Alexander of Abonuteichos

Alexander von Abonuteichos (Greek Ἀλέξανδρος Aléxandros ; * around 105; † around 175) was an ancient priest from the Paphlagonian city ​​of Abonuteichos . He referred to the tradition of the New Pythagorean Apollonios of Tyana . On the opposing side, he was fought as a charlatan.

Pentassarion, minted under Philip Caesar (Caesar from 244 to 247) in Markianopolis . The reverse of the coin depicts a glycon serpent with a beard.

Following on from the already existing Asklepios Hygieia cult and in imitation of the cult in Eleusis , Alexander founded the Glykon oracle in Abonuteichos around 150. His cult of Neos Asklepios , the human-headed serpent Glykon, spread to Rome, the Danube region and Syria . Features of the cult were enigma, the appearance of a prophet, cultic silence and mystery festivals . The cult was known for its militant opposition to Epicureanism and Christianity, which was expressed in the “bidding away”: “Out of the Christians, out of the Epicureans”. Lukian of Samosata , who wrote Alexander's life story, described Alexander as an intelligent and unscrupulous charlatan who exploited the heyday of oracles in the 2nd century for his own gain. His work, written after 180, is a pamphlet against Alexander, which, carried by enlightening pathos, tries to expose the deceiver. Lukian also provides insights into the means of manipulation of a religious charlatan. He describes the way in which Alexander designs, stages and lets his human-headed snake speak.

Alexander had good connections to Rome, which enabled him to rename the city of Abonuteichos to Ionopolis during the reign of Emperor Antoninus Pius . The only reliable evidence of the cult besides Lucian's handwriting are coins that Abonuteichos and other cities in Asia Minor have minted since Antoninus Pius. On these the snake is depicted, often with a human head, sometimes with the name inscription.

Alexander died between 170 and 175, a few years later his most influential sponsor, which apparently led to the decline of the cult. While Lukian - presumably for the sake of literary representation - claims that the Glykon cult also came to an end with Alexander's death, the coins indicate a different development. After Alexander's death, the cult continued without the oracle, but with Alexander as the revered hero . At first, the worship of glycon was apparently actually weakened, hardly any coins were issued. But the cult experienced a second climax under the Severians. This phase is proven by numerous coins from various cities in Asia Minor until the middle of the 3rd century. Thereafter numismatic evidence is missing, but this cannot prove an end of the cult, since local minting in Asia Minor ends in the 3rd century. How long Glycon was worshiped is not known.

literature

• Richard Goulet: Alexandros d'Abonotique . In: Richard Goulet (ed.): Dictionnaire des philosophes antiques , Vol. 1, CNRS, Paris 1989, ISBN 2-222-04042-6 , pp. 122-124
• Auguste VB Miron: Alexander von Abonuteichos. On the history of the oracle of Neos Asklepios Glykon. In: Wolfgang Leschhorn , Auguste VB Miron, Andrei Miron (eds.): Hellas and the Greek East. Studies on the history and numismatics of the Greek world. Festschrift for Peter Robert Franke on his 70th birthday . Saarbrücker Druckerei und Verlag, Saarbrücken 1996, ISBN 3-930843-12-9 , pp. 153-188
• Ernst Riess : Alexandros 70 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume I, 2, Stuttgart 1894, Col. 1444 f.

Web links

Wikisource: Alexander or the Prophet of Lies  - Sources and full texts

Wikisource: Αλέξανδρος ή Ψευδομάντις  - sources and full texts (Greek)

• Angelos Chaniotis: How do you invent rituals for a new cult? Recycling of rituals - the recipe for success by Alexander von Abonouteichos , Forum Ritualdynamik 9, Heidelberg 2004
• Ursula Kampmann, Alexander von Abonuteichos - A lesson from Asia Minor about gullibility in the 2nd century AD.

Remarks

1. ↑ Lukian, Alexandros 38.