KINGS of PERGAMON Attalos I 240BC Ancient Greek Coin Athena Asclepius i42824

Item: i42824

Authentic Ancient

Coin of:

KINGS of PERGAMON

Attalos I. 241-197 BC
Bronze 17mm (3.34 grams) Struck circa 240-220 B.C.
Reference:

Westermark, Bronze 11; SNG France 1643-49

Head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet decorated with griffin.

ΦΙΛETAIPOY,
Asclepius
seated left, feeding serpent.

This issue is inscribed with the name of the dynasty’s founder, Philetairos, and

firm attributions to particular reigns are not yet possible.

You are bidding on the exact item pictured,

Authenticity.

Asclepius
is the god of medicine
and healing in ancient
Greek religion
. Asclepius represents the
healing aspect of the medical arts; his daughters are
Hygieia
(“Health”),

Iaso (“Medicine”),
Aceso
(“Healing”),
Aglæa/Ægle
(“Healthy Glow”), and
Panacea
(“Universal Remedy”). The
rod of Asclepius
, a snake-entwined staff,
remains a symbol of medicine today, although sometimes the
caduceus
, or staff with two snakes, is
mistakenly used instead. He was associated with the Roman/Etruscan god
Vediovis
. He was one of
Apollo
‘s servants.

The
rod of Asclepius, also known as the asklepian, is an ancient
symbol associated with
astrology
, the
Greek

god
Asclepius
and with
medicine
and
healing
. It consists of a
serpent
entwined around a
staff
. The name of the symbol derives from its
early and widespread association with
Asclepius
, the son of
Apollo
, who was a practitioner of medicine in
ancient
Greek mythology
. His attributes, the snake and
the staff, sometimes depicted separately in antiquity, are combined in this
symbol. The Rod of Asclepius also represents the constellation
Ophiuchus
(or Ophiuchus Serpentarius), the
thirteenth sign of the
sidereal zodiac
.
Hippocrates
himself was a worshipper of
Asclepius.

Attalus I (Greek:
Ἄτταλος Α΄), surnamed Soter
(Greek:
Σωτήρ, “Savior”; 269–197 BC) ruled
Pergamon
, an Ionian Greek
polis
(what is now
Bergama
,
Turkey
), first as
dynast
, later as king, from 241 BC to 197 BC.
He was the second cousin and the adoptive son of
Eumenes I
, whom he succeeded, and was the first
of the
Attalid dynasty
to assume the title of king in
238 BC. He was the son of Attalus and his wife Antiochis.

Attalus won an important victory over the
Galatians
, newly arrived
Celtic
tribes from
Thrace
, who had been, for more than a
generation, plundering and exacting tribute throughout most of
Asia Minor
without any serious check. This
victory, celebrated by the triumphal monument at Pergamon (famous for its
Dying Gaul
) and the liberation from the Gallic
“terror” which it represented, earned for Attalus the name of “Soter”, and the
title of “king“.
A courageous and capable general and loyal ally of
Rome
, he played a significant role in the first
and second
Macedonian Wars
, waged against
Philip V of Macedon
. He conducted numerous
naval operations, harassing Macedonian interests throughout the
Aegean
, winning honors, collecting spoils, and
gaining for Pergamon possession of the Greek islands of
Aegina
during the first war, and
Andros
during the second, twice narrowly
escaping capture at the hands of Philip.

Attalus was a protector of the Greek cities of
Anatolia
and viewed himself as the champion of
Greeks
against
barbarians
. During his reign he established
Pergamon as a considerable power in the
Greek East
.^[6]
He died in 197 BC, shortly before the end of the second war, at the age of 72,
having suffered an apparent
stroke
while addressing a
Boeotian
war council some months before. He
enjoyed a famously happy domestic life, shared with his wife and four sons. He
was succeeded as king by his son
Eumenes II
.

Early life

 

Coin struck during the reign of Attalus I, depicting Attalus’ great
uncle, Philetaerus. Reverse shows Greek inscription ΦΙΛΕΤΑΙΡΟΥ,
“(coin) of Philetaerus”, and
Athena
.

Little is known about Attalus’ early life. He was born a
Greek
,^[8]
the son of Attalus, and Antiochis. The elder Attalus was the son of a brother
(also called Attalus) of both
Philetaerus
, the founder of the
Attalid dynasty
, and Eumenes, the father of
Eumenes I
, Philetaerus’ successor; he is
mentioned, along with his uncles, as a benefactor of
Delphi
, won fame as a charioteer, winning at
Olympia
, and was honored with a monument at
Pergamon.

Attalus was a young child when his father died, sometime before 241 BC, after
which he was adopted by Eumenes I, the incumbent dynast. Attalus’ mother,
Antiochis
, was related to the
Seleucid
royal family (being a granddaughter of
Seleucus I Nicator
) with her marriage to
Attalus’ father likely arranged by Philetaerus to solidify his power. This would
be consistent with the conjecture that Attalus’ father had been Philetaerus’
heir designate, but was succeeded by Eumenes, since Attalus I was too young when
his father died.

Defeat of the
Galatians

 

The
Dying Gaul
representing the
defeat of the
Galatians
by Attalus

According to the 2nd century AD Greek writer
Pausanias
, “the greatest of his achievements”
was the defeat of the “Gauls”
(Γαλάται). Pausanias was referring to the
Galatians, immigrant Celts
from
Thrace
, who had recently settled in
Galatia
in central
Asia Minor
, and whom the Romans and Greeks
called Gauls, associating them with the Celts of what is now France,
Switzerland, and northern Italy. Since the time of Philetaerus, the first
Attalid ruler, the Galatians had posed a problem for Pergamon, indeed for all of
Asia Minor, by exacting tributes to avoid war or other repercussions. Eumenes I
had (probably), along with other rulers, dealt with the Galatians by paying
these tributes. Attalus however refused to pay them, being the first such ruler
to do so. As a consequence, the Galatians set out to attack Pergamon. Attalus
met them near the sources of the river Caïcus and won a
decisive victory
, after which, following the
example of
Antiochus I
, Attalus took the name of Soter,
which means “savior”, and claimed the title of king. The victory brought Attalus
legendary fame. A story arose, related by Pausanias, of an oracle who had
foretold these events a generation earlier:

Then verily, having crossed the narrow strait of the
Hellespont
,

The devastating host of the Gauls shall pipe; and lawlessly

They shall ravage Asia; and much worse shall God do

To those who dwell by the shores of the sea

For a short while. For right soon the son of
Cronos

Shall raise a helper, the dear son of a bull reared by
Zeus

Who on all the Gauls shall bring a day of destruction.

Pausanias adds that by “son of a bull” the oracle “meant Attalus, king of
Pergamon, who was styled bull-horned”. On the acropolis of Pergamon was erected
a triumphal monument, which included the famous sculpture the
Dying Gaul
, commemorating this battle.

Conquests in
Seleucid Asia Minor

Several years after the first victory over the Gauls, Pergamon was again
attacked by the Gauls together with their ally
Antiochus Hierax
, the younger brother of
Seleucus II Callinicus
, and ruler of Seleucid
Asia Minor from his capital at
Sardis
. Attalus defeated the Gauls and
Antiochus at the battle of Aphrodisium and again at a second battle in the east.
Subsequent battles were fought and won against Antiochus alone: in Hellespontine
Phrygia
, where Antiochus was perhaps seeking
refuge with his father-in law,
Ziaelas
the king of
Bithynia
; near Sardis in the spring of 228 BC;
and, in the final
battle of the campaign
, further south in
Caria
on the banks of the Harpasus, a tributary
of the
Maeander
.

As a result of these victories, Attalus gained control over all of Seleucid
Asia Minor north of the
Taurus Mountains
. He was able to hold onto
these gains in the face of repeated attempts by
Seleucus III Ceraunus
, eldest son and successor
of Seleucus II, to recover the lost territory, culminating in Seleucus III
himself crossing the Taurus, only to be assassinated by members of his army in
223 BC.
Achaeus
, who had accompanied Seleucus III,
assumed control of the army. He was offered and refused the kingship in favor of
Seleucus III’s younger brother
Antiochus III the Great
, who then made Achaeus
governor of Seleucid Asia Minor north of the Taurus. Within two years Achaeus
had recovered all the lost Seleucid territories, “shut up Attalus within the
walls of Pergamon”, and assumed the title of king.

After a period of peace, in 218 BC, while Achaeus was involved in an
expedition to
Selge
south of the Taurus, Attalus, with some
Thracian Gauls, recaptured his former territories. However Achaeus returned from
victory in Selge in 217 BC and resumed hostilities with Attalus.

Under a treaty of alliance with Attalus, Antiochus crossed the Taurus in
216 BC, attacked Achaeus and besieged Sardis, and in 214 BC, the second year of
the siege, was able to take the city. However the citadel remained under Achaeus’
control. Under the pretense of a rescue, Achaeus was finally captured and put to
death, and the citadel surrendered. By 213 BC, Antiochus had regained control of
all of his Asiatic provinces.

First Macedonian War

 

Mediterranean at 218 BC

Thwarted in the east, Attalus now turned his attention westward. Perhaps
because of concern for the ambitions of
Philip V of Macedon
, Attalus had sometime
before 219 BC become allied with Philip’s enemies the
Aetolian League
, a union of Greek states in
Aetolia
in central Greece, having funded the
fortification of Elaeus, an Aetolian stronghold in
Calydonia
, near the mouth of the river
Acheloos
.

Philip’s alliance with
Hannibal
of
Carthage
in 215 BC also caused concern in

Rome, then involved in the
Second Punic War
. In 211 BC, a treaty was
signed between Rome and the Aetolian League, a provision of which allowed for
the inclusion of certain allies of the League, Attalus being one of these.
Attalus was elected one of the two
strategoi
(generals) of the Aetolian
League, and in 210 BC his troops probably participated in capturing the island
of Aegina
, acquired by Attalus as his base of
operations in Greece.

In the following spring (209 BC), Philip marched south into Greece. Under
command of
Pyrrhias
, Attalus’ colleague as strategos, the
allies lost two battles at
Lamia
. Attalus himself went to Greece in July
and was joined on Aegina by the Roman
proconsul

P. Sulpicius Galba
who wintered there. The
following summer (208 BC) the combined fleet of thirty-five Pergamene and
twenty-five Roman ships failed to take
Lemnos
, but occupied and plundered the
countryside of the island of Peparethos (Skopelos),
both Macedonian possessions. Attalus and Sulpicius then attended a meeting in
Heraclea Trachinia
of the Council of the
Aetolians, at which the Roman argued against making peace with Philip.

When hostilities resumed, they sacked both
Oreus
, on the northern coast of
Euboea
and
Opus
, the chief city of eastern
Locris
. The spoils from Oreus had been reserved
for Sulpicius, who returned there, while Attalus stayed to collect the spoils
from Opus. With their forces divided, Philip attacked Opus. Attalus, caught by
surprise, was barely able to escape to his ships.

Attalus was now forced to return to Asia, for he had learned at Opus that, at
the instigation of Philip,
Prusias I
king of Bithynia, related to Philip
by marriage, was moving against Pergamon. Soon after, the Romans also abandoned
Greece to concentrate their forces against Hannibal, their objective of
preventing Philip from aiding Hannibal having been achieved. In 206 BC the
Aetolians sued for peace on conditions imposed by Philip. A treaty was drawn up
at Phoenice in 205 BC, formally ending the
First Macedonian War
. Attalus was included as
an adscriptus on the side of Rome. He retained Aegina, but had
accomplished little else. Since Prusias was also included in the treaty, the war
between Attalus and Prusias must also have ended by that time.

Introduction of the cult of the Magna Mater to Rome

In 205 BC, following the “Peace of Phoenice”, Rome turned to Attalus, as its
only friend in Asia, for help concerning a religious matter. An unusual number
of meteor showers caused concern in Rome, and an inspection was made of the
Sibylline Books
, which discovered verses saying
that if a foreigner were to make war on Italy, he could be defeated if the
Magna Idaea, the Mother Goddess, associated with
Mount Ida
in
Phrygia
, were brought to Rome. Hoping to bring
about a speedy conclusion to the war with Hannibal, a distinguished delegation,
led by
M. Valerius Laevinus
, was dispatched to
Pergamon, to seek Attalus’ aid. According to

Livy, Attalus received the delegation warmly, and “handed over to
them the sacred stone which the natives declared to be ‘the Mother of the Gods’,
and bade them carry it to Rome.” In Rome the goddess became known as the
Magna Mater
.

Macedonian
hostilities of 201 BC

Prevented by the treaty of Phoenice from expansion in the east, Philip set
out to extend his power in the
Aegean
and in Asia Minor. In the spring of
201 BC he took
Samos
and the
Egyptian
fleet stationed there. He then
besieged Chios
to the north. These events caused Attalus,
allied with Rhodes
,
Byzantium
and
Cyzicus
, to enter the war. A large naval battle
occurred in the strait between Chios and the mainland, just southwest of
Erythrae
. According to
Polybius
, fifty-three decked warships and over
one hundred and fifty smaller warships, took part on the Macedonian side, with
sixty-five decked warships and a number of smaller warships on the allied side.
During the battle Attalus, having become isolated from his fleet and pursued by
Philip, was forced to run his three ships ashore, narrowly escaping by spreading
various royal treasures on the decks of the grounded ships, causing his pursuers
to abandon the pursuit in favor of plunder.

The same year, Philip invaded Pergamon; although unable to take the easily
defended city, in part due to precautions taken by Attalus to provide for
additional fortifications, he demolished the surrounding temples and altars.
Meanwhile, Attalus and Rhodes sent envoys to Rome, to register their complaints
against Philip.

Second Macedonian War

In 200 BC, Attalus became involved in the
Second Macedonian War
.
Acarnanians
with Macedonian support invaded
Attica
, causing
Athens
, which had previously maintained its
neutrality, to seek help from the enemies of Philip. Attalus, with his fleet at
Aegina, received an embassy from Athens, to come to the city for consultations.
A few days later, he learned that Roman ambassadors were also at Athens, and
decided to go there at once. His reception at Athens was extraordinary. Polybius
writes:

… in company with the Romans and the Athenian magistrates, he began his
progress to the city in great state. For he was met, not only by all the
magistrates and the knights, but by all the citizens with their children and
wives. And when the two processions met, the warmth of the welcome given by
the populace to the Romans, and still more to Attalus, could not have been
exceeded. At his entrance into the city by the gate Dipylum the priests and
priestesses lined the street on both sides: all the temples were then thrown
open; victims were placed ready at all the altars; and the king was
requested to offer sacrifice. Finally they voted him such high honors as
they had never without great hesitation voted to any of their former
benefactors: for, in addition to other compliments, they named a tribe after
Attalus, and classed him among their eponymous heroes.

Sulpicius Galba, now
consul
, convinced Rome to declare war on Philip
and asked Attalus to meet up with the Roman fleet and again conduct a naval
campaign, harassing Macedonian possessions in the Aegean. In the spring of
199 BC, the combined Pergamon and Roman fleets took
Andros
in the
Cyclades
, the spoils going to the Romans and
the island to Attalus. From Andros they sailed south, made a fruitless attack on
another Cycladic island,
Kithnos
, turned back north, scavenged the
fields of Skiathos
off the coast of
Magnesia
, for food, and continued north to
Mende
, where the fleets were wracked by storm.
On land they were repulsed at
Cassandrea
, suffering heavy loss. They
continued northeast along the Macedonian coast to
Acanthus
, which they sacked, after which they
returned to Euboea, their vessels laden with spoils. On their return, the two
leaders went to Heraclea to meet with the Aetolians, who under the terms of
their treaty, had asked Attalus for a thousand soldiers. He refused, citing the
Aetolians’ own refusal to honor Attalus’ request to attack Macedonia during
Philip’s attack on Pergamon two years earlier. Resuming operations, Attalus and
the Romans attacked but failed to take Oreus and, deciding to leave a small
force to invest it, attacked across the straight in
Thessaly
. When they returned to Oreus, they
again attacked, this time successfully, the Romans taking the captives, Attalus
the city. The campaigning season now over, Attalus attended the
Eleusinian Mysteries
and then returned to
Pergamon having been away for over two years.

In the spring of 198 BC, Attalus returned to Greece with twenty-three
quinqueremes
joining a fleet of twenty Rhodian
decked warships at Andros, to complete the conquest of Euboea begun the previous
year. Soon joined by the Romans, the combined fleets took
Eretria
and later
Carystus
. Thus, the allies controlled all of
Euboea except for Chalcis
. The allied fleet then sailed for
Cenchreae
in preparation for an attack on
Corinth
. Meanwhile, the new Roman consul for
that year,
Titus Quinctius Flamininus
, had learned that
the Achaean League
, allies of Macedon, had had a
change in leadership which favored Rome. With the hope of inducing the Achaeans
to abandon Philip and join the allies, envoys were sent, including Attalus
himself, to Sicyon
, where they offered the incorporation of
Corinth into the Achaean League. Attalus apparently so impressed the Sicyonians,
that they erected a colossal statue of him in their market place and instituted
sacrifices in his honor. A meeting of the League was convened and after a heated
debate and the withdrawal of some of delegates the rest agreed to join the
alliance. Attalus led his army from Cenchreae (now controlled by the allies)
through the Isthmus and attacked Corinth from the north, controlling the access
to
Lechaeum
, the Corinthian port on the Gulf of
Corinth, the Romans attacked from the east controlling the approaches to
Cenchreae, with the Achaeans attacking from the west controlling the access to
the city via the Sicyonian gate. However the city held, and when Macedonian
reinforcements arrived, the siege was abandoned. The Achaeans were dismissed,
the Romans left for
Corcyra
, while Attalus sailed for
Piraeus
.

Early in 197 BC, Flamininus, summoned Attalus to join him at
Elateia
(now in Roman hands) and from there
they traveled together to attend a
Boeotian
council in
Thebes
to discuss which side Boeotia would take
in the war. At the council Attalus spoke first, reminding the Boeotians of the
many things he and his ancestors had done for them, but during his address he
stopped talking and collapsed, with one side of his body paralyzed. Attalus was
taken back to Pergamon, where he died around the time of the
Battle of Cynoscephalae
, which brought about
the end of the Second Macedonian War.

Family

Attalus married Apollonis, from
Cyzicus
. They had four sons,
Eumenes
,
Attalus
, Philetaerus and Athenaeus (after
Apollonis’ father).
Polybius
describes Apollonis as “a woman who
for many reasons deserves to be remembered, and with honor. Her claims upon a
favourable recollection are that, though born of a private family, she became a
queen, and retained that exalted rank to the end of her life, not by the use of
meretricious fascinations, but by the virtue and integrity of her conduct in
private and public life alike. Above all, she was the mother of four sons with
whom she kept on terms of the most perfect affection and motherly love to the
last day of her life.”

The filial “affection” of the brothers as well as their upbringing is
remarked on by several ancient sources. A decree of
Antiochus IV
praises “king Attalus and queen
Apollonis … because of their virtue and goodness, which they preserved for their
sons, managing their education in this way wisely and well.” An inscription at
Pergamon represents Apollonis as saying that “she always considered herself
blessed and gave thanks to the gods, not for wealth or empire, but because she
saw her three sons guarding the eldest and him reigning without fear among those
who were armed.” When Attalus died in 197 BC at the age of 72, he was succeeded
by his eldest son Eumenes II. Polybius, describing Attalus’ life says “and what
is more remarkable than all, though he left four grown-up sons, he so well
settled the question of succession, that the crown was handed down to his
children’s children without a single dispute.”

Pergamon, Pergamum or Pérgamo (in

Greek

, Πέργαμος) was an ancient

Greek

city in modern-day

Turkey
, in

Mysia
, today

located 16 miles (26 km) from the

Aegean Sea

on a promontory

on the north side of the river

Caicus

(modern day

Bakırçay
),

that became the capital of the

Kingdom of Pergamon

during the

Hellenistic period

, under the

Attalid dynasty

, 281–133 BC. Today, the main sites of ancient Pergamon are

to the north and west of the modern city of

Bergama
.

//

 History

The

Attalid

kingdom was the

rump state

left after the collapse of the

Kingdom of Thrace
.

The Attalids, the descendants of Attalus, father of

Philetaerus

who came to power in 281 BC following the collapse of the

Kingdom of Thrace, were among the most loyal supporters of

Rome

in the Hellenistic world. Under

Attalus I

(241-197 BC), they allied with Rome against

Philip V of Macedon

, during the

first

and

second

Macedonian Wars

, and again under

Eumenes II

(197-158 BC), against

Perseus of Macedon

, during the

Third Macedonian War

. For support against the

Seleucids

, the

Attalids

were rewarded with all the former Seleucid domains in

Asia Minor

.

The Attalids ruled with intelligence and generosity. Many documents survive

showing how the Attalids would support the growth of towns through sending in

skilled artisans and by remitting taxes. They allowed the Greek cities in their

domains to maintain nominal independence. They sent gifts to Greek cultural

sites like Delphi
,

Delos
, and

Athens
. They

defeated the invading Celts

. They remodeled the

Acropolis of Pergamo

after the

Acropolis

in Athens. When

Attalus III

(138-133 BC) died without an heir in 133 BC he bequeathed the

whole of Pergamon to Rome, in order to prevent a civil war.

According to Christian tradition, the first bishop of Pergamon,

Antipas

, was martyred there in ca. 92 AD. (Revelation

2:13)

The

Ottoman

Sultan

Murad III

had two large alabaster

urns transported from the ruins of Pergamon and placed on two

sides of the nave in the

Hagia

Sophia
in Istanbul

.^[1]

 Notable

structures

 Upper

Acropolis

The

Great Altar of Pergamon

is in the

Pergamon Museum

, Berlin. The base of this altar remains on the upper part of

the Acropolis. It was perhaps to this altar, believed dedicated to Zeus, that

John of Patmos referred to as “Satan’s Throne” in his Book of Revelation

(Revelation 2:12-13).

Other notable structures still in existence on the upper part of the

Acropolis include:

• The Hellenistic Theater with a seating capacity of 10,000. This had the

  steepest seating of any known theater in the ancient world.^[2]

• The Sanctuary of Trajan (also known as the

  Trajaneum

  )

• The Sanctuary of Athena
• The Library a.k.a.

  Athenaeum
  ^[citation

  needed]

• The Royal palaces
• The Heroön – a shrine where the kings of Pergamon, particularly, Attalus

  I and Eumenes II, were worshipped.^[3]

• The

  Temple of Dionysus

• The Upper Agora
• The Roman baths complex

Pergamon’s library on the Acropolis (the ancient

Library of Pergamum

) is the second best in the ancient Greek civilization.^[4]

When the

Ptolemies

stopped exporting

papyrus
,

partly because of competitors and partly because of shortages, the Pergamenes

invented a new substance to use in

codices
, called

pergaminus or pergamena (parchment)

after the city. This was made of fine

calfskin
, a

predecessor of

vellum

. The library at Pergamom was believed to contain 200,000 volumes,

which Mark Antony

later gave to

Cleopatra

as a wedding present.

 Lower

Acropolis

The lower part of the Acropolis has the following structures:

• the Upper Gymnasium
• the Middle Gymnasium
• the Lower Gymnasium
• the Temple of

  Demeter

• the Sanctuary of

  Hera

• the House of Attalus
• the Lower Agora and
• the Gate of

  Eumenes

 At

foot of Acropolis

 Sanctuary

of Asclepius

Three kilometers south of the Acropolis, down in the valley, there was the

Sanctuary of Asclepius

(also known as the

Asclepieion

), the god of healing. In this place people with health problems

could bathe in the water of the sacred spring, and in the patients’ dreams

Asclepius would appear in a vision to tell them how to cure their illness.

Archeology has found lots of gifts and dedications that people would make

afterwards, such as small terracotta body parts, no doubt representing what had

been healed. Notable extant structures in the Asclepieion include:

• the Roman theater
• the North Stoa
• the South Stoa
• the Temple of Asclepius
• a circular treatment center (sometimes known as the Temple of

  Telesphorus)

• a healing spring
• an underground passageway
• a library
• the Via Tecta (or the Sacred Way, which is a colonnaded street leading

  to the sanctuary) and

• a

  propylon

  .

 Serapis

Temple

Pergamon’s other notable structure is the

Serapis

Temple (Serapeum)

which was later transformed into the Red Basilica complex (or Kizil Avlu in

Turkish), about one kilometer south of the Acropolis. It consists of a main

building and two round towers. In the first century AD, the

Christian

Church at Pergamon inside the main building of the Red Basilica

was one of the

Seven Churches

to which the

Book of Revelation

was addressed (Revelation

2:12). The forecourt is still supported by the 193 m wide

Pergamon Bridge

, the largest bridge substruction of antiquity.^[5]