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The Deinomenids of Sicily: the Appearance and Representation of a Greek Dynastic Tyranny in the Western Colonies

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The Deinomenids of Sicily: the Appearance and Representation of a Greek Dynastic Tyranny in the Western Colonies THE DEINOMENIDS OF SICILY THE DEINOMENIDS OF SICILY: THE APPEARANCE AND REPRESENTATION OF A GREEK DYNASTIC TYRANNY IN THE WESTERN COLONIES By: LOUISE MARY SAVOCCHIA, B.A. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts McMaster University © Copyright by Louise Mary Savocchia, September 2012. MASTER OF ARTS (2012) McMaster University (Classics) Hamilton, Ontario TITLE: The Deinomenids of Sicily: The Appearance And Representation of a Greek Dynastic Tyranny in the Western Colonies AUTHOR: Louise Mary Savocchia, B.A. (McMaster University) SUPERVISOR: Professor Spencer Pope NUMBER OF PAGES: viii, 175 ii Abstract The aim of this thesis has been to investigate and analyze the tyranny of the Deinomenids (491 – 466 BC), a family who controlled several Greek colonies located on the island of Sicily. Modern classical scholarship has often ignored the history and contributions this family has made to the Greek world or has taken a limited view of the family. I intend to present a comprehensive account of the Deinomenids and to demonstrate how this family, which has received little attention, played a major role in the Greek world. I will look into several aspects regarding their tyranny that have often been overlooked, including the ways in which they invented claims about themselves and manipulated their identities in order to elevate their status as rulers in Sicily. In addition to this, I will use the Deinomenids as a case study to illustrate the tension felt between the mainland and the Greek colonies in Sicily, as well as demonstrating how the West influenced and informed many of the advancements seen on the mainland in later generations. The first section of this thesis will investigate Greek tyranny and Greek colonization in the West. This will provide the backdrop of my study of the Deinomenids. The next section will present a catalogue of the historical, literary, and archaeological evidence that survives regarding the family. The third section will focus on the various methods that the family used to secure their powerbase in Sicily. This included using poetry, coinage, buildings, and religious cults. The last section will look iii at the aftermath of the Deinomenid tyranny and the long-lasting impact their rule had on Sicily and the mainland of Greece. iv Acknowledgements First and formost, I must express my deepest thanks and gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Spencer Pope. Dr. Pope first introduced the subject of the Deinomenids to me while I was an undergraduate. This exciting subject has shaped my university career and has provided me with many wonderful opportunites. I would never have been able to undertake such a challenging topic for my thesis without his constant encouragement and guidance every step of the way. I also want to thank the other members of my committee, Dr. Sean Corner and Dr. Kathryn Mattison, for their advice and constructive criticism. I would like to thank Dr. Paul Murgatroyd, my first Classics professor, whose dedication and humour inspired me to become a Classics major. Thank you to the entire Classics Department at McMaster University, especially to Mrs. Carmen Camilleri, our Departmental Administrative Assistant, for her invaluable advice and caring nature. Thank you to all the amazing friends I have made during my time in the Classics Department, who have laughed and commiserated with me over the past six years, especially to Sarah-Jane Evans, for always being supportive, encouraging, and making sure I did not get lost in Greece! I would like to thank my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncle, and cousins for the love, support, and patience they have shown me through this whole process. Custode, mea avia: Dedico hoc tibi, meae primae Latinae magistrae, meae optimae amicae, meae angelicae custodi. Omnia bona in me est propter te. v Table of Contents Preface ............................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1 – The Greeks in Sicily: Myth, Colonization, and Tyranny 1.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 4 1.2 Greek Presence in Sicily before Colonization ............................................................ 4 1.3 A Historical Account of Archaic Colonization ......................................................... 13 1.4 The Greeks in Sicily during the 8th and 7th Centuries: Reasons for Colonization .... 14 1.5 The Pattern of Colonization: The Oikistes ................................................................ 19 1.6 Tyranny in the Greek World ..................................................................................... 23 1.7 The Prevalence of Tyranny in Sicily and its Connection with Colonization ............ 33 1.8 Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 37 Chapter 2 – A Historical Account of the Deinomenids of Sicily 2.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 38 2.2 Gelon ......................................................................................................................... 39 2.3 Hieron ....................................................................................................................... 50 2.4 Polyzalos and Thrasyboulos ..................................................................................... 57 2.5 The Enigma of the Charioteer of Delphi ................................................................... 61 2.6 The Deinomenids and Changing Identities ............................................................... 64 2.7 Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 70 Chapter 3 – The Deinomenid’s Appropriation, Manipulation, and Invention of History and Religion 3.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 72 3.2 Coinage and the Deinomenids .................................................................................. 73 3.3 The Legacy of the Oikistai: Power and Rule ............................................................ 77 3.4 Priesthood of Demeter .............................................................................................. 80 3.5.1 Poetry as Propoganda ............................................................................................. 83 3.5.2 Bacchylides ............................................................................................................ 85 3.5.3 Pindar ..................................................................................................................... 88 3.6.1The Coin of Aitna ................................................................................................. 100 3.6.2 The Satyr .............................................................................................................. 100 3.6.3 The Beetle ............................................................................................................ 102 3.6.4 The Zeus ............................................................................................................... 104 3.7 Aeschylus and the Women of Aitna ........................................................................ 107 3.8.1 Fact or Fiction: The Inventions of the Deinomenids ........................................... 116 3.8.2 The Myth of the Palikoi ....................................................................................... 117 3.8.3 The Cult of Zeus Aitnaios .................................................................................... 118 3.8.4 The Site of Xuthia ................................................................................................ 121 3.9 Ducetius: A Sikel Inspired by the Deinomenids? ................................................... 122 3.10 Conclusions ........................................................................................................... 123 vi Chapter 4 – The Aftermath and Legacy of the Deinomenids 4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 126 4.2 Democracy in Sicily ............................................................................................... 126 4.3 Aitna/Inessa ............................................................................................................. 131 4.4.1 Developments in Coinage after 466 BC .............................................................. 132 4.4.2 Syracuse and Gela ................................................................................................ 132 4.4.3 Katana .................................................................................................................. 134 4.4.4 Naxos ................................................................................................................... 136 4.4.5 Leontini ................................................................................................................ 137 4.5.1 Subsequent Greek Tyrants in Sicily ..................................................................... 139 4.5.2 Dionysius I ........................................................................................................... 139
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