The cloth is suspected to be the legendary purple cloak of Alexander the Great

A purple and white cotton cloth discovered in a royal tomb half a century ago may have been Alexander the Great’s cloak.

One of the many privileges that ancient Macedonian kings enjoyed was wearing purple, and Alexander the Great certainly took full advantage of this royal privilege. Experts believe that he wore purple clothes every chance he had. New research in the journal Journal of Field Archaeology suggests, one of his most famous purple outfits may have been unearthed, IFL Science reported on October 30.

Alexander the Great used the privilege of wearing purple almost every day, according to the historian Ephippus of Olynthus, an ancient Greek author. He rarely went anywhere without his long cloak, called chiton or sarapis, of light purple color. In new research, expert Antonis Bartsiokas from Democritus University of Thrace and his colleagues believe that this cloak was hidden with a number of other items in the grave of his half-brother.

First excavated in 1977, the Great Tumulus of Vergina tomb in northern Greece contained the remains of some of Alexander the Great’s relatives, although it was not until late last year that their identities were confirmed. Notably, the Royal Tomb II tomb, where there is a golden chest containing the remains of Philip III Arrhidaeus, Alexander the Great’s half-brother, along with armor and other items.

Among these items was a purple and white cloth once believed to have been used to wrap the bones of Arrhidaeus. But in the new study, Bartsiokas reexamined this ancient piece of fabric and came to a completely different conclusion.

 

The exterior of the Royal Tomb II crypt. Image: Wikimedia

When studying a series of molecular and microscopic analyzes of the cloth, Bartsiokas revealed that this is actually purple-dyed cotton with a white middle, likely bleached with the mineral huntite. He commented that the physical characteristics of the cloth are completely consistent with the description in ancient sources of the sacred robe worn by Alexander the Great. Bartsiokas even called this cloth “the most precious object of antiquity”.

To strengthen his argument, Bartsiokas points out that Royal Tomb II is decorated with a mural depicting Alexander the Great wearing the same cloak in the golden coffer. In the painting, Alexander the Great is identified by wearing a purple hat called a kausia, which had a crown attached and could only be worn by royalty. He was wearing a purple cloak and was hunting a lion, seemingly ready to deliver the fatal blow.

To this day, Alexander the Great’s final resting place remains a mystery and the Vergina royal tombs are still a subject of great debate. Therefore, Bartsiokas’s conclusion will certainly be discussed by other scholars.

Thu Thao (Theo IFL Science)


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