Cyrene - Silphium

Cyrene, sometimes anglicized as Kyrene, was an ancient Greek colony and Roman city near present-day Shahhat in northeastern Libya in North Africa. It was part of the Pentapolis, a group of five cities in the region and gave the area its name Cyrenaica.

Founded in the 7th century B.C., Cyrene was one of the principal cities in the Hellenic world.

UNESCO added the site to its World Heritage List in 1992. “A thousand years of history is written into its ruins,” it said. The city was attributed to Apollo and the legendary etymon Cyrene by the Greeks but it was probably colonized by settlers from Thera (modern Santorini) in the late seventh century BC.

It was initially ruled by a dynasty of monarchs called the Battiads, who grew rich from the export of horses and silphium.

The ruins of Cyrene survived Libya’s 2011 revolution and a decade of lawlessness but now face looters.

Silphium (silphion or laser) was an ancient miracle plant, highly prized by Greeks and Romans as a spice, medicine, and highly effective contraceptive. When Rome assumed control of Cyrene, private contractors heavily over-harvested the wild rootstocks to maximize profits.

Silphium is claimed to have become extinct in Roman times during the reign of Nero. Silphium had an extremely small growing range, about 125 by 35 miles (201 by 56 km), in the southern steppe of Cyrenaica. Extremely valuable, overharvesting has long been cited as the primary factor that led to its extinction. It could not be cultivated from seed but instead only asexually through their roots. The plant may have been a Roman hybrid.

Antonine Plague

The Antonine Plague occured from 165 to 180 AD. Ancient sources agree that the epidemic first appeared during the Roman siege of Seleucia in the winter of 165–166. After the military victory, returning soldiers unleashed the Antonine Plague across the Roman Empire. It erupted during the reign of the last of the Five Good Emperors, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (161-180 CE). Lucius Verus, co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius, died from the illness in 169 CE; Marcus Aurelius died 11 years later from the same illness. The ancient pandemic was brought to the Roman Empire by troops, but it also likely spread along trade routes. The culprit is thought to be an ancestor of the smallpox virus.

The famous physician Galen observed and documented the disease. Symptoms included fever, vomiting, diarrhea, ulcerations of the throat, and a pustular or black rash that covered the body. At the outbreak of the plague, Rome's military consisted of 28 legions totaling 150,000 men. The rapid and severe decline of the Roman military, along with a economic contraction, contributed to the decline and fall of the Empire. The Roman historian Dio Cassius (155-235 CE) estimated 2,000 deaths per day in Rome at the height of the outbreak. In the second outbreak, in 251-266 CE, the estimate was much higher, upwards of 5,000 per day. The death toll of the Antonine Plague is unknowable. Guesses have ranged from 2% to 25% of the population. All agree it was a significant factor in Rome's decline.

Historians point to the bizzare Roman emperor Commodus as a turning point for the empire's greatness. Commodus was emperor jointly with his father Marcus Aurelius from 176 until his father's death in 180, and solely until 192. In the words of a senator, Commodus himself was a curse worse than any plague.

The Seleucids

Seleukos I Nikator (The Victor), Founder and King of the Seleukid Empire of Syria, 312-281 BC. Seleucus I struck a very large quantity of gold coins with the vast majority issued in the name of Alexander III, employing his familiar design. This coin is a rare variety. CHF 60 000.

The Seleucids were a Greek dynasty who ruled much of the Middle East from 312 to 64 BCE. There were 28 Seleucid kings and one queen. Ten died in the many wars of the era; others were assassinated, often by relatives. Founder of the dynasty was Seleucus I, born in Macedonia about 369 BCE and a companion of Alexander the Great. In 312 BCE he recaptured Babylon. This event marked Year 1 of the 'Seleucid Era'. In 281 BCE, Seleucus tried to conquer Macedonia. It ended poorly for him as he was murdered. His son, Antiochus I, became king. Antiochus II's son Seleucus II Callinicus came to the throne around 246 BC.

Seleucus II was soundly defeated by Ptolemy III of Egypt and then faced a civil war against his brother. A revival in Seleucid fortunes began when Seleucus II's younger son, Antiochus III, took the throne in 223 BC. Seleucid renewed glory was temporary. Grand plans meant a collision course with the Roman Republic. At the battles of Thermopylae (191 BC) and Magnesia (190 BC), Antiochus's forces suffered defeats.

A rare Silver Tetradrachm of the Seleucids

By 100 BC, the Seleucid Empire existed only because no other nation wished to absorb them. Mithridates was defeated by Pompey in 63 BC. Pompey saw the Seleucids as troublesome and did away with both rival Seleucid princes. He made Syria into a Roman province and the Seleucids faded into history.

Pompey Magnus

Ancient mosaics of Lod

An ancient mosaic that once belonged to a Roman villa in the city of Lod was discovered in 2018 by archaeological excavations at the site. The mosaic-decorated reception and courtyard, as well as a water system were found as the Israel Antiquities Authority dug in preparation for the construction of a visitors’ center in Lod.

A 1,700-year-old mosaic discovered in Lod, Israel, was revealed to the public for the first time in November, 2015. Measuring 36 by 42 feet, the impressive artwork depicts scenes from nature. It was found near another mosiac found two decades ago in the same area.

The Bactrian Treasure - Hill of Gold - Tillya Tepe

The Bactrian Treasure is a massive gold hoard that lay under the 'Hill of Gold' in Afghanistan, known as Bactria when Alexander the Great conquered the country 2100 years ago.

The hoard is a spectacular collection of about 20,600 gold ornaments found in six burial mounds just beyond the oasis town of Sheberghan in northern Afghanistan. This is the treasure of Tillya Tepe, the Hill of Gold. The treasure lay undisturbed until Soviet researchers exposed it shortly before the 1979 invasion.

Soon after the discovery, a guerrilla war against the Soviet occupation began, followed by civil war. During those years the treasure was kept in the Kabul Museum, which has since been looted. The day before the Russians fled Kabul in February 1989, the treasure was moved to the presidential compound, the safest place in the capital.

Gold stater of Greco-Bactrian king Eucratides, 169gm, the largest gold coin of antiquity.

The treasure remained safe due to the efforts of one man: Mr. Ameruddin Askarzai, a security guard of the central bank who has been guardian of the vaults for 30 years. He is one of the few people in history to have seen the entire collection of gold objects. "It's the best heritage of our country," he said. Askerzai helped to seal the treasure in seven trunks and guarded it along with the assets of the central bank - gold bars the "size of your arm" worth about £50 million - also kept in the presidential palace. The real threat to the treasure came when the Taliban captured Kabul in 1996. A delegation of 10 mullahs arrived with a jeweller to inspect the vaults. A pistol held against his head, he opened the combination lock so they could inspect the gold bars. They had found the second prize, but did not realize the real treasure was in a vault above their heads. The Taliban asked if there was any other gold, but Mr Askerzai remained silent. He was imprisoned for three months and 17 days, during which he was beaten and tortured, but he did not reveal anything. "I wasn't scared," he said. "I didn't care for my life. They were foreigners. They were not Afghans." On the Taliban's last night in power, as coalition forces pounded the country with bombs, the Taliban stuffed the central bank's cash reserves into tin trunks and arrived at the vault for the gold bars. They spent four hours trying to open the vault. Mr Askerzai watched. Unknown to them, five years earlier he had broken the key and left it in the lock. The Taliban gave up and fled Kabul as Northern Alliance forces edged closer. That saved the treasure.In 2003 the vault was opened. Since then, the National Geographic Society has catalogued the collection, which appears to be complete. Also witnessing the re-opening was the archaeologist who originally found the hoard, Viktor Sarianidi.