The Location of Klimax

It is not uncommon to find placenames repeated in the ancient world. Arycanda appears twice in the Barrington Atlas, Apollonia seventeen times. Still, whenever this occurs it is useful to review the evidence to be certain that both modern and ancient scholars alike have not confused the name and location of some physical entity. The present inquiry will discuss the iteration of Klimax in Barrington Atlas Map 65.

The Barrington Atlas includes two place names called Klimax:

Grid - Name - Period - Modern Name / Location - Reference

E4 - Klimax - HR - N Phaselis - RE 3

E3 - Klimax - H - Döşeme Boğazi - RE Pamphylia, cols. 402 - 403

The first location is well attested in the ancient sources. Alexander used the pass in his travels through Asia Minor (Plut., Alex. 17. 8 described the pass; Strabo, xiv. 666 described the pass and a Mount Klimax; Arrian, Anab. i. 26. 1 - 2 described Alexander's journey through the territory but does not specifically mention Klimax). The location of the iterated Klimax, claimed to be near the modern Döşeme Boğazi, is more difficult to ascertain. The compilers of Barrington Atlas Map 65 cite RE Pamphylia as evidence. This article, under columns 402 - 403, described the roads found throughout Pamphylia (the territory in which Klimax is located). The author of the Pauly article is only able to say that the location of the Klimax mentioned by Polybius (v. 72. 4) is more likely (ist es wahrscheinlicher) located near Döşeme Boğazi.

It is worth reviewing the entire passage in Polybius (trans. Schuckburgh): In the course of this same summer, the Pednelissians, being besieged and reduced to great straits by the Selgians, sent messages to Achaeus asking for help: and upon receiving a ready assent, continued to sustain the siege with great spirit in reliance upon this hope of relief. Achaeus selected Garsyeris to conduct the expedition; and sent him out in all haste, with six thousand infantry and five hundred horse, to relieve the Pednelissians. But when they heard of the approach of the army of relief, the Selgians occupied the pass called the Stair (Klimax) with the main body of their own army; and put a garrison at the entrance into Saperda: breaking up and spoiling all the paths and tracks leading to it. After entering Milyades and encamping under the walls of Cretopolis, preceiving that a farther advance was made impossible by the occupation of these positions by the enemy, Garsyeris hit upon the following ruse. He broke up his camp, and began his return march, as though he had abandoned all thoughts of relieving Pednelissus, owing to the enemy's occupation of these positions. The Selgians were readily persuaded that he had really abandoned the relief of Pednelissus, and departed, some to the besieging camp and others home to Selge, as it was now close upon harvest-time. Thereupon Garsyeris faced about, and, marching with great speed, arrived at the pass over the mountain; and finding it unguarded, secured it by a garrison, under the command of Phayllus; while he himself with his main army went to Perga: and thence sent embassies to the other states in Pisidia and Pamphylia, pointing out that the power of the Selgians was standing menace, and urging all to ally themselves with Achaeus and join in relieving Pednelissus.

Selge and Pednelissus are located less than 20 kilometers apart in the mountains between Pisidia and Pamphylia. The towns are North-north-east of Perge with Selge being the furthest east. To the West, some 60 kilometers, is the territory Milyadeis in which is located Kretopolis. Here, Garsyeris encamped with his men and found that the routes to Pednelissus were blocked. Garsyeris completed a feigned retreat and the Selgians gave up the pass and then Garsyeris was able to lead his men south into Perge, where he rallied support for the Pednelissians. For this reason, Klimax is located along the road between Kretopolis and Perge in the Barrington Atlas. (A northern route may help to explain the un-located location of Saperda). Whatever its actual location (and Walbank, in his commentary on Polybius, claims that its location is uncertain), the Klimax mentioned by Polybius cannot be the same as the one Alexander passed through. It is certainly farther north and Polybius makes no mention of the coast.

One might also wonder whether there is a simple philological problem. Klimax in Greek simply refers to a sort of ladder, but it was also used to name 'passes', whether through valleys or mountains (cf. Paus. 8, 6, 4 describing a Klimax in Greece). Here, in Pamphylia, however, this cannot be the case. Polybius is quite clear that the "pass [was] called Klimax". He even used the word stena (narrow-pass) to differentiate the other use of the word Klimax.

Thus, while we might consider concluding that the location of the Klimax near Döşeme Boğazi is not as certain, the location presented in the Barrington Atlas must be very close.