Coronations in Antiquity

Note: this article is one of a set, describing coronations around the world.

For general information related to all coronations, and links to modern coronations, please see the umbrella article Coronation.

Coronation of Emperor Constantine VII of the Byzantine Empire in 913 CE.

Coronations in Antiquity were held in the following regions:

By region

Ancient Egypt

Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt were believed to be directly descended from the gods. These deities were believed to confer special powers upon the ruler, all of which were essential to maintaining earthly and cosmic order. Thus, a Pharaoh's coronation was not merely a rite to proclaim him as king or to legitimize his political right to rule; it literally facilitated the transmission of these unearthly powers to the new Egyptian ruler. In this ceremony, the king was transformed into a god by means of his union with the royal ka, or life-force of the soul. All previous kings of Egypt had possessed this royal ka, and at his or her coronation, the monarch became divine as "one with the royal ka when his human form was overtaken by his immortal element, which flows through his whole being and dwells in it".^[1] This made him the son of Ra, the sun god, Horus, the falcon god, and Osiris, the god of life, death and fertility. From the Middle Kingdom on, the Pharaoh also came to be seen as the son of Amon^{[disambiguation needed ]}, the king of Egyptian gods, until his cult faded in later centuries. At his death, the king became fully divine, according to Egyptian belief, being assimilated with Osiris and Ra.^[1]

Upon the death of the reigning Pharaoh, his successor was named immediately, so that the nation's cosmic protection would continue unbroken. While the new monarch ascended the throne the very next day, the coronation ceremony did not take place until the first day of a new season, thus symbolising the beginning of a new era. The ceremony was usually carried out at Memphis by the high priest, who invested the new king with the necessary powers to continue his predecessors' work.^[2]

As a permanent reminder to his people of his divine birthright, the Pharaoh wore various elements of royal regalia that varied depending upon the particular period in Egyptian history. Among these were a false beard made from goat's hair, identifying him with the god Osiris; a sceptre shaped like a shepherd's crook known as a Heka, which meant "ruler" and was often associated with magic; and a fly whip called the Nekhakha, symbol of his power and authority. The new monarch also wore a Shemset apron, while his back was protected by a bull's tail hanging from his belt, symbolic of strength, though this was later done away with.^[3] He was invested with a crown during his coronation: depending upon the time-frame in question, the king might have been given the White Crown, or Hedjet (the crown of Upper Egypt), the Deshret or Red Crown (diadem of Lower Egypt), the Pschent or Sekhemti (the Double Crown, combining the White and the Red Crowns), the Nemes or striped headcloth, or the Khepresh or Blue Crown.^[2][3] The Pschent was generally used for the highest state occasions,^[2] and was conferred on all Pharaohs from at least the First Dynasty on.^[4] When the Hedjet was combined with red Ostrich feathers of the Osiris cult, the resulting diadem was referred to as the Atef crown.

Coronation of King David of Israel, as depicted in the Paris Psalter.

Ancient Israel

According to the Bible, Kings in Biblical Israel were crowned and anointed, most often by (or at the behest of) a prophet or high priest. In I Samuel 10:1, the prophet Samuel anoints Saul to be Israel's first king; later, in I Samuel 16:13, he anoints David to replace him. In II Samuel 12:30, David is crowned with the Ammonite crown, after his conquest of Rabbah, the Ammonite capital. II Kings 9:1-6 tells of the anointing of Jehu as king of Israel. Esther 2:17 relates the crowning of Esther as consort of Ahasuerus, king of Persia. Ahasuerus was once identified with Xerxes I of Persia, though most scholars reject this connection today.^[5] He has also been identified with Artaxerxes I and Artaxerxes II.

A more detailed account of a coronation in ancient Judah is found in II Kings 11:12 and II Chronicles 23:11, in which the seven-year-old Jehoash is crowned in a coup against the usurper Athaliah. This ceremony took place in the doorway of the Temple in Jerusalem. The king was led to "his pillar", "as the manner was", where a crown was placed upon his head, and "the testimony" given to him, followed by anointing at the hands of the high priest and his sons. Afterwards, the people "clapped their hands" and shouted "God save the King" as trumpets blew, music played, and singers offered hymns of praise. All of these elements would find their way in some form or another into future European coronation rituals after the conversion of Europe to Christianity many centuries later, and all Christian coronation rites continue to borrow from these examples.

Ancient Persia

The Greek historian and philosopher Plutarch wrote in his Life of King Artaxerxes that the Persian king was required to go to the ancient capital of Pasargadae for his coronation ceremony. Once there, he entered a temple "to a warlike goddess, whom one might liken to Artemis" (whose name is unknown today, nor can this temple be located), and there divested himself of his own robe, substituting the one worn by Cyrus I at his crowning. After this, he had to consume a "frail" of figs, eat turpentine and drink a cup of sour milk. Plutarch observed that "if they add any other rites, it is unknown to any but those that are present at them".^[6]

Imperial Rome and Byzantium

Roman emperors were traditionally acclaimed by the Senate or by a legion speaking for the armies as a whole, and were subsequently confirmed without any special ritual. The Eastern diadem was later introduced by Aurelian,^[7] but did not truly become part of the imperator's regalia until the reign of Constantine.^[8] Prior to this, Roman sovereigns wore the purple paludamentum, and sometimes a laurel wreath as emblems of their office.^[8]

Following the assumption of the diadem by Constantine, future Roman and Byzantine emperors continued to wear it as the supreme symbol of their authority. Although no specific coronation ceremony was observed at first, one gradually evolved over the next century. The emperor Julian was hoisted upon a shield and crowned with a gold necklace provided by one of his standard-bearers;^[8] he later wore a jewel-studded diadem. Future emperors were crowned and acclaimed in a similar manner, until the momentous decision was taken to permit the Patriarch of Constantinople to physically place the crown on the emperor's head. Historians debate exactly when this first took place, but the precedent was clearly established by the reign of Leo II, who was crowned by the Patriarch Acacius in 473. This ritual included recitation of prayers by the Byzantine prelate over the crown, a further—and extremely vital—development in the liturgical ordo of crowning. After this event, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "the ecclesiastical element in the coronation ceremonial rapidly develop[ed]".^[8]

The Byzantine coronation ritual, from at least 795 on, incorporated a partial clothing of the new emperor in various items of special clothing prior to his entrance to the church, following which he entered the cathedral and received the prostrations of the Senators and other patricians. The Patriarch then read a set of lengthy prayers, as the sovereign was invested first with the chlamys and then finally with the crown. Following this, the emperor received Holy Communion followed by further acts of homage.^{[8][N 1]} From the moment of his coronation, Byzantine emperor was regarded as holy; while the Patriarch was holding the crown over the emperor's head, the attending people repeatedly cried: Holy! ^[9]

In later centuries, after receiving their crown from the Patriarch, Byzantine emperors placed it upon their own head, symbolizing that their dominion came directly from God.^{[10][N 2]} Anointing was added to the ritual after the eleventh century, with the monarch receiving the Sign of the Cross on their forehead from the Patriarch. The purple chlamys also disappeared from the rite during this time, being replaced with the mandyas, or cope.^[8]

Two prayers for the coronation of Byzantine emperors are found in the Byzantine Archieratikon (Slavonic: Chinovnik). The second of these prayers is proceeded by the diaconal command: "Bow your heads to the Lord" and the assembly's response: "To you, O Lord." This pattern of two prayers corresponds to the ritual form found in the Byzantine liturgy for the ordinations of bishops, priests and deacons and also for major blessings, such as the Great Blessing of Waters on the Feast of the Theophany. In some texts, the first prayer is associated with the act of clothing the emperor in the chlamys and the second with the act of crowning him.^[11] Although the Byzantine coronation ritual underwent various changes throughout the centuries, these two prayers are found consistently in every version. They also occur in the Russian ritual for the crowning of the Tsar, beginning with Ivan IV, and also in the ritual for the coronation of an emperor beginning with that of Catherine I.

Notes

This section contains expansions on the main text of the article, as well as links provided for context that may not meet Wikipedia standards for reliable sources, due largely to being self-published.

1. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos. "The Byzantine Coronation Ceremony, according to Emperor Constantine VII, Porphyrogennetos" (PDFdoc). University of Florida. http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/kapparis/byzantium/Coronation_Ceremony.doc. Retrieved 2008-09-13. 
2. ^ See also Tacitus, Ann., XV, 29.

See also

	Monarchy portal
	Royalty portal

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Monet, Jefferson. "The Royal Cults of the Kings of Ancient Egypt". www.touregypt.net. http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/royalcults.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} High, Tony. "Pharaoh's Divine Power". Egyptology Online. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080527184749/http://www.egyptologyonline.com/pharaoh's_divine_power.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Parsons, Marie. "Egypt: Ancient Egyptian Royal Regalia, A Feature Tour Egypt Story:". Tour Egypt. http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/reg.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
4. ^ Fage, John Donnelly; Desmond J. Clark, Roland Anthony Oliver, A. D. Roberts (1975). The Cambridge History of Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 521. ISBN 0521215927. 
5. ^ Littman, Robert J (1975). The Religious Policy of Xerxes and the "Book of Esther". Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, University of Pennsylvania: The Jewish Quarterly Review. http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0021-6682%28197501%292%3A65%3A3%3C145%3ATRPOXA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-9. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
6. ^ "The Persian coronation ceremony at Pasargadae". Life of King Artaxerxes (translation). Livius. 2008-09-06. Archived from the original on April 3, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080403040749/http://www.livius.org/pan-paz/pasargadae/pasargadae_text.html#1. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
7. ^ "Ch. 1: "The Empire From Constantine to Justinian the Great", subsection "Reforms of Diocletian and Constantine". A History of the Byzantine Empire. Ellopos.net. http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/vasilief/reforms-diocletian-constantine.asp. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
8. ^ ^{a b c d e f}  Thurston, Herbert (1913). "Coronation". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 
9. ^ Sedlar, Jean W. (1994). East Central Europe in the Middle Ages, 1000-1500. USA: University of Washington Press. ISBN 0295972904. 
10. ^ Wister, Fr. Robert J (2002-12-04). "The Legitimation of Authority Divine and Human". http://pirate.shu.edu/~wisterro/coronation.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-26. 
11. ^ "De Cerimoniis, Book 2, cc.1-2". Homepage.mac.com. http://homepage.mac.com/paulstephenson/trans/decer0.html. Retrieved 2009-09-13.