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Abraham | {{anchor | Origins of the narrative
thumb|Abraham's Gate, Tel Dan, Israel
Abraham's story, like those of the other patriarchs, most likely had a substantial oral prehistory (he is mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel and the Book of Isaiah). As with Moses, Abraham's name is apparently very ancient, as the tradition found in the Book of Genesis no longer understands its original meaning (probably "Father is exalted" – the meaning offered in , "Father of a multitude", is a folk etymology). At some stage the oral traditions became part of the written tradition of the Pentateuch; a majority of scholars believe this stage belongs to the Persian period, roughly 520–320 BCE. The mechanisms by which this came about remain unknown, but there are currently at least two hypotheses. The first, called Persian Imperial authorisation, is that the post-Exilic community devised the Torah as a legal basis on which to function within the Persian Imperial system; the second is that the Pentateuch was written to provide the criteria for determining who would belong to the post-Exilic Jewish community and to establish the power structures and relative positions of its various groups, notably the priesthood and the lay "elders".
The completion of the Torah and its elevation to the centre of post-Exilic Judaism was as much or more about combining older texts as writing new ones – the final Pentateuch was based on existing traditions. In the Book of Ezekiel, written during the Exile (i.e., in the first half of the 6th century BCE), Ezekiel, an exile in Babylon, tells how those who remained in Judah are claiming ownership of the land based on inheritance from Abraham; but the prophet tells them they have no claim because they do not observe Torah. The Book of Isaiah similarly testifies of tension between the people of Judah and the returning post-Exilic Jews (the "gôlâ"), stating that God is the father of Israel and that Israel's history begins with the Exodus and not with Abraham. The conclusion to be inferred from this and similar evidence (e.g., Ezra–Nehemiah), is that the figure of Abraham must have been preeminent among the great landowners of Judah at the time of the Exile and after, serving to support their claims to the land in opposition to those of the returning exiles. |
Abraham | Amorite origin hypothesis | Amorite origin hypothesis
According to Nissim Amzallag, the Book of Genesis portrays Abraham as having an Amorite origin, arguing that the patriarch's provenance from the region of Harran as described in associates him with the territory of the Amorite homeland. He also notes parallels between the biblical narrative and the Amorite migration into the Southern Levant in the 2nd millennium BCE. Likewise, some scholars like Daniel E. Fleming and Alice Mandell have argued that the biblical portrayal of the Patriarchs' lifestyle appears to reflect the Amorite culture of the 2nd millennium BCE as attested in texts from the ancient city-state of Mari, suggesting that the Genesis stories retain historical memories of the ancestral origins of some of the Israelites. Alan Millard argues that the name Abram is of Amorite origin and that it is attested in Mari as ʾabī-rām. He also suggests that the Patriarch's name corresponds to a form typical of the Middle Bronze Age and not of later periods. |
Abraham | Palestinian origin hypothesis | Palestinian origin hypothesis
The earliest possible reference to Abraham may be the name of a town in the Negev listed in the Bubastite Portal inscription of Pharaoh Sheshonq I (biblical Shishak), which is referred as "the Fortress of Abraham", suggesting the possible existence of an Abraham tradition in the 10th century BCE. The orientalist Mario Liverani has proposed to see in the name Abraham the eponymous ancestor of a 13th-century BCE Palestinian tribe, the Raham, mentioned in a stele of Seti I found at Beth-Shean and dating back to around 1289 BCE. The tribe probably lived in the area surrounding or close to Beth-Shean, in Galilee (the stele in fact refers to battles that took place in the area). Liverani hypothesized that the members of the tribe of Raham called themselves "sons of Raham" (*Banu-Raham), so that the name of their eponymous ancestor would have been "father of Raham" (*Abu-Raham), that being the name of the patriarch Abraham. Israel Finkelstein and Thomas Römer suggested that the oldest Abraham traditions originated in the Iron Age (monarchic period) and that they contained an autochthonous hero story, as the oldest biblical references to Abraham outside the book of Genesis ( and ) do not have an indication of a Mesopotamian origin of Abraham and present only two main themes of the Abraham narrative in Genesis—land and offspring. Finkelstein and Römer considered Abraham as ancestor who was worshiped in Hebron, with the oldest tradition of him possibly being about the altar he built in Hebron. |
Abraham | Religious traditions | Religious traditions
Abraham is given a high position of respect in three major world faiths, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the covenant, the special relationship between the Jewish people and God—leading to the belief that the Jews are the chosen people of God. In Christianity, Paul the Apostle taught that Abraham's faith in God—preceding the Mosaic law—made him the prototype of all believers, Jewish or gentile; and in Islam, he is seen as a link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad. |
Abraham | Judaism | Judaism
In Jewish tradition, Abraham is called Avraham Avinu (אברהם אבינו), "our father Abraham", signifying that he is both the biological progenitor of the Jews and the father of Judaism, the first Jew. His story is read in the weekly Torah reading portions, predominantly in the parashot: Lech-Lecha (לֶךְ-לְךָ), Vayeira (וַיֵּרָא), Chayei Sarah (חַיֵּי שָׂרָה), and Toledot (תּוֹלְדֹת).
Hanan bar Rava taught in Abba Arikha's name that Abraham's mother was named ʾĂmatlaʾy bat Karnebo. Hiyya bar Abba taught that Abraham worked in Teraḥ's idol shop in his youth.
In Legends of the Jews, God created heaven and earth for the sake of the merits of Abraham. After the biblical flood, Abraham was the only one among the pious who solemnly swore never to forsake God, studied in the house of Noah and Shem to learn about the "Ways of God", and continued the line of High Priest from Noah and Shem, assigning the office to Levi and his seed forever. Before leaving his father's land, Abraham was miraculously saved from the fiery furnace of Nimrod following his brave action of breaking the idols of the Chaldeans into pieces. During his sojourning in Canaan, Abraham was accustomed to extend hospitality to travelers and strangers and taught how to praise God also knowledge of God to those who had received his kindness.
Along with Isaac and Jacob, he is the one whose name would appear united with God, as God in Judaism is called Elohei Avraham, Elohei Yitzchak, vEilohei Ya'akov ("God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob"). He was also mentioned as the father of thirty nations. |
Abraham | Christianity | Christianity
thumb|Abraham and the Angels, by Aert de Gelder, (Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam)
In Christianity, Abraham is revered as the prophet to whom God chose to reveal himself and with whom God initiated a covenant (cf. Covenant Theology). Paul the Apostle declared that all who believe in Jesus (Christians) are "included in the seed of Abraham and are inheritors of the promise made to Abraham." In , Abraham is praised for his "unwavering faith" in God, which is tied into the concept of partakers of the covenant of grace being those "who demonstrate faith in the saving power of Christ".Firestone, Reuven. "Abraham." Encyclopedia of World History.
Throughout history, church leaders, following Paul, have emphasized Abraham as the spiritual father of all Christians. Augustine of Hippo declared that Christians are "children (or "seed") of Abraham by faith", Ambrose stated that "by means of their faith Christians possess the promises made to Abraham", and Martin Luther recalled Abraham as "a paradigm of the man of faith."
The Roman Catholic Church, the largest Christian denomination, calls Abraham "our father in Faith" in the Eucharistic prayer of the Roman Canon, recited during the Mass. He is also commemorated in the calendars of saints of several denominations: on 20 August by the Maronite Church, 28 August in the Coptic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East (with the full office for the latter), and on 9 October by the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. In the introduction to his 15th-century translation of the Golden Legend's account of Abraham, William Caxton noted that this patriarch's life was read in church on Quinquagesima Sunday.
He is the patron saint of those in the hospitality industry. The Eastern Orthodox Church commemorates him as the "Righteous Forefather Abraham", with two feast days in its liturgical calendar. The first time is on 9 October (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar, 9 October falls on 22 October of the modern Gregorian Calendar), where he is commemorated together with his nephew "Righteous Lot". The other is on the "Sunday of the Forefathers" (two Sundays before Christmas), when he is commemorated together with other ancestors of Jesus. Abraham is also mentioned in the Divine Liturgy of Basil the Great, just before the Anaphora, and Abraham and Sarah are invoked in the prayers said by the priest over a newly married couple. A popular hymn sung in many English-speaking Sunday Schools by children is known as "Father Abraham" and emphasizes the patriarch as the spiritual progenitor of Christians.
Many conservative Protestant and Reformed theologians emphasize Abraham as the primary biblical model of justification by faith. — “he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness” — is viewed as foundational to this doctrine. In , Paul argues that Abraham was justified before circumcision, presenting him as the spiritual ancestor of all believers. echoes this: “Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.” The prophetic call in to “look to Abraham” is interpreted by theologians such as Alec Motyer as underscoring Abraham’s righteousness through trust in God’s promise rather than reliance on ritual observance.Motyer, J. Alec. The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction and Commentary. InterVarsity Press, 1993, p. 399. There was an extended delay between promise and fulfillment—25 years between God's initial promise and Isaac’s birth—as a time of spiritual formation. Motyer writes: “Abraham lived half his life without Isaac and half with him—the two halves held together by the promise of God.”Motyer, J. Alec. The Message of Genesis 12–50. InterVarsity Press, 1987, p. 94. John Calvin likewise wrote that Abraham’s later obedience, such as offering Isaac, confirmed “the faith which he had before manifested its truth by its fruits.”Calvin, John. Commentary on James. Calvin Translation Society, 1855.
Additionally, many Christians interpret the three visitors who appeared to Abraham in as a foreshadowing of the Trinity, a typology affirmed by Church Fathers like Ambrose and represented iconographically in Andrei Rublev’s The Hospitality of Abraham. |
Abraham | Islam | Islam
thumb|Folios of a prophetic and heroic genealogy including an illustration of Abraham, from a manuscript of a Turkish translation of the 13th century cosmological text
Islam regards (Abraham) as a link in the chain of prophets that begins with Adam and culminates in Muhammad via (Ishmael). Abraham is mentioned in 35 chapters of the Quran, more often than any other biblical personage apart from Moses. He is called both a (monotheist) and (one who submits), and Muslims regard him as a prophet and patriarch, the archetype of the perfect Muslim, and the revered reformer of the Kaaba in Mecca. Islamic tradition considers Abraham the first "pioneer of Islam" (which is also called , the 'religion of Abraham'), and that his purpose and mission throughout his life was to proclaim the oneness of God. In Islam, Abraham holds an exalted position among the major prophets and he is referred to as , meaning 'Friend of God'. Besides and (Isaac and Jacob), Abraham is among the most excellent and honorable men in the view of God. He is also mentioned in Quran as the "Father of Muslims", and is put forward as a role model for the community.; |
Abraham | Druze | Druze
The Druze regard Abraham as the third spokesman (natiq) after Adam and Noah, who helped transmit the foundational teachings of monotheism (tawhid) intended for the larger audience. He is also among the seven prophets who appeared in different periods of history according to the Druze faith. |
Abraham | Mandaeism | Mandaeism
In Mandaeism, Abraham () is mentioned in Book 18 of the Right Ginza as the patriarch of the Jewish people. Mandaeans consider Abraham to have been originally a Mandaean priest, however they differ with Abraham and Jews regarding circumcision which they consider to be bodily mutilation and therefore forbidden. |
Abraham | Baháʼí Faith | Baháʼí Faith
Baháʼís considered Abraham as a Manifestation of God, and as the originator of monotheistic religion. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá states that Abraham was born in Mesopotamia, and Bahá'u'lláh states that the language which Abraham spoke, when "he crossed the Jordan", is Hebrew ('Ibrání), so "the language of the crossing." To ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, the Abraham was born to a family that was ignorant of the oneness of God. Abraham opposed his own people and government, and even his own kin, he rejected all their gods, and, alone and single-handed, he withstood a powerful nation. These people believed not in one God but in many gods, to whom they ascribed miracles, and hence they all rose up against Abraham. No one supported him except his nephew Lot and "one or two other individuals of no consequence". At last the intensity of his enemies' opposition obliged him, utterly wronged, to forsake his native land. Abraham then came to "these regions", that is, to the Holy Land. To Bahá'u'lláh, the "Voice of God" commanded Abraham to offer up Ishmael as a sacrifice, so that his steadfastness in the faith of God and his detachment from all else but him may be demonstrated unto men. The purpose of God, moreover, was to sacrifice him as a ransom for the sins and iniquities of all the peoples of the earth.
In the Baháʼí texts, like the Islamic texts, Abraham is often referred to as "the Friend of God". 'Abdu'l-Bahá described Abraham as the founder of monotheism.
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá also suggested the "holy manifestations who have been the sources or founders of the various religious systems" were united and agreed in purpose and teaching, and the Abraham, Moses, Zoroaster, the Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad, the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh are one in "spirit and reality". |
Abraham | Artistic depictions | Artistic depictions |
Abraham | Painting and sculpture | Painting and sculpture
thumb|left|16th-century plaster cast of a late Roman-era Sacrifice of Isaac. The hand of God originally came down to restrain Abraham's knife (both are now missing).
Paintings on the life of Abraham tend to focus on only a few incidents: the sacrifice of Isaac; meeting Melchizedek; entertaining the three angels; Hagar in the desert; and a few others. Additionally, Martin O'Kane, a professor of Biblical Studies, writes that the parable of Lazarus resting in the "Bosom of Abraham", as described in the Gospel of Luke, became an iconic image in Christian works. According to O'Kane, artists often chose to divert from the common literary portrayal of Lazarus sitting next to Abraham at a banquet in Heaven and instead focus on the "somewhat incongruous notion of Abraham, the most venerated of patriarchs, holding a naked and vulnerable child in his bosom". Several artists have been inspired by the life of Abraham, including Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528), Caravaggio (1573–1610), Donatello, Raphael, Philip van Dyck (Dutch painter, 1680–1753), and Claude Lorrain (French painter, 1600–1682). Rembrandt (Dutch, 1606–1669) created at least seven works on Abraham, Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) did several, Marc Chagall did at least five on Abraham, Gustave Doré (French illustrator, 1832–1883) did six, and James Tissot (French painter and illustrator, 1836–1902) did over twenty works on the subject.
The Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus depicts a set of biblical stories, including Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac. These sculpted scenes are on the outside of a marble Early Christian sarcophagus used for the burial of Junius Bassus. He died in 359. This sarcophagus has been described as "probably the single most famous piece of early Christian relief sculpture." The sarcophagus was originally placed in or under Old St. Peter's Basilica, was rediscovered in 1597, and is now below the modern basilica in the Museo Storico del Tesoro della Basilica di San Pietro (Museum of St. Peter's Basilica) in the Vatican. The base is approximately .
George Segal created figural sculptures by molding plastered gauze strips over live models in his 1987 work Abraham's Farewell to Ishmael. The human condition was central to his concerns, and Segal used the Old Testament as a source for his imagery. This sculpture depicts the dilemma faced by Abraham when Sarah demanded that he expel Hagar and Ishmael. In the sculpture, the father's tenderness, Sarah's rage, and Hagar's resigned acceptance portray a range of human emotions. The sculpture was donated to the Miami Art Museum after the artist's death in 2000.Abraham's Farewell to Ishmael. George Segal. Miami Art Museum. Collections: Recent Acquisitions.. Retrieved 10 September 2014. |
Abraham | Christian iconography | Christian iconography
thumb|Abraham in paradise, Gračanica Monastery, Serbia
Abraham can sometimes be identified by the context of the image the meeting with Melchizedek, the three visitors, or the sacrifice of Isaac. In solo portraits a sword or knife may be used as his accessory, as in this statue by Giovanni Maria Morlaiter or this painting by Lorenzo Monaco.
As early as the beginning of the 3rd century, Christian art followed Christian typology in making the sacrifice of Isaac a foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice on the cross, and its memorial in the sacrifice of the Mass. See for example this 11th-century Christian altar engraved with Abraham's and other sacrifices taken to prefigure that of Christ in the Eucharist.
thumb|Mural of Abraham in Heaven from the Holy Mother Church, Ploieşti, Romania
Some early Christian writers interpreted the three visitors as the triune God. Thus in Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, a 5th-century mosaic portrays only the visitors against a gold ground and puts semitransparent copies of them in the "heavenly" space above the scene. In Eastern Orthodox art, the visit is the chief means by which the Trinity is pictured (example). Some images do not include Abraham and Sarah, like Andrei Rublev's Trinity, which shows only the three visitors as beardless youths at a table. |
Abraham | Literature | Literature
Fear and Trembling (original Danish title: ) is an influential philosophical work by Søren Kierkegaard, published in 1843 under the pseudonym (John the Silent). Kierkegaard wanted to understand the anxiety that must have been present in Abraham when God asked him to sacrifice his son. W. G. Hardy's novel Father Abraham (1935) tells the fictionalized life story of Abraham. In her short story collection Sarah and After, Lynne Reid Banks tells the story of Abraham and Sarah, with an emphasis on Sarah's view of events. |
Abraham | Music | Music
In 1681, Marc-Antoine Charpentier released a Dramatic motet (Oratorio), H.402 – 402 a – 402 b, for soloists, chorus, doubling instruments and continuo. Sébastien de Brossard composed a cantata between 1703 and 1708.
In 1994, Steve Reich released an opera named The Cave. The title refers to the Cave of the Patriarchs. The narrative of the opera is based on the story of Abraham, and his immediate family, as it is recounted in religious texts, and understood by individuals from different cultures and religious traditions.
The eponymous track on Bob Dylan's 1965 album Highway 61 Revisited contains five stanzas, with someone in each describing an unusual problem that is ultimately resolved on Highway 61. In the first stanza, God tells Abraham to "kill me a son". God wants the killing done on Highway 61. Abram, the birth name of Abraham, is also the name of Dylan's father. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Highway 61 Revisited" at number 364 in their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. |
Abraham | See also | See also |
Abraham | Footnotes | Footnotes |
Abraham | References | References |
Abraham | Bibliography | Bibliography
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Abraham | External links | External links
Abraham smashes the idols
"Journey and Life of the Patriarch Abraham", a map dating back to 1590
Category:21st-century BC people
Category:Angelic visionaries
Category:Ancestors of the Ishmaelites
Category:Biblical patriarchs
Category:Biblical people
Category:Book of Genesis people
Category:Characters in the Divine Comedy
Category:Christian saints from the Old Testament
Category:Founders of religions
Category:Hebrew Bible people
Category:Lech-Lecha
Category:People from Harran
Category:Prophets in the Druze faith
Category:Sumerian people
Category:Ur of the Chaldees
Category:Vayeira |
Abraham | Table of Content | Short description, The Abraham Cycle, Structure and narrative programs, Origins and calling, Sarai, Abram and Lot separate, Chedorlaomer, Covenant of the pieces, Hagar, Sarah, {{anchor, Abraham's plea, Abimelech, Isaac, Ishmael, Binding of Isaac, Later years, Historical context, Historicity, {{anchor, Amorite origin hypothesis, Palestinian origin hypothesis, Religious traditions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Druze, Mandaeism, Baháʼí Faith, Artistic depictions, Painting and sculpture, Christian iconography, Literature, Music, See also, Footnotes, References, Bibliography, External links |
Abraxas | short description | thumb|Medieval seal representing Abraxas.
Abraxas (, variant form romanized: ) is a word of mystic meaning in the system of the Gnostic Basilides, being there applied to the "Great Archon" (), the princeps of the 365 spheres (). The word is found in Gnostic texts such as the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit and the Apocalypse of Adam, and also appears in the Greek Magical Papyri. It was engraved on certain antique gemstones, called on that account Abraxas stones, which were used as amulets or charms. As the initial spelling on stones was (), the spelling of seen today probably originates in the confusion made between the Greek letters sigma (Σ) and xi (Ξ) in the Latin transliteration.
The seven letters spelling its name may represent each of the seven classic planets. The word may be related to Abracadabra, although other explanations exist.
There are similarities and differences between such figures in reports about Basilides's teaching, ancient Gnostic texts, the larger Greco-Roman magical traditions, and modern magical and esoteric writings. Speculations have proliferated on Abraxas in recent centuries, which has been claimed to be both an Egyptian god and a demon."Demonographers have made him a demon, who has the head of a king and serpents for feet." |
Abraxas | Etymology | Etymology
Gaius Julius Hyginus (Fab. 183) gives Abrax Aslo Therbeeo as names of horses of the sun mentioned by 'Homerus'. The passage is miserably corrupt, but it may not be accidental that the first three syllables make Abraxas.
The proper form of the name is evidently Abrasax, as with the Greek writers, Hippolytus, Epiphanius, Didymus (De Trin. iii. 42), and Theodoret; also Augustine and Praedestinatus; and in nearly all the legends on gems. By a probably euphonic inversion the translator of Irenaeus and the other Latin authors have Abraxas, which is found in the magical papyri, and even, though most sparingly, on engraved stones.
The attempts to discover a derivation for the name, Greek, Hebrew, Coptic, or other, have not been entirely successful: |
Abraxas | Egyptian | Egyptian
Chuvash linguists, the word was translated as Ouroboros
Claudius Salmasius (1588–1653) thought it Egyptian, but never gave the proofs which he promised.
J. J. Bellermann thinks it is a compound of the Egyptian words and , meaning "the honorable and hallowed word", or "the word is adorable".
Samuel Sharpe finds in it an Egyptian invocation to the Godhead, meaning "hurt me not". |
Abraxas | Hebrew | Hebrew
Abraham Geiger sees in it a Grecized form of , "The Blessing." Charles William King supports this gloss, citing a similar translation of the word abracadabra as , "Pronounce the Blessing."
J. B. Passerius derives it from , "father", , "to create", and negative—"the uncreated Father".
Giuseppe Barzilai goes back for explanation to the first verse of the prayer attributed to Nehunya ben HaKanah, the literal rendering of which is "O [God], with thy mighty right hand deliver the unhappy [people]", forming from the initial and final letters of the words the word Abrakd (pronounced Abrakad), with the meaning "the host of the winged ones", i.e., angels. While this theory can explain the mystic word Abracadabra, the association of this phrase with Abraxas is uncertain. |
Abraxas | Greek | Greek
Wendelin discovers a compound of the initial letters, amounting to 365 in numerical value, of four Hebrew and three Greek words, all written with Greek characters: ("Father, Son, Spirit, holy; salvation from the cross").
According to a note of Isaac de Beausobre's, Jean Hardouin accepted the first three of these, taking the four others for the initials of the Greek , "saving mankind by the holy cross".
Isaac de Beausobre derives Abraxas from the Greek and , "the beautiful, the glorious Savior".
Perhaps the word may be included among those mysterious expressions discussed by Adolf von Harnack, "which belong to no known speech, and by their singular collocation of vowels and consonants give evidence that they belong to some mystic dialect, or take their origin from some supposed divine inspiration".
The Egyptian author of the book De Mysteriis in reply to Porphyry (vii. 4) admits a preference of 'barbarous' to vernacular names in sacred things, urging a peculiar sanctity in the languages of certain nations, as the Egyptians and Assyrians; and Origen (Contra Cels. i. 24) refers to the 'potent names' used by Egyptian sages, Persian Magi, and Indian Brahmins, signifying deities in the several languages. |
Abraxas | Sources | Sources
It is uncertain what the actual role and function of Abraxas was in the Basilidian system, as our authorities (see below) often show no direct acquaintance with the doctrines of Basilides himself. |
Abraxas | As an archon | As an archon
thumb|right|Gemstone carved with Abraxas, obverse and reverse.
In the system described by Irenaeus, "the Unbegotten Father" is the progenitor of Nous "Discerning Mind"; Nous produced Logos "Word, Reason"; Logos produced Phronesis "Mindfulness"; Phronesis produced Sophia "Wisdom" and Dynamis "Potentiality"; Sophia and Dynamis produced the principalities, powers, and angels, the last of whom create "the first heaven". They, in turn, originate a second series, who create a second heaven. The process continues in like manner until 365 heavens are in existence, the angels of the last or visible heaven being the authors of our world. "The ruler" [principem, i.e., probably ton archonta] of the 365 heavens "is Abraxas, and for this reason he contains within himself 365 numbers".
The name occurs in the Refutation of All Heresies (vii. 26) by Hippolytus, who appears in these chapters to have followed the Exegetica of Basilides. After describing the manifestation of the Gospel in the Ogdoad and Hebdomad, he adds that the Basilidians have a long account of the innumerable creations and powers in the several 'stages' of the upper world (diastemata), in which they speak of 365 heavens and say that "their great archon" is Abrasax, because his name contains the number 365, the number of the days in the year; i.e. the sum of the numbers denoted by the Greek letters in ΑΒΡΑΣΑΞ according to the rules of isopsephy is 365: |
Abraxas | As a god | As a god
Epiphanius (Haer. 69, 73 f.) appears to follow partly Irenaeus, partly the lost Compendium of Hippolytus.Lipsius, R. A., Zur Quellenkritik d. Epiphanios 99 f. He designates Abraxas more distinctly as "the power above all, and First Principle", "the cause and first archetype" of all things; and mentions that the Basilidians referred to 365 as the number of parts (mele) in the human body, as well as of days in the year.
The author of the appendix to Tertullian De Praescr. Haer. (c. 4), who likewise follows Hippolytus's Compendium,Lipsius 33 f. &c. adds some further particulars; that 'Abraxas' gave birth to Mind (nous), the first in the series of primary powers enumerated likewise by Irenaeus and Epiphanius; that the world, as well as the 365 heavens, was created in honour of 'Abraxas'; and that Christ was sent not by the Maker of the world but by 'Abraxas'.
Nothing can be built on the vague allusions of Jerome, according to whom 'Abraxas' meant for Basilides "the greatest God" (De vir. ill. 21), "the highest God" (Dial. adv. Lucif. 23), "the Almighty God" (Comm. in Amos iii. 9), and "the Lord the Creator" (Comm. in Nah. i. 11). The notices in Theodoret (Haer. fab. i. 4), Augustine (Haer. 4), and 'Praedestinatus' (i. 3), have no independent value.
It is evident from these particulars that Abrasax was the name of the first of the 365 Archons, and accordingly stood below Sophia and Dynamis and their progenitors; but his position is not expressly stated, so that the writer of the supplement to Tertullian had some excuse for confusing him with "the Supreme God". |
Abraxas | As an aeon | As an aeon
With the availability of primary sources, such as those in the Nag Hammadi library, the identity of Abraxas remains unclear. The Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, for instance, refers to Abraxas as an Aeon dwelling with Sophia and other Aeons of the Pleroma in the light of the luminary Eleleth. In several texts, the luminary Eleleth is the last of the luminaries (Spiritual Lights) that come forward, and it is the Aeon Sophia, associated with Eleleth, who encounters darkness and becomes involved in the chain of events that leads to the Demiurge's rule of this world, and the salvage effort that ensues. As such, the role of Aeons of Eleleth, including Abraxas, Sophia, and others, pertains to this outer border of the Pleroma that encounters the ignorance of the world of Lack and interacts to rectify the error of ignorance in the world of materiality.
In the Apocalypse of Adam, Abrasax is sent along with Sablo and Gamaliel to bring some of the Gnostic people "out of the fire and the wrath, and take them above the aeons and the rulers of the powers, and take them away [...] of life [...] and take them away [...] aeons [...] dwelling place of the great [...] there, with the holy angels and the aeons. The men will be like those angels, for they are not strangers to them." |
Abraxas | As a demon | As a demon
The Catholic church later deemed Abraxas a pagan god, and ultimately branded him a demon as documented in J. Collin de Plancy's Infernal Dictionary, Abraxas (or Abracax) is labeled the "supreme God" of the Basilidians, whom he describes as "heretics of the second century". He further indicated the Basilidians attributed to Abraxas the rule over "365 skies" and "365 virtues". In a final statement on Basilidians, de Plancy states that their view was that Jesus Christ was merely a "benevolent ghost sent on Earth by Abraxas". |
Abraxas | Abraxas stones | Abraxas stones
A vast number of engraved stones are in existence, to which the name "Abraxas-stones" has long been given. One particularly fine example was included as part of the Thetford treasure from fourth century Norfolk, England. The subjects are mythological, and chiefly grotesque, with various inscriptions, in which ΑΒΡΑΣΑΞ often occurs, alone or with other words. Sometimes the whole space is taken up with the inscription. In certain obscure magical writings of Egyptian origin ἀβραξάς or ἀβρασάξ is found associated with other names which frequently accompany it on gems; it is also found on the Greek metal tesseræ among other mystic words. The meaning of the legends is seldom intelligible: but some of the gems are amulets; and the same may be the case with nearly all.
thumb|A print from Bernard de Montfaucon's L'antiquité expliquée et représentée en figures (Band 2,2 page 358 ff plaque 144) with different images of Abraxas.
The Abraxas-image alone, without external Iconisms, and either without, or but a simple, inscription. The Abrasax-imago proper is usually found with a shield, a sphere or wreath and whip, a sword or sceptre, a cock's head, the body clad with armor, and a serpent's tail. There are, however, innumerable modifications of these figures: Lions', hawks', and eagles' skins, with or without mottos, with or without a trident and star, and with or without reverses.
Abraxas combined with other Gnostic Powers. If, in a single instance, this supreme being was represented in connection with powers of subordinate rank, nothing could have been more natural than to represent it also in combination with its emanations, the seven superior spirits, the thirty Aeons, and the three hundred and sixty-five cosmical Genii; and yet this occurs upon none of the relics as yet discovered, whilst those with Powers not belonging to the Gnostic system are frequently met with.
Abraxas with Jewish symbols. This combination predominates, not indeed with symbolical figures, but in the form of inscriptions, such as: Iao, Eloai, Adonai, Sabaoth, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, Onoel, Ananoel, Raphael, Japlael, and many others. The name ΙΑΩ, to which ΣΑΒΑΩΘ is sometimes added, is found with this figure even more frequently than ΑΒΡΑΣΑΞ, and they are often combined. Beside an Abrasax figure the following, for instance, is found: ΙΑΩ ΑΒΡΑΣΑΞ ΑΔΩΝ ΑΤΑ, "Iao Abrasax, thou art the Lord". With the Abrasax-shield are also found the divine names Sabaoth Iao, Iao Abrasax, Adonai Abrasax, etc.
Abraxas with Persian deities. Chiefly, perhaps exclusively, in combination with Mithras, and possibly a few specimens with the mystical gradations of mithriaca, upon Gnostic relics.
Abraxas with Egyptian deities. It is represented as a figure, with the sun-god Phre leading his chariot, or standing upon a lion borne by a crocodile; also as a name, in connection with Isis, Phtha, Neith, Athor, Thot, Anubis, Horus, and Harpocrates in a Lotus-leaf; also with a representation of the Nile, the symbol of prolificacy, with Agathodaemon (Chnuphis), or with scarabs, the symbols of the revivifying energies of nature.
Abraxas with Grecian deities, sometimes as a figure, and again with the simple name, in connection with the planets, especially Venus, Hecate, and Zeus, richly engraved.
Simple or ornamental representations of the journey of departed spirits through the starry world to Amenti, borrowed, as those above-named, from the Egyptian religion. The spirit wafted from the earth, either with or without the corpse, and transformed at times into Osiris or Helios, is depicted as riding upon the back of a crocodile, or lion, guided in some instances by Anubis, and other genii, and surrounded by stars; and thus attended hastening to judgment and a higher life.
Representations of the judgment, which, like the preceding, are either ornamental or plain, and imitations of Egyptian art, with slight modifications and prominent symbols, as the vessel in which Anubis weighs the human heart, as comprehending the entire life of man, with all its errors.
Worship and consecrating services were, according to the testimony of Origen in his description of the ophitic diagram, conducted with figurative representations in the secret assemblies of the Gnostics unless indeed the statement on which this opinion rests designates, as it readily may, a statue of glyptic workmanship. It is uncertain if any of the discovered specimens actually represent the Gnostic cultus and religious ceremonies, although upon some may be seen an Abrasax-figure laying its hand upon a person kneeling, as though for baptism or benediction.
Astrological groups. The Gnostics referred everything to astrology. Even the Bardesenists located the inferior powers, the seven, twelve and thirty-six, among the planets, in the zodiac and starry region, as rulers of the celestial phenomena which influence the earth and its inhabitants. Birth and health, wealth and allotment, are considered to be mainly under their control. Other sects betray still stronger partiality for astrological conceits. Many of these specimens also are improperly ascribed to Gnosticism, but the Gnostic origin of others is too manifest to allow of contradiction.
Inscriptions, of which there are three kinds:
Those destitute of symbols or iconisms, engraved upon stone, iron, lead and silver plates, in Greek, Latin, Coptic or other languages, of amuletic import, and in the form of prayers for health and protection.
Those with some symbol, as a serpent in an oval form.
Those with iconisms, at times very small, but often made the prominent object, so that the legend is limited to a single word or name. Sometimes the legends are as important as the images. It is remarkable, however, that thus far none of the plates or medals found seem to have any of the forms or prayers reported by Origen. It is necessary to distinguish those specimens that belong to the proper Gnostic period from such as are indisputably of later origin, especially since there is a strong temptation to place those of more recent date among the older class. |
Abraxas | Gallery | Gallery |
Abraxas | Anguipede | Anguipede
thumb|right|Engraving from an Abrasax stone.
In a great majority of instances the name Abraxas is associated with a singular composite figure, having a Chimera-like appearance somewhat resembling a basilisk or the Greek primordial god Chronos (not to be confused with the Greek titan Cronus). According to E. A. Wallis Budge, "as a Pantheus, i.e. All-God, he appears on the amulets with the head of a cock (Phœbus) or of a lion (Ra or Mithras), the body of a man, and his legs are serpents which terminate in scorpions, types of the Agathodaimon. In his right hand he grasps a club, or a flail, and in his left is a round or oval shield." This form was also referred to as the Anguipede. Budge surmised that Abrasax was "a form of the Adam Kadmon of the Kabbalists and the Primal Man whom God made in His own image".
Some parts at least of the figure mentioned above are solar symbols, and the Basilidian Abrasax is manifestly connected with the sun. J. J. Bellermann has speculated that "the whole represents the Supreme Being, with his Five great Emanations, each one pointed out by means of an expressive emblem. Thus, from the human body, the usual form assigned to the Deity, forasmuch as it is written that God created man in his own image, issue the two supporters, Nous and Logos, symbols of the inner sense and the quickening understanding, as typified by the serpents, for the same reason that had induced the old Greeks to assign this reptile for an attribute to Pallas. His head—a cock's—represents Phronesis, the fowl being emblematical of foresight and vigilance. His two hands bear the badges of Sophia and Dynamis, the shield of Wisdom, and the scourge of Power." |
Abraxas | Origin | Origin
In the absence of other evidence to show the origin of these curious relics of antiquity the occurrence of a name known as Basilidian on patristic authority has not unnaturally been taken as a sufficient mark of origin, and the early collectors and critics assumed this whole group to be the work of Gnostics. During the last three centuries attempts have been made to sift away successively those gems that had no claim to be considered in any sense Gnostic, or specially Basilidian, or connected with Abrasax. The subject is one which has exercised the ingenuity of many savants, but it may be said that all the engraved stones fall into three classes:
Abraxas, or stones of Basilidian origin
Abraxastes, or stones originating in ancient forms of worship and adapted by the Gnostics
Abraxoïdes, or stones absolutely unconnected with the doctrine of Basilides
While it would be rash to assert positively that no existing gems were the work of Gnostics, there is no valid reason for attributing all of them to such an origin. The fact that the name occurs on these gems in connection with representations of figures with the head of a cock, a lion, or an ass, and the tail of a serpent was formerly taken in the light of what Irenaeus says about the followers of Basilides:
Incantations by mystic names were characteristic of the hybrid Gnosticism planted in Spain and southern Gaul at the end of the fourth century and at the beginning of the fifth, which Jerome connects with Basilides and which (according to his Epist., lxxv.) used the name Abraxas.
It is therefore not unlikely that some Gnostics used amulets, though the confident assertions of modern writers to this effect rest on no authority. Isaac de Beausobre properly calls attention to the significant silence of Clement in the two passages in which he instructs the Christians of Alexandria on the right use of rings and gems, and the figures which may legitimately be engraved on them (Paed. 241 ff.; 287 ff.). But no attempt to identify the figures on existing gems with the personages of Gnostic mythology has had any success, and Abraxas is the only Gnostic term found in the accompanying legends that is not known to belong to other religions or mythologies. The present state of the evidence therefore suggests that their engravers and the Basilidians received the mystic name from a common source now unknown. |
Abraxas | Magical papyri | Magical papyri
Having due regard to the magic papyri, in which many of the unintelligible names of the Abrasax-stones reappear, besides directions for making and using gems with similar figures and formulas for magical purposes, it can scarcely be doubted that many of these stones are pagan amulets and instruments of magic.
The magic papyri reflect the same ideas as the Abrasax-gems and often bear Hebraic names of God. The following example is illustrative: "I conjure you by Iaō Sabaōth Adōnai Abrasax, and by the great god, Iaeō".Wessely, Neue Zauberpapyri, p. 27, No. 229. The patriarchs are sometimes addressed as deities; for which fact many instances may be adduced. In the group "Iakoubia, Iaōsabaōth Adōnai Abrasax", the first name seems to be composed of Jacob and Ya. Similarly, entities considered angels in Judaism are invoked as gods alongside Abrasax: thus "I conjure you ... by the god Michaēl, by the god Souriēl, by the god Gabriēl, by the god Raphaēl, by the god Abrasax Ablathanalba Akrammachari ...".
In text PGM V. 96–172, Abraxas is identified as part of the "true name which has been transmitted to the prophets of Israel" of the "Headless One, who created heaven and earth, who created night and day ... Osoronnophris whom none has ever seen ... awesome and invisible god with an empty spirit"; the name also includes Iaō and Adōnai. "Osoronnophris" represents Egyptian Wsir Wn-nfr, "Osiris the Perfect Being". Another identification with Osiris is made in PGM VII. 643-51: "you are not wine, but the guts of Osiris, the guts of ... Ablanathanalba Akrammachamarei Eee, who has been stationed over necessity, Iakoub Ia Iaō Sabaōth Adōnai Abrasax." PGM VIII. 1-63, on the other hand, identifies Abraxas as a name of "Hermes" (i.e. Thoth). Here the numerological properties of the name are invoked, with its seven letters corresponding to the seven planets and its isopsephic value of 365 corresponding to the days of the year. Thoth is also identified with Abrasax in PGM LXXIX. 1-7: "I am the soul of darkness, Abrasax, the eternal one, Michaēl, but my true name is Thōouth, Thōouth."
One papyrus titled the "Monad" or the "Eighth Book of Moses" (PGM XIII. 1–343) contains an invocation to a supreme creator God; Abraxas is given as being the name of this God in the language of the baboons. The papyrus goes on to describe a cosmogonic myth about Abraxas, describing how he created the Ogdoad by laughing. His first laughter created light; his second divided the primordial waters; his third created the mind; his fourth created fertility and procreation; his fifth created fate; his sixth created time (as the sun and moon); and his seventh and final laughter created the soul. Then, from various sounds made by Abrasax, there arose the serpent Python who "foreknew all things", the first man (or Fear), and the god Iaō, "who is lord of all". The man fought with Iaō, and Abrasax declared that Iaō's power would derive from both of the others, and that Iaō would take precedence over all the other gods. This text also describes Helios as an archangel of God/Abrasax.
The Leyden Papyrus recommends that this invocation be pronounced to the moon:
The magic word "Ablanathanalba", which reads in Greek the same backward as forward, also occurs in the Abraxas-stones as well as in the magic papyri. This word is usually conceded to be derived from the Hebrew (Aramaic), meaning "Thou art our father" (אב לן את), and also occurs in connection with Abraxas; the following inscription is found upon a metal plate in the Karlsruhe Museum: |
Abraxas | In architecture | In architecture
Les Espaces d'Abraxas is a high-density housing complex in Noisy-le-Grand near Paris, France designed by Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill and opened in 1983. |
Abraxas | In literature | In literature |
Abraxas | In popular culture | In popular culture
In the L word Season 1, the character Jennifer Schechter writes a story with a demon called Abraxas
The band Santana'''s second studio album was called "Abraxas." It was released September 23, 1970.
In Foundation, the Abraxas Conjecture is a mathematic proof that was unsolved for over five hundred years. Gaal Dornick solved Abraxas using Kalle's Ninth Proof of Folding.
In the 2021 immersive sim video game Cruelty Squad, developed and published by artist Ville Kallio, Abraxas appears as the final assassination target in the game's final level, "Archon Grid."
In the 2022 folk horror video game The Excavation of Hob's Barrow, published by Wadjet Eye Games, Abraxas features as a long-dormant god/demon inspired by the original Gnostic mythology.
The 2023 horror movie Late Night with the Devil includes mention of a fictional cult that worships Abraxas.
In the 2023–2024 South Korean television series My Demon, Abraxas is the pseudonym of one of the antagonist in the series and mention a passage in the book, Demian.
The videogame franchise Megami Tensei includes Abraxas as a recurring demon.
The original Charmed includes Abraxas as demon who tries to steal the book of shadows in season 2 episode 1.
In the 2024 episodic adventure video game Life Is Strange: Double Exposure, Abraxas is the name of a collegiate secret society.
See also
Arimanius
Chronos
Sator Square
References
Citations
Works cited
General references
Wendelin, in a letter in
Idem, Abraxas in Herzog, RE, 2d ed., 1877.
Idem, Appendice alla dissertazione sugli Abraxas, ib. 1874.
Harnack, Geschichte, i. 161. The older material is listed by Matter, ut sup., and Wessely, Ephesia grammata'', vol. ii., Vienna, 1886.
Eng. transl., 10 vols., London, 1721–2725.
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Abraxas | Attribution | Attribution
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Abraxas | Further reading | Further reading |
Abraxas | External links | External links
The complete texts of Carl Jung's "The Seven Sermons To The Dead"
Abraxas article from The Mystica
Category:Gnostic deities
Category:Magic words
Category:Mythological hybrids
Category:Names of God in Gnosticism
Category:Theophoric names
Category:Thoth
Category:Hermes
Category:Osiris |
Abraxas | Table of Content | short description, Etymology, Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, Sources, As an archon, As a god, As an aeon, As a demon, Abraxas stones, Gallery, Anguipede, Origin, Magical papyri, In architecture, In literature, In popular culture, Attribution, Further reading, External links |
Absalom | Short description | Absalom ( , ), according to the Hebrew Bible, was an Israelite prince. Born to David and Maacah, who was from Geshur, he was the only full sibling of Tamar. He is described in the Hebrew Bible as being exceptionally beautiful, as is his sister. In the narrative of 2 Samuel 13, his sister Tamar takes refuge at his house after she is raped by their paternal half-brother Amnon (born to David and Ahinoam, who was from Jezreel); David is angered by the incident, but does nothing, as Amnon is his heir apparent. Infuriated by the rape and David's inaction, Absalom assassinates Amnon and subsequently flees to Geshur, which is ruled by his and Tamar's maternal grandfather Talmai.
Following three years in exile, he returns to Israel and rallies popular support against the House of David. A war ensues when Absalom's rebels mobilize at Hebron and begin fighting David's army in an attempt to overthrow him, but their revolt ends in failure when Absalom is killed by David's nephew and army commander Joab during the Battle of the Wood of Ephraim. In the aftermath of his death, Absalom's sister is described as being left "a desolate woman in her brother's house" and the sole guardian of his orphaned daughter, who is also named Tamar. |
Absalom | Biblical narrative | Biblical narrative |
Absalom | Background | Background
thumb|right|The Banquet of Absalom attributed to Niccolò de Simone around 1650
Absalom, David's third son, by Maacah, was born in Hebron. At an early age, he moved, along with the transfer of the capital, to Jerusalem, where he spent most of his life. He was a great favorite of his father and of the people. His charming manners, personal beauty, insinuating ways, love of pomp, and royal pretensions captivated the hearts of the people from the beginning. He lived in great style, drove in a magnificent chariot, and had fifty men run before him.
Little is known of Absalom's family life, but the biblical narrative states that he had three sons and one daughter, Tamar, who is described as a beautiful woman. From the language of 2 Samuel 18:18, Absalom states, "I have no son to keep my name in remembrance". It may be that his sons died before his statement, or, as Matthew Henry suggests, Absalom's three sons may have been born after his statement.
Aside from his daughter Tamar, Absalom had another daughter or granddaughter, Maacah, who later became the favorite wife of Rehoboam. Maacah was the mother of Abijah of Judah and the grandmother of Asa of Judah. She served as queen mother for Asa until he deposed her for idolatry. |
Absalom | Murder of Amnon | Murder of Amnon
thumb|The Feast of Absalom, Niccolò Tornioli, 17th century
thumb|Leaf from the Morgan Picture Bible, "Scenes from the Life of David"
thumb|Leaf from the Morgan Picture Bible, "Scenes from the Life of Absalom", c. 1250
thumb|The death of Absalom, hanging from a tree by his hair (14th-century German miniature)
thumb|The Death of Absalom (circa 1447), Pietro di Tommaso del Minella (1391–1458), - tiled floor, south transept of Siena Cathedral
Absalom also had a sister named Tamar, who was raped by her half-brother Amnon, David's eldest son. Absalom waited two years after the rape for vengeance, sending his servants to murder a drunken Amnon at a feast to which Absalom had invited all of King David's sons.
After this murder, Absalom fled to his maternal grandfather Talmai, the king of Geshur. Not until three years later was Absalom fully reinstated in David's favour and finally returned to Jerusalem. (see Joab) |
Absalom | The revolt at Hebron | The revolt at Hebron
In Jerusalem, Absalom built support for himself by speaking to those who came to King David for justice, saying, "See, your claims are good and right; but there is no one deputed by the king to hear you", perhaps reflecting flaws in the judicial system of the united monarchy. "If only I were the judge of the land! Then all who had a suit or cause might come to me, and I would give them justice." He made gestures of flattery by kissing those who bowed before him instead of accepting supplication. He "stole the hearts of the people of Israel".
After four years, he declared himself king, raised a revolt at Hebron, the former capital, and publicly raped his father's ten concubines. It is said that this was God punishing David for his sin with Bathsheba tenfold. All Israel and Judah flocked to him, and David, attended only by the Cherethites and Pelethites and his former bodyguard, which had followed him from Gath, found it expedient to flee. The priests Zadok and Abiathar remained in Jerusalem, and their sons Jonathan and Ahimaaz served as David's spies. Absalom reached the capital and consulted with the renowned Ahitophel (sometimes spelled Achitophel). It is also speculated that Ahitophel could have joined Absalom's cause as David had previously committed adultery with his granddaughter, Bathsheba.
David took refuge from Absalom's forces beyond the Jordan River. However, he took the precaution of instructing a servant, Hushai, to infiltrate Absalom's court and subvert it. Once in place, Hushai convinced Absalom to ignore Ahitophel's advice to attack his father while he was on the run, and instead to prepare his forces for a major attack. This gave David critical time to prepare his own troops for the battle. When Ahitophel saw that his advice was not followed, he committed suicide by hanging himself. |
Absalom | Battle of Ephraim's Wood | Battle of Ephraim's Wood
A fateful battle was fought in the Wood of Ephraim (the name suggests a locality west of the Jordan) and Absalom's army was completely routed. When Absalom fled from David's army, his head was caught in the boughs of an oak tree as the mule he was riding ran beneath it. He was discovered there still alive by one of David's men, who reported this to Joab, the king's commander. Joab, accustomed to avenging himself, took this opportunity to even the score with Absalom. Absalom had once set Joab's field of barley on fire and then made Amasa Captain of the Host instead of Joab. Killing Absalom was against David's explicit command, "Beware that none touch the young man Absalom". Joab injured Absalom with three darts through the heart and Absalom was subsequently killed by ten of Joab's armor-bearers.
When David heard that Absalom was killed, although not how he was killed, he greatly sorrowed.
David withdrew to the city of Mahanaim in mourning, until Joab roused him from "the extravagance of his grief" and called on him to fulfill his duty to his people. |
Absalom | Memorial | Memorial
thumb|Two views of the burial chamber inside the so-called Tomb of Absalom in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, Jerusalem, which has no connection to biblical Absalom.
Absalom had erected a monument near Jerusalem to perpetuate his name:
An ancient monument in the Kidron Valley near the Old City of Jerusalem, known as the Tomb of Absalom or Absalom's Pillar and traditionally identified as the monument of the biblical narrative, is now dated by modern archeologists to the first century AD. The Jewish Encyclopedia reports: "A tomb twenty feet high and twenty-four feet square, which late tradition points out as the resting-place of Absalom. It is situated in the eastern part of the valley of Kidron, to the east of Jerusalem. In all probability it is the tomb of Alexander Jannæus (Conder, in Hastings' Dict. Bible, article "Jerusalem", p. 597). It existed in the days of Josephus."Antiquities" vii. 10, § 3 However, archaeologists have now dated the tomb to the 1st century AD. In a 2013 conference, Professor Gabriel Barkay suggested that it could be the tomb of Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great, based in part on the similarity to Herod's newly discovered tomb at Herodium. For centuries, it was the custom among passers-by—Jews, Christians and Muslims—to throw stones at the monument. Residents of Jerusalem would bring their unruly children to the site to teach them what became of a rebellious son. |
Absalom | Rabbinic literature | Rabbinic literature
The explanation in Rabbanic Literature about why Ahithophel had advised Absalom to act against his father: The Talmud speaks of this counsellor of David as "a man, like Balaam, whose great wisdom was not received in humility as a gift from heaven, and so became a stumbling block to him."Numbers Rabbah 22 He was "one of those who, while casting longing eyes upon things not belonging to them, also lose the things they possess."Tosefta, Sotah, 4:19 Accordingly, Ahithophel was granted access by Almighty God into the Divine powers of God. And being thus familiar with Divine wisdom and knowledge as imparted through the Holy Spirit, he was consulted as an oracle like the Urim and Thummim.2 Samuel 16:23, Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 10 (29a), Sukkah 53a et seq. "..and great as was his wisdom, it was equalled by his scholarship. Therefore, David did not hesitate to submit himself to his instruction, even though Ahithophel was a very young
man at his death, not more than thirty-three years old. The one thing lacking in him was sincere piety, which proved his undoing in the end, for it induced him to participate in Absalom's rebellion against David. Thus, he forfeited even his share in the world to come.
To this dire course of action, he was misled by astrology and other signs, which he interpreted as prophecies of his kingship when in reality, they pointed to the royal destiny of his granddaughter Bath-sheba. Possessed by his erroneous belief, he cunningly urged Absalom to commit an unheard-of crime. Thus, Absalom would profit nothing by his rebellion, for, though he accomplished his father's ruin, he would yet be held to account and condemned to death for his violation of family purity, and the way to the throne would be clear for Ahithophel, the great sage in Israel."Legends of the Jews pp.62-67
The life and death of Absalom offered to the rabbis a welcome theme wherewith to warn the people against false ambition, vainglory, and unfilial conduct. The vanity with which he displayed his beautiful hair, the rabbis say, became his snare and his stumbling-block. "By his long hair the Nazirite entangled the people to rebel against his father, and by it he himself became entangled, to fall a victim to his pursuers".Mishnah Soṭah, i. 8 And again, elsewhere: "By his vile stratagem he deceived and stole three hearts, that of his father, of the elders, and finally of the whole nation of Israel, and for this reason three darts were thrust into his heart to end his treacherous life".Tosef., Soṭah, iii. 17 More striking is the following: "Did one ever hear of an oak-tree having a heart? And yet in the oak-tree in whose branches Absalom was caught, we read that upon its heart he was held up still alive while the darts were thrust through him.[Mek., Shirah, § 6] This is to show that when a man becomes so heartless as to make war against his own father, nature itself takes on a heart to avenge the deed."
"The knowledge that a part of Absalom's following sided with him in secret,--that, though he was pursued by his son, his friends remained true to him,--somewhat consoled David in his distress. He thought that in these circumstances, if the worst came to the worst, Absalom would at least feel pity for him. At first, however, the despair of David knew no bounds. He was on the point of worshipping an idol, when his friend Hushai the Archite approached him, saying: "The people will wonder that such a king should serve idols." David replied: "Should a king such as I am be killed by his own son? It is better for me to serve idols than that God should be held responsible for my misfortune, and His Name thus be desecrated." Hushai reproached him: "Why didst thou marry a captive?" "There is no wrong in that," replied David, "it is permitted according to the law." Thereupon Hushai: "But thou didst disregard the connection between the passage permitting it and the one that follows almost immediately after it in the Scriptures, dealing with the disobedient and rebellious son, the natural issue of such a marriage." Absalom's end was beset with terrors. When he was caught in the branches of the oak-tree, he was about to sever his hair with a sword stroke, but suddenly he saw hell yawning beneath him, and he preferred to hang in the tree to throwing himself into the abyss alive. Absalom's crime was, indeed, of a nature to deserve the supreme torture, for which reason he is one of the few Jews who have no portion in the world to come.
Popular legend states that the eye of Absalom was of immense size, signifying his insatiable greed.Niddah, 24b Indeed, "hell itself opened beneath him, and David, his father, cried seven times: 'My son! my son!' while bewailing his death, praying at the same time for his redemption from the seventh section of Gehenna, to which he was consigned".Soṭah, 10b According to R. Meir,Sanh. 103b "he has no share in the life to come". And according to the description of Gehenna by Joshua ben Levi, who, like Dante, wandered through hell under the guidance of the angel Duma, Absalom still dwells there, having the rebellious heathen in charge; and when the angels with their fiery rods run also against Absalom to smite him like the rest, a heavenly voice says: "Spare Absalom, the son of David, My servant." "That the extreme penalties of hell were thus averted from him, was on account of David's eightfold repetition of his son's name in his lament over him. Besides, David's intercession had the effect of re-attaching Absalom's severed head to his body. An account of Joshua Ben Levi going to the fifth compartment of PAradise reports:"The fifth compartment is of silver, and gold, and refined gold, and of crystal, and bdellium; and through its midst flows the river Gihon. The walls are of silver and gold, and a perfume breathes through it more exquisite than the perfume of Lebanon. And beds of silver and gold are there prepared, covered with violet and purple covers, woven by Eve, and mixed with scarlet and made of hair of goats, woven by angels. Here dwell the Messiah and Elijah in a palanquin of the wood of Lebanon; the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the seat of it of purple. Herein lieth the Messiah, the son of David, who is the love of the daughters of Jerusalem, the midst thereof is love. The prophet Elijah takes the head of the Messiah and places it in his bosom and says to him: "Be quiet and wait, for the end draweth nigh." On every Monday and Thursday and Saturday and Holiday the Patriarchs come to him and the fathers of the Tribes and Moses and Aaron and David and Solomon and every king of Israel and of the house of Judah, and they weep with him and comfort him, and say unto him: "Be quiet and wait and rely upon thy Creator, for the end draweth nigh." Also Korah and his company and Dathan and Abiram and Absalom come to him on every Wednesday, and ask him: "When will the end of our misery come? When wilt thou reveal thyself?"16. He answereth them and says: "Go to your fathers and ask them." And when they hear of their fathers they feel ashamed and do not ask any further.Hebrew Visions of Hell and Paradise King David's prayers granted his rebellious son Avshalom access to the World to ComeWho-Will-Rise Chabad Library At his death Absalom was childless, for all his children, his three sons and his daughter, died before him, as a punishment for his having set fire to a field of grain belonging to Joab." Although Absalom avenged his sister defilement by Amnon ironically he proved himself not to be very much different from Amnon. As Amnon had sought the advice of Jonadab in order to rape Tamar, Absalom had sought the advice of Ahitophel who advised Absalom to have incestuous relations with his father's concubines in order to show all Israel how odious he was to his father [2 Samuel 16:20] .Likewise as Amnon had brought two curses on himself for incest with his half sister and failing to fulfill the Torah Law, Absalom brought four curses on himself for dishonoring his father; relations with his father's wives [concubines]; and failing to fulfill the Torah Law twice. [Deuteronomy 27:20 26] The Rabbis explain that the concubines were not punished by G-d. They were violated by Absalom. Absalom with his own free will, choose to do that. It is true G-d created a world where we humans can choose good or evil, but the choice in the end remains ours. Although G-d had told David that his wives would be taken, he did not ordain or force Absalom to violate them. He just foretold it. Is A lesson to be learned of the consequences from Absalom life is that his lust for power was so deep that he engaged in acts of chillul hashem and brought upon himself 4 curses from the Torah? (Dishonoring his father by his revolt; dishonoring his father's wives; and twice bring curses on himself for not fulfilling the Torah law)?Yes. He was a prince who could had almost anything. The only things he wanted were things he could not have. He lusted after his sister and his father's throne. Wealth is not determined by possessions but by mindset. In his mind, Absalom was a pauper. He only looked at what he did not have.Response of Chabbad Ask A Rabbi Query 27 September 2024 |
Absalom | Art and literature | Art and literature |
Absalom | Poetry | Poetry
The Love of King David and Fair Bethsabe, with the Tragedie of Absalon, a play by George Peele, written before 1594 and published in 1599.
Absalom and Achitophel (1681), a satirical poem by John Dryden, uses the biblical story as an allegory for contemporary politics.
"Absalom" by Nathaniel Parker Willis (1806–1867).
"Absaloms Abfall" by Rainer Maria Rilke ("The Fall of Absalom", trans. Stephen Cohn).
"Absalom" is a section in Muriel Rukeyser's long poem The Book of the Dead (1938), inspired by the biblical text, spoken by a mother who lost three sons to silicosis.
"Avshalom" by Yona Wallach, published in her first poetry collection Devarim (1966), alludes to the biblical character.
"Prayer for Sunset" by Leonard Cohen, published in his first poetry collection Let Us Compare Mythologies (1956), Absalom appears in a simile. |
Absalom | Fiction | Fiction
In the 1946 short story "Absalom" by C.L. Moore and Henry Kuttner, the character Absalom is a child prodigy, who does non-consensual brain surgery on his father (a former child prodigy, though not as intelligent as his son) to make the father totally focused on Absalom's success. This relates to the Biblical story of the son usurping his father.
Georg Christian Lehms, Des israelitischen Printzens Absolons und seiner Prinzcessin Schwester Thamar Staats- Lebens- und Helden-Geschichte (The Heroic Life and History of the Israelite Prince Absolom and his Princess Sister Tamar), novel in German published in Nuremberg, 1710.
Absalom, Absalom! is a novel by William Faulkner, and refers to the return of the main character Thomas Sutpen's son.
Oh Absalom! was the original title of Howard Spring's novel My Son, My Son!, later adapted for the film of the latter name.
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. Absalom was the name of Stephen Kumalo's son in the novel. Like the Biblical Absalom, Absalom Kumalo was at odds with his father, the two fighting a moral and ethical battle of sorts over the course of some of the novel's most important events. Absalom kills and murders a man, and also meets an untimely death.
Throughout Robertson Davies's The Manticore a comparison is repeatedly made between the protagonist's problematic relations with his father and those of the Biblical Absalom and King David. Paradoxically, in the modern version, it is the rebellious son who has the first name "David". The book also introduces the term "Absalonism", as a generic term for a son's rebellion against his father.
Absalom appears as a prominent character in Peter Shaffer's play Yonadab, which portrays Amnon's rape of Tamar and his murder at Absalom's hands.
A scene in the Swedish writer Frans G. Bengtsson's historical novel "The Long Ships" depicts a 10th Century Christian missionary recounting the story of Absalom's rebellion to the assembled Danish court, including the aging King Harald Bluetooth and his son Sweyn Forkbeard; thereupon, King Harald exclaims "Some people can learn a lesson from this story!", casting a meaningful glance at his son Sweyn—whom the King (rightly) suspects of plotting a rebellion.
In the novel The Book of Tamar by Nel Havas, the story of Absalom is presented from the viewpoint of his sister. While closely following the main events as related in the Bible, Havas concentrates on the motives behind Absalom's actions, which Havas presents as more complex than depicted in the scriptures.
In the novel Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card, the main character Bean invokes the quote to give solace to the kamikaze pilots Ender had unknowingly sent to their deaths to defeat the Formics.
The role played by luxuriant hair in the death of Absalom is referenced to telling effect in the ghost story The Diary of Mr Poynter by master of the genre M.R. James. The ghost in question is that of dissolute young nobleman Sir Everard Charlett, known to his Oxford University cronies by the nickname Absalom, on account of his beautiful, long hair and debauched lifestyle. Sir Everard has commemorated his flowing locks by the unusual expedient of having them portrayed in a wallpaper pattern, which later proves to have the power to summon his malign, hair-covered ghost - much to the horror of James's unfortunate protagonist, Mr. James Denton.M. R. James, "The Diary of Mr. Poynter," in Collected Ghost Stories, ed. Darryl Jones (Oxford UP, 2011). |
Absalom | Music | Music
Josquin des Prez composed the motet "Absalon, fili mi" on the occasion of the death of Juan Borgia (Absalon being a further alternative spelling).
Nicholas Gombert composed the two-part, eight-voice motet "Lugebat David Absalon".
Heinrich Schütz (1585–1672) composed "Fili mi, Absalon" as part of his Sinfoniae Sacrae, op. 6.
The single verse, 2 Samuel 18:33, regarding David's grief at the loss of his son ("And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!"), is the inspiration for the text of several pieces of choral music, usually entitled When David Heard (such as those by Renaissance composers Thomas Tomkins and Thomas Weelkes, or modern composers Eric Whitacre, Joshua Shank, and Norman Dinerstein). This verse is also used in "David's Lamentation" by William Billings, first published in 1778.
Leonard Cohen's poem "Prayer for Sunset" compares the setting sun to the raving Absalom, and asks whether another Joab will arrive tomorrow night to kill Absalom again.
"Absalom, Absalom" is a song on the 1996 Compass CD Making Light of It by singer/songwriter Pierce Pettis, incorporating several elements of the biblical narrative.
The Australian composer Nigel Butterley set the verse in his 2008 choral work "Beni Avshalom", commissioned by the Sydney Chamber Choir.
During the finale of the song "Distant Early Warning" by Canadian band Rush, Geddy Lee sings, "Absalom, Absalom, Absalom"; lyrics written by drummer Neil Peart.
David Olney's 2000 CD Omar's Blues includes the song "Absalom". The song depicts David grieving over the death of his son.
The story of Absalom is referred to several places in folk singer Adam Arcuragi's song "Always Almost Crying".
The San Francisco–based band Om mentions Absalom in their song "Kapila's Theme" from their debut album Variations on a Theme.
The garage folk band David's Doldrums references Absalom in their song, "My Name Is Absalom". The song alludes to Absalom's feelings of solemnity and abandonment of love and hope.
In "Every Kind Word" by Lackthereof, Danny Seim's project parallel to Menomena, Seim sings "... and your hair is long like Absalom."
"Barach Hamelech", an Israeli song by Amos Etinger and Yosef Hadar.
The grindcore band Discordance Axis references Absalom at the end of the track entitled "Castration Rite".
In 2007 Ryland Angel released "Absalom" on Ryland Angel-Manhattan Records.
"Hanging By His Hair" from the 1998 Wormwood album by The Residents recounts Absalom's defiance and death. Also performed on Roadworms (The Berlin Sessions) and Wormwood Live.
"Absalom" is a song on Brand New Shadows's debut album, White Flags. It is a mournful lament from King David's perspective.
"Absalom" is an album by the experimental/progressive band Stick Men featuring Tony Levin, Markus Reuter and Pat Mastelotto.
The American Rock band Little Feat reference Absalom in their song "Gimme a Stone" on the album entitled Chinese Work Songs. This song is written from the perspective of King David—mainly focusing on the task of fighting Goliath—but contains a lament to Absalom. This was a cover of the song, the original being on the 1998 Americana concept album Largo, by David Forman and Levon Helm. |
Absalom | References | References |
Absalom | Notes | Notes |
Absalom | Citations | Citations |
Absalom | Sources | Sources
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Absalom | External links | External links
Some musical scores of David's lament for Absalom: Absalon, fili mi ()
Category:Rapists
Category:Incestual abuse
Category:Mythological people involved in incest
Category:Biblical murderers
Category:Children of David
Category:Jewish rebels
Category:Jewish royalty
Category:Rebel princes
Category:Sons of kings
Category:Heirs apparent who never acceded
Category:Mythological fratricides
Category:Mythological rapists |
Absalom | Table of Content | Short description, Biblical narrative, Background, Murder of Amnon, The revolt at Hebron, Battle of Ephraim's Wood, Memorial, Rabbinic literature, Art and literature, Poetry, Fiction, Music, References, Notes, Citations, Sources, External links |
Abydos | wikt | Abydos may refer to:
Abydos, a progressive metal side project of German singer Andy Kuntz
Abydos (Hellespont), an ancient city in Mysia, Asia Minor
Abydos (Stargate), name of a fictional planet in the Stargate science fiction universe
Abydos, Egypt, a city in ancient Egypt
Abydos Station, a pastoral lease and cattle station in Western Australia |
Abydos | See also | See also
Abidu, a village in Iran
Abidos, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in southwestern France |
Abydos | Table of Content | wikt, See also |
Abydos, Egypt | Short description | Abydos ( or ; Sahidic ) is one of the oldest cities of ancient Egypt, and also of the eighth nome in Upper Egypt. It is located about west of the Nile at latitude 26° 10' N, near the modern Egyptian towns of El Araba El Madfuna and El Balyana. In the ancient Egyptian language, the city was called Abedju (ꜣbḏw or AbDw)(Arabic Abdu عبد-و).
The English name Abydos comes from the Greek , a name borrowed by Greek geographers from the unrelated city of Abydos on the Hellespont.
Considered one of the most important archaeological sites in Egypt, the sacred city of Abydos was the site of many ancient temples, including Umm el-Qa'ab, a royal necropolis where early pharaohs were entombed. These tombs began to be seen as extremely significant burials and in later times it became desirable to be buried in the area, leading to the growth of the town's importance as a cult site.
Today, Abydos is notable for the memorial temple of Seti I, which contains an inscription from the Nineteenth Dynasty known to the modern world as the Abydos King List. This is a chronological list showing cartouches of most dynastic pharaohs of Egypt from Menes until Seti I's father, Ramesses I. It is also notable for the Abydos graffiti, ancient Phoenician and Aramaic graffiti found on the walls of the Temple of Seti I.
The Great Temple and most of the ancient town are buried under the modern buildings to the north of the Seti temple. Many of the original structures and the artifacts within them are considered irretrievable and lost; many may have been destroyed by the new construction. |
Abydos, Egypt | History | History
thumb|Possible illustration of the conflict between Abydos and Nekhen, on the Gebel el-Arak Knife, Louvre Museum, 3300–3200 BCE.
Most of Upper Egypt became unified under rulers from Abydos during the Naqada III period (3200–3000 BCE), at the expense of rival cities such as Nekhen. The conflicts leading to the supremacy of Abydos may appear on numerous reliefs of the Naqada II period, such as the Gebel el-Arak Knife, or the frieze of Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis.
Tombs and at least one temple of rulers of the Predynastic period have been found at Umm El Qa'ab including that of Narmer, dating to . The temple and town continued to be rebuilt at intervals down to the times of the Thirtieth Dynasty, and the cemetery was in continuous use.
The pharaohs of the First Dynasty were buried in Abydos, including Narmer, who is regarded as the founder of the First Dynasty, and his successor, Aha.Wilkinson (1999), p. 3 It was in this time period that the Abydos boats were constructed. Some pharaohs of the Second Dynasty were also buried in Abydos. The temple was renewed and enlarged by these pharaohs as well. Funerary enclosures, misinterpreted in modern times as great 'forts', were built on the desert behind the town by three kings of the Second Dynasty; the most complete is that of Khasekhemwy, the Shunet El Zebib.
thumb|Part of the Abydos King List
thumb|Tomb relief depicting the vizier Nespeqashuty and his wife, KetjKetj, making the journey of the dead to the holy city of Abydos – from Deir el-Bahri, Late Period, Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt, reign of Psammetichus I
From the Fifth Dynasty, the deity Khentiamentiu, foremost of the Westerners, came to be seen as a manifestation of the dead pharaoh in the underworld. Pepi I (Sixth Dynasty) constructed a funerary chapel which evolved over the years into the Great Temple of Osiris, the ruins of which still exist within the town enclosure. Abydos became the centre of the worship of the Isis and Osiris cult.
During the First Intermediate Period, the principal deity of the area, Khentiamentiu, began to be seen as an aspect of Osiris, and the deities gradually merged and came to be regarded as one. Khentiamentiu's name became an epithet of Osiris. King Mentuhotep II was the first to build a royal chapel. In the Twelfth Dynasty a gigantic tomb was cut into the rock by Senusret III. Associated with this tomb was a cenotaph, a cult temple and a small town known as "Wah-Sut", that was used by the workers for these structures.Harvey, EA24, p.3 Next to the cenotaph at least two kings of the Thirteenth Dynasty were buried (in tombs S9 and S10) as well as some rulers of the Second Intermediate Period, such as Senebkay. An indigenous line of kings, the Abydos Dynasty, may have ruled the region from Abydos at the time.
New construction during the Eighteenth Dynasty began with a large chapel of Ahmose I. The Pyramid of Ahmose I was also constructed at Abydos—the only pyramid in the area; very little of it remains today.
Thutmose III built a far larger temple, about . He also made a processional way leading past the side of the temple to the cemetery beyond, featuring a great gateway of granite.
Seti I, during the Nineteenth Dynasty, founded a temple to the south of the town in honor of the ancestral pharaohs of the early dynasties; this was finished by Ramesses II, who also built a lesser temple of his own. Merneptah added the Osireion, just to the north of the temple of Seti.
Ahmose II in the Twenty-sixth Dynasty rebuilt the temple again, and placed in it a large monolith shrine of red granite, finely wrought. The foundations of the successive temples were comprised within approximately . depth of the ruins discovered in modern times; these needed the closest examination to discriminate the various buildings, and were recorded by more than 4,000 measurements and 1,000 levellings.Petrie, Abydos, ii.
The last building added was a new temple of Nectanebo I, built in the Thirtieth Dynasty. From the Ptolemaic times of the Greek occupancy of Egypt, that began three hundred years before the Roman occupancy that followed, the structures began to decay and no later works are known.Petrie, Abydos, i. and ii. |
Abydos, Egypt | Cult centre | Cult centre
From earliest times, Abydos was a cult centre, first of the local deity, Khentiamentiu, and from the end of the Old Kingdom, the rising cult of Osiris. A tradition developed that the Early Dynastic cemetery was the burial place of Osiris and the tomb of Djer was reinterpreted as that of Osiris.O'Connor, David (2009). Abydos: Egypt's First Pharaohs and the Cult of Osiris. Thames & Hudson. pp. 18–19
Decorations in tombs throughout Egypt, such as the one displayed to the right, record pilgrimages to Abydos by wealthy families. |
Abydos, Egypt | Great Osiris Temple | Great Osiris Temple
thumb|Panel from the Osiris temple: Horus presents royal regalia to a worshipping Seti I.
From the First Dynasty to the Twenty-sixth Dynasty, nine or ten temples were successively built on one site at Abydos. The first was an enclosure, about , enclosed by a thin wall of unbaked bricks. Incorporating one wall of this first structure, the second temple of about square was built with walls about thick. An outer temenos (enclosure) wall surrounded the grounds. This outer wall was made wider some time around the Second or Third Dynasty. The old temple entirely vanished in the Fourth Dynasty, and a smaller building was erected behind it, enclosing a wide hearth of black ashes. Pottery models of offerings are found in these ashes and were probably the substitutes for live sacrifices decreed by Khufu (or Cheops) in his temple reforms.
At an undetermined date, a great clearance of temple offerings had been made and the modern discovery of a chamber into which they were gathered yielded the fine ivory carvings and the glazed figures and tiles that demonstrate the splendid work of the First Dynasty. A vase of Menes with purple hieroglyphs inlaid into a green glaze and tiles with relief figures are the most important pieces found. The Khufu Statuette in ivory, found in the stone chamber of the temple, gives the only portrait of this great pharaoh.
The temple was entirely rebuilt on a larger scale by Pepi I in the Sixth Dynasty. He placed a great stone gateway to the temenos, an outer wall and gateway, with a colonnade between the gates. His temple was about inside, with stone gateways front and back, showing that it was of the processional type. In the Eleventh Dynasty Mentuhotep II added a colonnade and altars. Soon after, Mentuhotep III entirely rebuilt the temple, laying a stone pavement over the area, about square. He also added subsidiary chambers. Soon thereafter, in the Twelfth Dynasty, Senusret I laid massive foundations of stone over the pavement of his predecessor. A great temenos was laid out enclosing a much larger area and the new temple itself was about three times the earlier size. |
Abydos, Egypt | Brewery | Brewery
On 14 February 2021, Egyptian and American archaeologists discovered what could be the oldest brewery in the world dating from around 3100 BCE at the reign of King Narmer. Dr. Matthew Adams, one of the leaders of the mission, stated that it was used to make beer for royal rituals. |
Abydos, Egypt | Main sites | Main sites
thumb|350px|Plan of Abydos |
Abydos, Egypt | Seti I Temple | Seti I Temple
The temple of Seti I was built on entirely new ground half a mile to the south of the long series of temples just described. This surviving building is best known as the Great Temple of Abydos, being nearly complete and an impressive sight. A principal purpose of the temple was to serve as a memorial to king Seti I, as well as to show reverence for the early pharaohs, which is incorporated within as part of the "Rite of the Ancestors".
The long list of the pharaohs of the principal dynasties—recognized by Seti—are carved on a wall and known as the "Abydos King List" (showing the cartouche name of many dynastic pharaohs of Egypt from the first, Narmer or Menes, until Seti's time). There were significant names deliberately left off of the list. So rare, as an almost complete list of pharaoh names, the Table of Abydos, rediscovered by William John Bankes, has been called the "Rosetta Stone" of Egyptian archaeology, analogous to the Rosetta Stone for Egyptian writing, beyond the Narmer Palette.Misty Cryer, "Travellers in Egypt – William John Bankes" (2006), TravellersinEgypt.org, web: TravEgypt-WJB : re-discovered Table of Abydos.
thumb|left|The Chapel of Amun
thumb|left|The Osireion at the rear of the temple
There were also seven chapels built for the worship of the pharaoh and principal deities. These included three chapels for the "state" deities Ptah, Re-Horakhty, and (centrally positioned) Amun and the challenge for the Abydos triad of Osiris, Isis and Horus. The rites recorded in the deity chapels represent the first complete form known of the Daily Ritual, which was performed daily in temples across Egypt throughout the pharaonic period. At the back of the temple is an enigmatic structure known as the Osireion, which served as a cenotaph for Seti-Osiris, and is thought to be connected with the worship of Osiris as an "Osiris tomb".Caulfield, Temple of the Kings It is possible that from those chambers was led out the great Hypogeum for the celebration of the Osiris mysteries, built by Merenptah.Murray, The Osireion at Abydos The temple was originally long, but the forecourts are scarcely recognizable, and the part still in good condition is about
long and wide, including the wing at the side. Magazines for food and offerings storage were built to either side of the forecourts, as well as a small palace for the king and his retinue, to the southeast of the first forecourt (Ghazouli, The Palace and Magazines Attached to the Temple of Sety I at Abydos and the Facade of This Temple. ASAE 58 (1959)).
Except for the list of pharaohs and a panegyric on Ramesses II, the subjects are not historical, but religious in nature, dedicated to the transformation of the king after his death. The temple reliefs are celebrated for their delicacy and artistic refinement, utilizing both the archaism of earlier dynasties with the vibrancy of late 18th Dynasty reliefs. The sculptures had been published mostly in hand copy, not facsimile, by Auguste Mariette in his Abydos, I. The temple has been partially recorded epigraphically by Amice Calverley and Myrtle Broome in their 4 volume publication of The Temple of King Sethos I at Abydos (1933–1958). |
Abydos, Egypt | King's List | King's List
In The Gallery of Ancestors, also referred to as The Gallery of the List, one can find the Abydos King List. This list is depicted in low relief, carved under the reign of Seti I, and it shows Seti and Ramesses making offerings to their royal ancestors.Kemp, Barry. “The Intellectual Foundations of the Early State.” In Ancient Egypt:, 3rd ed., 1: 60. Routledge, 2018. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351166485-3.Baines, J. (1984). Abydos, Temple of Sethos I: Preliminary Report. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 70(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.1177/030751338407000103 These royal ancestors are the past kings of Egypt. Notably, some rulers, like the 15th Dynasty Hyksos that ruled Egypt during the Second Intermediate Period 1650-1550 BCE and the reign of the 18th Dynasty heretic Akhenaten of the New Kingdom 1550–1069, were omitted from the list, possibly due to being associated with periods of internal weakness and divisions.Verner, Miroslav, and Anna Bryson-Gustová, Temple of the World: Sanctuaries, Cults, and Mysteries of Ancient Egypt (Cairo, 2013; online edn, Cairo Scholarship Online, 18 Sept. 2014), https://doi.org/10.5743/cairo/9789774165634.001.0001, accessed 24 Sept. 2024. The Gallery of Ancestors led into the storerooms and the desert behind the temple. |
Abydos, Egypt | Osireion | Osireion
The Osirion or Osireon, meaning "Menmaatre beneficial to Osiris" sometimes called the Osiris Complex, is an ancient Egyptian temple.O’Connor, David. “The Temple of Seti I.” In Egypt’s First Pharaohs and the Cult of Osiris, 95. New York: Thames & Hudson, 2009. It is located to the rear of the temple of Seti I. It is an integral part of Seti I's funeral complex and is built to resemble an 18th Dynasty Valley of the Kings tomb. This was possibly used in ritual purposes with the growing of barely that allowed for the symbolic representation of the resurrection of Osiris. Today parts of the Osierion contain water due to the Aswan Dam and rising floodwaters.
thumb|The retouched and eroded hieroglyphs in the Temple of Seti I which are said to represent modern vehicles – a helicopter, a submarine, and a zeppelin or plane. |
Abydos, Egypt | Helicopter hieroglyphs | Helicopter hieroglyphs
Some of the hieroglyphs carved over an arch on the site have been interpreted in esoteric and "ufological" circles as depicting modern technology, having been the subject of pyramidology.
The "helicopter" image is the result of carved stone being re-used over time. The initial carving was made during the reign of Seti I and translates to "He who repulses the nine [enemies of Egypt]". This carving was later filled in with plaster and re-carved during the reign of Ramesses II with the title "He who protects Egypt and overthrows the foreign countries". Over time, the plaster has eroded away, leaving both inscriptions partially visible and creating a palimpsest-like effect of overlapping hieroglyphs.
thumb|The Temple of Ramesses II |
Abydos, Egypt | Ramesses II temple | Ramesses II temple
The adjacent temple of Ramesses II was much smaller and simpler in plan, but it had a fine historical series of scenes around the outside that lauded his achievements, of which the lower parts remain. The outside of the temple was decorated with scenes of the Battle of Kadesh. His list of pharaohs, similar to that of Seti I, formerly stood here; the fragments were removed by the French consul and sold to the British Museum. |
Abydos, Egypt | King's List | King's List
Inside the temple once stood another Gallery of Ancestors. This list is also depicted in low relief, carved under the reign of Ramesses II, but is more damaged. The surviving fragments were removed by the French consul in 1837 and sold to the British Museum. |
Abydos, Egypt | Umm El Qa'ab | Umm El Qa'ab
thumb|Pyramidion of Nesnubhotep, top of a limestone chapel monument. A scarab and adoring baboons in relief. Dynasty XXVI, Abydos, Egypt. Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
thumb|A rare etched carnelian bead found in Abydos, tomb 197, thought to have been imported from the Indus Valley civilisation through Mesopotamia, in an example of Egypt-Mesopotamia relations. Late Middle Kingdom of Egypt. London, Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, ref. UC30334.
thumb|A rare 20th Dynasty Gold earring found in Abydos.
The royal necropolises of the earliest dynasties were placed about a mile into the great desert plain, in a place now known as Umm El Qa'ab "The Mother of Pots" because of the shards remaining from all of the devotional objects left by religious pilgrims.
The earliest burial is about inside, a pit lined with brick walls and originally roofed with timber and matting. Other tombs also built before Menes are . The probable tomb of Menes is of the latter size. Afterwards, the tombs increased in size and complexity. The tomb-pit was surrounded by chambers to hold offerings, the sepulchre being a great wooden chamber in the midst of the brick-lined pit. Rows of small pits, tombs for the servants of the pharaoh, surrounded the royal chamber, many dozens of such burials being usual. Some of the offerings included sacrificed animals, such as the asses found in the tomb of Merneith. Evidence of human sacrifice exists in the early tombs, such as the 118 servants in the tomb of Merneith, but this practice was changed later into symbolic offerings.
By the end of the Second Dynasty the type of tomb constructed changed to a long passage with chambers on either side, the royal burial being in the middle of the length. The greatest of these tombs with its dependencies, covered a space of over , however it is possible for this to have been several tombs which abutted one another during construction; the Egyptians had no means of mapping the positioning of the tombs. The contents of the tombs have been nearly destroyed by successive plunderers; but enough remained to show that rich jewellery was placed on the mummies, a profusion of vases of hard and valuable stones from the royal table service stood about the body, the store-rooms were filled with great jars of wine, perfumed ointments, and other supplies, and tablets of ivory and of ebony were engraved with a record of the yearly annals of the reigns. The seals of various officials, of which over 200 varieties have been found, give an insight into the public arrangements.Petrie, Royal Tombs, i. and ii.
A cemetery for private persons was put into use during the First Dynasty, with some pit-tombs in the town. It was extensive in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties and contained many rich tombs. A large number of fine tombs were made in the Eighteenth to Twentieth Dynasties, and members of later dynasties continued to bury their dead here until the Roman period. Many hundreds of funeral steles were removed by Auguste Mariette's workmen, without any details of the burials being noted.Mariette, Abydos, ii. and iii. Later excavations have been recorded by Edward R. Ayrton, Abydos, iii.; MacIver, El Amrah and Abydos; and Garstang, El Arabah. |
Abydos, Egypt | "Forts" | "Forts"
Some of the tomb structures, referred to as "forts" by modern researchers, lay behind the town. Known as Shunet ez Zebib, it is about over all, and one still stands high. It was built by Khasekhemwy, the last pharaoh of the Second Dynasty. Another structure nearly as large adjoined it, and probably is older than that of Khasekhemwy. A third "fort" of a squarer form is now occupied by a convent of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria; its age cannot be ascertained.Ayrton, Abydos, iii. |
Abydos, Egypt | Kom El Sultan | Kom El Sultan
The area now known as Kom El Sultan is a big mudbrick structure, the purpose of which is not clear and thought to have been at the original settlement area, dated to the Early Dynastic Period. The structure includes the early temple of Osiris. |
Abydos, Egypt | See also | See also
List of ancient Egyptian towns and cities
S 9 (Abydos)
S 10 (Abydos)
Tomb CS4
Mahat chapel of Mentuhotep II |
Abydos, Egypt | Notes | Notes |
Abydos, Egypt | References | References
Mariette, Auguste, Abydos, ii. and iii.
William Flinders Petrie, Abydos, i. and ii.
William Flinders Petrie, Royal Tombs, i. and ii. |
Abydos, Egypt | External links | External links
Encyclopædia Britannica Online, "Abydos" search: EncBrit-Abydos, importance of Abydos
The Mortuary Temple of Seti I at Abydos
University of Pennsylvania Museum excavations at Abydos
Category:Populated places established in the 4th millennium BC
Category:Populated places disestablished in the 4th century BC
Category:Cities in ancient Egypt
Category:Populated places in Sohag Governorate
Category:Former populated places in Egypt
Category:Archaeological sites in Egypt
Category:Naqada III |
Abydos, Egypt | Table of Content | Short description, History, Cult centre, Great Osiris Temple, Brewery, Main sites, Seti I Temple, King's List, Osireion, Helicopter hieroglyphs, Ramesses II temple, King's List, Umm El Qa'ab, "Forts", Kom El Sultan, See also, Notes, References, External links |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Short description | Abydos (, ) was an ancient city and bishopric in Mysia. It was located at the Nara Burnu promontory on the Asian coast of the Hellespont (the straits of Dardanelles), opposite the ancient city of Sestos, and near the city of Çanakkale in Turkey. Abydos was founded in at the most narrow point in the straits, and thus was one of the main crossing points between Europe and Asia, until its replacement by the crossing between Lampsacus and Kallipolis in the 13th century, and the abandonment of Abydos in the early 14th century.
In Greek mythology, Abydos is presented in the myth of Hero and Leander as the home of Leander.Hopkinson (2012) The city is also mentioned in Rodanthe and Dosikles, a novel written by Theodore Prodromos, a 12th-century writer, in which Dosikles kidnaps Rodanthe at Abydos.Kazhdan & Wharton (1985), p. 202 |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Archaeology | Archaeology
In 1675, the site of Abydos was first identified, and was subsequently visited by numerous classicists and travellers, such as Robert Wood, Richard Chandler, and Lord Byron.Gunter (2015), p. 1 The city's acropolis is known in Turkish as Mal Tepe.
Following the city's abandonment, the ruins of Abydos were scavenged for building materials from the 14th to the 19th century,Leveniotis (2017), p. 3 and remains of walls and buildings continued to be reported until at least the 19th century, however, little remains and the area was declared a restricted military zone in the early 20th century, thus little to no excavation has taken place.Archivum Callipolitanum II. A Catalogue of Ancient Ports and Harbours |
Abydos (Hellespont) | History | History |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Classical period | Classical period
thumb|left|200px|The environs of Abydos in Antiquity
Abydos is mentioned in the Iliad as a Trojan ally,Mitchell (2005) and, according to Strabo, was occupied by Bebryces and later Thracians after the Trojan War.Leveniotis (2017), p. 4 It has been suggested that the city was originally a Phoenician colony as there was a temple of Aphrodite Porne (Aphrodite the Harlot) within Abydos.Miller (2014), p. 20Gorman (2001), p. 243 Abydos was settled by Milesian colonists contemporaneously with the foundation of the cities of Priapos and Prokonnesos in .Hansen & Nielsen (2004), p. 993 Strabo related that Gyges, King of Lydia, granted his consent to the Milesians to settle Abydos;Bean (1976), p. 5 it is argued that this was carried out by Milesian mercenaries to act as a garrison to prevent Thracian raids into Asia Minor.Fine (1983), p. 80 The city became a thriving centre for tuna exportation as a result of the high yield of tuna in the Hellespont.Roesti (1966), p. 82
Abydos was ruled by Daphnis, a pro-Persian tyrant, in the 520s BC,Hansen & Nielsen (2004), p. 1003 but was occupied by the Persian Empire in 514. Darius I destroyed the city following his Scythian campaign in 512. Abydos participated in the Ionian Revolt in the early 5th century BC, however, the city returned briefly to Persian control as, in 480, at the onset of the Second Persian invasion of Greece, Xerxes I and the Persian army passed through Abydos on their march to Greece crossing the Hellespont on Xerxes' Pontoon Bridges. After the failed Persian invasion, Abydos became a member of the Athenian-led Delian League, and was part of the Hellespontine district. Ostensibly an ally, Abydos was hostile to Athens throughout this time, and contributed a phoros of 4-6 talents. Xenophon documented that Abydos possessed gold mines at Astyra or Kremaste at the time of his writing.
thumb|Coinage of Abydos around the time of the Persian Wars. ABYΔ-[H]NON, eagle standing left / Facing gorgoneion with protruding tongue, within incuse square. Circa 500-480 BC
During the Second Peloponnesian War, a Spartan expedition led by Dercylidas arrived at Abydos in early May 411 BC and successfully convinced the city to defect from the Delian League and fight against Athens,Kagan (2013), p. 102 at which time he was made harmost (commander/governor) of Abydos.Hodkinson (2005) A Spartan fleet was defeated by Athens at Abydos in the autumn of 411 BC.Westlake (1985), p. 313 Abydos was attacked by the Athenians in the winter of 409/408 BC, but was repelled by a Persian force led by Pharnabazus, satrap (governor) of Hellespontine Phrygia.Kagan (2013), p. 276 Dercylidas held the office of harmost of Abydos until at least . According to Aristotle, Abydos had an oligarchic constitution at this time. At the beginning of the Corinthian War in 394 BC, Agesilaus II, King of Sparta, passed through Abydos into Thrace. Abydos remained an ally of Sparta throughout the war and Dercylidas served as harmost of the city from 394 until he was replaced by Anaxibius in ; the latter was killed in an ambush near Abydos by the Athenian general Iphicrates in .Phang et al. (2016), p. 57 At the conclusion of the Corinthian War, under the terms of the Peace of Antalcidas in 387 BC, Abydos was annexed to the Persian Empire. Within the Persian Empire, Abydos was administered as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia,Jacobs (2011) and was ruled by the tyrant Philiscus in 368.Fine (1983), p. 584Maffre (2007), p. 129 In , the city came under the control of the tyrant Iphiades. |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Hellenistic period | Hellenistic period
Abydos remained under Persian control until it was seized by a Macedonian army led by Parmenion, a general of Philip II, in the spring of 336 BC.Ashley (2004), p. 187 In 335, whilst Parmenion besieged the city of Pitane, Abydos was besieged by a Persian army led by Memnon of Rhodes, forcing Parmenion to abandon his siege of Pitane and march north to relieve Abydos.Freely (2010), pp. 55-56 Alexander ferried across from Sestos to Abydos in 334 and travelled south to the city of Troy, after which he returned to Abydos. The following day, Alexander left Abydos and led his army north to Percote. Alexander later established a royal mint at Abydos, as well as at other cities in Asia Minor.Dmitriev (2011), p. 429
After the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, Abydos, as part of the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia, came under the control of Leonnatus as a result of the Partition of Babylon.Roberts (2007) At the Partition of Triparadisus in 321 BC, Arrhidaeus succeeded Leonnatus as satrap of Hellespontine Phrygia.Roisman (2012), p. 174
In 302, during the Fourth War of the Diadochi, Lysimachus, King of Thrace, crossed over into Asia Minor and invaded the kingdom of Antigonus I.Magie (2015), p. 89 Unlike the neighbouring cities of Parium and Lampsacus which surrendered, Abydos resisted Lysimachus and was besieged. Lysimachus was forced to abandon the siege, however, after the arrival of a relief force sent by Demetrius, son of King Antigonus I. According to Polybius, by the third century BC, the neighbouring city of Arisbe had become subordinate to Abydos.Spawforth (2015) The city of Dardanus also came under the control of Abydos at some point in the Hellenistic period.Mackay (1976), p. 258 Abydos became part of the Seleucid Empire after 281 BC.Abydus. Brill Reference Online The city was conquered by Ptolemy III Euergetes, King of Egypt, in 245 BC,Grainger (1997), p. 675 and remained under Ptolemaic control until at least 241, as Abydos had become part of the Kingdom of Pergamon by c. 200 BC.Pergamum. Brill Reference Online
thumb|200px|right|Hellenistic tetradrachm of Abydos, with the legend ΑΒΥΔΗΝΩΝ ("of the Abydenes")
During the Second Macedonian War, Abydos was besieged by Philip V, King of Macedonia, in 200 BC,Jaques (2007), p. 4 during which many of its citizens chose to commit suicide rather than surrender.Magie (2015), pp. 15-16 Marcus Aemilius Lepidus met with Philip V during the siege to deliver an ultimatum on behalf of the Roman senate.Briscoe (2015) Ultimately, the city was forced to surrender to Philip V due to a lack of reinforcements. The Macedonian occupation ended after the Peace of Flamininus at the end of the war in 196 BC. At this time, Abydos was substantially depopulated and partially ruined as a result of the Macedonian occupation.Grainger (2002), p. 70
In the spring of 196 BC, Abydos was seized by Antiochus III, Megas Basileus of the Seleucid Empire,Magie (2015), p. 17 who refortified the city in 192/191 BC. Antiochus III later withdrew from Abydos during the Roman-Seleucid War, thus allowing for the transportation of the Roman army into Asia Minor by October 190 BC.Errington (1989), p. 286 Dardanus was subsequently liberated from Abydene control, and the Treaty of Apamea of 188 BC returned Abydos to the Kingdom of Pergamon.Errington (1989), pp. 287-288 A gymnasium was active at Abydos in the 2nd century BC.Education / Culture. Brill Reference Online |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Roman period | Roman period
Attalus III, King of Pergamon, bequeathed his kingdom to Rome upon his death in 133 BC, and thus Abydos became part of the province of Asia.Dmitriev (2005), p. 7 The gold mines of Abydos at Astyra or Kremaste were near exhaustion at the time was Strabo was writing. The city was counted amongst the telonia (custom houses) of the province of Asia in the lex portorii Asiae of 62 AD,Leveniotis (2017), p. 11 and formed part of the conventus iuridicus Adramytteum. Abydos is mentioned in the Tabula Peutingeriana and Antonine Itinerary.Magie (2017), p. 41 The mint of Abydos ceased to function in the mid-3rd century AD.Leveniotis (2017), p. 8
It is believed that Abydos, with Sestos and Lampsacus, is referred to as one of the "three large capital cities" of the Roman Empire in Weilüe, a 3rd-century AD Chinese text.Leslie & Gardiner (1995), p. 67 The city was the centre for customs collection at the southern entrance of the Sea of Marmara,Kazhdan (1991) "Abydos" (C. Foss), pp. 8–9 and was administered by a komes ton Stenon (count of the Straits) or an archon from the 3rd century to the 5th century AD.Leveniotis (2017), p. 12 |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Medieval period | Medieval period
thumb|View of the straits at Abydos.
Pope Martin I rested at Abydos in the summer of 653 whilst en route to Constantinople.McCormick (2001), pp. 485-486 As a result of the administrative reforms of the 7th century, Abydos came to be administered as part of the theme of Opsikion.Lampakis (2008) The office of kommerkiarios of Abydos is first attested in the mid-7th century, and was later sometimes combined with the office of paraphylax, the military governor of the fort, introduced in the 8th century, at which time the office of komes ton stenon is last mentioned.Nesbitt & Oikonomides (1996), pp. 73-74
After the 7th century AD, Abydos became a major seaport.Kazhdan (1991) "Ports" (A. Kazhdan), pp. 1706–1707 Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik, during his campaign against Constantinople, crossed over into Thrace at Abydos in July 717.Venning & Harris (2006), p. 196 The office of archon at Abydos was restored in the late 8th century and endured until the early 9th century. In 801, Empress Irene reduced commercial tariffs collected at Abydos. Emperor Nikephoros I, Irene's successor, introduced a tax on slaves purchased beyond the city.Kazhdan (1991) "Nikephoros I" (P. A. Hollingsworth), pp. 1476–1477 The city later also became part of the theme of the Aegean Sea and was the seat of a tourmarches.
Abydos was sacked by an Arab fleet led by Leo of Tripoli in 904 AD whilst en route to Constantinople.Kazhdan (1991) "Leo of Tripoli" (A. Kazhdan), p. 1216 The revolt of Bardas Phokas was defeated by Emperor Basil II at Abydos in 989 AD.Evans & Wixom (1997), p. 19 In 992, the Venetians were granted reduced commercial tariffs at Abydos as a special privilege. In the early 11th century, Abydos became the seat of a separate command and the office of strategos (governor) of Abydos is first mentioned in 1004 with authority over the northern shore of the Hellespont and the islands of the Sea of Marmara.
In 1024, a Rus' raid led by a certain Chrysocheir defeated the local commander at Abydos and proceeded to travel south through the Hellespont.Wortley (2010), p. 347 Following the Battle of Manzikert, Abydos was seized by the Seljuk Turks, but was recovered in 1086 AD,Haldon & Davis (2002), p. 95 in which year Leo Kephalas was appointed katepano of Abydos.Kazhdan (1991) "Kephalas" (A. Kazhdan) Abydos' population likely increased at this time as a result of the arrival of refugees from northwestern Anatolia who had fled the advance of the Turks. In 1092/1093, the city was attacked by Tzachas, a Turkish pirate.Kazhdan (1991) "Tzachas" (Ch. M. Brand), p. 2134 Emperor Manuel I Komnenos repaired Abydos' fortifications in the late 12th century.
By the 13th century AD, the crossing from Lampsacus to Kallipolis had become more common and largely replaced the crossing from Abydos to Sestos.Kazhdan (1991) "Kallipolis" (A. Kazhdan), pp. 1094–1095 During the Fourth Crusade, in 1204, the Venetians seized Abydos, and, following the Sack of Constantinople and the formation of the Latin Empire later that year, Emperor Baldwin granted the land between Abydos and Adramyttium to his brother Henry of Flanders.Van Tricht (2011), p. 106 Henry of Flanders passed through Abydos on 11 November 1204 and continued his march to Adramyttium.Korobeinikov (2014), p. 54 Abydos was seized by the Empire of Nicaea, a successor state of the Eastern Roman Empire, during its offensive in 1206–1207, but was reconquered by the Latin Empire in 1212–1213.Van Tricht (2011), pp. 109-110 The city was later recovered by Emperor John III Vatatzes. Abydos declined in the 13th century, and was eventually abandoned between 1304 and 1310/1318 due to the threat of Turkish tribes and disintegration of Roman control over the region. |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Ecclesiastical history | Ecclesiastical history
The bishopric of Abydus appears in all the Notitiae Episcopatuum of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from the mid-7th century until the time of Andronikos III Palaiologos (1341), first as a suffragan of Cyzicus and then from 1084 as a metropolitan see without suffragans. The earliest bishop mentioned in extant documents is Marcian, who signed the joint letter of the bishops of Hellespontus to Emperor Leo I in 458, protesting about the murder of Proterius of Alexandria. A letter of Peter the Fuller (471–488) mentions a bishop of Abydus called Pamphilus. Ammonius signed the decretal letter of the Council of Constantinople in 518 against Severus of Antioch and others. Isidore was at the Third Council of Constantinople (680–681), John at the Trullan Council (692), Theodore at the Second Council of Nicaea (787). An unnamed bishop of Abydus was a counsellor of Emperor Nikephoros II in 969.Michel Lequien. Oriens christianus in quatuor Patriarchatus digestus. Paris. 1740, Vol. I, coll. 773-776.Sophrone Pétridès. v. Abydus, in Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques, vol. I. Paris. 1909. coll. 209-210.
Seals attest Theodosius as bishop of Abydos in the 11th century,Theodosios monk and bishop of Abydos (eleventh century).Dumbarton Oaks and John as metropolitan bishop of Abydos in the 11/12th century.John proedros (= metropolitan) of Abydos (eleventh/twelfth century). Dumbarton Oaks Abydos remained a metropolitan see until the city fell to the Turks in the 14th century. The diocese is currently a titular see of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and Gerasimos Papadopoulos was titular Bishop of Abydos from 1962 until his death in 1995.Gerasimos Papadopoulos: Bishop of Abydos, the Wise Abba of America. Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Simeon Kruzhkov was bishop of Abydos from May to September 1998.Rimestad (2014), p. 299, p. 309 Kyrillos Katerelos was consecrated bishop of Abydos in 2008.Kyrillos of Abydos. The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
In 1222, during the Latin occupation, the papal legate Giovanni Colonna united the dioceses of Abydos and Madytos and placed the see under direct Papal authority.Leveniotis (2017), pp. 13-14 No longer a residential bishopric, Abydus is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see. |
Abydos (Hellespont) | See also | See also
List of ancient Greek cities |
Abydos (Hellespont) | References | References
Notes
Citations |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Bibliography | Bibliography
|
Abydos (Hellespont) | External links | External links
Category:Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey
Category:Former populated places in Turkey
Category:Greek colonies in Mysia
Category:Milesian colonies
Category:Members of the Delian League
Category:Populated places established in the 7th century BC
Category:Populated places of the Byzantine Empire
Category:Roman towns and cities in Turkey
Category:Populated places in ancient Mysia
Category:History of Çanakkale Province |
Abydos (Hellespont) | Table of Content | Short description, Archaeology, History, Classical period, Hellenistic period, Roman period, Medieval period, Ecclesiastical history, See also, References, Bibliography, External links |
August 15 | other uses | |
August 15 | Events | Events |
August 15 | Pre-1600 | Pre-1600
636 – Arab–Byzantine wars: The Battle of Yarmouk between the Byzantine Empire and the Rashidun Caliphate begins.
717 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik begins the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople, which will last for nearly a year.
718 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Raising of the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople.
747 – Carloman, mayor of the palace of Austrasia, renounces his position as majordomo and retires to a monastery near Rome. His brother, Pepin the Short, becomes the sole ruler (de facto) of the Frankish Kingdom.
778 – The Battle of Roncevaux Pass takes place between the army of Charlemagne and a Basque army.
805 – Noble Erchana of Dahauua grants the Bavarian town of Dachau to the Diocese of Freising
927 – The Saracens conquer and destroy Taranto.
982 – Holy Roman Emperor Otto II is defeated by the Saracens in the Battle of Capo Colonna, in Calabria.
1018 – Byzantine general Eustathios Daphnomeles blinds and captures Ibatzes of Bulgaria by a ruse, thereby ending Bulgarian resistance against Emperor Basil II's conquest of Bulgaria.
1038 – King Stephen I, the first king of Hungary, dies; his nephew, Peter Orseolo, succeeds him.
1057 – King Macbeth is killed at the Battle of Lumphanan by the forces of Máel Coluim mac Donnchada.
1070 – The Pavian-born Benedictine Lanfranc is appointed as the new Archbishop of Canterbury in England.
1096 – Starting date of the First Crusade as set by Pope Urban II.
1185 – The cave city of Vardzia is consecrated by Queen Tamar of Georgia.
1224 – The Livonian Brothers of the Sword, a Catholic military order, occupy Tarbatu (today Tartu) as part of the Livonian Crusade.Tarvel, Enn (ed.). Henriku Liivimaa kroonika. Heinrici Chronicon Livoniae. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1982. (in Estonian)Vahtre, Sulev. Muinasaja loojang Eestis : vabadusvõitlus 1208–1227.Tallinn: Olion, 1990. (in Estonian)
1237 – Spanish Reconquista: The Battle of the Puig between the Moorish forces of Taifa of Valencia against the Kingdom of Aragon culminates in an Aragonese victory.
1248 – The foundation stone of Cologne Cathedral, built to house the relics of the Three Wise Men, is laid. (Construction is eventually completed in 1880.)
1261 – Michael VIII Palaiologos is crowned as the first Byzantine emperor in fifty-seven years.
1281 – Mongol invasion of Japan: The Mongolian fleet of Kublai Khan is destroyed by a "divine wind" for the second time in the Battle of Kōan.
1310 – The city of Rhodes surrenders to the forces of the Knights of St. John, completing their conquest of Rhodes. The knights establish their headquarters on the island and rename themselves the Knights of Rhodes.
1430 – Francesco Sforza, lord of Milan, conquers Lucca.
1461 – The Empire of Trebizond surrenders to the forces of Sultan Mehmed II. This is regarded by some historians as the real end of the Byzantine Empire. Emperor David is exiled and later murdered.
1483 – Pope Sixtus IV consecrates the Sistine Chapel.
1511 – Afonso de Albuquerque of Portugal conquers Malacca, the capital of the Malacca Sultanate.
1517 – Seven Portuguese armed vessels led by Fernão Pires de Andrade meet Chinese officials at the Pearl River estuary.
1519 – Panama City, Panama is founded.
1534 – Ignatius of Loyola and six classmates take initial vows, leading to the creation of the Society of Jesus in September 1540.
1537 – Asunción, Paraguay is founded.
1540 – Arequipa, Peru is founded.
1549 – Jesuit priest Francis Xavier comes ashore at Kagoshima (Traditional Japanese date: 22 July 1549).
1592 – Imjin War: At the Battle of Hansan Island, the Korean Navy, led by Yi Sun-sin, Yi Eok-gi, and Won Gyun, decisively defeats the Japanese Navy, led by Wakisaka Yasuharu.
1599 – Nine Years' War: Battle of Curlew Pass: Irish forces led by Hugh Roe O'Donnell successfully ambush English forces, led by Sir Conyers Clifford, sent to relieve Collooney Castle. |
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