"Alexander
to Attalos: A Comparison" by James Agiesta
Alexander the Great was a conqueror. During his reign, Alexander swept
across the western world, extending the boundaries of his kingdom to distances
never before imagined by the rulers that came before him. Referred to as
“one of the greatest military geniuses of all time,” (Encarta,
1) Alexander led his troops across a vast portion of the globe, subsuming
new people and cultures into his kingdom. One
of the challenges that a ruler like Alexander faced with having such a vast
kingdom was establishing his rule over the newly conquered people.
That is to say Alexander, as any other ruler, would have needed to keep
his power over the people intact while at the same time instilling in them a
sense of pride and respect, so as to gain their loyalty.
Alexander’s methods in establishing such power and pride would set
precedents that many of the kings who emerged after Alexander’s death would
follow, and mimic. Well after
Alexander’s death, Attalos I was king in Pergamon.
Attalos proved to be of sound military skill by leading his troops to
various victories and extending the boundaries of his kingdom (Pollitt, 81.)
Faced with the same issue as Alexander had in establishing power over,
and pride in the people of his kingdom, Attalos would set new precedents
through his methods to accomplish this goal.
This essay will attempt to provide some insight as to why these two great
rulers can be compared to one another through their use of art and sculpture in
helping to establish their own solid kingdoms
Alexander the Great would put royal iconography on the map. ‘As vehicles for political propaganda, the visual arts became one of the chief means by which this acceptance and respect were to be won and a ruler’s policies and achievements conveyed.’ (Pollitt, 19) As discussed by Pollitt, Alexander used the visual arts as his chief vehicle to gain acceptance from the various peoples that lived within his kingdom. At first, Alexander would use sculptures of himself as a way to display his worthiness as a ruler. ‘They were images of one whose role it was to rule and whose nature made him fit to rule…a kind of historical Herakles endowed with great aspirations and capable of equally great deeds.’ (Pollitt, 20) Alexander’s images were of a new style in which he was portrayed as ‘superhuman’. This style was the first precedent that Alexander would set for the kings that would follow him. ‘The type became part of the standard royal iconography of the Hellenistic kingdoms and was used for centuries by lesser men who liked to see themselves as worthy successors to Alexander.’ (Pollitt, 20) As will be discussed later in more detail, it is important to note that Attalos would utilize art and sculpture to establish himself as a worthy ruler, but with a different style than that of Alexander.
As
Alexander’s kingdom spread and grew in size and strength, coins seemed to
become more important. ‘Of all
the forms of the visual arts in Antiquity through which political ideas could be
broadcast none was more important than coinage…it would be almost impossible
not to notice and be affected by the portraits and symbols on coins.’
(Pollitt, 25) Alexander recognized
that coins could be used to better establish his stability as a ruler throughout
his kingdom and he used the images of Zeus and Herakles on his coins to gain
support from the Greeks who entered into his kingdom.
This method was successful because the Greeks could identify the images
on the coins easily since some of their Gods and Heroes were being represented
along with Alexander (Pollitt, 26.) As
Alexander had done with sculptures, he
set a precedent through his use of imagery on coins. The kings who would follow his rule would follow and mimic
almost exactly his numismatic iconography, and some even reissued coins that Alexander had created
(Carradice, 59.) Many of the
successor kings that immediately followed Alexander’s reign were the rulers
that mimicked and followed the newly set precedents of Alexander.
It wasn’t until after the period of the Diadochoi, however, that the
western world saw a ruler who would make somewhat of an impact like that of
Alexander.
Attalos
I Soter would come to power in the city of Pergamon in 241BC (Encarta,
2.).
In the early years of
Attalos’ reign there were many battles fought between the Attalid forces
and the barbaric Gauls that inhabited the area around Pergamon.
Though the Gauls had previously been a force that gave Pergamon a great
deal of trouble in battle, Attalos led his troops to lopsided victories over
certain Gallic tribes that eventually ended the threat against Pergamon (Pollitt,
81.) The Attalids did not just end
the threat from the Gauls however; Attalos also led his troops to victory over
the Seleucid forces as well. It was
with these victories over the Gauls that new territory was being thrust into his
kingdom, and Attalos faced the challenge that Alexander once had faced: establishing
his rightful place as ruler (Pollitt, 80.)
‘Attalos and his successors looked to the arts to make Pergamon a
showcase of Greek culture.’ (Pollitt, 81.)
The inclusion of Greek culture in Attalos’ attempt to establish the
glory of Pergamon under his rule was an important factor as Attalos had aligned
himself with Rome and wished to gain the respect and trust of his new allies (Encarta,
2.) Also, within the newly added realms of his own kingdom, Attalos had
victory monuments constructed celebrating the Attalid victory over the Gauls.
Not only were these monuments placed in Pergamon itself, but also at
Delos, Delphi, and at the acropolis of Athens (Pollitt, 81.)
Having these monuments placed in such locations throughout the
Mediterranean,
like Alexander had done with his statues and coins, helped solidify Attalos’
place as ruler in the minds of his citizens.
‘The new power which they (the victory monuments) symbolized and the
patronage which they reflected had the effect of bringing Pergamon by the late
200’s into the artistic, as well as the political, mainstream of the
Hellenistic world’ (Pollitt, 81.) While
bringing glory to the city of Pergamon itself, Attalos’ reputation as the
ruler and creator of such a fine city grew larger and he became a ruler whom others would mimic in style.
The
style of Attalos’ victory monuments was extremely important in understanding
the comparison between Attalos and Alexander.
As discussed earlier, Alexander set new trends in establishing
credibility for himself through artistic expression.
Attalos would follow that lead with the Gallic victory monuments.
The dramatic themes found in Hellenistic baroque style of sculpture is
evident in Attalid victory monuments (Pollitt, 95.)
The difference in style, hHowever, is unique in that the Attalid sculptures
depicted the enemy alone, as fallen heroes in agony.
Nowhere in the Attalid monuments were there any Attalid forces destroying
the Gallic forces, which was a common theme during the Hellenistic era and in
depictions of Alexander’s greatest victories (Pollitt, 96.)
Attalos’ greatest accomplishments in establishing a sense of respect
from his people were these victory monuments.
‘The vividness of the defeated Gauls forced the viewer to put himself
in the position of Attalos and his soldiers, compelled him to realize what they
had overcome, and hence helped him understand how great their achievement was’
(Pollitt, 96.) With those who
viewed these monuments gaining such an understanding, which were many as these
monuments were spread throughout and beyond Attalos’ kingdom, it is safe to say that his
people gained a respect for Attalos’ power, much like Alexander received from
his people. ‘The dedications of
Attalos I can be understood as among the most powerful expressions of several of
the dominant intellectual trends…identified in the Hellenistic age.’
(Pollitt, 95.) Attalos’
monuments’ were such an original mix of style that its influence was felt
throughout the Hellenistic age, as Pollitt discusses, which is much the same as
the styles invoked under Alexander’s reign that had a great influence in the
years that followed his time as king.
It
can be said that Attalos was to monuments what Alexander was to coins.
There are distinct similarities that can be seen between how Alexander
and Attalos utilized new artistic styles to bolster their position as ruler over
their respective kingdoms. Each of
them left an undeniable mark upon the way Kings and rulers would use Sculpture
and Coinage to help establish and solidify their place in the political arena.
Alexander and Attalos are two examples of successful rulers who
recognized how to influence the people under their control by using the only
available form of propaganda, the visual arts.