BCHP 1 (Alexander Chronicle)

The Chronicle concerning Alexander the Great ("Alexander Chronicle"; ABC 8; BCHP 1) is one of the Mesopotamian chronicles written in ancient Babylonia in the Hellenistic Period. It is very hard to understand but clearly mentions several events from the reign of Alexander the Great. 

Alexander

The Babylonian Alexander Chronicle (BCHP 1; a.k.a. ABC 8, Chronicle 8) is one of the Mesopotamian chronicles written in ancient Babylonia in the Hellenistic Period. It deals with events from the reigns of the Persian king Darius III Codomannus and his Macedonian successor Alexander the Great.

The cuneiform tablet (BM 36304) is in the British Museum and was first published by A.K. Grayson in 1975 in a book called Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles. On this webpage, a new reading is proposed; the official publication will be in I.L. Finkel, R.J. van der Spek, R. Pirngruber, Babylonian Chronographic Texts from the Hellenistic Period (2020; = BCHP; Writings of the Ancient World).

[3] [Month IVnote (July): Darius the king, from] his throne they removed him. Be[ssus]

[4] [sat on the throne and Artaxerxes] as his name they named him,note and Alexander and his troops

[5] [pursued Bessus the rebel king. Alexander with] his few troops with the troops [of Bessus made battle.]

[6] [Bessus] killed [Darius the king]. The Hanaean troops, his troops, which [...]

[7] [... from Babylon (???) to (?) ] Darius, the king, had gone, [were released.]

[8] [Month V, d]ay 15] Kidinnu was killed by the sword. In the month VI (September), on the [nth] day [X happened]

[9] [Month VII (October): The king was in] the land of Ú-zu-ia-a-nu, a city of the land of Gutium.note

[10] [.....]

[11] [Month VIII (November): From] the palace of Babylon they brought out their goods

[12] [.......... for] the making of the xx [............]

[13] [................] for the performance of the festival of Bêl to the [Babylon]ians they gave.

[14] [Month IX (25 Nov - 24 Dec): ........]-Bêl, his son, to the office of satrap

[15] [he appointed .............] evil to the king thet plotted.note