This was the Battle of Issos (333 B.C.) waged against the Persians, the great Near Eastern empire that held sway in Anatolia for 200 years, and their ruler, Darius, ‘Shah of Shahs’ or King of Kings. Noteworthy here is the fact that Alexander is depicted exactly as he was on his coinage, with the lion head of the semi-divine hero, Heracles. With his indefatigable warring zeal, he was the earthly embodiment of Heracles and of Achilles, legendary hero of Homer’s Iliad. More than that, the ram’s horns around the edge of the headpiece indicate that he was also the child of the Egyptian sun-god, Amon-Ra.

ZEALOUS WARRIOR, BOLD PHILOSOPHER
What is written about Alexander shows that he went in pursuit of an ideal that others could not even dare to dream of, the creation of a ‘world state’ in which the peoples of the East, of whom he was much enamored, and of the West would merge in peace. It was his desire to touch all people living on earth, to breathe their air and feel their land beneath his feet.