The Journal of Southeastern European Studies

SUBMITINFORMATION
EnglishTürkçe

Research Article


DOI :10.26650/gaad.2023002   IUP :10.26650/gaad.2023002    Full Text (PDF)

Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus

Kostadin Rabadjiev

The paper concerns Hercules as the mythical founder of Perinthus in the legend told by Ammianus. His image appears on the obverse of pseudoautonomous coinage popular since but not before the mid-1st century AD, and he was announced as ΚΤΙΣΤΗΣ [the builder] in the time of the Severan dynasty. Thus, the legend proved to be from Roman times, probably after the town had been proclaimed the provincial capital of Thracia as a convincing way to propagate its old history. Hercules was a well-known colonizer on the Thracian littoral, and his appearance on Perinthian coins seems plausible. Another head of a young hero, maybe the eponymous Perinthus himself, was presented on the reverse of provincial coinage in the time of Antoninus Pius, as well as on the obverse of pseudo-autonomous coins from the time of the Severan dynasty at the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century, while Hercules and Perintos were presented in full height on the reverse of a medallion of Alexander Severus. As such, the time of Severi appears to be the probable date for the common legend of the two heroes. Later on, the town was renamed Heraclea, probably in 286 AD in accordance with the administrative reforms of Diocletian.

Keywords: Hercules, Perinthus, mythical founder, Roman Thrace, Thracian coinage

PDF View

References

  • Ammianus Marcellinus. Res Gestae. In: History, Translated by J. C. Rolfe. LCL, I-III, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1950. google scholar
  • Apollodorus. Bibliothеca. In: The Library, Translated by James G. Frazer. LCL, I-II, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1921. google scholar
  • Apollonius Rhodius. Argonautica. In: Argonautica, Edited and translated by William H. Race. LCL, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2009. google scholar
  • Diodoros Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica. In: The Library of History. Translated by C. H. Oldfather. LCL, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1933. google scholar
  • Euripides, Rhesos. In: Euripides. Translated by A.S. Way. LCL, I, 1930. google scholar
  • Herodotos. Historiae. In: The Persian Wars. Translated by A. D. Godley. LCL, I-IV, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1920. google scholar
  • Homeros, Ilias, In: Homer. Iliad. Translated by A. T. Murray. Revised by William F. Wyatt. LCL, I-II, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1924. google scholar
  • Strabon, Geographica. In: The Geography of Strabo, Translated by H. L. Jones. LCL, I-VIII, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1917. google scholar
  • Thucydides, Historiae. In: History of Peloponnesian War. Translated by C. F. Smith. LCL, I-IV. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1919. google scholar
  • Tzetzes, Chiliades. In: Book of Histories, by John Tzetzes. T. Kiessling (Ed.), Historiarum Variarum, Chiliades. Leipzig 1826. google scholar
  • Altheim, F. A History of Roman Religion. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd., 1938. google scholar
  • Bowman, A. K. “Diocletian and the First Tetrarchy, A.D. 284-305.” In: The Cambridge Ancient History: 12. The Crisis of Empire A.D. 193-337. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008, p. 67–89. google scholar
  • Chryssanthaki-Nagle, K. “Les trois fondations d’Abdère.” Revue des Études Grecques, 114 (2001), p.383–406. google scholar
  • Conon, Diegeseis. In: Récits de Conon. (186) Bibliotèque de Photius. Traduction française: Abbé Gedoyn. Histoire de l’Académie Royale des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, 1743. google scholar
  • Ferguson, J. The Religions of the Roman Empire. London: Thames and Hudson, 1970. google scholar
  • Isaac, B. The Greek Settlements in Thrace until the Macedonian Conquest. Leiden: Brill, 1986. google scholar
  • IGBulg, Inscriptiones Graecae in Bulgaria repertae. ed. Mihailov, G. Inscriptiones novae, addenda et corrigenda. Vol. V. Sofia: Serdicae, 1997. google scholar
  • Leppin, H. “Old Religions Transformed: Religions and Religious Policy from Decius to Constantine.” In: A Companion to Roman Religion, edited by J. Rupke. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2007, p. 96–108. google scholar
  • Pavlopoulou, A. “Myth and Cult of Founder-Heroes in the Greek Colonies of Thrace.” In: Thrace, Ed. V. Papoulia et al. Athens, 1994, p. 115–131. google scholar
  • Rabadjiev, K. “Herakles, Diomedes and Thrace.” Archaeologia Bulgarica, 5(3) (2001), p. 9–21. google scholar
  • Rabadjiev, K. “Mt. Pangaion: The War for Its Silver in Myth.” In: Thrace in the Graeco-Roman World, edited by A. Iakovidou. Proceedings of the 10th International Congress of Thracology. Komotini – Alexandroupoli, 18-23 October, 2005. Athens, 2007, p. 509–513. google scholar
  • (RE) Pauly A. F. von, et al. Paulys Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft 31, 1933. google scholar
  • Sayar, M. H. Perinthos-Herakleia (Marmara Ereğlisi) und Umgebung. Geschichte, Testimonien, griechische und lateinische Inschriften. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1998. google scholar
  • Schönert, E. Griechisches Münzwerk – Die Münzprägung von Perinthos. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1965. google scholar
  • И. Топалилов, Някои бележки върху мита за „Основателя“ на града в Римска Тракия, In: ΣΥΜΠΟΣΙΟΝ. Studies in Memory of Prof. Dimitar Popov. УИ „Св. Климент Охридски“, 2016. [I. Topalilov, Nyakoi belezhki varhu mita za „Osnovatelya“ na grada v Rimska Trakiya, In: SYMPOSION. Studies in Memory of Prof. Dimitar Popov. UI „Sv. Kliment Ohridski“, 2016.] google scholar

Citations

Copy and paste a formatted citation or use one of the options to export in your chosen format


EXPORT



APA

Rabadjiev, K. (0001). Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus. The Journal of Southeastern European Studies, 0(40), 15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


AMA

Rabadjiev K. Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus. The Journal of Southeastern European Studies. 0001;0(40):15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


ABNT

Rabadjiev, K. Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus. The Journal of Southeastern European Studies, [Publisher Location], v. 0, n. 40, p. 15-22, 0001.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Rabadjiev, Kostadin,. 0001. “Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus.” The Journal of Southeastern European Studies 0, no. 40: 15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


Chicago: Humanities Style

Rabadjiev, Kostadin,. “Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus.” The Journal of Southeastern European Studies 0, no. 40 (Dec. 2024): 15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


Harvard: Australian Style

Rabadjiev, K 0001, 'Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus', The Journal of Southeastern European Studies, vol. 0, no. 40, pp. 15-22, viewed 22 Dec. 2024, https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Rabadjiev, K. (0001) ‘Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus’, The Journal of Southeastern European Studies, 0(40), pp. 15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002 (22 Dec. 2024).


MLA

Rabadjiev, Kostadin,. “Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus.” The Journal of Southeastern European Studies, vol. 0, no. 40, 0001, pp. 15-22. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002


Vancouver

Rabadjiev K. Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus. The Journal of Southeastern European Studies [Internet]. 22 Dec. 2024 [cited 22 Dec. 2024];0(40):15-22. Available from: https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002 doi: 10.26650/gaad.2023002


ISNAD

Rabadjiev, Kostadin. “Hercules – the Mythical Founder of Perinthus”. The Journal of Southeastern European Studies 0/40 (Dec. 2024): 15-22. https://doi.org/10.26650/gaad.2023002



TIMELINE


Submitted01.01.2023
Accepted03.03.2023

LICENCE


Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC)

This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms.


SHARE




Istanbul University Press aims to contribute to the dissemination of ever growing scientific knowledge through publication of high quality scientific journals and books in accordance with the international publishing standards and ethics. Istanbul University Press follows an open access, non-commercial, scholarly publishing.