Dec 28, 2023
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Your Powers based off your Zodiac Sign:
Cancer: Seer, Divination
Capricorn: Elemental Control
Sagittarius: Gold Touch
Gemini: Resurrection
King Midas: the true story about how an ancient king’s golden touch turned a river into gold
Paktolos River
Here is where it all started!
In the gateway where east meets west.
The region of Anatolia, although situated in one of the driest regions in modern days “Turkey” and surrounded mostly by steppe vegetation , except for the forested areas in the south, the earth here is remarkably fertile.
This culturally rich region has seen a long line of important civilizations including several great Empires.
It is in this land of honey, pears, muskat grapes and “gold”, where our story begins.
The Phrygian civilization and its kings soon realised that the western plateau of Asia Minor was blessed with several important assets.
Thanks to its fertile lands, strategic position (between the Persians and the Greek) and the skilled and hardworking metalworkers and potters, it soon grew into an Empire.
In ancient times the Anatolia region, Phrygia and Assyria included, was famous for making brass and other metalwork as early as 3000 B.C.
To make brass they mixed zinc with copper. The zinc was obtained by heating a metal called calamite.
As brass is obtained by alloying zinc and copper by mixing and crushing these metals, the Anatolian workers crushed the ore with the help of wheels and simple mechanical mixers.
Nevertheless the Phrygians had a secret to their brass making. Their brass was more shiny, glancing and unique than the rest of the brass in the area. It was strikingly similar to gold!
Brass Vessles
The Phrygian brass making was famous and Phrygia prospered. During these prosperous times the king of Phrygia who was ill and in poor health still lacked a successor.
He informed his advisors that he intended to give the throne to the first man who entered the city gates in a wagon pulled by three oxen.
Time went by and finally a man appeared in a wagon pulled by three oxen.
It was Gordios and when asked, he accepted the offer. He was overly grateful for the trust he was shown and as a symbol of his gratitude to the king and as a promise to the people, he tied a knot to his wagon.
This was a special and very complicated knot, then he said; as gratitude I have tied a knot between me and the citizens of Phrygia. The one who is able to untie the knot gains the rule and is destined to rule Asia.
Here from the expresion “to tie the Gordon knot”.
This is how Gordon, the commoner, became Emperor. Under his rule the already prosperous Phrygia flourished even more.
The citizens in turn wanted to show their gratitude to Gordion, as well so they named their capital “Gordium” in his honor.
Gordion ordered the construction of many impressive palaces, fortification walls, buildings and tumultombs at Gordium.
He married Cybele and they conceived at least one son Midas.
Furthermore he refined the already impressive brass making thus it became the finest in the world at that time.
Golden embroidery
He is also accredited for the development of golden embroidery on garments and materials.
First the clothes were dyed in gurtiti or ochre to obtain an ochre or yellowish colour. Yellow dresses were exceptionally popular by women at the time. These garments were later embroidered with golden threads, they gained so much popularity, they became a status symbol for the high class in the area.
At the age of sixty, Gordion died of natural causes and was put to rest. After a generous funeral feast, which remains were found in his burial chamber, together with lavish bronze pottery vessels and bronze fibulae, he was put inside a wooden chamber, the oldest standing wood structure in the world. The wood has been counted by ringing and is from 740 B.C.
The wooden chamber was found inside a burial mount, one the largest in Anatolia , it took 1000 people 1.5 years to build.
The grave was found in 1957 by a group of archaeologists.
Tummbulus, burial of Gordion
Gordion and the Phrygian Empire had been a strong ally to Troy during the famous “Troyan war”.
He had fought alongside the Troyans against Achaeans.
It was now Midas turn to continue his fathers dreams.
Inscriptions in Gordium tell that Midas was crowned here shortly after his fathers death.
Midas was beyond any doubt the greatest, richest and most famous of all Phrygian kings and emperors ever !!!
He was also to be the last independent ruler of Phrygia.
He is the king with the golden touch.
Midas ruled over his people from a lavish castle in Gordium encircled by a beautiful garden of wild roses.
The famous Greek Herodotus wrote in his book; The garden of Midas, son of Gordion, where the roses grew wildly and each bearing sixty blossoms of surpassing fragrance.
Herodotus claims to have met king Midas and seen his wild rose garden, personally.
The Phrygian Emperor further founded at least two cities, “Midaeum” named after him and the city of Angora (named so until 1930, then Ancyra to later become Ankara).
Angora or Ankara is the origin of both angora wool (from angora rabbits) and mohair wool (from angora goats)unrelated to the wool; the angora cats also have their origins in the same city.
Rose Garden
Midas indisputably greatest achievement was the development and production of coins. One of the earliest in the world. This invention was later passed down to the Empires of Lydia, Persa and finally to the Roman Empire who spread the invention of coins throughout Europe.
The credit for this historical invention and the way it changed history, is given to Midas.
The origins of the whole coin making process is found in the river Paktolos (today’s Turkish name is Sart Çayı).
The river rises from mount Tmolus, flows through (the ruins of)
the city of Sardis and later empties into the Gediz Nehri river, the ancient “ Hermus”.
The river Paktolos contained electrum, an alloy of gold with at least 20% silver, used to make coins. In alchemy the transmutation of an object into gold is known as chrysopoeia.
To obtain the electrum from the river, Midas and his people placed sheep skins that were left for a few days then recollected.
River Paktolos
Midas continued to rule the Empire the same way and with the same values as his father.
Continuous wars were fought against his archenemies the Assyrians and the Urartus.
The Assyrians called him “Mita of Mushki”. The reason for this was that the Phrygians originated from a place in Macedonia with that name.
During large periods of time these conflicts hindered his access to the Mediterranean Sea that was of utmost importance for Phrygian trade. As a solution Midas married a Greek Princess “ Damodice” daughter of Agamemnon of Cume, the problem was solved , he got permanent access to the Mediterranean and an ally and business partner.
However in the late 600’s B.C Phrygia was attacked by the Cimmerians who plundered, destroyed and burned Gordium. After the fall of Phrygia, the region came under Lydian suborderance followed by Persian, Seleucidian ( general of Alexander the Great) and Roman rule.
What happened to Midas in the middle of all this is unclear but some rumours say that he drunk poisoned ox blood and died.
Others say he lived for a short period after the invasion and died of natural causes after that.
Greek mythology.
The story about king Midas that is most commonly known, is the one in the children books, which is based on Greek mythology.
The Greek philosopher Aristotle of Stagira (384-322B.C) tells the story about king Midas. According to the myth; King Midas was walking in his famed rose garden when he came across a drunken Satyr, the Satyr was Silenus or Sílenos. Midas helped him, gave him a meal and a bed to rest.
Later on the Satyrs master Dionysus, Greek god of wine, found him with Midas. The god was grateful that Midas had taken good care of his friend so he granted Midas a wish.
Midas wished that everything he touched would turn to gold.
To his disappointment he discovered that even the food he was about to eat turned to gold before he could eat it.
Aristotle goes on to tell that King Midas starved as a result of the wish and died a slow, painful death.
According to the Romans the story has a different ending.
Publius Ovidius Naso (43 B.C- 17 A.C) tells that king Midas repents his greediness and begs Dionysus to take the golden touch back.
Dionysus agrees and orders Midas to wash his hands/ bath in the river Paktolos (today Sart Çayı).
Midas follows the instructions and the golden touch washes away.
For centuries to come the waters were filled with gold, thereby making the later rulers of Phrygia fabulously wealthy.
King Midas was a historical king of the kingdom of Phrygia in Asia Minor.
He ruled a very powerful country and a wealthy Empire. He couldn’t literally turn things to gold but abstractly and symbolically, yes!
The Phrygian brass “looked like gold” , their gold embroidery was the first and finest in history, moreover they were one of the first countries to produce gold coins.
The stories about him wishing for the ability to turn everything he touched to gold arose from Greek mythology based on the alleged fabulous riches of Phrygia.
Gordian Knot
What happened to the Gordian knot?
The ox-cart still stood in the palace in Phrygia in the fourth century when Alexander the Great arrived. Alexander wanted to untie the knot but struggled to do so.
He reasoned that it would make no difference how the knot was loosened so he drew his sword and cut the knot in half with one single stroke.
Even though his solution is disputed, it is known ever since that cutting the Gordian knot means; finding a quick solution to an unsolvable problem.
Ancient Anatolia.
Prehistoric cultures of Anatolia.
The Neolithic period.
The Chalcolitic period.
Early Bronze Age.
The old Hittite kingdom.
The middle Hittite kingdom.
The Hittite Empire to 1180B.C
Phrygia from 1180-700 B.C
Information and ideas:
Heroditus, histories 8.138.1.
Eleven narratives of the poem
“Metemorphoses “ written in Latin
by Publius Ovidius Naso (43 B.C-17 A.C)
Historical independent Turkish sources.
https// world history.org.Midas
Shirley Eaton as Jill Masterson in Goldfinger; 1964
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I never posted this since I didn’t really like it so since no one will see it here, take it. It’s my oc Midas. It was supposed to be a redraw but tbh, I liked the older art better
Drawing of a jerk from the webcomic Hero Oh Hero
Interior decoration in the Second Empire style. Dining-room red and gold.