War of Ages , details Alexander's need for conquest while watching his life fade away.
2016"Alexander the Great vs. Ivan the Terrible" Epic Rap Battles of History This song, part of Epic Rap Battles of History's Season 6, has Alexander face off against the historical leader Ivan the Terrible, among others.

Video games

Airports

At least two airports have been named after Alexander:

Other

References

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