Exhibition of ancient coins from the coins collection of Alpha Bank, which is characterized as one of the largest collections worldwide will open its doors in the 27 th of February 2009 and will remain open until the 8 th of June 2009 at the Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum, Greece. The exhibition will focus to the history of mintage in Macedonia and held in collaboration with the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki.
It will present 270 gold and silver coins of Macedonia, dating from the 6 th to the 1 st century B.C., divided into five thematic sections.
The exhibition’s organization and structure has been undertaken by the curator of the coin collection of Alpha Bank Dr Dimitra Tsagaris and the Head of Public Relations, Publications and Documentation of Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki, Christos Gkatzolis.
The exhibition will be accompanying a catalog and an album in Greek and English language, with texts by Dr Dimitra Tsagaris and plenty of photos.
During the duration of the exhibition will be carried out a number of educational programs for students of Primary and Secondary Education, and some additional events will also take place.
Duration:
27 February 2009 — 8 June 2009
Venue:
Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum, M. Andronikos 6Thessaloniki, Greece
Opening Hours:
Winter hours (November 1 — March 31)
Monday: 10.30-17.00
Tuesday-Sunday: 08.30-15.00
Summer hours (April 1-October 31)
Monday: 13.00-19.30
Tuesday-Sunday: 08.00-19.30
For more info visit the Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum and the Alpha Bank Numismatics.
source :Journal of Ancient Sparta and Greek history
by Spartan300 (Macedonian forums)
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Pr Richard Stoneman regarding the ancient Macedonian background
The kingdom of Macedon to which Alexander succeeded in 336 was an
oddity in the Greek world.
oddity in the Greek world.
[Alexander the Great, Routlege, 1997, page 10]
Were the Macedonians Greeks?
Scholarly opinion remains divided over the issue, and there is little enough direct evidence to draw on. Against the Greek identity of Macedonians is the Greek prejudice described above, and best-evinced by Demosthenes’ invectives against Philip in the course of the latter’s conquests; but Demosthenes, seeing himself as a defender of Athenian liberty, had an axe to grind. The other piece of evidence is the complaint made by Alexander against Philotas in the course of his trial for conspiracy: that he did not deign to address the court ‘in Macedonian’ but insisted on showing off in Greek. And Alexander is at least once said to have addressed his troops ‘in Macedonian’.
Those who favour the view that the Macedonians were Greeks regard this as evidence, not for a separate Macedonian language, but for the use of dialect in certain circumstances, comparable to the use of Scots in a British regiment consisting largely of Scots.
In favour of the Greek identity of the Macedonians is what we know of their language: the place names, names of the months and personal names, which are without exception Greek in roots and form. This suggests that they did not merely use Greek as a lingua franca, but spoke it as natives (though with a local accent which turned Philip into Bilip, for example).
The Macedonians’ own traditions derived their royal house from one Argeas, son of Macedon, son of Zeus, and asserted that a new dynasty, the Temenids, had its origin in the sixth century from emigrants from Argos in Greece, the first of these kings being Perdiccas. This tradition became a most important part of the cultural identity of Macedon. It enabled Alexander I (d.452) to compete at the Olympic Games (which only true Hellenes were allowed to do); and it was embedded in the policy of Archelaus (d.399) who invited Euripides from Athens to his court, where Euripides wrote not only the Bacchae but also a lost play called Archelaus. (Socrates was also invited, but declined.) It was in keeping with this background that Philip employed Aristotle – who had until then been helping Hermias of Atarneus in the Troad to rule as a Platonic ‘philosopher-king’ – as tutor to his son, and that Alexander grew up with a devotion to Homer and the Homeric world which his own kingship so much recalled, and slept every night with the Iliad under his pillow.
The Macedonians, then, were racially Greek. The relation might be not so much that of British and Scots as of Germans and Austrians; but in the case of Macedon it was the smaller partner which effected the Anschluss, as Philip’s reign was devoted to gaining control not only of the northern Aegean but of the city-states of mainland Greece, too.
[Alexander the Great, Routlege, 1997, page 11-12]
Saturday, February 14, 2009
The Greeks of Macedonia in Slavic Sources
One of the common Myths of FYROM’s propaganda imposed on their population is the notion that there were NO Greeks prior to the establisment of the Kingdom of Greece (Βασίλειο των Ελλήνων) in the aftermath of the Greek revolution of 1821. More absurb theories emanating mostly by the radical groups of FYROM’s diaspora claim that Greeks were NEVER found in Macedonia prior to 1913. Here is a little reminder to the Slavic falsifiers history taken from… their own sources.
1. In the second half of 14th century, monk Isaiah said that Ugljesha has risen Serbian and Greek army (Srbskija i Grchskiija voiska) and his brother Vukashin,and with that army they confronted the invading Turks.
Novakovich,S. “Srbi i Turci XIV i XV veka , 1893,pp.184,
Mikloshich ,F. “S.Joannis Chrystostomi homilia in ramos palmarum”, 1845, pp.71
Mikloshich,F. “Chrestomatia Paleoslovenica”, 1861, pp 41
2. Archbishop of Ohrid Avram in 1634 arrived in Russia with escort. When asked,they said they were Greeks from the Serbian land of Ohrid (Grechane Serpskie zemli iz Ahridona Goroda) .
Archive of the Russian Ministry Of Foreign Affairs, Year 7142,No 8
3. In 1667 Emperor Leopold gave some privileges to the Greeks (Graeci) and Serbs (Rasciani) who emigrated toward Northern Hungary and most of them arrived from Macedonia
(Praesertim autem ex Macedonia adventum) . Vitkovich,G “Glasnik Srpskog uchenog rushtva”,67,1887,pp.128;pp.131
4. In 1680 Archbishop of Skoplje writes about Serbia and says that Skoplje is capital city in Serbia (Scopia….metropolli di Servia) . Further,He mentions that Orthodox houses in Skoplje are Greek and Serbian (Case Greche e Serviane) .
Theiner,A. ibidem, pp. 220
5. Canonical Visit by Archbishop of Skoplje Peter Bogdani in 1680 indicated that inhabitans of Skoplje are “Greeks, Serbs, Jews, Armenians”.
“Scritture orig. rif. nelle. congr. gen. vol. 482 ad congr. die 5 maii 1681 Nro 24″
6. Catholic Archbishop of Skoplje Matija Masarek, an Albanian, reported that the city as inhabited with “Grece, scismatici Serviani, Ebrei et Armeni” in a report written c.1770.
In 1790 he mentioned in his report that Turks are suspicious of Greeks and Serbs of Skoplje because they have sent letters to Russia.
“Scritture rif. nei congressi - Servia. Vol. III”, marzo 1790
Patriarch Euthymius of Turnovo (Patriarch of Bulgaria between 1375 and 1393) in his “Hagiography of St. Ilarion Maglenski” wrote about the Bulgarian Char Kaloyan:
Translation in English:
“He was very brave, then, conquered a large part of the Greek land, namely Thrace and Macedonia, the Tribalia and Dalmatia, in those added Neada (sic) and Ellada and still Aitolia.”
From the above it is clear that the Patriarch Euthymius, reflecting a general perception, recognizes Macedonia as part of Greek land.
Source: E. Kaluzniacki, Werke Des Patriachen von Bulgarien Euthymius (1375-1393),. Nach den besten Handschriften, Wien 1901.
In an Anonymous Bulgarian Chronicle of early 15th century, we have the description of the Turkish invation in Balkans. There we read:
Translation in English:
”
Then Katakouzinos came to agreement with Mourat and they gave oaths and exchanged written agreements which apply even today that Turks wont harm the Greeks, neither in Romania, nor in Macedonia in the century, and when Turks promised things will be like that, Kantakozinos left to the Turks the passage from Kallipolis.”
Source: J. Bogdan, “Ein Beitrag zur Bulgarischen und Serbischen Geschichtscheribung”, Archiv fur Slavische Plilologie, v. 13 (1891), 527
So even in Medieval Bulgarian sources it was well known in Macedonia were living Greeks. However Turks didnt keep their promises for long.
Translation in English:
When Kaloyan was a king at that time, in Constantinople, Palaiologos, then Turks broke the oaths which they had agreed with the Greeks, and conquered the city of Kallipolis and the surrounding villages, took Macedonia and they started conflicts everywhere, and in the passage they look to exist their own ships in order to guard it, after they pushed and sent away the Greeks from the area.”
From the old-Bulgarian translation of Manasses Chronicle, a translation dating back in the first years of the Ivan Alexander’s reign (1331-1340) we find:
Translation in English:
During the reign of Anastasius, Bulgarians started to conquer this land, they passed to Bidynio and firstly begun to conquer the Lower land of Ochrid and later all of it.
Source: Die Slavische Manasses-Chronik. Ach der Ausgabe von oan Bogdan. Muncen, Wilhelm Fink Verlag 1966, page 115.
The Bulgarian character of Samuil’s state, contrary to the illusions of t FYROM’s pseudohistorians is proved undoubtedly here. Similarly we can find again in the same source a little later:
Translation in English:
“This King Vasileios crashed Samouil, Char of Bulgars, twice and conquered Bidynio and PLiska, and the Great Preslava and the Small one, and many other cities [..]“
Similar references can be also found in Serbian Medieval Sources:
From the “Bios of St Savva“ written by Teodosie Hilandara (mid 13th cent)
Translation in English:
“This Kaloyan, Czar of Zagorion moved and destroyed many Greek cities in the entire Thrace and in the entire Macedonia [..]“
Source: Teodosije Hilandarac, Zivot Svetoga Save.Izdanje Dure Danicica priredio i predgovor napisao Dorde Trifunovic, Beograd, 1973 (first publ. 1860), p. 103
Therefore we learn that even Serbs knew Macedonia and Thrace consisted of Greek cities.
By Nicholas M. in history-of-macedonia.com
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