The Treasures of Alexander the Great: How One Man’s Wealth Shaped the World

316 Pages·2016·13.89 MB·English

by  Frank L. Holt

THE TREASURES OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT
Onassis Series in Hellenic Culture
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Brother- Making in Late Antiquity and Byzantium: Monks,
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The Treasures of Alexander the Great: How One Man’s Wealth
Shaped the World
Frank L. Holt
THE TREASURES
OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT
How One Man’s Wealth Shaped the World
Frank L. Holt
1
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Holt, Frank Lee.
Title: The treasures of Alexander the Great : how one man’s wealth shaped the world /
Frank L. Holt.
Description: New York, NY : Oxford University Press, 2016. | Series: Onassis
series in Hellenic culture | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2015032790 | ISBN 978–0–19–995096–6 (hardback : alkaline paper)
| ISBN 978–0–19–995097–3 | ISBN 978–0–19–046971–9 | ISBN 978–0–19–046970–2
Subjects: LCSH: Alexander, the Great, 356 b.c.–323 b.c.—Influence. |
Greece—History—Macedonian Expansion, 359–323 b.c. |
Wealth—Macedonia—History. | Property—Macedonia—History. |
Pillage—Macedonia—History. | War—Economic aspects—Macedonia—History.
| Imperialism—Economic aspects—Macedonia—History. | Macedonia—Kings
and rulers—Biography. | Macedonia—History—To 168 b.c.
| BISAC: HISTORY / Ancient / Greece.
Classification: LCC DF234.2 .H65 2016 | DDC 938.07092—dc23 LC record
available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015032790
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
Printed by Sheridan, USA
The amount of wealth that he plundered was unimaginable.
Diodorus of Sicily
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For all our cats who have tip- toe- typed messages like
this one across the pages of my manuscript, curious first
readers of every line and mischievous editors of same.
Jedi
Han
Bella

CONTENTS
List of Illustrations  xi
Preface  xiii
1. Introduction  1
Imagining the Unimaginable  4
Sources and Methods  8
Exploring a Neglected Past  19
2. Poor Alexander?  23
Humbled Origins  24
The Making of a Hero  32
War and Wealth  39
3. Conquest, Up Close and Costly  44
Balkan Treasures  46
Asia Minor  50
The Middle East and Beyond  54
vii
Contents
4. Reciting the Sword’s Prayer  68
The Lord of All Your Former Possessions  69
Booty beyond Imagining  71
The Sack of Persepolis  77
A Historic Haul  85
Rajas, Riches, Resentments  91
5. A King’s Priorities  95
Personal Gifts and Patronage  96
Religion and Ceremony  107
Cities and Other Infrastructure  110
Armies and Navies  112
6. (Mis)Management  119
Lucky Thessalian, Weary Macedonian  120
Debt and Despair  124
Harpalus the Treasurer  127
Scams and Schemers  133
With Harpalus or the King?  137
The Successors  141
7. Conclusion  146
The Story of the Moral  147
A Change of Hearts and Minds  151
Monetization  157
Counting Coins  164
What We Can Say about What We Can See  172
Appendices  179
1. Ancient Measures and Modern Conversions  179
2. Summary of Reported Assets  181
viii
Contents
3. Summary of Reported Debits  187
4. Where Is It Now?  195
Notes  199
Selected Bibliography  263
Index  281
ix