of
xenia
in action and record in minute detail the material sweeteners that passed between rulers. Each treasure would be carefully itemised in an accompanying letter and then packed away ready for the long, dangerous journey ahead. From Egypt, we hear of gift-lists citing golden razors, gold-plated chariots, beds inlaid with ivory, silver sieves, mirrors and washing bowls. Once a silver monkey with a baby in its lap did its diplomatic duty, proffered as proof of friendship, unity and prosperity. 28
These gifts were paraded or unpacked in front of the assembled court with great ceremony. On some occasions this must have been quite aperformance; the Hurrians from Mesopotamia sent out fine horses, complete with tack and chariots. Every power trafficked human cargo, sometimes as many as 300 people at a time. If the offerings fell below expectation the consignment was likely to cause offence. Kings and queens were thought to be
personally
responsible for the calibre and safe arrival of their tributes. Around 1350 BC , the Babylonian king Burna-Buriyash received one suspiciously grey-looking delivery of gold from the pharaoh Akhenaten. (When gold is mixed with a baser metal, it loses some of its sheen and clarity.) Burna-Buriyash had the consignment melted down and was furious at the results: ‘Forty minas of gold had been brought to me, but I swear that when I put it all into the kiln, not even 10 minas came out!’ He carries on with the finger-wagging: ‘My brother must
not
delegate the handling of the gold which he is going to send to me to somebody else; my brother must check it
personally
, seal it and then send it to me.’ 29
Despite all the security measures, heists were a real problem. There were many hostile territories to venture through, many petty kings to be tempted as the diplomatic caravan passed, many soldiers open to bribes. That gold might have left Egypt as yellow as butter, but the journey to Babylon had clearly been long and fraught.
Although gift-exchange was a cryptic way for the great leaders to trade with each other, the political and diplomatic function of all this show was as important. The men and women who exchanged these gifts were
the
players of the day. The bigger and richer the consignment, the higher up the pecking order you were seen to be and, by definition, therefore, you were. In what was becoming an increasingly interregional and international (rather than local) economy, guest friendship kept the markedly material Late Bronze Age world turning.
But back at the palace of Sparta, the carefully constructed edifice of
xenia
was about to be breached. We are told that Menelaus, almost as soon as Helen had met her fine, gift-bearing guest, hurriedly and unexpectedly set sail for Crete. 30 As one might imagine, given her standing and influence, the queen of Sparta was left in charge of things – with explicit instructions from her husband to entertain their wealthy, honoured and handsome stranger. Who could have supposed that the ambassador she entertained would turn aggressor? Hesiod tells us that ‘Helen disgraced the bed of fair-haired Menelaus’: 31 had Paris taken her in battle or seized her on the road, things would not have been so bad, but he was a
guest
– ancient authorsreeled at his arrogance. It was as though a visitor had not only left the bath grimy, but had nicked the towels and the gold taps to boot. By stealing Helen, Paris defiled the fundamental principles of hospitality, principles that underpinned society and international relations. This was not just a seduction, it was an act of war.
There is another provocative possibility – an often neglected Egyptian rendition of the story picked up by Herodotus 32 and then again in the 1st century AD by the Greek sophist Dio Chrysostom. In this version of events – relayed according to both authors by Egyptian priests – Paris claims to be Helen’s legitimate spouse, having been invited to compete for Helen’s hand along
xenia
in action and record in minute detail the material sweeteners that passed between rulers. Each treasure would be carefully itemised in an accompanying letter and then packed away ready for the long, dangerous journey ahead. From Egypt, we hear of gift-lists citing golden razors, gold-plated chariots, beds inlaid with ivory, silver sieves, mirrors and washing bowls. Once a silver monkey with a baby in its lap did its diplomatic duty, proffered as proof of friendship, unity and prosperity. 28
These gifts were paraded or unpacked in front of the assembled court with great ceremony. On some occasions this must have been quite aperformance; the Hurrians from Mesopotamia sent out fine horses, complete with tack and chariots. Every power trafficked human cargo, sometimes as many as 300 people at a time. If the offerings fell below expectation the consignment was likely to cause offence. Kings and queens were thought to be
personally
responsible for the calibre and safe arrival of their tributes. Around 1350 BC , the Babylonian king Burna-Buriyash received one suspiciously grey-looking delivery of gold from the pharaoh Akhenaten. (When gold is mixed with a baser metal, it loses some of its sheen and clarity.) Burna-Buriyash had the consignment melted down and was furious at the results: ‘Forty minas of gold had been brought to me, but I swear that when I put it all into the kiln, not even 10 minas came out!’ He carries on with the finger-wagging: ‘My brother must
not
delegate the handling of the gold which he is going to send to me to somebody else; my brother must check it
personally
, seal it and then send it to me.’ 29
Despite all the security measures, heists were a real problem. There were many hostile territories to venture through, many petty kings to be tempted as the diplomatic caravan passed, many soldiers open to bribes. That gold might have left Egypt as yellow as butter, but the journey to Babylon had clearly been long and fraught.
Although gift-exchange was a cryptic way for the great leaders to trade with each other, the political and diplomatic function of all this show was as important. The men and women who exchanged these gifts were
the
players of the day. The bigger and richer the consignment, the higher up the pecking order you were seen to be and, by definition, therefore, you were. In what was becoming an increasingly interregional and international (rather than local) economy, guest friendship kept the markedly material Late Bronze Age world turning.
But back at the palace of Sparta, the carefully constructed edifice of
xenia
was about to be breached. We are told that Menelaus, almost as soon as Helen had met her fine, gift-bearing guest, hurriedly and unexpectedly set sail for Crete. 30 As one might imagine, given her standing and influence, the queen of Sparta was left in charge of things – with explicit instructions from her husband to entertain their wealthy, honoured and handsome stranger. Who could have supposed that the ambassador she entertained would turn aggressor? Hesiod tells us that ‘Helen disgraced the bed of fair-haired Menelaus’: 31 had Paris taken her in battle or seized her on the road, things would not have been so bad, but he was a
guest
– ancient authorsreeled at his arrogance. It was as though a visitor had not only left the bath grimy, but had nicked the towels and the gold taps to boot. By stealing Helen, Paris defiled the fundamental principles of hospitality, principles that underpinned society and international relations. This was not just a seduction, it was an act of war.
There is another provocative possibility – an often neglected Egyptian rendition of the story picked up by Herodotus 32 and then again in the 1st century AD by the Greek sophist Dio Chrysostom. In this version of events – relayed according to both authors by Egyptian priests – Paris claims to be Helen’s legitimate spouse, having been invited to compete for Helen’s hand along
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