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Reviews
| The Rise and Fall of Alexandria: Birthplace of the Modern Mind, by Justin Pollard and Howard Reid. New York: Viking, 2006. 254 pages. $27.95, cloth.
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| This is a sweeping account of the history of one of the great intellectual centers of the ancient world. A quest for knowledge has been a hallmark of modern societies, but this volume reminds us that it was emblematic of some ancient civilizations, too, such as Ptolemaic Alexandria. The history of this multilingual, multicultural city is a long and complex one, but Pollard and Reid deftly weave intellectual, cultural, and political history into a neat tapestry. Their enthusiasm for the topic is evident in their lively, highly-readable prose. Few cities have done more to shape the Western mind than the?great port?Alexander the Great founded on Egypt's Mediterranean coast in the late fourth century BCE. With the exception of Epicureanism and Cynicism, all of the leading philosophical schools of the Hellenistic Era were well-represented. Claudius Ptolemy, who provided the intellectual framework for the geocentric theory of the solar system; Aristarchos of Samos, whose heliocentric theory helped shape Copernicus' views a millenium and a half later; Eratosthenes, who calculated the circumference of the Earth and helped devise the Julian Calendar; Apollonius of Perga, a founder of geometry; the pioneering anatomists Galen, Herophilus, and Erasistratus; Archimedes, Hero, and Ctesius, inventors of pneumatic and hydraulic machines; Hypatia, the Neoplatonist philosopher; Philo, who attempted to harmonize Hebraism and Hellenism; Plotinus, the last great Idealist philosopher of the ancient world, and the Christian fathers Arius and Origen—all lived and worked in Alexandria at one time. The lives and achievements of notable figures like these presented in roughly chronological order provide the framework of the study, although political, cultural, and, to a lesser degree, social issues are also explored. Reid and Pollard show that science meant something different to the ancient Alexandrians than it does to us. Mysticism, allegories, and the occult were as essential as reason to the work of many of these thinkers, such as Philo and Ptolemy. For instance, the latter's astronomical studies were made partly to provide data for the best horoscopes possible. |
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One of the topical issues this study suggests is whether it is possible for different ethnic and religious groups to live side by side. They show that tensions were often high between Christians, Jews, and native Egyptians. One of the greatest challenges facing the Macedonian rulers, like Ptolemy Soter, Alexander's lieutenant who laid the city's foundations following?the conqueror's?sudden death in 323?BCE, was convincing the native Egyptians that they would have an important voice in the new society.? The authors have a talent for highlighting this and other signal issues related to the ancient metropolis. They note, for instance, that although Hypatia was the foremost pagan thinker in Alexandria in the early fifth century CE, many of her students were Christians who later achieved high positions in the Church,?an illustration of the city's unusually diverse ethnic nature. Pollard and Reid are not ancient historians, and while they have mastered the main outlines of their topic and?seem to be familiar with?most of the key primary sources, their knowledge of some recent research in the field does not seem to be particularly strong. For instance, their account of the destruction of the Library during the war that pitted Cleopatra against her brother suggests that there is more agreement among historians today on how the edifice was destroyed than there actually is. Diana Delia and other scholars maintain that it broke up over a much longer period than these authors say. |
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Occasionally, the authors overstate the significance of some of the city's noted figures. For example, Aristarchos of Samos may have been the first to propose that the Earth revolved around the Sun, but some scholars?now?argue that he borrowed more from Babylonian astronomers than he acknowledged. This is an objective study, but one sometimes detects a certain pro-Alexandrian bias—it is apparent, for instance, in the story of the war between the Ptolemies and Rome in the first century CE where the authors side with the Graeco-Egyptians. While most of their conclusions are based on sound scholarship, a few are inaccurate. "The Ptolemies," they write, "wanted to know everything." While this may have been true of Ptolemy Soter, one of the first leaders of the city, it was certainly not the case with most later Ptolemies—except perhaps for Cleopatra. And there does not seem to be much proof that Euclid, as they assert, ever lived in the city. |
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There are some striking parallels between the Middle East today and ancient Alexandria, such as the pogroms that have often flared up in both eras, and the belief by some Muslims that all knowledge worth possessing is found in the Koran. One early Caliph allegedly said: "If what is written in them [the books in the Library at Alexandria] agrees with the book of God, they are not required; if it disagrees, they are not desired, destroy them" (p. 287). Pollard and?Reid have chosen not to explore topical issues such as this and, therefore, miss an opportunity to weigh in on a central issue in Mid East politics today: Can communities with different religious beliefs live in peace and harmony? Alexandria's architecture ranked among the finest in the ancient world and its best models are discussed, such as the Serapeum, the Lighthouse at Pharos, and the Sebasteum. Unfortunately, there is only one small, undated map given to locate them and other key sites. There are no illustrations or photographs, a curious omission for a city with its legacy. Although generous samples from the writings of some of the great Alexandrians are given, few are provided from rival powers like Rome and Arabia. Perhaps by including more contemporary views from the latter a fuller, richer picture of the metropolis might have emerged. Nonetheless, this is a valuable study and one that general readers and students of ancient history and the classics will want to read. Because this volume is written for general readers, those who seek a more scholarly study may wish to consult P.M. Fraser's magisterial Ptolemaic Egypt, 3 vols. (Oxford University Press, 2001). If used in schools, it is perhaps best suited for courses in ancient history and the humanities at the undergraduate and advanced secondary levels. |
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| New Jersey City University |
Matthew McMurray |
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