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Thread: The Daphne Parade and it's context.

  1. #1

    Default The Daphne Parade and it's context.

    Hey guys,

    I recently came up with a few questions at the Daphne Parade describes in Pol. 30,25-27.

    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    25 1 This same king when he heard of the games celebrated in Macedonia by Aemilius Paullus the Roman general, ambitious of surpassing Paullus in magnificence sent out embassies and sacred missions to the towns to announce the games he was about to give at Daphne, so that people in Greece were very eager to visit Antioch then. 2 The festival opened with a procession composed as follows: 3 It was headed by five thousand men in the prime of life armed after the Roman fashion and wearing breastplates of chain-armour. Next came five thousand Mysians, 4 and immediately behind them three thousand Cilicians armed in the manner of light infantry, wearing gold crowns. 5 Next came three thousand Thracians and five thousand Gauls. They were followed by twenty thousand Macedonians of whom ten thousand bore golden shields, five thousand brazen shields and the rest silver shields. 6 Next marched two hundred and fifty pairs of gladiators, and behind them a thousand horsemen from Nisa and three thousand from Antioch itself, most of whom had crowns and trappings of gold and the rest trappings of silver. Next to these came the so‑called "companion cavalry," numbering about a thousand, all with gold trappings, and next the regiment of "royal friends" of equal number and similarly accoutred; next a thousand picked horse followed by the so‑called "agema", supposed to be the crack cavalry corps, numbering about a thousand. Last of all marched the "cataphract" or mailed horse, the horses and men being armed in complete mail, as the name indicated. All the above wore purple surcoats in many cases embroidered with gold and heraldic designs. 11 Next came a hundred chariots drawn by six horses and forty drawn by four horses, and then a chariot drawn by four elephants and another drawn by a pair, and finally thirty-six elephants in single file with their housings.
    12 It is a difficult task to describe the rest of the procession but I must attempt to give its main features. About eight hundred young men wearing gold crowns made part of it as well as about a thousand fat cattle and nearly three hundred cows presented by the various sacred missions and eight hundred ivory tusks. 13 The vast quantity of images it is impossible to enumerate. For representations of all the gods and spirits mentioned or worshipped by men and of all the heroes were carried along, some gilded and others draped in garments embroidered with gold, and they were all accompanied by representations executed in precious materials of the myths relating to them as traditionally narrated. 15 Behind them came images of Night and Day, of Earth and Heaven, and of Dawn and Midday. 16 The quantity of gold and silver plate may be estimated from what follows. The slaves of one of the royal "friends," Dionysius, the private secretary, marched along carrying articles of silver plate none of them weighing less than a thousand drachmae, 17 and six hundred of the king's own slaves went by bearing articles of gold plate. Next there were about two hundred women sprinkling the crowd with perfumes from golden urns, 18 and these were followed by eighty women seated in litters with golden feet and five hundred in litters with silver feet, all richly dressed. 19 Such were the more remarkable features of the procession.
    26 1 When the games, gladiatorial shows, and beast-fights, which lasted for the thirty days devoted to spectacles, were over, for the first five succeeding days every one who chose anointed himself in the gymnasium with saffron ointment out of gold jars: of those there were fifteen, and there were the same number of jars with ointment of cinnamon and spikenard. On the succeeding days ointments of fenugreek, marjoram, and orris were brought in, all of exquisite perfume. 3 For banqueting there were sometimes a thousand tables laid and sometimes fifteen hundred, all furnished with most costly viands.
    All the arrangements were made by the king in person. He rode on a sorry pony along the procession, ordering it to advance or halt as the case might be. 5 At banquets, again, he stood himself in the entrance and led in some of the guests, and ushered others to their seats, himself leading in also the attendants who carried the dishes. 6 Then he would walk round the room, occasionally sitting down and occasionally reclining, and then, putting down as the case might be the cup or the morsel he was holding, he would jump up and change his place, going all round the banquet, accepting toasts standing from this man or that and making fun of the musical performance. 7 Finally when the carouse had been going on for long and many of the guests had already left, the king, entirely wrapped up, was carried in by the mimes and deposited on the ground as if he were one of themselves. 8 The band was now summoned, and he, jumping up, would dance and act with the burlesque players, so that all the guests were abashed and left the feast. 9 All the above display and outlay was provided for by the robberies he had committed in Egypt when he treacherously attacked King Philometor while yet a child, and partly by contributions from his friends. He had also sacrilegiously despoiled most of the temples.
    27 1 Shortly after the end of the games Tiberius Gracchus and the other legates arrived in the quality of inspectors. 2 Antiochus, however, was so adroit and courteous when he met them that Tiberius and his colleagues, far from acquiring any real suspicion about him or detecting anything indicative of disaffection due to what had happened at Alexandria, even discredited those who said anything of the kind, owing to their exceedingly kind reception: 3 for in addition to other favours he even gave up his palace to them, and very nearly gave up his crown to them as well, so far his demeanour went, 4 although his real feelings were not so, but quite the reverse.


    In opposite to the most people interested in this prominent part of Polybios Histories i am not particular interested in the military context. I think there are plenty of answers about that to find out there. My questions are regarding the Parade itself. Polybios does write, that the parade is a reaction of the games held by Aemilius Paullus in Amphipolis 167 BC. That inclines that if there were games in Antioch before, they were not on a large scale since Polybios describes the ambition of Antiochos IV in surpassing Aemilius Paullus as extreme.

    My main question is do we have indicatuons about the Seleucid celebration of a large festival at Daphne before that?

    The answers i read so far are that Antiochos IV had came up with Daphne after Didyma (near Milet) was lost. Before that Didyma apparently the main sanctuary of the Seleucids. However i found only few inscriptions connecting Didyma directly with the Seleucids and as much conecting it with the Ptolemeans. Wouldn't it be more practical to have the main sanctuary of your dynasty in your core domains, in this case Syria or Mesopotamia? The Antigonids had Dion and Samothrake both in the heartland of Macedonia. The Ptolemeans held festivals in their provinces like Isles at the Agean but those were branches of a festival in Alexandria or at least connected.

    I think it is possible to connect Daphne with the Parade of Ptolemy II Philadelphus who held a parade to honour his father and connected it with a festival of Dionysos. The parade was connected with games called Ptolemaia which were celebrated every 4 years and are said to have been on the same level as the olympic games. I sometimes read that there were games at Antiochia but can't find further information about them. Is it plausible that the Seleucids didn't react to the Ptolemeans with setting something up that comes at least close to the celebrations in Egypt? At least in scale the parade of Ptolemy II and Antiochos IV are very similar. Both have approximatly 50 to 70 thousend soldiers marching in the parade. However there is a gap of 100 years between both events.

    Right now i am a little bit in a dead end and i hope i could some inspirations.

    I finalise the main questions:

    Is there a reliable connection between Didyma and the Seleucids?
    Do we know something about the Daphne Festival before the Daphne Parade?
    Is there a Seleucid equivalent to the Ptolemaia?

    And concluding: Is Antiochos IV really doing something radically new in imitating Paullus or does he just demonstrate hellenistic traditions on a very high level like the parade of Ptolemy II a hundred years before?

    Proud to be a real Prussian.

  2. #2

    Default Re: The Daphne Parade and it's context.

    1. Οh, yes. Apart from the great reputation of the Temple of Apollo at Didyma even before the times of the Persians, there was always a special link between the temple, often under the rule of the Seleucids, and the dynasty, whose divine patron was supposed to be Apollo himself. Consequently, the temple was a great source of propaganda material for the government, who attached itself to the temple's legendary status. Typical examples of that behaviour is Pliny's reference to the altars dedicated to Apollo of Didyma set up by the Seleucid commander Demodamas...
    Quote Originally Posted by VI.XVIII
    But this river was crossed by Demodamas, the general of King Seleucus and King Antiochus, whom we are chiefly following in this part of our narrative; and he set up altars to Apollo Didymaeus
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    ...and an ancient Greek inscription found in Sogdiana and dated in the early Seleucid period.
    Quote Originally Posted by IK Estremo oriente 392
    Ἀπόλλωνι Διδυμαίῳ
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    Given that Daphne could also take pride in its large temple of Apollo, a scenario of continuation of the festivities taking place at Didyma might seem likely, but I am personally not endorsing it. Moving around festivals connected with specific local temples is unprecedented and, in that specific case, probably unreasonable, as Antiochus IV could do nothing to stop the priests from organising their own festival, which was, of course, a great source of revenue for them. Antiochus would only gain the clergy's animosity, while the masses would probably laugh at him for such a sloppy imitation of a famous festival. If, indeed, there was a religious aspect in the festivities, then I think that they would have been intended to become the start of an entirely new festival centered around the Seleucid capital.
    However, I personally believe that the focus of the parade was not on the religious domain. First of all, the Seleucids did not possess the carefully planned dynastic rituals of their Egyptian counterparts, since the worship of the dynasty depended more on the complicated relationship between the royal authorities and the urban centers, as expressed by "polite requests" on behalf of the imperial agents and "generous initiatives" made by "grateful" and supposedly autonomous cities. After all, if the goal of the festival was purely religious, that fact would have been underlined by Polybius' rather informative description. On the contrary, only the animal sacrifices were related to that subject, which otherwise lacked essential components of a religious festivities, such as athletic competitions, with the military participation doubtlessly being the main part of the parade, which brings me to your fourth question (I can't answer with certainty the other two).

    4. Polybius' explanation or the scenario of imitating the Lagids might actually be accurate, but there's a third significantly less known explanation, involving a third state, Bactria. A couple of years before the parade, a dramatic change occurred, since the Euthydemids were overthrown by another dynasty, represented by Eucratides. There's no doubt about the particularly bloody dynastic change, considering the different facial characteristics as depicted in the extremely detailed Bactrian coins.
    Euthydemids





    Eucratidids





    Now, here goes the crux of the matter. Eucratides was of Seleucid origin and operated under the orders of Antiochus IV, who wanted to repeat Alexander's and Antiochus' III camaign of conquest in Central Asia against the worryingly aggressive and victorious Demetrius I. Tarn in his excellent book about Bactria was the first to establish that theory and although some of his arguments (Antiochus IV not renaming Babylon), the evidence is otherwise very convincing, the most important of which are the celebration of Charesteria in Babylon (meaning that a great victory was celebrated there) and that coin of king Eucratides depicting himself and his parents.
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

    Daddy is a bit indifferent, but mommy, whose name, Laodice, was one of the favourite names for a female member of the Seleucid dynasty, is the most interesting case. If you look carefully, you will notice that she wears a diadem, while her husband, Heliocles does not, indicating that she is definitely of royal lineage. That being said, there is no undeniable link about Eucratides' campaign and the parade at Daphne, which is why I am personally not entirely persuaded by Tarn's version of events. However, he makes a very well-founded case, Bactria being a strong candidate for being the reason behind the famous festival. For whoever is interested, the book can be dowonloaded for free in .pdf and therefore printable form.
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 


    EDIT: 2. Not sure about before, but there's a brief reference by Poseidonius (quoted by Athenaeus in "The Deipnosophists") of luxurious celebrations taking place in Daphne organised by Antiochus VIII. The description of the festivities, however, is not very similar to those organised by Antiochus IV, as Poseidonius focuses on the food and the generosity (or probably irresponsibility, considering Poseidonius' obsession with the decadence of the late Seleucids) of the king. He also mentions the fact that games were also hosted, an event whose absence is glaring in Polybius' account, while there's no reference whatsoever to a military parade. Furthermore, Athenaeus describes the great feasts hosted by Antiochus' VIII uncle, Antiochus VII, but it's not clear if these were also taking place in Daphne.
    Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 
    Last edited by Abdülmecid I; August 04, 2016 at 12:41 PM.

  3. #3

    Default Re: The Daphne Parade and it's context.

    First let my thank you for this long answer. This was a huge help already. I currently reading in to the book of Tarn, because although the Thesis might be prove sketchy it is always good to have a second argumentation line in store. However i did not reached a point where i would come to conclusion Daphne could be an reaction to the bactrian ruler. Could you shortly underline what you meant with that? Like Antiochos did Daphne to demonstrate power to a more ambitions bactrian ruler? In more recent publications i found one opinion that states that Antiochios had to the with the Ptolemeans but was ultimatly happy to have it settled after the romans arrived since he got Syria etc. and had peace in the south. Perfect to start his own Anabasis to the east. In that context the Daphneparade would be the demonstration of power before a campaign.

    Proud to be a real Prussian.

  4. #4

    Default Re: The Daphne Parade and it's context.

    Quote Originally Posted by Marcus Aemilius Lepidus View Post
    First let my thank you for this long answer. This was a huge help already. I currently reading in to the book of Tarn, because although the Thesis might be prove sketchy it is always good to have a second argumentation line in store. However i did not reached a point where i would come to conclusion Daphne could be an reaction to the bactrian ruler. Could you shortly underline what you meant with that? Like Antiochos did Daphne to demonstrate power to a more ambitions bactrian ruler?
    Thank you, for your kind words, my friend. There have been a couple of years, since I read that masterpiece, but I guess that the relevant information should be found in Chapter V. Keep in mind, of course, that Tarn, being mainly preoccupied with Bactria, refers to the parade only briefly, mentioning it as an extra argument for his hypothesis about Eucratides. Anyway, my point was that Eucratides, for the reasons I previously mentioned (Tarn lists several more, but I'm not knowledgeable enough about numismatics to comment on them), was the agent of Antiochus IV. The worryingly ambitious Bactrian ruler was Demetrius I, whose unprecedentedly successful campaigns may have warned the Seleucids about the possibility of having to defend their realm against a large Hellenistic state in the East. His point is that, during the parade at Daphne, Antiochus IV celebrated the crushing victory of Eucratides, who defeated almost all the members of the Euthedemid dynasty and brought the kingdom under his control. Essentially, Bactria was supposed to have rejoined the Seleucid sphere of influence, as Eucratides was not only a Seleucid general, but the royal blood ran through his veins, by his mother Laodice. Given the extent of his assignment and the fact that his father was allowed to marry a member of the ruling family, we may assume that he belonged to the upper nobility, with close blood and political ties with the Seleucids, while both he and his father (Heliocles) may have been appointed to the office of the satrap of Media, in Ecbatana. It makes sense that Eucratides campaigned in the East, in his capacity as the Viceroy of the Upper Satrapies (an office identified with that of the satrapy of Media and usually trusted to either the heirs apparent or, when there was none available, to reliable aristocrats, like Heliocles and Eucratides, the husband and the son of Laodice respectively, would have been). To sum it up, the Daphne parade was dedicated to Eucratides' Anabasis in the East, ordered and sponsored by Antiochus IV.

    Quote Originally Posted by Marcus Aemilius Lepidus View Post
    In more recent publications i found one opinion that states that Antiochios had to the with the Ptolemeans but was ultimatly happy to have it settled after the romans arrived since he got Syria etc. and had peace in the south. Perfect to start his own Anabasis to the east. In that context the Daphneparade would be the demonstration of power before a campaign.
    Personally, I believe that there's no reason to dispute Polybius' claim that the parade at Daphne was an imitation of Aemilius Paulus' triumph, celebrating a recent military success. After all, showing to the world of Eastern Mediterranean that your military strength was equal to that of Rome is a very efficient propaganda gesture. The question is which success exactly? Celebrating a campaign not yet launched is not in accordance with Paulus' triumph, would seem a bit vain and probably have the opposite effect regarding public relations, as it would attract accusations of hubris, with the only viable candidate being Antiochus modest expedition in the east, where he finally died. So, again, I think that this leaves us with two possible explanations, Antiochus' moderately successful campaign in Egypt and Eucratides hugely successful campaign in Bactria.

  5. #5

    Default Re: The Daphne Parade and it's context.

    After doing a little more research about the topic i came along another question. The military aspect of the parade is of course very strong. I read, sadly without proper quotations, that the parading of military units is an old Macedonian tradition from before Alexander III. I am looking through the sources but can't find something that really supports that claim. If that can be somehow proven it would make some things much easier for me

    Proud to be a real Prussian.

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