Konstantinos (Constantine) Karathanasis, Richard J. Walter Ph.D. Scholar in Arts and Sciences, has published the article 5th-century Athenian Proxenoi and the Enigma of IG I³ 125 in Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik (ZPE) 216: 97-106.
Article Abstract: In Athenian 5th-century honorific decrees, all grants of proxenia appear formulaically together with the recognition of the honorands’ euergesiai. Nevertheless, despite the record of his two lavish benefactions between 413 and 405, Epikerdes from Kyrene is never proclaimed a proxenos. This aberration has been so far explained as Epikerdes’ unwillingness to become an Athenian proxenos, or him being one already, or some other Kyrenean holding the honor. This paper is an attempt to demonstrate not only that our historical and epigraphic records directly contradict these three hypotheses, but also that the enigmatic case of IG I³ 125 allows us to reevaluate the parameters governing the Athenian grants of proxenia during the 5th century. Specifically, after examining all proxenic decrees where the honorand’s nationality is preserved, it appears that IG I³ 125 reveals the tendency of Athens --as the center of an empire-- to recognize the services of non-Athenians, but to reserve grants of proxenia only for citizens of political entities that would promote its imperial ambitions.
