Alessandro ed Olimpiade a Iasos. Tradizioni greco-troiane fra Epiro ed Asia Minore da Alessandro ad Augusto

Abstract

Alexander and Olympias at Iasos. Greek-Trojan traditions betweenEpirus and Asia Minor from Alexander to Augustus.
The present essay examines the political and cultural context of the altardedicated to Alexander and Olympias by the Iasians and published in this volume by Gianfranco Maddoli. The most likely dating is the timespanbetween the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD, when, following thebattle of Actium and Antonio’s death, the control of Egypt and Asia Minorpassed to Octavian. A complex and careful analysis of the different traditionsshows that here, where the dynastic contentions of the HecatomnidCaria intersect the ones of the Macedonian Kingdom, a Greek-Trojan traditionarises, to which Olympiasʼ genealogy seems to have to be related.Such a genealogy is connected to the tradition of the Molossians and isfunctional to the expansion of the Macedonian kingdom in Asia. ThroughAlexander’s adoption by the Hecatomnid Ada, the Macedonian kingachieved his plans on Caria. We know that Iasos received a preferentialtreatment by the young king; his cult, combined with that of Olympias,strengthened the connection among Macedonia, Epirus and Asia Minor.Augustus, due to his maternal genealogy, was linked to Ilium and the Trojansas well, and after Actium he had certainly to perceive, following Alexander’smodel, the functionality of the Greek-Trojan traditions, in orderto establish his leadership on Asia Minor. The parallel between Alexanderand Augustus was a recurring topic in the Augustan Rome and Augustus’admiration towards Alexander is reflected in particular in the worship ofthe king. Hence, it is clear that Iasos, through this cult, addressed to theRomans, and particularly to Augustus, the new Alexander, a strong message:to go on pursuing the fusion and pacification between Europe andAsia, between East and West, originally planned by the Macedonian andsymbolized by his maternal genealogy.
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