Robin Lane Fox loves Italy more than anywhere, but it is a little piece of Macedonia that frames his life
The Spectator, Wednesday, 19th May 2010 

 I always ask myself: ‘Why on earth am I not in Italy?’ I love Ferrara, Florence and Vicenza and the behaviour of the Italians, as everyone does. Where would I least like to go? Finland — drab, dismal socialism and a terrible climate. I don’t really see much point going on holiday anywhere except Italy, though I’ll accept Paris, a city I discovered late in life.

I do have an attachment to Thailand because on the way to Alaska I stayed at the Bangkok Royal and it rained with a monsoon-like vengeance. I sat at a bare table, writing up Alexander’s battle with the elephants while my wife lay in bed groaning and accusing me of poisoning her in a cheap restaurant. In fact, she was pregnant with our daughter Martha.

But really, the place that has framed my life for 40 years is Verghina in Macedonia. It began when I set the wedding of Alexander’s father, King Philip II, there in my book Alexander the Great, published in 1974. I was out of the scholarly loop in my twenties and setting Philip’s palace in Verghina was pure bravura. Though I was very capable, I was despised as one always is at that age. But then I’ll never forget seeing the dusty village of Verghina for the first time. I was changing bus there and saw the huge great burial mound and what was obviously a palace site in the correct relationship to Mount Olympus. I knew immediately that I’d been right all along. My book has now sold over a million copies and it is still in print.

In 1977 I landed a job at New College at the same time as the Greek archaeologist Manolis Andronicos, who’d read my book, was funded to excavate the hill of Tumulus in Verghina. He discovered the roof of an unopened tomb, jumped down inside and there was a Macedonian burial chamber, probably Philip II’s tomb.
I went out to see the frescoes as they were excavated. I was really quite tearful to see a fresco of Alexander himself — Philip was on his right, surrounded by royal pages. In the States there was another view that this was the later Philip III but Andronicos kept a very straight bat under international fire and was eventually proved to be correct.
Years later I stood on the site of the palace with Angeliki Kotteridou who was continuing Andronicos’s work. I watched her and her team unveil the line of stones that defined Philip II’s settlement. It was my 60th birthday and Angeliki and I walked down the hill from the palace as the light faded, taking the same route as Philip would have done to the theatre to celebrate his daughter’s wedding. We didn’t have to say it but, as the moon rose, we both knew we were within yards of where Philip was murdered in front of Alexander. Now, every time I round the corner and Verghina comes into view, I feel I’m connected to it and it’s a part of me. There’s still a whole town to be discovered that will last long after I am gone.

As told to Charlotte Metcalf. Robin Lane Fox’s documentary on Greek myths will appear on BBC4 in the late autumn.

Footnote:
The Spectator, or The Spectator Australia (same publication with 12 front pages given over to Australian  as we get in this part of the world, is such an excellent magazine for book reviews. No fewer than 12 pages on books in the issue from which the article above is taken - The Spectator Australia of 22 May.Those 12 poages do not include the above by the way, it was in the travel section! Great magazine.
And congratulations to Robin Lane Fox and his publishers on achieving one million sales of his great book.


Footnote 2:
Bill Bryson's AT HOME reviewed in The Spectator.'s current issue.