Cebrene ( grc, Κεβρήνη), also spelled Cebren ( grc, Κεβρήν), was an
ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
city in the middle
Skamander
Skamander was a Polish group of experimental poets founded in 1918 by Julian Tuwim, Antoni Słonimski, Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz, Kazimierz Wierzyński and Jan Lechoń. Initially unnamed, in December 1919 it adopted the name ''Skamander'', after ...
valley in the
Troad region of
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
. According to some scholars, the city's name was changed to Antiocheia in the Troad ( grc, Ἀντιόχεια τῆς Τρωάδος) for a period during the 3rd century BCE (see below). Its archaeological remains have been located on Çal Dağ in the forested foothills of
Mount Ida
In Greek mythology, two sacred mountains are called Mount Ida, the "Mountain of the Goddess": Mount Ida in Crete, and Mount Ida in the ancient Troad region of western Anatolia (in modern-day Turkey), which was also known as the '' Phrygian Ida'' ...
(modern Kaz Dağı), approximately 7 km to the south of the course of the Skamander. The site was first identified by the English amateur archaeologist
Frank Calvert in 1860.
History
Foundation
The earliest Greek archaeological remains found at Cebren date to the mid-7th and early 6th century BCE and were found together with indigenous pottery, suggesting that to begin with the city was a mixed Greco-Anatolian community. Writing in the early 4th century BCE,
Xenophon
Xenophon of Athens (; grc, wikt:Ξενοφῶν, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Anci ...
implies that the population of Cebren ca. 400 BCE still consisted of both Greek and Anatolian elements, indicating that the two ethnic groups co-existed long after the period of
Greek colonization. Sources dating to the mid-4th century BCE considered the city an
Aeolian Greek foundation, and the historian
Ephorus
Ephorus of Cyme (; grc-gre, Ἔφορος ὁ Κυμαῖος, ''Ephoros ho Kymaios''; c. 400330 BC) was an ancient Greek historian known for his universal history.
Biography
Information on his biography is limited. He was born in Cyme, A ...
of
Cyme claimed that its founders were in fact from his own city, although this statement needs to be treated with some caution, since Ephorus was notorious in antiquity for exaggerating his hometown's importance. While we cannot ascertain the truth of Ephorus' statement, we can be sure that the early settlers were Aeolians, since a grave inscription for a citizen of Kebren written in the
Aeolic dialect
In linguistics, Aeolic Greek (), also known as Aeolian (), Lesbian or Lesbic dialect, is the set of dialects of Ancient Greek spoken mainly in Boeotia; in Thessaly; in the Aegean island of Lesbos; and in the Greek colonies of Aeolis in Anatolia ...
has been found at nearby
Gergis.
Classical Period
In the 5th century BCE Cebren was a member of the
Delian League
The Delian League, founded in 478 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, numbering between 150 and 330, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Pl ...
and is listed in the Hellespontine district paying a tribute to Athens of 3
Talents from 454/3 down to 425/4, except in 450/49 when it only paid 8,700
drachmas
The drachma ( el, δραχμή , ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history:
# An ancient Greek currency unit issued by many Greek city states during a period of ten centuries, fro ...
. Following the defeat of Athens at the end of the
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) was an ancient Greek war fought between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies for the hegemony of the Greek world. The war remained undecided for a long time until the decisive intervention of th ...
in 404 BCE, Cebren came under the control of Zenis, the tyrant of
Dardanus, and his wife Mania who together controlled the Troad on behalf of the Persian
satrap
A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires.
The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...
Pharnabazos. Cebren was captured by the
Spartan commander
Dercylidas Dercylidas (Greek: Δερκυλίδας) was a Spartan commander during the 5th and 4th century BC. For his cunning and inventiveness, he was nicknamed Sisyphus. In 411 BC he was appointed harmost at Abydos. In 399 BC, he was advised by Antisthen ...
in 399 BCE, but soon after returned to Persian control. In 360/59, the Greek mercenary commander
Charidemus briefly captured the city before being repelled by the Persian satrap
Artabazos. At some point in the 4th century BCE Cebren produced coinage depicting a satrap's head as the obverse type, indicating the city's close relationship with its Persian overlords. Cebren ceased to exist as an independent city ca. 310 when
Antigonus I Monophthalmus
Antigonus I Monophthalmus ( grc-gre, Ἀντίγονος Μονόφθαλμος , 'the One-Eyed'; 382 – 301 BC), son of Philip from Elimeia, was a Macedonian Greek nobleman, general, satrap, and king. During the first half of his life he serv ...
founded
Antigonia Troas (after 301 BCE renamed Alexandria Troas) and included Cebren in the
synoecism.
Antiocheia in the Troad
A rare series of bronze coins display the obverse and reverse types of Cebren (ram's head/head of Apollo), but bear the legend (''Antiocheōn'', '(coin of the) Antiocheis'). On the basis of these coins it has been argued, most notably by the French epigrapher
Louis Robert, that Cebren was refounded by
Antiochus I Soter as Antiocheia in the Troad following Antiochus' victory over
Lysimachus
Lysimachus (; Greek: Λυσίμαχος, ''Lysimachos''; c. 360 BC – 281 BC) was a Thessalian officer and successor of Alexander the Great, who in 306 BC, became King of Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon.
Early life and career
Lysimachus was b ...
at the
Battle of Corupedium in 281 BCE, after which most of western
Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
came under his control. Moreover, Robert noted that some of these coins bore the letters B and K and included a club beside the ram's head: since the club is the typical symbol of the coinage of
Birytis
Birytis (Βίρυτις) or Berytis (Βέρυτις) or Berythis (Βήριθος) was a town in ancient Troad. It is believed, although there is no absolute security, that the inhabitants of this city of the Troad are the same that, with the name o ...
, an unlocated city in the Troad, Robert argued that these letters referred to B(irytis) and K(ebren) and were evidence of a
synoecism or ''
sympoliteia
A ''sympoliteia'' ( gr, συμπολιτεία, , joint citizenship), anglicized as sympolity, was a type of treaty for political organization in ancient Greece. By the time of the Hellenistic period, it occurred in two forms. In mainland Greece, ...
'' between the two communities which had produced the new foundation of Antiocheia in the Troad. Robert's arguments have been repeatedly criticized by the archaeologist
John Manuel Cook
John Manuel Cook, (1910–1994) was a British classical archaeologist. He was educated at Marlborough College, and went to King's College, Cambridge (1929–32).
His older brother was Robert Manuel Cook, also a noted scholar of antiquity.
Caree ...
, who could discern no archaeological or
numismatic
Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals and related objects.
Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also includ ...
evidence for occupation in the Hellenistic period at the site of Çal Dağ. Cook based these claims on only two days of
surface survey at Çal Dağ, and as such definitive answers regarding the settlement history of the site in the 3rd century BCE will have to await a full excavation.
[Cook (1973) 6, 339.]
See also
*
List of ancient Greek cities
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
References
Bibliography
* A. Plassart, ‘Inscriptions de Delphes: la liste de théorodoques’ ''BCH'' 45 (1921) 1-85.
* L. Robert, ''Études de Numismatique Grecque'' (Paris, 1951) 16–31.
* J. M. Cook, ''The Troad: An Archaeological and Topographical Study'' (Oxford, 1973) 327–44.
* R. Merkelbach, ''Die Inschriften von Assos'', Inschriften griechischer Städte aus Kleinasien 4 (Bonn 1976).
* J. M. Cook, 'Cities in and around the Troad' ''ABSA'' 83 (1988) 7-19.
* S. Mitchell, 'Kebren' in M. H. Hansen and T. H. Nielsen (eds), ''An Inventory of Archaic and Classical Poleis'' (Oxford, 2004) no. 780.
{{Authority control
Archaeological sites in the Marmara Region
Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey
Seleucid colonies in Anatolia
Ruins in Turkey
Cities in ancient Troad
Former populated places in Turkey
Geography of Çanakkale Province
History of Çanakkale Province
Tourist attractions in Çanakkale Province