Decree of Philippi, 242 BCE
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The Decree of Philippi 242 BC was a message from the city of Philippi to the city of Cos in response to an envoy sent by the latter. These messengers requested the asylia, or inviolability, of a sanctuary of Asclepius. The Decree, one of four cities’, is an agreement to respect this request of. The asylia would later be revoked by the Roman emperor Diocletian.
From the 260s BC to early Roman imperial times, Greek cities sought and received recognition of their asylia from other parts of the Greek world—kings, cities, leagues—and eventually from the Roman Empire itself.[1]: 138 Asylia means inviolatibility, or freedom from desecration. What the asylia pertained to in each city's case was different. The city could be asking for the asylia of an important sanctuary belonging to the city, the city itself and the territory surrounding it, or a combination of both.[1]: 138 According to M.M. Austin, the reasons for these requests stemmed from the instability of the times.[1]: 138 With groups such as the Aetolians inflicting random acts of violence in a time of peace, cities sought protection from their neighbors.[1]: 138 What actual benefits came out of these decrees is unclear; they merely state that they recognize the asylia of the requested area.
The city of Cos
Cos, or Kos, is located on the Greek island of the same name. The Dorians invaded in the 11th century, with a strong portion of their people bringing along their Asclepius cult for which the city would become very famous for. The city was also well known for its wine. After the Greco-Persian Wars, Cos joined the Delian League and became a strong Athenian outpost in the Aegean Sea. The city reached its high point during the Hellenistic Period. It was allied with Egypt, and housed an extension of the Alexandrian Library. It was also the home of the famous physician Hippocrates, who is acclaimed as the father of western medicine.
The Asclepius cult garnered a lot of attention for Cos. Asclepius was the Greek god of medicine and healing, a mortal who was granted immortality by Zeus. The original center for the cult was at Epidauros, founded around 500 BCE.[2]: 109 However, Cos became another major center due to the large group of people from Epidauros who came with the Dorians. Other centers for the cult were at Pergamon and Athens.[2]: 109 The cult itself was elective, in that people, both men and women, from all kinds of social background could participate in cult practices; it was not limited to people who had been chosen for the cult by their parents or who sought initiation later in life. The cult was open to all. To participate, any ill Greek would seek guidance in their dreams by spending the night in the sanctuary.[2]: 109 If the god appeared in their dream and either healed them, or suggested a possible cure, then the sick person would make an offering.[2]: 109 The cult reached the pinnacle of its popularity in the 4th century BCE.