Promachus (, died 324 BC) was a common soldier in

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

's army. According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

, citing Chares of Mytilene, Promachus drank the equivalent of 13 litres of unmixed

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

in 324 BC at Susa, when a drinking contest was held in connection with the funeral of Indian philosopher Calanus. He won the first prize of a golden crown worth a talent and died three days later. Forty-one other contestants allegedly died of

alcohol poisoning Alcohol intoxication, commonly described in higher doses as drunkenness or inebriation, and known in overdose as alcohol poisoning, is the behavior and physical effects caused by recent consumption of alcohol. The technical term ''intoxication ...

as well.

References

Ancient Macedonian soldiers Alcohol-related deaths 4th-century BC Macedonians 324 BC deaths Year of birth unknown {{AncientGreece-bio-stub