Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/253

 MACEDONIA. The Peutinger Table furnishes the following route from Pella to Larissa in Thessaly : — Pella. Beroea - - Verria. Ascordus - - „ Arulos - - „ Bada - - „ Anamo - - „ Hatera - - Katerina. Bium (Dium) - - Malathria. Sabatium - - „ Stenas (Tempe) - Lykostomo. Olympum - - ,, Two roads led to Stobi in Paeonia, the one from Heracleia Lyncestis, the other from Thessalonica. According to the Table, the stations of the former are — Heracleia. Ceramie. Euristo (Andaristus). Stobi. Of the latter — Thessalonica. Gallicum - - Galliho. Tauriana - - Boirdn. Idomenia - - ,, Stonas (Stena) - Demirhapi. Antigonia - - „ Stobi - - „ From Stobi again two roads struck off to the NAV. and NE. to Scopi {Skopia), at the " de'bouche'" from the Illyrian mountains into the plains of Paeonia and the Upper Asius, and to Serdica : — Stobi. Tranupara. Astibon - - Jstih. Pautalia - - Ghiustendil. Aelea - - „ Serdica - - Sofia. (Cousinery, Voyage dans la Macedoine, 2 vols. Paris, 1831 ; Leake, Travels in North Greece, 4 vols. Lon- don, 1835; Ami Boue', La Turquie d Europe, 4 vols. Paris, 1840; Griesbach, Reise durch Rumelien und Nach Brusa, 2 vols. Gbttingen, 1841; Jos. Miiller, Albanien Rumelien, vnd die Osterreichisch-Mon- tenegrische Grenze, Prag. 1844; Kiepert, General- Karte der Europaischen Turkei, 4 parts, Berlin, 1853 ; Niebuhr, Led. on Anc. Etlmog. and Geog. vol. i. pp. 275, 297; Eahn Albanesische Stvdien, Jena 1854.) Though the Macedonians were regarded by the Greeks as a semi-barbarous people, the execution of their coins would not lead to that inference, as they are fine and striking pieces, boldly executed in high, sharp, relief. The coin of Alexander I. of Macedon, 15. c. 500, is the iirst known monarchic coin in the world that can be identified with a written name, and to which, consequently, a positive date can be assigned. It has for " type " a Macedonian warrior leading a horse; he bears two lances, and wears the JIacedonian hat. The coins of the princes who fol- lowed him exhibit the steps towards perfection veiy graphically. With Philip IL a new era in the Macedonian coinage commences. At this period the coins had i)ecome perfect on both sides, that is, had a " reverse" equal in execution to the " obverse." Dm-ing his reign the gold mines at Mt. Pangaeus were worked. He issued a large gold coinage, tlie pieces of which went by his name, and were put forth in such abun- dance as to circulate throu2;hout all Greece. The 1IACESTUS. 2.37 -eeries of coins, from Philip II. to the extinction of the monarchy, exhibit the finest period of Greek monetary art. (Comp. H. N. Humphrey's Ancient Coins and Medals, London, 1850, pp. 58 — 65.) During the tetrarchy there are numerous existing coins, evidently struck at Amphipolis, bearing the head of the local deity Artemis Tauropolos, with an " obverse " representing the common Macedonian " type," the club of Hercules within a garland of oak, and the legend MaK^Mvuiv irpurris. (Comp. Eckhel, vol. ii. p. 61, foil.) [E. B. J.] COIX OF MACEDONIA. MACELLAorMAGELLA(Ma/<:€AAa: J/aceZ/flT-o), a town in the NW. of Sicilv, which is noticed by Polybius (i. 24) as being taken by the Roman con- suls, C. Duillius and Cn. Cornelius, as they returned after raising the siege of Segesta, in B.C. 260. It is interesting to find the same circumstance noticed, and the name of this otherwise obscure town men- tioned, in the celebrated inscription on the rostral column which records the exploits of C. Duillius. (Orell. Inscr. 549.) It would seem from Diodorus, that at an earlier period of the same war, the Romans had besieged Macella without success, which may account for the importance thus attached to it. (Diod. xxiii. 4. p. 502.) The passage of Polybius in reahty affords no proof of the position of Macella, though it has been generally received as an evidence that it was situated in the neighbourhood of Segesta and Panormus. But as we find a to^Ti still called Macellaro, in a strong position on a hill about 15 miles E. of Segesta, it is probable that this may occupy the site of Macella. The only other mention of it in history occurs in the Second Punic War (b.c. 211), among the towns which re- volted to the Carthaginians after the departure of Marcellus from Sicily. (Liv. xxvi. 21.) As its name is here associated with those of Hybla and Murgantia, towns situated in quite another part of the island, Cluverius supposes that this must be a distinct town from the Macella of Polybius ; but there is clearly no sufiicient reason ibr this as- sumption. The name is written in the old editions of Livy, Magella; and we find the Magellini enume- rated by Pliny among the stipendiary towns of the interior of Sici'ly (Plin. iii. 8. s. 14), while Ptolemy, like Polybius, writes the name MuKeWa. (Ftol. iii. 4. § 14.) The orthography is therefore dubious, as the authority of so ancient an inscription as that of Duillius is of no avail in this case. The coins which have been ascribed to IMacella are of very dubious authenticity. fE- H. B.] MACEPHRACTA (Ammian. xxiv. 2), a small town of Babylonia mentioned by Ammianus Marcel- linus. It was situated apparently on the Euphrates, to the W. of Sittace, not iar from the place where the Royal Canal, or Nahr-malka, joined the Eu- phrates. [V.] MACESTUS or MECESTUS (Ma/ceffTos or Me- KeaTos), a tributary of the river Rhyndacus : it took