66:, which themselves followed from Egyptian iconography of Ammon as a ram-headed god or, in his Greek-form, a man with ram horns. The complete imagery may have represented a hybrid depiction that combined the naturalistic face of Zeus' portraiture with Ammon's horns depicting the Egyptian deity in order to signify the emergence of a new political system that encompassed the world, across regions such as Greece, Egypt, Asia, and so forth. Depictions of Alexander with the rams two horns appear under his successors, although there is not yet evidence of such depictions during his own lifetime.
17:
36:. Alexander's horns came with connotations of political and/or religious legitimacy, including indications of his status as a god, and these representations of Alexander under his successors carried implications of their divine lineage or succession from his reign. Mediums of expression of the horns of Alexander included coinage, sculpture, medallions, textiles, and literary texts, such as in the tradition of the
215:
King
Alexander bowed, and worshipping said: “Oh God, master of kings and judges, you who raise up kings and dismiss their power, I perceive with my mind that you made me great among all kings, and that you caused horns to grow on my head, so that I may gore with them the kingdoms of the world. Give
273:
In the medieval
Islamic period and in light of the widely held understanding that the Quran was depicting Alexander as being two-horned, Alexander would widely be referred to as the "Two-Horned One" and his name often merged with that phrase. In Arabic-language Alexander traditions, Alexander was
189:, Alexander's father is an Egyptian priest named Nechtanebus who sports a set of ram horns. After his death, Alexander is described as "the horned king" (βασιλέα κερασφόρον) by an oracle instructing Ptolemy, a general of Alexander, on where to bury him. This statement was repeated in the
264:
whose biography was also derivative from that of
Alexander's. Contemporary scholars also view Dhu al-Qarnayn as Alexander the Great. The choice of name for Alexander as the Two Horned One draws on motifs depicting Alexander as being two-horned in late antiquity.
105:
in the third century AD, who wrote "Alexander wished to be thought the son of Ammon and to be modeled with horns (κερασφόρος) by sculptors, so eager was he to outrage the beautiful face of a man by a horn." Roughly in the same period, the grammarian
89:
in the 1st century BC, after which numismatic representations of a two-horned
Alexander ceased. Representations would continue in the form of literature, sculptures, and other artistic expressions continued.
114:, stated that "Alexander used to wear even the sacred vestments at his entertainments; and sometimes he would wear the purple robe, and cloven sandals, and horns of Ammon, as if he had been the god."
216:
me the power from the heavens of your sanctity so that I may receive strength greater than the kingdoms of the world, and I will humiliate them and glorify your name forever, oh Lord!
158:
that has been dated to between the fourth to seventh centuries. In addition, a sculpture depicting a two-horned
Alexander has been discovered at a transept basilica at the site of
785:
C.W. Doufikar-Aerts, Faustina (2016). "A Hero
Without Borders: 2 Alexander the Great in the Syriac and Arabic Tradition". In Cupane, Carolina; Krönung, Bettina (eds.).
524:
De
Callatay, Francois (2018). "The coinages of Alexander the Great and the République des médailles". In Meadows, Andrew; Duyrat, Frédérique; Glenn, Simon (eds.).
274:
variously called "Dhu l-Qarnayn", "al-Iskandar Dhūl-qarnayn", or sometimes just "Dhūlqarnayn". One example is the ninth-century
Hispano-Arabic legend known as the
220:
The second reference occurs later, as God speaks to
Alexander and tells him that he gave him two horns to use them as a weapon against other worldly kingdoms;
700:. Cultures of Eschatology / edited by Veronika Wieser, Vincent Eltschinger and Johann Heiss. Berlin: De Gruyter Oldenbourg. pp. 637–639.
554:
224:
I made you great among all kings, and I caused horns of iron to grow on your head, so that you may gore with them the kingdoms of the world.
921:. A history of Persian literature / founding editor - Ehsan Yarshater. London New York Oxford New Delhi Sydney: I.B. Tauris. p. 500.
877:
Chism, Christine (2016). "Facing The Land Of
Darkness: Alexander, Islam, And The Quest For The Secrets Of God". In Stock, Markus (ed.).
93:
A life-sized marble head of Alexander with Ammon's ram horns is known from the second half of the second century and is stored at the
361:
207:
At some point in late antiquity, Alexander the Great would come to be depicted as a Christian. This is figured prominently in the
253:
142:
Artworks in late antiquity commonly depicted Alexander with horns. Examples of these are found in a gold penchant stored at the
953:
302:, is a 15th-century Hispano-Arabic legend which also identifies Dhu al-Qarnayn with Alexander and refers to him by that name.
117:
In April 2024, the discovery of a bronze fitting depicting a two-horned Alexander with wavy hair was announced, discovered in
926:
886:
856:
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705:
633:
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42:
literature. Rarely was anyone other than Alexander depicted with the two horns as this was considered unique to his imagery.
948:
483:
539:
902:
Gaullier-Bougassas, Catherine; Doufikar-Aerts, Faustina (2022). "Alexander the Great in Medieval Literature".
211:. The horns of Alexander are referenced twice in this text. The first appears in a prayer on Alexander's part;
628:. AAR reflection and theory in the study of religion. New York (N.Y.): Oxford University Press. p. 77.
837:"Modelling Prophets: Alexander the Great as a Proto-Sufi Saint-King in Thaʿlabi's Lives of the Prophets"
651:"Narratives of "the Companions of the Cave," Moses and His Servant, and Dhū 'l-Qarnayn in Sūrat al-Kahf"
311:
194:
190:
94:
812:
Islamic legends concerning Alexander the Great: taken from two medieval Arabic manuscripts in Madrid
503:. Ancient Narrative. Groningen: Barkhuis Publishing Groningen University Library. pp. 393–394.
963:
289:
208:
159:
917:
Casari, Mario (2023). "The Alexander Legend in Persian Literature". In Ashtiany, Mohsen (ed.).
748:"The Chronological Problems of the Qur'ān: The Case of the Story of Ḏū L-Qarnayn (q 18:83-102)"
86:
958:
102:
101:. The popular practice of representing Alexander with horns among sculptors was described by
836:
968:
257:
111:
85:
from 275 to 268 BC. It was not for another two centuries that this practice was revived by
698:
Empires and scriptural authorities in medieval Christian, Islamic and Buddhist communities
8:
377:
81:
were the earliest produce coinage of Alexander with the rams horns. This continued under
29:
723:
Mapping frontiers across medieval Islam: geography, translation, and the ʿAbbāsid Empire
252:
appears, which literally means "The Two Horned One". Islamic commentators most commonly
767:
678:
611:
The History of Alexander the Great: Being the Syriac Version of the Pseudo-Callisthenes
533:
457:
328:
323:
294:
276:
228:
The two-horned imagery of the Syriac Alexander Legend draws together elements from the
143:
32:
with two horns on his head, a form of expression that was associated originally as the
20:
Horned bust of Alexander from Cyprus (left); horned coin portrait of Alexander (right)
922:
919:
Persian narrative poetry in the classical era, 800-1500: romantic and didactic genres
882:
852:
815:
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759:
726:
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682:
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of 1 Kings 22:11/2 Chronicles 18:10, Micah 4:13, and the two-horned ram in Daniel 8.
186:
38:
844:
662:
441:
280:, meaning "Story of the Two-Horned One", whom it identifies as Alexander. Another
67:
16:
789:. Brill's companions to the Byzantine world. Leiden Boston: Brill. p. 202.
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333:
249:
151:
63:
33:
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666:
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of the Alexander Romance in the 5th century as well as in the seventh-century
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841:
Narrative, Imagination and Concepts of Fiction in Late Antique Hagiography
555:"Ansigtet fra en af historiens største herskere fundet på sjællandsk mark"
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Fictional storytelling in the medieval Eastern Mediterranean and beyond
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82:
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55:
51:
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429:
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Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association
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147:
129:, an emperor that believed himself to be the reincarnated Alexander.
126:
107:
696:
Wieser, Veronika; Eltschinger, Vincent; Heiss, Johann, eds. (2020).
881:. Toronto Buffalo London: University of Toronto Press. p. 62.
445:
256:. Second most frequently tied to Dhu al-Qarnayn was a figure named
229:
125:. The artifact is dated to ~200 AD during the reign of the emperor
879:
Alexander the Great in the Middle Ages: transcultural perspectives
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to be the son of Zeus Ammon, allowing him to therefore have the
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59:
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A Byzantine Image of Alexander: Literature Manifested in Stone
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A Byzantine Image of Alexander: Literature Manifested in Stone
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The reference to the horns of Alexander are also found in the
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of Naukratis reported that one of Alexander's contemporaries,
245:
71:
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Journal of the International Qur'anic Studies Association
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According to legend, Alexander went on pilgrimage to the
695:
404:
Bowden, Hugh (2023), Ogden, Daniel (ed.), "Religion",
784:
254:associated Dhu al-Qarnayn with Alexander the Great
940:
725:. London New York: I.B. Tauris. pp. 97–98.
408:, Cambridge University Press, pp. 237–242,
284:was produced in the eleventh century within the
598:. Oxford University Press. pp. 91–92, 139.
406:The Cambridge Companion to Alexander the Great
378:"Marble head of Zeus Ammon | Roman | Imperial"
28:represent an artistic tradition that depicted
814:. Albany, NY: State Univ. of New York Press.
501:The Alexander romance in Persia and the East
488:. Oxford University Press. pp. 137–146.
482:Tesei, Tommaso (2023). "Alexander's Horns".
54:, the sanctuary of the Greco-Egyptian deity
523:
58:in 331 BC. There, he was pronounced by the
613:. Cambridge University Press. p. 257.
200:
626:Studying the Qur'ān in the Muslim Academy
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904:Literature: A World History, Volumes 1-4
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526:Alexander the Great: A Linked Open World
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166:from the reign of the Byzantine emperor
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485:The Syriac Legend of Alexander's Gate
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286:Ara'is al-majalis fi Qisas al-anbiya'
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74:and more prominently the king of
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649:Griffith, Sidney (2022-03-15).
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382:The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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150:in addition to a cameo at the
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954:Alexander the Great in legend
752:Rivista degli studi orientali
538:: CS1 maint: date and year (
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170:during the seventh century.
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843:, Brill, pp. 253–282,
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949:Alexander the Great in art
906:. Wiley. pp. 534–535.
499:Stoneman, Richard (2012).
312:Ethiopic Alexander Romance
248:, a figure by the name of
195:Syriac Pseudo-Callisthenes
185:In the α recension of the
95:National Museum of Denmark
849:10.1163/9789004685758_013
667:10.5913/jiqsa.6.2021.a005
624:Daneshgar, Majid (2020).
579:Stewart, Charles (2018).
360:Stewart, Charles (2018).
583:. pp. 147–148, 188.
528:. Ausonius. p. 203.
235:
746:Tesei, Tommaso (2011).
594:Tesei, Tommaso (2023).
209:Syriac Alexander Legend
202:Syriac Alexander Legend
160:Katalymata ton Plakoton
721:Zadeh, Travis (2017).
609:Budge, Ernest (1889).
288:(Book of Prophets) of
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295:Hadīth Dhī ʾl-Qarnayn
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103:Clement of Alexandria
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300:Leyenda de Alejandro
298:, also known as the
112:Ephippus of Olynthus
430:"Alexander's Horns"
46:Classical antiquity
30:Alexander the Great
553:Koch, Kristoffer.
329:Hadith Dhulqarnayn
324:Gates of Alexander
282:Qissat Dhulqarnayn
277:Qissat Dhulqarnayn
191:Armenian recension
180:Alexander Romances
144:Walters Art Museum
26:Horns of Alexander
22:
928:978-1-78673-664-2
888:978-1-4426-4466-3
858:978-90-04-68575-8
821:978-1-58684-132-4
796:978-90-04-28999-4
732:978-1-78453-739-5
707:978-3-11-059774-5
635:978-0-19-006754-0
510:978-94-91431-04-3
415:978-1-108-88834-9
258:Sa'b Dhu Marathid
187:Alexander Romance
39:Alexander Romance
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366:. p. 147.
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334:Horns of Moses
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269:Medieval Islam
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262:Himyarite king
260:, a fictional
250:Dhu al-Qarnayn
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152:British Museum
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34:Horns of Ammon
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561:(in Danish)
440:: 102–103.
290:al-Tha'labi
138:Visual arts
943:Categories
864:2024-03-13
565:2024-04-14
387:2024-01-17
340:References
174:Literature
99:Copenhagen
83:Arsinoe II
79:Lysimachus
56:Zeus Ammon
52:Siwa Oasis
764:0392-4866
683:251486595
675:2474-8420
534:cite book
454:0065-9711
240:In Surah
168:Heraclius
148:Baltimore
127:Caracalla
108:Athenaeus
772:43927288
318:See also
306:Ethiopia
230:Peshitta
559:TV2 ØST
242:Al-Kahf
123:Denmark
119:Zealand
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60:Oracle
768:JSTOR
679:S2CID
458:JSTOR
246:Quran
236:Quran
72:Egypt
923:ISBN
883:ISBN
853:ISBN
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760:ISSN
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671:ISSN
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