The Royal Cemetery of Alexandria

The royal necropolis of ancient Alexandria is one of the most renowned but also one of the most intriguing archaeological riddles of the Mediterranean world. As the capital of the Ptolemaic dynasty, and the seat of the absolute power for almost three centuries, Alexandria was the showcase of the ancient world, projecting an image of the omnipotence and holiness of the ruler. The heart of the capital was the royal quarter, the Basileia in Greek, where the Ptolemaic palace, government buildings, and the royal cemetery were located. The latter, traditionally referred to as the Sema or Soma, is where the body of Alexander the Great and the dynastic mausoleums of the Ptolemaic kings were housed. Despite repeated attempts, the exact location and even traces of the royal cemetery have not been found to date. By examining the information that survives about the Sema, studying the political and religious significance of the royal cemetery for the Ptolemaic dynasty, and reviewing the research efforts made by archaeologists, one can better understand this page of history.

1. The Significance of the Royal Necropolis

In the ancient Mediterranean world, the burial site of a ruler was a strong political symbol. For the Ptolemaic dynasty, which ruled Egypt as a foreign aristocracy, the construction and maintenance of the royal cemetery were of particular importance.

A. The Cult of Alexander the Great and the Image of the Ruler

The whole of the Ptolemaic dynasty’s political and religious life revolved around Alexander the Great and the cult of his personality. When Ptolemy I Soter usurped the honor of carrying the coffin of Alexander the Great across the Levant, bringing the body of the great general to Egypt, he made a brilliant move. First, the body was buried in Memphis, but then Ptolemy II Philadelphus transferred it to Alexandria, where a magnificent monument was raised over the coffin.

Thus, by housing the preserved body of Alexander the Great in the capital, the first Ptolemaic rulers established themselves as his true successors and equal to the Macedonian king in status and power. In addition, all the foreign rulers and Roman emperors who visited Egypt always paid a visit to the monument raised above the body of Alexander the Great, and it was considered mandatory.

B. The Sema or Soma: A Monumental Royal Cemetery

According to surviving literary sources, the royal cemetery was not built in the form of a catacomb, as it was traditional for the burial of ordinary citizens. The place where the bodies of Alexander the Great and the Ptolemaic kings were buried was a large building called the Sema (tomb) or Soma (corpse). The sarcophagus of glass or gold, in which the body of Alexander the Great was stored, was located in the center of the crypt. Surrounding it were the mausoleums of the Ptolemaic dynasty’s kings and queens, which, together with the Soma, were part of the dynastic sanctuary.

2. Classical Narratives and the Visits of the Roman Emperors

Since the location of the royal cemetery is still unknown, our knowledge of the appearance and contents of the Sema is based on descriptions of contemporaries and foreign visitors. Ancient writers describe the royal quarter and the Sema in great detail.

A. Strabo’s Description of the Royal Quarter and the Sema

The most detailed account of the royal quarter comes from the Roman-era scholar Strabo, who was in Alexandria in about 25 BCE. He records in the treatise “Geography” that the Basileia (royal suburb) is a whole group of royal palaces and the enclosure of the Ptolemies. Strabo describes the Sema as an enclosure with the tombs of the kings and Alexander the Great, which was part of the palace complex connected by a wall to the harbor.

B. Roman Emperors in the Sema of Alexander the Great

Many Roman emperors saw it as their duty to visit the monument raised in honor of Alexander the Great:

Julius Caesar: After defeating the Alexandrians in the Alexandrian war, Julius Caesar visited the royal quarter and the Sema, calling himself “the second Alexander.”

Augustus: After defeating Antony and Cleopatra in the battle of Actium in 31 BCE, Octavian (the future Augustus) entered Alexandria and visited the Sema. When the guides asked if he wanted to visit the tombs of the Ptolemies as well, the new Roman emperor said that he wanted to see a king, not dead people. However, Augustus ordered a basket of flowers and a wreath of gold to be laid out on the glass sarcophagus of Alexander the Great.

Caracalla: The emperor Caracalla was in Alexandria in 215 CE and visited the Sema, where he left his ring, cloak, and precious trinkets as gifts. Then, in the same year, he ordered the massacre of the city’s inhabitants.

Aurelian: The Roman emperor Aurelian visited Alexandria’s royal quarter at the end of the third century and saw the ancient splendor of the city, part of which was swallowed up by the sea. He managed to note the architectural structures of the dynastic building before the general devastation.

3. The Location of the Royal Cemetery within the Royal Quarter (Basileia)

The location of the royal cemetery has long been controversial among historians.

A. Urban Transformations from Antiquity to Modern Times

The changes in the urban structure of Alexandria over the last two millennia are significant. A considerable part of the city’s ancient infrastructure has been destroyed and overlain by later constructions. More recently, serious transformations have occurred in the eastern part of Alexandria due to seismic activity, rising sea levels, and subsidence. As a result, today, the ancient palaces, government buildings, and the Sema are located in the Eastern Harbor or buried under the modern city.

B. Literary Sources and the Location of the Sema in the Modern City

Based on Strabo’s descriptions and a comparison with the results of modern underwater excavations in the Eastern Harbor, historians have managed to locate the ancient royal quarter in the eastern part of modern-day Alexandria. Its borders roughly coincide with the districts of Shatby and Qaitbay, stretching to the shallow waters of the Eastern Harbor. Literary sources indicate that the crossroads of the city, where the Via Canopica met the avenue crossing it at right angles, was the heart of the royal quarter. Thus, the Sema, as the royal cemetery, was located in close proximity to the ancient shore, where today the remains of columns, sphinxes, and palaces have been found.

4. The Disappearance of the Royal Cemetery and Later Research

The exact time when the Sema disappeared is not known. However, there are several assumptions about the causes of the cemetery’s disappearance and the conditions of its destruction.

A. The End of the Cult of the Dynasty

With the advent of Christianity, all pagan temples and sanctuaries, including the royal cemetery, were closed and desecrated. Subsequently, the Sema, as the temple of Alexander the Great and the burial vault of the Ptolemaic dynasty, was subjected to the same fate as other pagan sanctuaries in Egypt – it was pillaged and gradually disappeared.

B. Archaeological Excavations in the Eastern Harbor

For more than a hundred years, local and foreign archaeologists have been trying to find the royal cemetery in the basement of modern Alexandria. Dozens of excavations have been carried out in an attempt to find the Sema – the burial vault of Alexander the Great and the Ptolemaic dynasty. So far, however, the archaeologists’ efforts have yielded no fruit, despite the fact that many of them have found magnificent Ptolemaic-era statues and palace walls. Meanwhile, sensational headlines appear every few years reporting the discovery of new tunnels inside the Sema complex – but so far, no one has reached the sarcophagus of Alexander the Great.

The Royal Cemetery of Alexandria (Sema) remains one of the most intriguing historical mysteries of the ancient world. This royal cemetery, where Alexander the Great and the Ptolemaic dynasty were buried, has fascinated many people. Despite the wealth of literary sources describing the Sema and the visits of prominent figures such as Julius Caesar and the Roman emperors, the location of the royal cemetery still has not been found. However, as modern science continues to explore the ancient world, the search for the crypt of Alexander the Great goes on in the depths of the Eastern Harbor.