Treść książki
Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
LocalandImperialDatesattheBeginningoftheHellenisticPeriod
19
sition),theAntigonustextsstillprovethatfromatleast20Julyonwardsthenameof
AntigonuswasusedinthedateformulasinIdumaea.Thankstotheseostracanaming
Antigonusabreakthroughwaspossibleintheresearchofthechronologyofthethird
DiadochWar.SinceAntigonusmusthavebeenrulingIdumaeainJuly315BConlythe
so-calledhighchronologyispossibleforthethirdDiadochWar(Boiy2007a).E.Anson
(2005b),asupporterofthelowchronology,hasrecentlyquestionedtheJuliandates
thathavebeenlinkedtotheAntigonusostracafromIdumaea.Inordertosavethelow
chronologyforthethirdDiadochWarhedisconnectedtheyear-countingsystemusedin
theAramaicostracafromtheoneinuseinBabyloniaandheproposedalocalsystem,
startingwithAntigonus,conquestofPalestineandIdumaea.Thismeansthattheostraca
datedAntig.03shouldbeplacedin312BC(beforetheGazabattle)andtheostracon
datedAntig.05in310BC(afterPtolemy,stemporaryoccupationoftheregionfollowing
theGazabattle)accordingtoAnson.
Letusthereforeturntothelocaldatesnow.WehavealreadymentionedtheGam-
breioninscriptionSyll3302thatmentionsthelocalprytannexttoAlexander,sregnal
years.GreekandPhoeniciancitieshavebeenusinglocalyear-countingsystemsduring
theAchaemenidperiod(seeabove)andcontinuedtodosoduringthereignofAlexander.
Thenatureofthelocalyear-countingsystemwashowevernotalwaysthesame.During
theAchaemenidperiodmostofthePhoeniciantownswereruledbylocalkingsandthe
regnalyearsofthesekingswereusedasyear-countingsystem.Thebulkofourinforma-
tionisderivedfromcoinsthatmentionthe(abbreviated)nameofthekingandtheregnal
year30andanoccasionalinscription.31AfterAlexander,spassagethroughPhoenicia,the
year-countingsystemremainedthesameformostPhoeniciancities:coinsstillexhibita
royalmonogramwithregnalyear.AnexceptionseemstobeSidon:accordingtoCurtius
(IV1,18–26)Alexanderappointedanewking,Abdalonim,32andasfarasthemintageis
concernedtheroyalmonogramdisappearedandthenumberswerereplacedbyletters.
Inaddition,KAI60,abilingualGreek-PhoenicianinscriptionfoundinPiraeus,was
datedtothefourteenthyear„ofthepeopleofSidon”(bšt14lcm
–
dn).Theexpression
„‘m+people”indicatesaneraandsincetheGreekmustbedatedinthesecondhalfof
thefourthcenturyBCBaslezandBriquel-Chatonnet(1991:236–237)proposedtolink
thedateofthisinscriptionwiththechangednumismaticevidencefromSidonduring
thereignofAlexanderandtointerpretthis„eraofthepeopleofSidon”asaliberation
erabeginningfromthemomentAlexander„freed”thePhoeniciancitiesfromPersian
overlordship(orratherfromthelocalroyaldynasty).33
AlsointheGreekcitiesofthewesterncoastinAsiaMinorlocalyear-countingsys-
temswereinuse,thebestknownexamplebeingMiletuswithastephanophorosasepo-
nym.Therelativechronologyoftheseeponymscanbeestablishedforquitesomeyears
thankstoseveralancientliststhathavebeenpreserved.Alsothissystemremainedin
30ForSidonseenowElayi/Elayi2004.
31ForSidonseetheGreek-PhoenicianbilingualCISI114=Ins.Délos50.
32ApartfromtheclassicalevidencekingAbdalonimisnowalsoepigraphicallyattestedinabilingual
Greek-PhoenicianinscriptionfromKos(seeKantzia1986andSznycer1986).
33Lateronseveraloftheseso-called„liberationera,s”startedwhenthePhoeniciancitiesreplaced
theirlocalkingswithotherregimes(cf.Baslez/Briquel-Chatonnet1991:235–236).AccordingtoLesch-
horn(1993:10)thenumbersontheSidoniancoinsweresimplyemissionnumbersandnoera,butthe
appearanceofthesamedatingsysteminthePhoenician-GreekinscriptionKAI60(seeabove)makesclear
thatitwasmorethanamereemissionnumbersincetheexpressioncm+peopleindicatesanera.
