Around the end of November 117, after crossing the plateau of central Bithynia, Hadrian arrived in Nicaea (modern Iznik), one of the most important towns of the Bithynian province. From Juliopolis, where he had stayed on November 11 (see previous post here), the imperial party marched west along the river Sangarius and entered Nicaea through… Continue reading Late November AD 117 – Hadrian arrives in Nicaea (#Hadrian1900)
After spending a few days in Ancyra, the Galatian capital (see previous post here), Hadrian continued to travel westward towards the Danube provinces. He reached the little town of Juliopolis just inside Bithynia on 11 November. Epigraphic evidence has revealed that Hadrian addressed a missive to Pergamum from Juliopolis, a formal letter of thanks to an… Continue reading 11 November AD 117 – Hadrian reaches Juliopolis in Bithynia (#Hadrian1900)
At the end of October 117, Hadrian arrived in Ancyra (modern Ankara, Turkey), the chief city of the province of Galatia. The Emperor was travelling back to Rome via the Danube region. He probably reached the Galatian capital by the end of October, as suggested by the itinerary inscription found in Rome (see previous posts… Continue reading End of October AD 117 – Hadrian reaches Ancyra in Galatia (#Hadrian1900)
On 17 October 117, Hadrian reached the city of Tyana, situated at the foot of the Taurus mountains near the Cilician Gates. Thanks to epigraphical evidence, a fragment of an itinerary found in Rome, we know that Hadrian left Antioch at the beginning of October 117 and travelled northwards towards Ancyra (modern Ankara). The inscription… Continue reading 17 October AD 117 – Hadrian arrives in Tyana (#Hadrian1900)
At the beginning of October AD 117, Hadrian departed from Antioch, leaving the command of the province of Syria to Catilius Severus, who had just been installed as a legate. However, the Emperor could not return directly to Rome. He had received news of the uprising of the Sarmatian tribes who lived beyond the lower… Continue reading 13 October AD 117 – Hadrian travels back to Rome and reaches Mopsucrene (#Hadrian1900)
On August 12 AD 117, Marcus Ulpius Phaedimus, a twenty-eight-year-old freedman and personal servant of Trajan, died in Selinus, Cilicia. This occurred just a few days after Trajan's death and only one day after Hadrian received the news of Trajan's passing. This coincidence added to the mystery surrounding the circumstances of Hadrian's adoption. Phaedimus, who… Continue reading 12 August AD 117 – A mysterious death occurs in Selinus (#Hadrian1900)
On 11 August AD 117, news of Trajan's death in Selinus reached Hadrian, who was 41 and serving as the provincial governor of Syrian Antioch. The Syrian army immediately proclaimed its legate as Imperator. From that day forward, August 11 would be celebrated as Hadrian's dies imperii, marking the anniversary of his accession as emperor.… Continue reading 11 August AD 117 – Hadrian is proclaimed emperor in Antioch (#Hadrian1900)
On 8 August AD 117, after a 19-year reign of military glory, Emperor Trajan died at the coastal town of Selinus in western Cilicia (present-day Gazipaşa, about 180 km East of Antalya on the southern coast of Turkey). According to Cassius Dio, Trajan fell seriously ill after an unsuccessful siege of the Mesopotamian city of… Continue reading 8 August AD 117 – Trajan dies at Selinus (#Hadrian1900)
Hadrian and his travels have often served as the guiding thread for my travels. However, my recent trip to Turkey had a different focus, the Hittite civilization, with one of the highlights being a visit to the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara. After dazzling at the magnificent artefacts on display on the museum's main… Continue reading The cuirassed statue of Hadrian from Ancyra’s theatre (Ankara, Turkey)
On 13 December AD 115¹, Hadrian survived a violent and devastating earthquake while wintering in Antioch during Trajan's campaign in the east. Hadrian had been in Syria since January AD 114 as imperial legate (envoy to the emperor) and, as such, had taken up residence in Antiochia ad Orontem (Antioch on the Orontes). The city… Continue reading The AD 115 earthquake in Antioch
