A Greek Golden Treasure -- By: John K. Cooley

Journal: Bible and Spade (First Run)
Volume: BSP 07:2 (Spring 1978)
Article: A Greek Golden Treasure
Author: John K. Cooley


A Greek Golden Treasure

John K. Cooley

In Nebuchadnezzar’s great image in Daniel 2, which represented the world powers from Babylon to Rome, the Greek empire was a “kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth” (Daniel 2:39). This empire had its beginnings with Philip II of Macedon (359-336 B.C.), but it was his son, Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.), who went on to fulfill the prophecy by conquering the then-known world in 13 short years. Alexander is depicted in the book of Daniel as a leopard with four heads and four wings (7:6) and a rough goat (8:21), and his rise and fall is accurately described in 11:2–4.

The following article describes what is one of the most exciting finds in Greek archaeology — an unplundered tomb thought to be that of Alexander’s father, Philip II of Macedon.

It was last Nov. 8 when Prof. Manolis Andronikos first shone his flashlight into the tomb he regards as the final resting place of King Philip II of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great. At first it was a disappointment. The walls were rough, not covered with lush paintings as some other Macedonian tombs.

But then the Salonica University professor saw some of the treasures there — silver vessels and goblets, bronze and gold arms. It was an astonishing find, one estimated by many archaeologists as one of the most important since World War II.

The tomb and its contents have already greatly enriched the world’s knowledge of life and the arts in classical Greece. But Mr. Andronikos says: “We are still only in the first stage of discovery. Once the good weather begins in March, we will find out much more about the tombs already discovered, and then dig onward. If

this is truly a royal tomb — and all the signs are that it is — then the ancient city of Aegea must lie below.”

An Early Capital

Aegae, also called Edessa, was an early royal capital of Macedon, commanding the strategic route from the Macedonian plain to northwestern Macedonia, the frontier between Greece and the Slavic lands beyond. During the interminable wars of the early Hellenes, it was captured around 274 B.C. by the forces of King Pyrrhus, known for his “Pyrrhic,” or excessively costly, military victories.

Pyrrhus garrisoned Aegae with rough, greedy Gauls, warriors who, according to the biographer Plutarch, plundered tombs and palaces until nothing remained.

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