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José de Zamora (1899-1971), 'Thaïs', ''La Esfera'', Vol. 6, #291, 1919
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Azuki Furuya — Hetaira, Rising from the Sea (oil, acrylic, mixed media, on board, 2024)
the second sex, simone de beauvoir
Phryne Before the Areopagus by Jean-Leon Gerome, 1861.
"A hetaira, courtesan, tries to help the man holding up his head."
490-480 B.C
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Hi! I was wondering what all we know for certain about Thais? She must have been extraordinarily witty and charming to have remained in a relationship with Ptolemy for so long, and I love that she accompanied them on Alexander's campaigns. The fact that someone like her was explicitly mentioned in history (rather than being generalized) is lovely, even if it's generally with regards to the probably untrue story of her encouraging Alexander to burn down Persepolis.
Do historians know anything about her early life as a hetaera and the approximate time she entered the scene with Ptolemy/Alexander and was she actually Alexander's mistress? And is there anything we know for sure with regards to her later life and relationship with Ptolemy after he started ruling Egypt - I know they had three kids who seemed to have been accepted by their father and probably gave her an additional level of security, but was she ever Ptolemy's legal wife and queen, or was it more of a quasi-legal relationship? And do you think it might have been impacted by his later (as far as I know, political) marriages, or would it have remained unaffected by them?
... these are lots of questions in one ask, sorry 🙈 I just wish we knew more details about her life
Thais
As an hetaira (highbrow prostitute), and later mistress (palakē) of Ptolemy, it would have been impossible/unwise for Ptolemy to legally marry Thaïs. That doesn’t mean he couldn’t protect her (and their children). Some accounts suggest they were married, but this is probably a later misunderstanding. Her children, despite being older, were never in the running to inherit the kingdom of Egypt, which suggests they weren’t recognized as legitimate. A palakē held a recognized, if liminal status in Greece (and Ptolemy was Greco-Macedonian). Not a wife, but also not/no longer a prostitute. Hetairai seem to have crossed back-and-forth between the two categories. Having a long-term patron elevated one’s status, but if he died, one might return to (or take up) life as an hetaira.
p I’ve heard scuttlebutt that they plan an historical study of Thaïs too, but that IS scuttlebutt. (The author of the Phryne book hasn’t heard about any others.) That said, keep your eye peeled. Something may emerge.
Incidentally, I know Jo Graham is working on a novel set in the early Hellenistic period, which will feature Thaïs, along with Ptolemy’s wives Eurydikē (daughter of Antipatros, and mother of the infamous Ptolemy Keraunos and his brother Meleagros) and Berenikē (mother of Ptolemy’s successor Ptolemy II).
On the matter of Thaïs as a mistress of Alexander, it seems unlikely to me, based largely on conjecture from the ancient evidence.
On Thaïs and the infamous burning of Persepolis, her role in the legend is symbolic. Persia dared to burn the Athenian acropolis and temples. How fitting, then, for a woman—and not even a respectable one—to lead the burning of Persia’s most sacred city? To the Greeks, that’s the ultimate insult. Persepolis was certainly burned, and by Alexander, but archaeology suggests it was deliberate, with specific buildings destroyed while others were left standing. Definitely not a result of the ancient equivalent of a frat party gone wrong.
Kottabos
Kottabos was a game of skill played at Ancient Greek and Etruscan symposia (drinking parties), especially in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. It involved flinging wine-lees (sediment) at a target in the middle of the room. The winner would receive a prize, comprising cakes, sweetmeats, or kisses. As Antiphanes wrote in his play: "the kottabos player puts the index finger of the right-hand through the handle of the drinking cup, palm upwards; and the remaining fingers are spread as playing a flute." The player reclines on the couch, leaning on the left elbow; and, moving only the right-forearm, throws the wine-lees.
Prostitution in Ancient Athens
Prostitution in ancient Athens was legal and regulated by the state. During the Greek Archaic Period (c. 800-479 BCE) brothels were instituted and taxed by the lawgiver Solon (l. c. 630 - c. 560 BCE), and this policy continued into the Classical Period (480-323 BCE). For many Athenian women, prostitution was the only way to make a living.
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