First, Rhodes was part of the Athenian hegemony (the Delian League). Prior to this, it had passed between the spheres of influence of the two dominant Greek states. In 408 BCE, three smaller cities (Ialyssos, Kamiros, and Lindos) merged into a single entity (i.e., Rhodes). The city of Rhodes itself was established in the late 5th century BCE. Likewise, the island had been under the sway of the Persian Empire in the early 5th century. There is archaeological evidence for interaction with the Minoan culture of Crete from at least the 16th century BCE, which testifies to these connections. It also benefitted from its location located in the southeast of the Aegean Sea, the island is somewhat of a crossroads between Europe, Africa, and the Near East. Its importance derives in part from its scale: it is the largest of the Dodecanese islands. Rhodes has been a significant actor throughout history, from antiquity through to the modern era. Home of a Giant: Rhodes in the Ancient World Rhodes, JMW Turner, 1823-4, via Yale Centre for British Art The Rhodian’s victory monument would be steeped in the culture of the Hellenistic world. His pedigree was without question: not only had he been involved in monumental dedications previously, but he had studied under Lysippos himself, the great sculptor of bronze who had been patronized by Alexander the Great. They contracted the artist Chares, a native of the island, for the project. Now 300 talents richer, the Rhodians decided the best use of the money was a dedication to the city’s patron deity, the sun god Helios. In a world riven by inter-kingdom war, the equipment left behind fetched a pretty penny. The resourceful Rhodians gathered this material together and sold it on. In abandoning the siege, the Antigonids left behind much of their equipment. To attempt to save face, the dejected Antigonid ruler presented the siege as a victory because the Rhodians ostensibly agreed to remain neutral (much as they had prior to the siege…). Ultimately, the siege was abandoned after a year in 304 BCE. Although his land forces were able to breach the city walls at one point, they were repelled with heavy losses and the defenses were reconstructed. The city of Rhodes, as well as its main harbor, were heavily fortified. The siege, which began in 305 BCE, was to prove an arduous undertaking for Demetrius and his allies (which included many pirates!). The siege of Rhodes was another example of the tensions that arose between the diadochi in their attempts to secure pre-eminence.īronze statue of the Victorious Youth, attributed to Lysippos, ca. Demetrius was the son of Antigonus I Monophthalmos (Antigonus the One-Eyed) and a member of the Antigonid dynasty that controlled Macedonia and parts of Greece. At the time, Rhodes was a powerful and wealthy naval force in the Aegean Sea. His aim was to break the resolve of the city and compel them to abandon their close relationship with Ptolemy, who by now was the ruler of Alexander’s former conquests in Egypt, including the city of Alexandria. In the last years of the 4th century, Demetrius Poliorcetes laid siege to Rhodes. Although it may have begun as a symbol of pointedly local triumph, like the other wonders on the list, the Colossus of Rhodes soon came to occupy an impotant place in a much wider world. The wonders were understood to be theamata (θεάματα), or things worth seeing, but they were things worth seeing from the broader horizons of the Hellenistic period, encompassing not only Greece but also the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Great Pyramid in Egypt. It also, however, highlights the nature of the canonical list of the seven wonders of the ancient world.Ĭompiled from different and often fragmented textual sources, the list of wonders reflects the expansion of the Hellenistic world after Alexander the Great’s conquests in the 4th century BCE. Or it could refer to the universal symbolism of a colossus, drawing a direct parallel between the ancient statue and the modern marvel. It might, as discussed below, refer to the ancient giant’s posture. The idea of the Colossus bestriding different lands can, of course, be viewed from many different perspectives. The other line of Lazarus’ poem quoted above is also significant. The Greek giant to which Lazarus referred was the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The sonnet’s name, ‘The New Colossus’, and contents however, evoke Lady Liberty’s ancient antecedents: “ The Brazen giant of Greek fame / with conquering limbs astride from land to land”. Written by the poet Emma Lazarus in 1883, the sonnet was meant to raise money for the construction of the statue’s pedestal. Today, mounted inside the pedestal of perhaps the world’s most famous statue (the Statue of Liberty in New York) is a bronze plaque that records a sonnet.
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