Alexander at the Caspian Gates

 This is a slightly modified version of my paper. It belongs to Unit IV of my manuscript, "The Enchanting Encounter with the East". 

Unit IV follows the footsteps of Alexander the Macedon, to be more exact, it traces the birth and development of medieval Alexander legend. The invincible warrior was inscribed with the erection of the impassable barrier, sometimes called the wall or the gate, blocking the mountain passage. This long-term roadblock will be breached by unlawful tribes ushering in the Last Days. 

The current paper focuses on the early development of the legend. It has just been offered for Discussions and you are welcome to participate.

The myth of the Caspian Gates was modeled on Alexander the Macedon's pursuit of his rival, the Persian emperor. Due to the nodding acquaintance with Asian geography, the storytellers switched the venue from the Iranian Gates to the Caucasus. The Macedonian military genius was considered the right person to erect an impenetrable barrier on the way of barbarian hordes braced for smashing the Hellenistic ideal of the civilized world. 

Tags: Alexander the Great, Pliny the Elder, Josephus Flavius, Plutarch, Ai Khanoum

I also began to review my findings for the Mediterranean Seafaring project. Meanwhile, I check details on shipborne artillery on board medieval galleys and try to identify new data on commercial galleys and seafaring routes both across the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. I am also going to compare the great galleys of Venice, Genoa, Florence, and Catalonia as well as to trace the brief age of the galleass.

My dream is one day to research the history of ancient Israel. As a preparation for this goal, I took the online course "The Bible's Prehistory, Purpose, and Political Future" offered by Dr. Jacob L. Wright from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. 

I wish you good help and stamina to traverse this turbulent period of the pandemic.

 

The Bible's Prehistory, Purpose, and Political Future

The Bible's Prehistory, Purpose, and Political Future

Merchant Galleys (1)

 

By Konrad Grünenberg - http://digital.blb-karlsruhe.de/id/7061, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19285559

A Venetian three-masted galley delivers pilgrims to the Holy Land, 1486/7

This week I have been collecting data about merchant galleys in the Mediterranean for chapter 3 of my new project. 

I found an old article by W.B. Watson, The Structure of the Florentine galley trade with Flanders and England in the 15th century. Revue belge de Philologue et d'Histoire, 1961, 39-4. It speaks about the trips of Florentine galleys to north-western Europe during the 16th century. The author claims that there was a trade disbalance between incoming merchandise and local products. 

I reread F.C. Lane's book, "Venetian Ships and Shipbuilders of the Renaissance". (Borodino Books, 2018), especially the chapter devoted to merchant galleys with an extensive citation from Fabri's account about the pilgrimage to the Holy Land. 

I looked through E. Bradford's book, "The Great Siege: Malta, 1565". It does add anything about commercial galleys and even speaks little about the galley war but the topic has interested me since I visited Malta. I realized that the Knights of St. John were aided by the local population even if there were previous tensions between them. 

Next week, I will check some more books and then compare new data with the draft chapter written about 7 years ago. Now and then, I pick up novel info or fresh expressions that can help improve my previous chapters. That's why I decided to compose notes toward the end of the project when most of the corrections will be well underway.