Greek Coin of Seleukid Kingdom
Antiochos VII Sidetes - King: 138-129 B.C.
Bronze 12mm (1.67 grams) Antioch on the Orontes mint
Reference: HGC 9, 1106 (R1); SC 2069
Ship's ram left.
ΒAΣIΛΕΩΣ ANTIOXOY, Pilei (caps of dioscuri) surmounted by stars.

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Around the 8th century BC, ramming began to be employed as war galleys were equipped with heavy bronze rams. Records of the Persian Wars in the early 5th century BC by the Ancient historian Herodotus (c. 484-25 BC) show that by this time ramming tactics had evolved among the Greeks. The formations adapted for ramming warfare could either be in columns in line ahead, one ship following the next, or in a line abreast, with the ships side by side, depending on the tactical situation and the surrounding geography. The primary methods for attack was either to break through the enemy formation or to outflank it. Ramming itself was done by smashing into the rear or side of an enemy ship, punching a hole in the planking. This did not actually sink an ancient galley unless it was heavily laden with cargo and stores. With a normal load, it was buoyant enough to float even with a breached hull. Breaking the enemy's oars was another way of rendering ships immobile, rendering them easier targets. If ramming was not possible or successful, the on-board complement of soldiers would attempt to board and capture the enemy vessel by securing it with grappling irons, accompanied by missile fire with arrows or javelins. Trying to set the enemy ship on fire by hurling incendiary missiles or by pouring the content of fire pots attached to long handles is thought to have been used, especially since smoke below decks would easily disable rowers. Rhodes was the first naval power to employ this weapon, sometime in the 3rd century, and used it to fight off head-on attacks or to frighten enemies into exposing their sides for a ramming attack.

A successful ramming was difficult to achieve; just the right amount of speed and precise maneuvering were required. Fleets that did not have well-drilled, experienced oarsmen and skilled commanders relied more on boarding with superior infantry (such as increasing the complement to 40 soldiers). Ramming attempts were countered by keeping the bow towards the enemy until the enemy crew tired, and then attempting to board as quickly as possible. A double-line formation could be used to achieve a breakthrough by engaging the first line and then rushing the rearguard in to take advantage of weak spots in the enemy's defense. This required superiority in numbers, though, since a shorter front risked being flanked or surrounded.

The pileus (Greek πῖλος - pilos, also pilleus or pilleum in Latin ) was a brimless, felt cap worn in Ancient Greece ^[1] and surrounding regions, later also introduced in Ancient Rome . The Greek πιλίδιον (pilidion) and Latin pilleolus were smaller versions, similar to a skullcap.

The pileus was especially associated with the manumission of slaves . who wore it upon their liberation. It became emblematic of liberty and freedom from bondage. During the classic revival of the 18th and 19th centuries it was widely confused with the Phrygian cap which, in turn, appeared frequently on statuary and heraldic devices as a "liberty cap."

Greece

The pilos (Greek: πῖλος, felt) was a common conical travelling hat in Ancient Greece . The pilos is the brimless version of the petasos . It could be made of felt or leather. Their pilos cap identifies the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux , in sculptures, bas-reliefs and vase-paintings; their caps were already explained in Antiquity as the remnants of the egg from which they hatched. The pilos appears on votive figurines of boys at the sanctuary of the kabeiri at Thebes , the Kabeirion.

In warfare, the pilos type helmet was often worn by the peltast light infantry, in conjunction with the exomis , but it was also worn by the heavy infantry.

The pilos helmet was made of bronze in the same shape as the pilos which was presumably sometimes worn under the helmet for comfort, giving rise to the helmet's conical shape. The first widespread adoption of the pilos helmet occurred in Sparta towards the end of the 5th century BC.

Rome

In Ancient Rome, a slave was freed in a ceremony in which a praetor touched the slave with a rod called a vindicta and pronounced him to be free. The slave's head was shaved and a pileus was placed upon it. Both the vindicta and the cap were considered symbols of Libertas , the goddess representing liberty.

This was a form of extra-legal manumission (the manumissio minus justa) considered less legally sound than manumission in a court of law.

One 19th century dictionary of classical antiquity states:

Among the Romans the cap of felt was the emblem of liberty. When a slave obtained his freedom he had his head shaved, and wore instead of his hair an undyed pileus (πίλεον λευκόν, Diodorus Siculus Exc. Leg. 22 p. 625, ed. Wess.; Plaut. Amphit. I.1.306; Persius , V.82). Hence the phrase servos ad pileum vocare is a summons to liberty, by which slaves were frequently called upon to take up arms with a promise of liberty (Liv. XXIV.32). The figure of Liberty on some of the coins of Antoninus Pius , struck A.D. 145, holds this cap in the right hand.

Gemini is one of the constellations of the zodiac . It was one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century AD astronomer Ptolemy and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations today. Its name is Latin for "twins," and it is associated with the twins Castor and Pollux in Greek mythology . Its symbol is (Unicode ♊).

In Greek and Roman mythology , Pollux and Castor or Polydeuces were twin brothers, together known as the Dioskouri. Their mother was Leda , but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus , the king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus , who seduced Leda in the guise of a swan. Though accounts of their birth are varied, they are sometimes said to have been born from an egg, along with their twin sisters Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra .

In Latin the twins are also known as the Gemini or Castores. When Castor was killed, Pollux asked Zeus to let him share his own immortality with his twin to keep them together, and they were transformed into the constellation Gemini . The pair were regarded as the patrons of sailors, to whom they appeared as St. Elmo's fire , and were also associated with horsemanship.

They are sometimes called the Tyndaridae or Tyndarids, later seen as a reference to their father and stepfather Tyndareus .

Demetrius III (d. 88 BC), called Eucaerus ("well-timed" possibly a misunderstanding of the derogative name Akairos, "the untimely one") and Philopator, was a ruler of the Seleucid kingdom , the son of Antiochus VIII Grypus .

By the assistance of Ptolemy IX Lathyros , king of Egypt, he recovered part of his father's Syrian dominions ca 95 BC, and held his court at Damascus , from where he tried to enlarge his dominions. To the south he defeated the Maccabean king Alexander Jannaeus in battle, but the hostility of the Jewish population forced him to withdraw. While attempting to dethrone his brother, Philip I Philadelphus , he was defeated by the Arabs and Parthians , and taken prisoner. He was kept in confinement in Parthia by Mithridates II until his death in 88.

Seleucid Empire Σελεύκεια Seleúkeia

312 BC–63 BC ↓

The Seleucid Empire in 301 BC.

The Seleucid Empire   was a Hellenistic state ruled by the Seleucid dynasty founded by Seleucus I Nicator following the division of the empire created by Alexander the Great . Seleucus received Babylonia and, from there, expanded his dominions to include much of Alexander's near eastern territories. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia , the Levant , Mesopotamia , Kuwait , Persia , Afghanistan , Turkmenistan , and northwest parts of India .

The Seleucid Empire was a major center of Hellenistic culture that maintained the preeminence of Greek customs where a Greek-Macedonian political elite dominated, mostly in the urban areas. The Greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by emigration from Greece . Seleucid expansion into Anatolia and Greece was abruptly halted after decisive defeats at the hands of the Roman army . Their attempts to defeat their old enemy Ptolemaic Egypt were frustrated by Roman demands. Much of the eastern part of the empire was conquered by the Parthians under Mithridates I of Parthia in the mid-2nd century BC, yet the Seleucid kings continued to rule a rump state from Syria until the invasion by Armenian king Tigranes the Great and their ultimate overthrow by the Roman general Pompey .