Page:From Constantinople to the home of Omar Khayyam.djvu/53

 Still more difficult than the riddle of authorship is the prob- lem of determining for whose mortal remains the magnificent coffin was chiseled. The first and natural inference was that it must have been designed for Alexander, as all students of Greek art concede that he is twice (and possibly thrice) repre- sented in the scenes carved on its sides. There are serious obstacles, however, in the way of this assignment, especially the difficulty of accounting for the presence of the sarcophagus at Sidon, whereas tradition holds that Alexander's remains were finally laid to rest at Alexandria. For that reason, even though the tomb still goes popularly under Alexander's name, and although, as Joubin emphasizes, there is nothing a priori to refute the hypothesis that it was originally at least 'ordered and executed' — commande et exScutS — for his coffin, never- theless, the consensus of scholarly opinion is practically unani- mous in the view that the marble was not chiseled to receive Alexander's body.

But if we may not ' trace the noble dust of Alexander,' as Hamlet might, till found resting in the marble's cold embrace, then whose casket was it? The hypothetical answers to this very pertinent inquiry are numerous.^ Possibly it held the body of one of his generals. Among this number the names of Perdiccas or Parmenion have been doubtfully suggested ; the former met death by assassination in Egypt, and the latter was put to death in Media by Alexander's orders. ^ The proposal seems hardly tenable. The right of Laomedon to be considered has been warmly maintained, but is open to equal objections. ^

1 For the names of some of the pos- 49. 7 ; Diodorus Siculus, 17. 80. 3 ; sible claimants as perhaps portrayed Justin, 12. 5. 3. Regarding this hy- in the carvings (including Laomedon), pothesis, see Hamdy Bey and Reinach, see Hamdy Bey and Reinach, Une Ne- op. cit. pp. 77-78, and Judeich, op. cit. cropole, p. 314. p. 168.

2 For the death of Perdiccas, see ^ The champion for Laomedon is Plutarch, Eumenes, chap. 8, and Dio- Judeich of Marburg, op. cit-, especially dorus Siculus, Hist. 18, 36. For Par- pp. 168, 170, 172-179, but this view is menion's death cf. Curtius, 7. 2. 23- combated by Reinach (Une Necro- 27 ; Arrian, 3. 26. 3-5 ; Plutarch, .AZex. pole, p. 314, n. 1), particularly the

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