Suggested Reading and Media Resources

• Bowden, Hugh. Mystery Cults of the Ancient World. 2010. Examines the main mystery religions of the ancient Mediterranean, using artistic and literary evidence.

• Carney, Elizabeth D. Women and Monarchy in Macedonia. 2000. Studies the queens of Macedonia and their influence on the exercise of power.

• Chaniotis, Angelos. War in the Hellenistic World. 2005. Covers the wars of this period, the reasons behind them, and how they were waged.

• Connelly, Joan. Portrait of a Priestess: Women and Ritual in Ancient Greece. 2009. A survey of the important public roles of priestesses, with many illustrations.

• Errington, R. Malcolm. A History of the Hellenistic World, 323–30 B.C. 2008. Easily the best coverage of the period: full, scholarly, and readable.

• Erskine, Andrew. A Companion to the Hellenistic World. 2003. An edited collection with chapters on many of the issues discussed here.

• Freeman, Philip. Alexander the Great. 2010. Designed for general readers, this excellent biography portrays Alexander as both ruthless and cultured.

• Jaeger, Mary. Archimedes and the Roman Imagination. 2008. Puts the discovery of the new manuscript into the context of Archimedes’s other scientific works.

• Manning, J. G. The Last Pharaohs: Egypt Under the Ptolemies, 305–30 B.C. 2009. Examines the impact of the Ptolemies on Egyptian society and the way their state blended Greek and Egyptian elements.

• Sharples, R. W. Stoics, Epicureans, and Sceptics. 1996. Provides a brief synthesis of these three major branches of Hellenistic philosophy, written for students.

• Shipley, Graham. The Greek World After Alexander, 323–30 B.C. 2000. A very thorough discussion of political, socioeconomic, intellectual, and cultural developments.

• Waterfield, Robin. Dividing the Spoils: The War for Alexander the Great’s Empire. 2011. A cultural and political narrative of this turbulent period based on up-to-date research.

• Ancient Mysteries: The Lost Treasures of the Alexandria Library (History Channel, 2004). Presents the building of the library and its collection, the research undertaken there, and the destruction of the library at the hands of a Christian mob in the fourth century C.E.

• Cleopatra’s Alexandria (BBC, 2000). Explores the history of Alexandria from its construction through the time of Cleopatra, highlighting the findings of marine archaeologists.

• Infinite Secrets: The Genius of Archimedes (Nova, 2004). Excellent Nova special that explores Archimedes’s ideas, theories, and writings, and tells the story of the lost manuscript featured in this chapter.

• In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great (BBC, 2010). Michael Wood follows Alexander’s two-thousand-mile journey from Greece to India, tracing his conquests and the meaning these have for the peoples of these areas today.

• The True Story of Alexander the Great (History Channel, 2005). Examines the life and career of Alexander, with on-site re-enactments and computer graphics.

• Ancient History Sourcebook. Well-organized collection of ancient Mediterranean texts and art and archaeological sources. Organized chronologically and topically, with materials from 2000 B.C.E. to 500 C.E.www.fordham.edu/Halsall/ancient/asbook.html

• Brought to Life: Exploring the History of Medicine. Interactive Web site from the Science Museum in London offering a thematic approach to the past three thousand years in the history of medicine that foregrounds objects and material culture. Includes many items from the ancient Mediterranean. www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife

• Pothos. Long-standing user-generated Web site with articles, debates, a blog, and visual materials about Alexander the Great. www.pothos.org/content/