Dr John Tidmarsh

Power and Glory: Syria under the Seleucids

In the course of his eleven-year conquest of the Persian empire, Alexander the Great was said to have founded some 70 cities; subsequently his general and founder of the vast Seleucid empire, Seleucus Nicator, settled a further 60 or more. It remains a striking paradox, therefore, that despite the large influx of Greeks into the Levant and beyond, our knowledge of Hellenistic cities in the East is so meagre.

In this talk we shall examine Syria, heart of the Seleucid empire, with its borders enclosing great cities and numerous small towns and villages whose remains demonstrate clearly that ‘hellenisation’ after Alexander’s conquests was a fascinating and non-uniform process. We shall also explore the garrison city of Jebel Khalid, ‘the most spectacular Seleucid site excavated in Syria in recent years’, which has been under investigation by an Australian team since 1987. Its governor’s palace, gymnasium, Doric temple, commercial area and domestic quarter now provide us with a much clearer indication as to how Hellenistic settlements in the East were planned and organized.

About the series
These e-lectures will be delivered via Zoom, and will begin around 10am and last for approximately two hours. It is anticipated that after a short introduction, each day’s presentation will be broken into two 45-minute lecture-sessions, with time for questions after each, along with a ten-minute coffee-break between the two sessions, making up a total of approximately two-hours zoom-time for each individual study day.

Other speakers and dates for the series

• 11 July 2020
  Dr Kate da Costa
• 18 July 2020
  Dr Ross Burns

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Hosted by the Near Eastern Archaeology Foundation (NEAF)

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