HEREJIAS EN LA EDAD MEDIA

Greek and Macedonians had been neighbors for at least three and a half centuries prior to the reign of Philip II. The relationship, as we have explored it, was regularly a hostile jockeying for control of territory and access to resources. But accompanying that struggle was knowledge of one another’s cultures, which in the earlier stages of interaction were markedly different in many – although not all – respects. Over time, the similarities increased, notably in religion, language, architecture, the arts, and cultural institutions. Inasmuch as Greek culture was the more sophisticated of the two, by the Archaic Age (c. 750–500) its influence on Macedonia was the predominant direction of borrowing.

We have noted that the major divine and heroic figures of the Argead line were Zeus and Herakles. The explanation of this bond is lost in the mist of Argead origins, and it is not necessary to accept the tale of the departure of three brothers from Argos to acknowl-edge the Argeads’ own understanding of their ancestral links. What is significant is the similarity the understanding creates with Greek thought. Moreover, in due course, other hellenic deities were incor-porated into Macedonian festivals. Late fourth-century temples consecrated to Demeter replaced two sixth-century megara (architectural units consisting of a columned porch and a main room with a hearth and often a third room at the front or back) associ-ated with that goddess. Paintings from the Aigai/Vergina tombs reveal the presence of Demeter’s daughter Persephone in the Mace-donian repertoire, while an altar of Dionysos has been identified in the remains of the theater at the same site. Certainly Dionysos is a favorite subject in mosaics from the late fourth century and beyond.

Pan figured on coins of Amyntas II, and Apollo appears on coins of

Philip II. The occasion on which Philip was murdered was inau-gurated by a parade of images of the pantheon of the Greek gods, with an image of Philip included as the thirteenth figure.

That celebration was held in the theater at the old capital of Aigai, constructed during the reign of Archelaos for the purpose of festivals to Zeus and the Muses, contests, and performances of plays.

Smaller than Greek theaters, it was nonetheless modeled on Greek examples. Moreover, Greek dramatists had been invited to Mace-donia, one of them Euripides, who created the Bakkhai, which is extant, and the Archelaos, which is not. That Athenian poet died in Macedonia. Another Athenian dramatist, Agathon, was the guest of the same Argead ruler, as were the choral poet Timotheos of Miletos and the epic poet Khoirilos of Samos.

Yet another celebration common throughout the Greek world was the Olympic-style contests that Archelaos established at Dion.

The dramatic element of competition reveals that Macedonians were receptive to hellenic culture, and common appreciation of athletic prowess is demonstrated in the values of both societies.

We have discussed the Macedonian emphasis on physical training in chapters 2 and 3, particularly for members of the royal line, who were expected to lead the Macedonian army by example. The account of Alexander I’s participation in the Greek Olympic games, whether true or not, demonstrates his personal fitness by the outcome: he tied for first place in the foot-race.

It is possible, of course, to understand these borrowings as prop-aganda – “we Macedonians are truly akin to you Greeks” – or as efforts to civilize a rude, even barbaric population. An argument against such conclusions is that the borrowings took root and grew stronger as well as more numerous. Just as a biological body rejects a transplanted organ that is alien to its constitution, so too will a cultural body reject uncongenial foreign customs.

Use of the Greek alphabet became the norm for the written lan-guage of the kingdom. Because of the paucity of evidence regard-ing the spoken language of the Macedonians, the question of its relation to Greek cannot be determined. On the other hand, there

is more evidence for the written language. Inscriptions recording agreements between Macedonians and Greeks, particularly the Athenians, have survived, although they derive from Greek states that were parties to the agreements. Versions in Macedonian may have been composed in quite a different form. That this was not the case is suggested by surviving inscriptions of other sorts: 47 grave stelai from Aigai/Vergina dated to the second half of the fourth century record names of the deceased, the majority of which are Greek. As reasoned by the excavator, a date of death at c. 330 suggests a birth date for many of the people during the decade of c. 370–360. Inclusion of a patronymic on most of the stelai sug-gests a dating of c. 410–400 for the second names recorded. The

Figure 4.3 Plan of the theater at Vergina where Philip was assassinated in 336 bce. The numbers I-IX denote the nine segments of the theatre auditorium, with V being the central segment. The rectangle in the center of the orchestra is a stone on which the altar once stood. Courtesy of the Archaeological Receipts Fund Greek Ministry of Culture, Athens

individuals remembered are not only or even primarily Macedon-ian nobility; in other words they were more ordinary MacedonMacedon-ians.

To be sure, Aigai/Vergina was the original capital of the kingdom.

Consequently, the use of alternative Greek names may have been a practice only in this particular location. Yet this conclusion is belied by inscriptions from Beroia in the region of Bermion, where inscriptions that include names were also written in the Greek alphabet. It must be admitted that the Illyrians or others of the neighboring peoples to the north, west, or east would not have pro-vided an alternative script; Greek was the only choice. However, the point, as in the case of hellenic deities, is that the Greek alpha-bet was found to be satisfactory, and its use became the norm for Macedonian inscriptions both official and personal.

Also respected was Greek knowledge. Pella was organized on the rectangular network of streets associated with the Greek Hippo-damos; theaters, though less impressive than Greek examples, employed the features similar to Greek structures; the Greek painter Zeuxis was a guest of King Archelaos and the forms of the surviv-ing paintsurviv-ings at Aigai suggest the features attributed to that artist, whose Greek works have not survived: shadow, experimentation with color and with perspective, an effort to capture emotion.

Knowledge of other kinds was represented by Greeks drawn to the rulers’ service: Eumenes of Kardia as director of the Macedonian records; Nearchos of Crete with his knowledge of the sea. They were employed – used, certainly – but their skills were essential to the efforts of their employers. Thus skills as well as people were caught up in the shaping of Macedonian life. One remarkable example will reveal the degree of interaction achieved over the reigns of Amyntas III and his third son, Philip II.