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Dr John Tidmarsh is a specialist in the Hellenistic period, with extensive archaeological experience especially at Pella in Jordan and Jebel Khalid in Syria, as well as Nea Paphos in Cyprus and Torone in Greece. He was formerly President of the University of Sydney's Near Eastern Archaeology Foundation and is currently Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Australian Archaeological Institute at Athens.

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Congratulations on the publication of your book, After Alexander! The title refers to the historical periods following the death of Alexander the Great. As an archaeologist, what first drew you to this era of history?

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John: Thank you. At school I studied Ancient Greek and Latin, and at university I continued with Latin as well as archaeology, ancient history and fine arts 鈥� so initially I was drawn to the world of Classical Greece and Rome. (Naturally, I still have a great interest in these areas as they form an important aspect of Seleucid and Roman culture in the Middle East.)

However, in second year archaeology, the late Dr Anthony McNicoll 鈥� one of the two co-directors of the University of Sydney excavations at Pella in Jordan 鈥� gave a wonderful course on ancient trade that concentrated mainly on the Seleucid (the period following Alexander in much of the Middle East) and Early Roman periods. I was hooked! As a result, I joined the Pella excavation team and, following McNicoll鈥檚 tragically early death in 1985, I took over his work in the Hellenistic and Early Roman periods there.

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After Alexander catalogues hundreds of line drawings and photographs of unearthed pottery fragments from the Hellenistic and Early Roman periods at Pella in Jordan. How important are these visual representations for bringing the written catalogue to life?

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John: There are several reasons why these visual representations are important. Perhaps the most fundamental is that for the relatively later periods, such as the post-Alexander and Early Roman eras, the pottery recovered from undisturbed strata still provides the most reliable guide to the chronology of the levels we are uncovering, as the pottery shapes change with time. This means, of course, that the strata must be excavated with care (often more difficult than one thinks), and the pottery fragments described, photographed and drawn. This careful recording allows scholars working at other sites in Jordan and elsewhere to get a more certain idea for dating their own sites.

Moreover, the type of clay and style of decoration used can often tell us where the pot was made, helping to identify the trading links that Pella had with both neighbouring and more distant towns and cities during the Hellenistic and Early Roman periods.

Additionally, the pottery fragments 鈥� especially the 鈥渇ine wares鈥� 鈥� can be individually very attractive (as seen in this book鈥檚 photographs) and certainly help to enliven a work such as this where text is such an important element.

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What can these artefacts tell us about Hellenistic and Early Roman society and culture at Pella?

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John: The artefacts we have recovered at Pella demonstrate the ebb and flow of its fortunes during these periods. During the third century BCE, historical documents suggested that the southern Levant was under the control of the Ptolemies of Egypt rather than the Seleucids. At first, we had no archaeological proof of this until our excavations uncovered pottery and coins consistent with a garrison (part of this Ptolemaic control) on the highest and most defensible part of the site.

Ancient historians suggest that the Ptolemies were defeated and that Pella fell into Seleucid hands during the second century 鈥� and this is exactly what our excavations have demonstrated, with widespread settlement across the site and a marked increase in the quality of the pottery and other artefacts.

We now also have strong archaeological evidence, with the presence of a thick destruction level containing datable pottery and coins, that Pella was destroyed in the early first century BCE by the Jewish king Alexander Jannaeus, with only limited resettlement in the following Early Roman period. Ancient literature and many modern scholars had been ambivalent as to whether this destruction took place and largely silent as to the question of Early Roman settlement there. Our excavations at Pella have now confirmed both this destruction and the limited resettlement that followed.

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What kind of audience do you hope to reach with this book?

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John: I am hoping to reach an audience of both archaeologists and non-archaeologists. Until now, the post-Alexander (Hellenistic) and Early Roman periods in modern Jordan have been less studied and published than the same periods in Israel, Syria and elsewhere. This book, therefore, with both a detailed description of the excavations and the recovered pottery, along with an interpretation and discussion of these findings at Pella, will help fill a gap for scholars working on these periods in the southern Levant but needing more information about the situation in Jordan during these periods.

Furthermore, the description of the excavations at Pella and the pottery recovered from these levels are well enhanced by photographs, demonstrating to scholars and lovers of history and archaeology alike what a prosperous, fertile and beautiful site Pella in Jordan is.

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Throughout your career, you have also conducted excavations in Syria, Greece and Cyprus. What have been some of your most exciting discoveries or experiences during these excavations?

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John: I have certainly had numerous exciting finds over the period that I have worked on these excavations, including: from Pella, an extremely rare gold Roman coin which (as gold doesn鈥檛 tarnish) looked as though it was minted the day before it was found; in Greece, a beautifully painted and perfectly preserved large Hellenistic vase from Macedonia; and, in Syria, the columns, altars, and architectural members of a temple built during the rule of Alexander鈥檚 general Seleucus, along with its larger-than-life-size cult statue (perhaps Zeus) in translucent marble that was transported all the way from the island of Paros in Greece.听

These finds, and others I have not the space to mention, are obviously wonderful, but just as thrilling to me is the painstaking detective work in the 听removal of soil and other debris over a number of excavation seasons to reveal more and more of the structures 鈥� be they houses, temples, tombs or fortifications 鈥� that have been buried (along with the associated pottery, coins and other artefacts) for some two millennia or more.

Just as rewarding are the strong bonds we form with those local villagers who make up a large proportion of our excavation teams. Many of them will work alongside us for a decade or more, and as a result we get to know both them and their families very well indeed. While this is generally a source of joy, sometimes this can result in much sadness for our team members, as we often wonder what has happened to our village workers and friends over time 鈥� as in Syria, where the country has undergone wars and, more recently, devastating earthquakes.

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What other resources might you recommend for readers who wish to learn more about the Hellenistic and Early Roman periods in the Middle East and the Mediterranean?

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John: For many decades the Hellenistic period (in particular) was largely ignored by historians and archaeologists who tended to concentrate their efforts on the earlier powerful Bronze Age (second millennium BCE) or the later Roman empires in the Middle East. The conquests of Alexander the Great, of course, have always been popular with historians, and this has now led to a much greater focus, both historically and archaeologically, on the kingdoms formed after his death, such as that of the Seleucids in the Middle East or the Ptolemies in Egypt. This focus has now demonstrated that, while some areas conquered by Alexander readily adopted Greek language and customs, other regions remained relatively impervious to these new influences. Indeed, it is this piecemeal and uneven response to the imported culture of the Macedonian armies of Alexander and his generals, demonstrated by the pottery and other artefacts at Pella, that provides one of the most fascinating areas for research in the Hellenistic east. This can be seen in the now increasingly numerous books on the history and art of the Hellenistic world, including A Companion to the Hellenistic World (Erskine 2005) and Art in the Hellenistic World (Stewart 2014).