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Erin Alharbi
Professor Dyer
History 134
30 October 2014

Alexander the Great: Lost Forever?

Son of Phillip II of Macedonia, Alexander, was born into greatness. After living a
privileged childhood, which included an education by the great Aristotle, it was just a matter of
time before Alexander would find his place in history. After the death of his father, he was
named king and continued to conquer lands including Asia Minor and the original settlements of
Persia. Despite his greatness, Alexander was still very mortal and died at the young age of 32,
not from battle wounds, but rather from illness. At the time of his death he carried the titles King
of Macedonia, Pharaoh of Egypt, King of Persia, and King of Asia. With such extensive lands, it
is not a wonder that there are questions as to where Alexander the Greats final resting place is.
At the time of his death in Babylon, Alexander made it his dying wish that his body was
to be floated in the Euphrates River. It was his hope that by doing so those present would
perpetuate a rumor that he had disappeared into heaven to be next to the god Ammon, whom he
considered his father towards the end of his life.i This wish wasnt to come to fruition as his
generals believed their plan of a grand funeral procession was more fitting for the king of many
lands.

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Despite the grand plans for the grand funeral procession, the entourage first had to create
and construct a cart for to carry the mummified kings body to its final resting place. This
process took two years. After this extended period of time the procession progressed to Syria
where it was over taken by Ptolemy, a former general of Alexanders. He had given himself the
title of king of Egypt and that is exactly where he had his former king to be buried. Eventually
the mummy of Alexander was buried in a tomb in the city of Memphis. It is unclear as to
whether or not this tomb was created for the purpose of becoming Alexanders eternal resting
place but it is likely that it wasnt. After a short time in the tomb at Memphis, the mummy was
removed and relocated to a tomb in Alexandria, where, once again it would only spend a short
time before being buried along with the remains of his Egyptian ruler predecessors in a
mausoleum. It is believed that this is likely the final resting place of Alexander the Great.
After being placed in the mausoleum Alexanders remains were visited by several
important historical figures, the last being Caracella who visited the tomb roughly in 215 A.D. It
is believed that the tomb remained intact for some time after that period but not for much longer.
There are several theories as to what could have happened to the tomb and the remains of the
important ruler who rested within its walls.
One theory is that the tomb and all its remains were destroyed in war. There is record of
Alexander the Greats golden sarcophagus being melted down and sold in 89 BC. It was replaced
by a glass sarcophagus.ii Thus making the mummy itself the only item of value besides the
artifacts it would have been interned with. While it would be probable that looters may have
sacked the tomb, it would be even more likely there would at least be some recognizable artifacts
such as mummies, items buried with the mummies, or even sections of the building itself. The
theory that the remains were destroyed in war is likely not very plausible simply because, as

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stated previously, there are no known artifacts of any kind. Another more likely theory is that the
tomb and its contents may have been swept away by a tsunami which was caused by an
earthquake in 365 AD. iii If there were the cause of the tomb being lost than it is likely that
neither it nor any of the remains will ever be recovered. The final theory, which is thought to be
most likely by those who are experts in the field of archeology and the recovery believe that
Alexander the Greats remains will be found in Europe.
During a turbulent uprising of Christians in in Egypt, it is believed by an Andrew Chugg,
an expert on Alexander the Great, his body was removed from where it rested for nearly 700
years and reburied in Venice, Italy. He believes that upon exploration of the Saint Marks
Basilica, primarily in a grave underneath the alter, the remains of the great ruler will be found.
His theory is that because Alexander would have been worshipped, not only because of his status
as a great ruler, but also because he believed he was the son of Zeus, he must be removed from
the land of monotheism. Chegg also believes that the remains were smuggled out of Egypt after
being disguised as those of St. Mark to prevent them from destruction. He theorizes that because
St. Mark was likely burnt after his death Alexanders remains were buried in place of his. Most
other experts believe that while this theory is possible, it is most unlikely. As to where they
believe he may be, they all come to nearly the same conclusion; the body is out there
somewhere - but I suspect it is still under the streets of Alexandria says Dr. Paul Doherty.iv
If true, it will be just a matter of time before he found. The discovery will certainly
answer so many questions, and put an end to the question of the whereabouts of Alexander the
Greats Tomb.

i
ii

Bianchi
Barclay

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iii
iv

Barclay
Thompson, Pyke

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Works Cited
Barclay, Shelly. "Where Is the Tomb of Alexander the Great? - Historic Mysteries." Historic
Mysteries. N.p., 27 Aug. 2010. Web. 30 Oct. 2014. <http://www.historicmysteries.com/where-isthe-tomb-of-alexander-the-great/>.
Compiled information regarding the topic of the tomb of Alexander the Great. Not much
information, gives some ideas to further research.

Bianchi, Robert. "The Elusive Tomb of Alexander - Archaeology Magazine Archive."

Archeology.org. the Archeological Institute of America, 11 Nov. 2004. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
<http://archive.archaeology.org/online/features/alexander/tomb.html>.
The best resource I came across. I was very interested in what the author wrote and wanted to
know more. The format was easy to read and and definitely captured my attention.
Chegg, Andrew. "Welcome to Alexanderstomb.com." Welcome to Alexanderstomb.com. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2014. <http://www.alexanderstomb.com/main/index.html>.
While he proclaims to be in expert in the field and has written several books as well as some
short movies, I felt as though he were a bit unbelievable. His theories were very possible, but
seem from far left field.
Thompson, Jonathon, and Nicholas Pyke. "Bones Of Alexander The Great In Venice?" Bones Of
Alexander The Great In Venice? N.p., 16 June 2004. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.rense.com/general53/romb.htm>.
Interesting compilation of what others had written. Easy read with good information.