Top 5 Ancient Celebrities [Archive]

gamegeek2

07-11-2009, 07:06

This is different from the other thread as this one deals with who was most famous back then. The other one deals with those who are famous now.

The rules are
-This deals with fame up to the time of 0 CE. Anyone who was alive before 0 CE is eligible. Thus, Jesus is not an auto-win, and he is not disqualified.
-Lasting fame, world impact, and fame while living all count

I'll update the following lists as the thread goes along:

My Personal Views
1. Megas Alexandros
2. Siddhārtha Gautama
3. Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus
4. Confucius
5. Gaius Iulius Caesar
6. Megas Antiochos
7. Asoka
8. Haniba'al Barca
9. Gaius Octavius Thurinius
10. Pyrrhos

The People's Consensus
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Azathoth

07-11-2009, 07:38

In 70000 BC: Og, Zog, Mog, Chog, and Frog, in that order.

Megas Methuselah

07-11-2009, 07:50

In 70000 BC: Og, Zog, Mog, Chog, and Frog, in that order.

What about Log?

vartan

07-11-2009, 07:51

I don't think we had Gallup polls back in the ancient days, so any answers here I wouldn't take seriously at all. How are you going to measure fame? It's not like kilograms.

A Very Super Market

07-11-2009, 07:54

Zog was a real person. Do not toy with the Balkans, boy.

Andronikos

07-11-2009, 11:12

Aristotle - for science and philosophy, really this is more important than any politics or military, he did so much, that for centuries people thought that no more could be done

Alexandros - for military, but besides being great commander and so on, his empire joined three greatest western civilisations (Greek, Persian, Egyptian) and so he entered their history as a hero, conqueror or savior

Virgil - for art (I would rather write Homer, but as his existence is dubious...), artists were celebrities in all ages

unfortunately my knowledge about great Persian, Indian or Chinese people is limited, so I can't add someone from that regions, so take this as western nominations

mountaingoat

07-11-2009, 11:45

In 70000 BC: Og, Zog, Mog, Chog, and Frog, in that order.

:2thumbsup:

you forgot bog

Hax

07-11-2009, 12:00

Cyrus the Great deserves a mention;

1) Cyrus the Great
2) Siddharta Gautama
3) Megás Alexandros
4) Xerxes I
5) Hannibal Barkas

Mikhail Mengsk

07-11-2009, 13:11

MMMMMMMMMMMMh interesting question.

0- Jesus, no way

1- Gaio Giulio Cesare
2- Siddhartha
3- Confucius
4- Hannibal Barca
5- Megas Alexandros

But it's a bit ridiculous to make a chart. There are thousands of those "celebrities", it's impossibile to consider all their factors!

Tellos Athenaios

07-11-2009, 13:18

Alexandros - for military, but besides being great commander and so on, his empire joined three greatest western civilisations (Greek, Persian, Egyptian) and so he entered their history as a hero, conqueror or savior

Don't overdo it: as Iskander he is also known for being the father of J.P. Coen in some Wajang plays so you know what he is likened to... Something says me he wasn't at all perceived as "hero, savior" in "their history". :juggle2:

Virgil for art and then we leave out the original; the one and only Homeros? (Ok whether or not a Homer existed; nevermind now whether he was only 1 Homeros: you get the point.)

Maion Maroneios

07-11-2009, 13:33

Deffinately include Aristotle dude. Even up to the times of Galileo Galilei, scientists followed Aristotle's doctrines and upheld and defended his philosophy without even thinking of things being otherwise.

Maion

antisocialmunky

07-11-2009, 14:12

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rJtUG54tTO8/SJXwLbg9qLI/AAAAAAAAACM/sBZc4UC_UP4/s400/The-God-Emperor-Can%27t-be-Wr.jpg

Que?

mountaingoat

07-11-2009, 15:10

http://retromedia.ign.com/retro/image/article/858/858257/bc_1205197341.jpg

Cute Wolf

07-11-2009, 15:18

For me:
1) GOD (he create everything you got... still a celebs until now!) / Including Jesus of course!

So top 5 ancient human celebs
2) Aristoteles (without him, no Megas Alexandros & modern Philoshopy)
3) Megas Alexandros
4) Leonidas... THIS IS SPARTAAAAA!!!!!!!
5) Cyrus the Great
6) Chin Shi Wang... (first unifier of China, without him, no far eastern politics madness)

Maion Maroneios

07-11-2009, 15:22

For me:
1) GOD (he create everything you got... still a celebs until now!) / Including Jesus of course!
Hmmm, I think it's mentioned that God/Jesus/Allah/Brahman or whatever religious figure or entity shouldn't be included. And I consider that correct, mainly because the creation of divine entities is simply the human way of explaining the unexplainable. We're talking about impact of people upon humanity, not religion.

Oh, and I'd take the "he create everything you got" part away, as it may lead to a serious religious debate. I consider it bullshit, for example.

Maion

Hax

07-11-2009, 16:02

On that point, Gautama Buddha and Mohammed have certainly existed. There has been some discussion on the authenticity of Jesus, but there probably was some guy like him.

I won't put it so bluntly as Maion, but I do agree with him.

Maion Maroneios

07-11-2009, 16:16

On that point, Gautama Buddha and Mohammed have certainly existed.
Just a minor correction: Mohammed lived during the 6th-7th century AD, so he's out of our timeframe. Unless you meant something else and I misunderstood your statement, of course.

Maion

Conradus

07-11-2009, 16:46

On that point, Gautama Buddha and Mohammed have certainly existed. There has been some discussion on the authenticity of Jesus, but there probably was some guy like him.

Weren't there a couple of non-biblical sources which confirm he existed? I think it's pretty safe to assume he did. What he did, is another question altogether.

OT:
1)Homer, doesn't matter if he was one person or a lot, the Illiad and Odyssea are still masterpieces.
2)Alexander the Great, even 2000 years after his death he still inspired military leaders with his feats. Nevermind that some cultures consider him the devil
3)Caesar, for being a skilled general, able politician and gifted speaker. Few combined those skills as he did.
4)Plato, (and Socrates and Aristotle through him, Socrates because he's our main source for anything S. said and Aristotle because Plato was his teacher of sorts. Even though their theories were completely different). Socrates is basically one of the greatest philosophers ever and Plato is certainly no less.
5)Ramsessess II, for all the buildings he left us, for the skilled ruler he was and for his invention of good warpropaganda

Honourable mentions to Cleopatra (what a nose, what a nose if you've read Asterix), Scipio, Virgil, Hannibal, Augustus, and basically hundreds of other people.

Hax

07-11-2009, 17:35

Just a minor correction: Mohammed lived during the 6th-7th century AD, so he's out of our timeframe. Unless you meant something else and I misunderstood your statement, of course.

That's absolutely correct, but I was refering to the historicity of religious characters on its own.

Well, yes; there most likely was indeed a Jewish man who had a great religious following and changed the course of human history. Whether he was the son of (a) God and was able to change water into wine is an entirely different question.

Andronikos

07-11-2009, 17:56

Don't overdo it: as Iskander he is also known for being the father of J.P. Coen in some Wajang plays so you know what he is likened to... Something says me he wasn't at all perceived as "hero, savior" in "their history". :juggle2:

How I meant Alexandros - hero for Greeks, savior for Egyptians, conqueror for Persians (in negative way, enemy that won't be forgotten, like Xerxes for Greeks)

Deffinately include Aristotle dude. Even up to the times of Galileo Galilei, scientists followed Aristotle's doctrines and upheld and defended his philosophy without even thinking of things being otherwise.

Maion

Fellow scientist here :beam:

option

07-11-2009, 18:03

1. Thucydides (the father of history and political realism)
2. Augustus (brilliant politician and a textbook example of the power of realist politics when employed correctly)
3. Hannibal Barca (the greatest general of the ancient world, his tactics are still studied today
4. Solon (the father of democracy)
5. Philip II (the REAL reason Macedonia was so powerful)
6. Cyrus the Great
7. Mithradates VI
8. Plato
9. Pythagoras
10. Pyrrhos of Epeiros

Mikhail Mengsk

07-11-2009, 18:23

Hannibal Barca also forced Rome to be MUCH more aggressive, because of the treachery of its former allies and its greek noighbours. THere's an interestig book about the whole Hannibal-Scipio story that hardly underline that. After Hannibal, Rome became a much more aggressive expansionist military state.

Maion Maroneios

07-11-2009, 21:04

Fellow scientist here :beam:
Indeed. Oh, and I forgot a very important figure as well: Hippocrates. The father of modern medicine, he worked out miracles for his time. His feats still amaze modern doctors and medical experts.

Maion

Conradus

07-11-2009, 21:09

Indeed. Oh, and I forgot a very important figure as well: Hippocrates. The father of modern medicine, he worked out miracles for his time. His feets still amaze modern doctors and medical experts.

Maion

His feets? Must have been quite a giant then :sweatdrop:

Prussian to the Iron

07-11-2009, 21:14

oh no.....Maion is finally becoming infected by the intarwebz tr0ll syndrome!!!! run for your lives!!!

Maion Maroneios

07-11-2009, 21:24

*sigh* FINE people, I made a typo...

Maion

MerlinusCDXX

07-11-2009, 21:32

I'd say (in no particular order) among the mainstream.

Megas Alexandros
Leonidas
Sokrates
Hannibal Barca
Darius III Codomannus

I named these particular people, because when I think 'celebrity', I think more, "who does the average Joe know about?". This list applies to the US, other countries may recognize 'historical celebrity' a bit differently. I'm surprised no one mentioned Sokrates before now, since his exploits are almost tabloid-worthy, especially near the (unplanned) end of his life.

antisocialmunky

07-12-2009, 02:32

*sigh* FINE people, I made a typo...

Maion

I demotivated it for the predictable lulz.

https://img217.imageshack.us/img217/1842/hippokrates.png
:beam:

And yes, if you read the quote, Hippokrates was the father of time as well

A Terribly Harmful Name

07-12-2009, 02:35

:laugh4:

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 11:29

:furious3: :no: :thumbsdown: :shame: :sweatdrop: :laugh4:

Maion

Rilder

07-12-2009, 11:51

For me:
1) GOD (he create everything you got... still a celebs until now!) / Including Jesus of course!

If we're including gods then here's mine:

1.) Zeus
2.) Athena
3.) Aphrodite
4.) Prometheus
5.) Ares...

Ok I'l stop.

johnhughthom

07-12-2009, 12:48

1. Thucydides (the father of history and political realism)

Personally I would have said Herodotus was the father of history.

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 12:50

Seconded.

Maion

Cute Wolf

07-12-2009, 13:04

If we're including gods then here's mine:

1.) Zeus
2.) Athena
3.) Aphrodite
4.) Prometheus
5.) Ares...

Ok I'l stop.

more:
1) Satan
2) Lucifer
3) Orcs
4) Uruk-Hai
5) Goblins

Hax

07-12-2009, 13:06

1) Satan
2) Lucifer

Are the same.

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 13:35

Let's keep this on-topic, OK?

Maion

gamegeek2

07-12-2009, 16:21

Religious figures are banned from this competition. Anyways, before 0 BCE monotheism was almost nonexistent...Judaism was very, very small and still is today (17 million worldwide isn't that much)

Cute Wolf

07-12-2009, 16:27

Cleopatra too...

antisocialmunky

07-12-2009, 16:53

Religious figures are banned from this competition. Anyways, before 0 BCE monotheism was almost nonexistent...Judaism was very, very small and still is today (17 million worldwide isn't that much)

ZZZZZooooo-aster....? Dualistic but close enough to be closer to monotheistic as opposed to heno(sp?).

Poor Persians culture recognition getting the shaft since the Muslim conquest.

You have to count the somewhat monotheistic N. American cultures as well.

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 17:17

And what does this have to do with the purpose of the thread?

Maion

antisocialmunky

07-12-2009, 17:27

I was responding to his claim.

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 18:04

Yeah, but this is already turning into a religious-based thread that may change into a never ending debate. Especially when it comes to religion. It has to stop somewhere.

Maion

Cute Wolf

07-12-2009, 18:08

Yepp :dancinglock:

Conradus

07-12-2009, 18:49

Personally I would have said Herodotus was the father of history.

Though Herodotos was more a storyteller than an actual historian imo. Thycidides had 'reliable' sources, whilst Herodotos often used legends, myths, rumors ...

Stating Thycidides as the real father and Herodotos as the 'grandfather' seems closer to the truth imo.

option

07-12-2009, 21:30

Though Herodotos was more a storyteller than an actual historian imo. Thycidides had 'reliable' sources, whilst Herodotos often used legends, myths, rumors ...

Stating Thycidides as the real father and Herodotos as the 'grandfather' seems closer to the truth imo.

Exactly. Herodotos also included the gods and their actions as having an impact on real-world events, while Thucydides omits them from his history entirely. The fact that Thucydides used so many different sources from different perspectives in order to attain as objective a history as possible is also an area he pioneered.

Bonny

07-12-2009, 22:19

Adding some more in no direct order:

1. The guy who invented the fire ( no comment needed )
2. The other guy who invented the wheel ( no comment needed )
3. Solon ( first achitect of the athenian democracy )
4. Kleisthenes ( reformer of the athenian democracy )
5. Archimedes ( inventor )
6. Ramses II ( one of the most knowen Pharaos )
7. Pythagoras ( well, at some point every schoolkid has to learn his mathematical inventions )
8. Echnaton ( founder of one of the first monotheistic religions )
9. Hanno der große ( the political opponent of Hamilkar and later Hannibal )

Knight of Heaven

07-12-2009, 22:36

LOL maion i understand you perfectly.
But you mean deeds i think. In my language i could made that mistake all the same. :) as in portuguese feitos=deeds :) dont kown in greek but it could be similar

Maion Maroneios

07-12-2009, 23:28

What? Deeds? Where did I something which should be deeds?

Maion

antisocialmunky

07-13-2009, 03:51

Rilder

07-13-2009, 04:35

What about the 3 guys who independently invented farming all at aroudn the same time? What about that dude who got a bunch of his buddies and started taking villages over to create the first empire?

Don't forget the guy who discovered that if you raise a horse foal to adulthood it will become tame enough to be ridden.

Andronikos

07-13-2009, 08:15

2. The other guy who invented the wheel ( no comment needed )

Yes, this one had great impact on technology, but unfortunately, the more modern a machine is, the less wheels it has. :beam:

6. Ramses II ( one of the most knowen Pharaos )

Right, I am quite surprised that no pharaoh was mentioned before. There were pharaohs who did more than Ramses II, but as celebrity, this one is good, he had the best marketing.

Conradus

07-13-2009, 09:29

Right, I am quite surprised that no pharaoh was mentioned before. There were pharaohs who did more than Ramses II, but as celebrity, this one is good, he had the best marketing.

5)Ramsessess II, for all the buildings he left us, for the skilled ruler he was and for his invention of good warpropaganda

Eh? :p

AttilaDerHunn

07-13-2009, 10:30

1.Nebuchadnezzar
2.Khufu
3.Xenophon
4.Darius the great
5.Iphikrates
6.Zalmoxis(don't know if he existed but some sources say he did)
7.Vercingetorix
8.Hanno the great
9.:help:

Reno Melitensis

07-13-2009, 11:43

1) Augustus Caesar, for ending the civil wars and crowning himself emperor
2) Mithridates King of Pontus, for kicking the roman ass out of Asia minor
3) Ariminus the Cheruscan, for doing the same in Germania
4) Megas Alexandros, well he is Megas after all
5) Cleopatra, for being the most sexy women in antiquity, or so they say
6) Last but not least Jesus of Nazzareth, the son of God to those who belive, he sad let the last be
the first, and love thy enemy.

Cheers.

Rilder

07-13-2009, 11:47

6) Last but not least Jesus of Nazzareth, the son of God to those who belive, he sad let the last be
the first, and love thy enemy.

Cheers.
You haven't been watching the demotivater thread have you?

Xurr

07-13-2009, 21:14

Wow how can you guys have forgotten the first real superstar of the ancient world? How about Hellen? You know the "face that launched a thousand ships"?

antisocialmunky

07-13-2009, 23:02

She was a dumb whore who was used as an excuse to take out trading competition in the Aegean.

Rilder

07-13-2009, 23:41

Wow how can you guys have forgotten the first real superstar of the ancient world? How about Hellen? You know the "face that launched a thousand ships"?

If you count the sailors on those ships you could say she was the face that launched 50 Thousand Seamen. :inquisitive::idea2: :laugh4:

gamegeek2

07-14-2009, 08:40

50 Thousand Seamen

Avoid sexual jokes please. Just saying. Was gonna make one but thought better.

Andronikos

07-14-2009, 10:06

"face that launched a thousand ships"

a vision of loveliness glimpsed through a nighmare of ruin and destruction :beam::beam::beam:

Eh? :p

Sorry, I'm blind and my dog is dead. And I'm sure somebody mentioned Achnaton too before.

dake

07-14-2009, 11:08

1. Gaius Octavius Thurinius brilliant politican and reformer of the empire a complete mastermind.

2. Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix - Brilliant strategist and reformer took the dictatorship and his last year of life he lived in lust and floods of wine until his death.

Thats my list i wouldnt include Alexander for defeating persian rabble army and mountain clans isnt an achivement that great.

option

07-14-2009, 11:24

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Map_achaemenid_empire_en.png

Gee, for a 'rabble army' they sure managed to miraculously conquer quite a bit of land, wouldn't you say?

dake

07-14-2009, 13:30

The persian army was an army of rabble atleast from my point of view under Darius command. The macedonian army was not a pack of rabble, perhaps i was unclear on that. I still see Gengis Khan and the roman empire for example as greater achivements then the one Alexander forged. I dont need an lecture in history about the size of the empire it just my point of view on history, period.

Sorry for going abit of topic.

Reality=Chaos

07-14-2009, 14:44

I'm not too sure there is a right answer to this... I mean we would have to look in contemporary sources and look at which names were mentioned a lot (remember this list is supposed to be about people who would have been famous in their OWN time, not in ours), and if that is the case some surprising and (to our eyes) obscure names might pop up... Also I think the chinese would have some good competitors too, especially considering they did have a proportionally (to the west) high population even at that time...

I personally am not an expert on classical history, but I'm sure we ought to look at the people who were deemed famous in classical texts. Since I am not an expert on them, I'll not make a list....

as for jesus... whether you believe in him or not, he was not yet widely famous in the classical age, that only happened in the later roman empire (out of ouer time frame) so without starting a religious discussion I'd like to exclude him on historical grounds...

Andronikos

07-14-2009, 15:18

Thats my list i wouldnt include Alexander for defeating persian rabble army and mountain clans isnt an achivement that great.

Expect a lecture from TPC about Persian army organisation, he wrote many times about this, I remember for example in the discussion about historical accuracy of movies, when he wrote that Greeks shoul be offend by the depiction of Persian army in Alexander, because it lowers Alexanders accomplishments.

antisocialmunky

07-15-2009, 00:17

As much as I like TPC's occasional epic smackdowns with WORDS, I've never seen him respond to that sort of comment though the crazy amount of WORDS dropped on every 300 thread in this forum doesn't bode well to you. Pray.

Reality=Chaos

07-15-2009, 12:50

Is it just me or do people on here not read very well? Everyone is telling us how good their own list is, and slagging of others, whilst ignoring the the fact that this thread was about famous people in their OWN time. Are ego's that important?

Tellos Athenaios

07-15-2009, 14:10

Read?! What do you mean, read? This is the Internet! :juggle:

Sorry about that.

Reality=Chaos

07-15-2009, 17:40

Read?! What do you mean, read? This is the Internet! :juggle:

Sorry about that.

:laugh4::laugh4: actually that seems to be the view of quite a few people on here

delablake

07-17-2009, 07:11

A Very Super Market

07-17-2009, 07:18

Because those people never did anything of value........

Rilder

07-17-2009, 09:47

Jesus (the most important person who ever walked this Earth)

If you believe he did at least.

Thats why I vote we keep religious figures out of this.

Reality=Chaos

07-17-2009, 10:28

Jesus (the most important person who ever walked this Earth)

Due to lasting legacy (historical and/or intellectual impact)
Caesar
Alexander
Archimedes
Diogenes
Pythagoras

Due to non-existing lasting legacy but at least went down with a big bang (some sort of ancient Paris Hilton-style, i.e. famous for being famous)
(Pyrrhos)
(Hannibal)
(Antiochos the Great)
(Cleopatra/Marcus Antonius)
(Xerxes the Great)

Dud I just gave you a great HISTORICAL argument, why we shouldn't include Jesus for HISTORICAL reason (i.e.out of our time frame)

Damn do you even read what other posters post:wall::wall:

Reno Melitensis

07-17-2009, 11:44

Dud I just gave you a great HISTORICAL argument, why we shouldn't include Jesus for HISTORICAL reason (i.e.out of our time frame)

Damn do you even read what other posters post:wall::wall:

We dont care what others write down, we write what we see fit our views, GO GO JESUS:2thumbsup:

Cheers.

Reality=Chaos

07-17-2009, 12:40

We dont care what others write down, we write what we see fit our views, GO GO JESUS:2thumbsup:

Cheers.

:laugh4::laugh4::laugh4:

I might as well bring up Lao Tse and Buddha who were for me personally much more important then that supposed son of God:clown: