As the founder of the longest-lasting of all the Hellenistic kingdoms, not only was Ptolemy I an able soldier and ruler, he was also an historian and, in Egyptian eyes, a living god. His own inclination and experience facilitated continuous acts of self-creation in a variety of forms, whether literary, dynastic, artistic, or political. His work on Alexander and his campaigns was used by the later Alexander historians, and was one of Arrian's major sources for his Anabasis. In the pages of his own history, Ptolemy constructed a self-portrait characterized by military courage and deep friendship with Alexander. As ruler of the Egyptian kingdom, Ptolemy experienced an elevated model of kingship very different from the Macedonian one: he consciously embraced the divinity of the Pharaoh, a construct that had little to do with the real man who wore the crowns. The chapters in this book, written by field experts in numismatics, gender, warfare, historiography, Egyptology and religion, examine the many ways in which Alexander the Great's most successful Successor consciously made his own legacy.

About the Author
Timothy Howe is Professor of History and Ancient Studies at St. Olaf College (USA). His main research interests are in Alexander the Great, ancient Mediterranean warfare, agriculture, law, religion, trade, and, Greek and Latin epigraphy.

Reviews
This volume is an important contribution to the study of Hellenistic History. Although it is aimed at scholars of Ptolemaic Egypt and assumes a strong background in the sources and circumstances of the period, I would also recommend it to scholars of Hellenistic literature and historians of other periods [...] For a small book, it offers lots of big ideas and provides fertile ground for future scholarship. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *
An excellent introduction to the stat of current scholarship on the reign of Ptolemy I. Particularly welcome is the extensive use of Egyptian evidence to complement the familiar classical sources. [...] an important addition to the growing number of works on the reign of Ptolmy I and will be of interest to all scholars of the period. * Ancient West & East *



Book Information
ISBN 9781789250428
Author Timothy Howe
Format Paperback
Page Count 208
Imprint Oxbow Books
Publisher Oxbow Books