Home Region:  Northeast Africa (Africa)

Ptolemaic Kingdom I

305 BCE 217 BCE
EQ 2020  eg_ptolemaic_k_1 / EgPtol1
Preceding Entity: Add one more here.
330 BCE 312 BCE Macedonian Empire (gr_macedonian_emp)    [continuity]

Succeeding Entity: Add one more here.
217 BCE 30 BCE Ptolemaic Kingdom II (eg_ptolemaic_k_2)    [continuity]

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  General Description  
The Ptolemaic Kingdom (or Empire) was one of the successor states to the Macedonian Empire created by the conquests of Alexander the Great in the late 4th century BCE. When Alexander died in Babylon in 323, Ptolemy, as one of his most favoured generals and bodyguards, was appointed satrap (governor) of Egypt, Libya and parts of Arabia. [1] [2] The next few decades after 323 were characterized by incessant warfare between those who wished to maintain the unity of the Macedonian Empire, nominally still intact, [3] and those who aspired to rule their own kingdoms independently. [2] Ptolemy was firmly on the separatist side, and in 305 BCE he successfully declared himself king of Egypt. In doing so, he became Ptolemy I Soter (’the saviour’) [4] , founder of a powerful dynasty (sometimes known as the Lagides, after his father Lagos) [5] that was to rule Egypt for almost three centuries.
Ptolemy I and his successors had expansionist ambitions, seeking to carve out more and more territory for their new kingdom, often at the expense of the other kingdoms that had splintered from Alexander’s empire, especially the Seleucid Kingdom of the Middle East. [6] At its greatest extent, the Ptolemaic Empire reached as far south as Lower Nubia (southern Egypt), west to Cyrenaica (modern-day Libya), east to Cyprus, Syria, Phoenicia and Asia Minor (Turkey), and north into the Aegean. [7] In the words of one researcher, Egypt became for the first time a true ’Mediterranean power’ under its new Macedonian rulers. [6]
The peak of the Ptolemaic period is generally considered to correspond to the reigns of the first three Ptolemies in the 3rd century BCE. [8] We divide the kingdom into two polities: the first begins with Ptolemy I’s accession in 305 and ends with the Battle of Raphia in 217. In this battle, Ptolemy IV defeated the Seleucid king Antiochus III, who had invaded Ptolemaic-controlled lands in Palestine. [9] The late 3rd and early 2nd centuries saw conflict within the ruling family and revolts by the Egyptian population, representing an ’age of crisis’ between two periods of relative stability. [10] Our second polity runs from 217 up to the famous suicide of Cleopatra VII, the last ruler in the Ptolemaic line, and the Roman annexation of Egypt in 30 BCE. [3] [11] Overall, the Ptolemies were a successful dynasty: in concert with their expansionist policies, they managed to transform Egypt ‒ and the new city of Alexandria in particular ‒ into the cultural and economic centre of the Hellenistic world. [12]
Population and Political Organization
The Ptolemies were the longest-lived foreign dynasty ever to rule Egypt. [13] They presided over a ’double society’, portraying themselves as Graeco-Macedonian kings to the many resident Greeks and divine pharaohs to the ’native’ Egyptian population. [14] [15] Greeks and Egyptians were subject to different judicial systems and Greeks tended to dominate the highest echelons of society. [16] [17] Alexandria, built as an ideal Greek-style Hellenistic city with its magnificent library, stadium, theatre, gymnasium and lighthouse, was always set apart from the rest of the country. [18] [19] Over time, however, and especially from 200 BCE onwards, the boundaries between ’Greek’ and ’Egyptian’ became blurred. [20]
The chief aim of government was to draw as much revenue ‒ in money and in wheat ‒ as possible from the population, and for this reason the burden of taxation was heavy. [21] The Ptolemies left many Pharaonic Egyptian institutions intact, such as the temple hierarchy with its priests and scribes. However, they used state functionaries and tax farmers to divert more and more wealth from temples, agricultural estates, especially those of granted to soldiers (known as cleruchs), and ordinary peasant farmers to the royal coffers. [22] Egypt under the Ptolemies also became more outward-looking, extending commercial and political power into the Levant, the Black Sea and the shores of the Mediterranean as far west as Sicily. [23]
The population of Egypt during the Ptolemaic period has been estimated at around 4 million people in the 3rd century BCE, of which between 5 and 10 percent were Greeks. [24] The total population of the entire Ptolemaic Empire may have reached 7 million. [25]

[1]: (Hӧlbl 2001, 12, 14) Günther Hӧlbl. 2001. A History of the Ptolemaic Empire. London: Routledge.

[2]: (Lloyd 2000, 389) Alan B. Lloyd. 2000. ’The Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC)’, in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by Ian Shaw, 388-413. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[3]: (Lloyd 2010, xl) Alan B. Lloyd. 2010. ’Chronology’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, xxxii-xliii. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[4]: (Thompson 2005, 113) Dorothy J. Thompson. 2005. ’The Ptolemies and Egypt’, in A Companion to the Hellenistic World, edited by Andrew Erskine, 105-20. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.

[5]: (Myśliwiec 2000, 179) Karol Myśliwiec. 2000. The Twilight of Ancient Egypt: First Millennium B.C.E., translated by David Lorton. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

[6]: (Vandorpe 2010, 169) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[7]: (Vandorpe 2010, 169-71) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[8]: (Chauveau 2000, 11) Michel Chauveau. 2000. Egypt in the Age of Cleopatra, translated by David Lorton. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

[9]: (Lloyd 2000, 394) Alan B. Lloyd. 2000. ’The Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC)’, in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by Ian Shaw, 388-413. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[10]: (Vandorpe 2010, 165-66) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[11]: (Newman 2015) Frances Stickney Newman. 2015. ’Cleopatra VII’, in Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. Ipswich, MA: Salem Press. Accessed 22 February 2017.

[12]: (Vandorpe 2010, 173-75) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[13]: (Vandorpe 2010, 159) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[14]: (Chauveau 2000, 33, 37) Michel Chauveau. 2000. Egypt in the Age of Cleopatra, translated by David Lorton. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

[15]: (Vandorpe 2010, 171) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[16]: (Manning 2003, 53, 131) J. G. Manning. 2003. Land and Power in Ptolemaic Egypt: The Structure of Land Tenure. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[17]: (Lloyd 2000, 409) Alan B. Lloyd. 2000. ’The Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC)’, in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by Ian Shaw, 388-413. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[18]: (Vandorpe 2010, 174) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[19]: (Lloyd 2000, 400-01) Alan B. Lloyd. 2000. ’The Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC)’, in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by Ian Shaw, 388-413. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[20]: (Vandorpe 2010, 171-73) Katelijn Vandorpe. 2010. ’The Ptolemaic Period’, in A Companion to Ancient Egypt, Volume 1, edited by Alan B. Lloyd, 159-79. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.

[21]: (Chauveau 2000, 78) Michel Chauveau. 2000. Egypt in the Age of Cleopatra, translated by David Lorton. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

[22]: (Lloyd 2000, 404-05) Alan B. Lloyd. 2000. ’The Ptolemaic Period (332-30 BC)’, in The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt, edited by Ian Shaw, 388-413. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

[23]: (Thompson and Buraselis 2013, 2-4) Dorothy J. Thompson and Kostas Buraselis. ’Introduction’, in The Ptolemies, the Sea and the Nile: Studies in Waterborne Power, edited by Kostas Buraselis, Mary Stefanou and Dorothy J. Thompson, 1-18. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[24]: (Fischer-Bovet 2011, 135-37) Christelle Fischer-Bovet. 2011. ’Counting the Greeks in Egypt: Immigration in the First Century of Ptolemaic Rule’, in Demography in the Graeco-Roman World, edited by C. Holleran and A. Pudsey, 135-54. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[25]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 149) Christelle Fischer-Bovet. 2014. Army and Society in Ptolemaic Egypt. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods) Coding in Progress.
Religion Variables Coding in Progress.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1) was in:
 (305 BCE 300 BCE) Upper Egypt
 (300 BCE 218 BCE) Upper Egypt   /   Galilee
 (218 BCE 199 BCE) Galilee
Home NGA: Upper Egypt

General Variables
Identity and Location Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Utm Zone 36 R Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Original Name Ptolemaic Kingdom I Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Capital 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Alternative Name Ptolemaic Empire Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Alternative Name Ptolemaic Kingdom Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Alternative Name Ptolemaic Dynasty Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Temporal Bounds Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Peak Years
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Duration
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Political and Cultural Relations Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Suprapolity Relations none Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Supracultural Entity Greek World Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Succeeding Entity Ptolemaic Kingdom II Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Scale of Supracultural Interaction 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Relationship to Preceding Entity continuation Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Preceding Entity
330 BCE 312 BCE
Macedonian Empire (gr_macedonian_emp)   [continuity]  Expert
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Succeeding Entity
217 BCE 30 BCE
Ptolemaic Kingdom II (eg_ptolemaic_k_2)   [continuity]  Expert
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Degree of Centralization unitary state Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Language Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Linguistic Family Afro-Asiatic Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Linguistic Family Indo-European Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Language 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Language 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Religion Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Religion Genus Hellenistic Religions Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Religion Family Ptolemaic Religion Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Alternate Religion Genus Egyptian Religions Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Alternate Religion Uncoded Undecided Expert 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Population of the Largest Settlement 300 BCE
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Population of the Largest Settlement 300 BCE
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Polity Territory 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Polity Population 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Hierarchical Complexity Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Settlement Hierarchy 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Religious Level 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Military Level 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Administrative Level 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Professions Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Professional Soldier 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Professional Priesthood 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Professional Military Officer 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Bureaucracy Characteristics Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Specialized Government Building 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Merit Promotion 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Full Time Bureaucrat Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Examination System 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Law Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Professional Lawyer 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Judge 305 BCE  217 BCE
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305 BCE  217 BCE
Court 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Specialized Buildings: polity owned Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Market 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Irrigation System 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Food Storage Site Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Drinking Water Supply System 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Transport Infrastructure Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Road 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Port 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Canal 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Bridge Present Inferred 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Special-purpose Sites Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Mines or Quarry Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Information / Writing System Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Written Record Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Script 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Phonetic Alphabetic Writing Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Nonwritten Record Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Non Phonetic Writing Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Mnemonic Device Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Information / Kinds of Written Documents Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Scientific Literature 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Sacred Text Present Inferred 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Religious Literature Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Practical Literature Present Inferred 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Philosophy 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Lists Tables and Classification Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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History 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Fiction 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Calendar 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Information / Money Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Token Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Precious Metal Present Inferred 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Paper Currency Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Indigenous Coin 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Foreign Coin Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Article 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Information / Postal System Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Postal Station 305 BCE  217 BCE
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General Postal Service 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Courier 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Information / Measurement System Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Wooden Palisade Unknown Suspected 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Stone Walls Non Mortared 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Stone Walls Mortared 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Settlements in a Defensive Position 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Modern Fortification Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moat 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Fortified Camp Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Earth Rampart Unknown Suspected 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Ditch 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Complex Fortification 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Long Wall absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Military use of Metals Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Steel Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Iron 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Copper 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Bronze 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Projectiles Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Tension Siege Engine 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Sling Siege Engine 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Sling Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Self Bow 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Javelin 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Handheld Firearm Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Gunpowder Siege Artillery Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Crossbow Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Composite Bow 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Atlatl Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Handheld weapons Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
War Club 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Sword 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Spear 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Polearm 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Dagger 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Battle Axe 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Animals used in warfare Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Horse Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Elephant 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Donkey Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Dog Absent 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Camel 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Armor Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Wood Bark Etc Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Shield 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Scaled Armor 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Plate Armor 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Limb Protection 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Leather Cloth 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Laminar Armor 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Helmet 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Chainmail Unknown Suspected 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Breastplate 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Naval technology Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Specialized Military Vessel 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Small Vessels Canoes Etc Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service Present 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Economy Variables (Luxury Goods)
Religion Variables
Moralizing Supernatural Punishment and Reward Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
Variable Coded Value / Certainty Tags Year(s) See More
Moralizing Enforcement is Broad 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Supernatural Concern is Primary 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Agentic 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Supernatural Punishment And Reward 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Commoners 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Targeted 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Enforcement in Afterlife 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Elites 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Enforcement of Rulers 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Certain 305 BCE  217 BCE
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Human Sacrifice Ptolemaic Kingdom I (eg_ptolemaic_k_1)
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Instability Data
Power Transitions