Alexandria's founded by Alexander

Alexandria's founded by Alexander the Great (by year BC): 334 Alexandria in Troia (Turkey) - 333 Alexandria at Issus/Alexandrette (Iskenderun, Turkey) - 332 Alexandria of Caria/by the Latmos (Alinda, Turkey) - 331 Alexandria Mygdoniae - 331 Alexandria (Egypt) - 330 Alexandria Ariana (Herat, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria of the Prophthasia/in Dragiana/Phrada (Farah, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria in Arachosia (Kandahar, Afghanistan) - 330 Alexandria in the Caucasus (Begram, Afghanistan) - 329 Alexandria of the Paropanisades (Ghazni, Afghanistan) - 329 Alexandria Eschate or Ultima (Khodjend, Tajikistan) - 329 Alexandria on the Oxus (Termez, Afghanistan) - 328 Alexandria in Margiana (Merv, Turkmenistan) - 326 Alexandria Nicaea (on the Hydaspes, India) - 326 Alexandria Bucephala (on the Hydaspes, India) - 325 Alexandria Sogdia - 325 Alexandria Oreitide - 325 Alexandria in Opiene / Alexandria on the Indus (confluence of Indus & Acesines, India) - 325 Alexandria Rambacia (Bela, Pakistan) - 325 Alexandria Xylinepolis (Patala, India) - 325 Alexandria in Carminia (Gulashkird, Iran) - 324 Alexandria-on-the-Tigris/Antiochia-in-Susiana/Charax (Spasinou Charax on the Tigris, Iraq) - ?Alexandria of Carmahle? (Kahnu)

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Plutarch’s Lives or The Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans by Plutarch

Plutarch's Lives (ISBN 978-0375756764) is an excellent reference book and a very worthwhile reading as he describes the lives of prominent Greeks and Romans individually and draws parallels between them according to their status or function.

This translation by John Dryden (revised by Arthur Hugh Clough) may seem old-fashioned and in a way it is. Yet it somehow adds an extra flavor to the antique texts. It is not as easy to read as any other contemporary translation of Plutarch's work but it has a feel of being close to the original script and the original way of understanding what Plutarch meant. A native English speaker will not find it so difficult to read as a foreigner, yet it is definitely worth the effort.

As far as Alexander the Great is concerned, Plutarch is the only author from antiquity to tell us something about Alexander’s youth – all the others start right away with his conquests and generally at his crossing to Asia Minor, leaving out the fierce campaign he had to lead at home before crossing the Hellespont. 

It is rather obvious that Plutarch compares him with Julius Caesar ...

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