Mithridates III of Parthia
Mithridates III πππππ | |
---|---|
Coin of a Parthian king, possibly Mithridates III, Ray mint | |
King of the Parthian Empire | |
Reign | 87β80 BC |
Predecessor | Orodes I |
Successor | Orodes I |
Died | 80/79 BC |
Dynasty | Arsacid dynasty |
Father | Mithridates II |
Religion | Zoroastrianism |
Mithridates III (Parthian: πππππ MihrdΔt) was king of the Parthian Empire from 87 to 80 BC. His existence is disputed in scholarship.
Biography
Mithridates' year of birth is not specified by ancient historians, but his coin mints illustrate him as a middle-aged man.[1] He was probably a son of Mithridates II.[1] In July/August 87 BC, Mithridates III usurped the Parthian throne from Orodes I.[2] Around the same period, the Seleucid ruler Demetrius III Eucaerus besieged his brother Philip I Philadelphus in Bereoa in Syria.[1] The governor of the city, however, called on Aziz, an Arab phylarch (tribal leader), and the Parthian governor Mithridates Sinaces for help; with their aid, Demetrius III was defeated and taken hostage to Mithridates III, who treated him with "honour" until he died of illness.[1] In August/September 80 BC, Mithridates III was dethroned in Babylon, and was shortly afterwards expelled from Susa by Orodes I.[3] Mithridates III may have survived this event and managed to flee to the north, where he continued fighting until he died the following year.[4] Other scholars, however, do not support the existence of a Mithridates III ruling in the 80s BC.[5] According to M. Rahim Shayegan (2011), the existence of rival kings during Orodes I's reign "repose primarily upon numismatic evidence, may find scant support in the literary and documentary sources, and can be contradicted by a diverging interpretation of the period's coinage."[6] Shayegan deduces that Gotarzes I reigned till his death in c. 80 BC, and was succeeded by Orodes I.[7]
References
- ^ a b c d Assar 2006, p. 70.
- ^ Assar 2006, pp. 69β70.
- ^ Assar 2006, pp. 59, 70.
- ^ Assar 2006, p. 77.
- ^ Shayegan 2011, pp. 197, 232; Curtis 2012, p. 68; Olbrycht 2016, p. 23
- ^ Shayegan 2011, p. 197.
- ^ Shayegan 2011, pp. 228, 232.
Sources
- Assar, Gholamreza F. (2006). "A Revised Parthian Chronology of the Period 91-55 BC". Parthica. Incontri di Culture Nel Mondo Antico. 8: Papers Presented to David Sellwood. Istituti Editoriali e Poligrafici Internazionali. ISBN 978-8-881-47453-0. ISSN 1128-6342.
- Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh (2012). "Parthian coins: Kingship and Divine Glory". The Parthian Empire and its Religions. Computus Druck Satz & Verlag. pp. 67β83. ISBN 9783940598134.
- Olbrycht, Marek Jan (2015). "Arsacid Iran and the nomads of Central Asia β Ways of cultural transfer". Complexity of Interaction along the Eurasian Steppe Zone in the First Millenium CE. Bonn Contributions to Asian Archaeology. Vol. 7. Bonn. pp. 333β390.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Olbrycht, Marek Jan (2016). "Dynastic Connections in the Arsacid Empire and the Origins of the House of SΔsΔn". In Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh; Pendleton, Elizabeth J.; Alram, Michael; Daryaee, Touraj (eds.). The Parthian and Early Sasanian Empires: Adaptation and Expansion. Oxbow Books. ISBN 9781785702082.
- Sellwood, David (1976). "The Drachms of the Parthian "Dark Age"". The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 1 (1). Cambridge University Press: 2β25. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00132988. JSTOR 25203669. S2CID 161619682. (registration required)
- Shayegan, M. Rahim (2011). Arsacids and Sasanians: Political Ideology in Post-Hellenistic and Late Antique Persia. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1β539. ISBN 9780521766418.
Further reading
- Assar, G.R.F. (2021). "The Gold Variety of a Silver Drachm of Mithradates III of Parthia (87-80 BC)". In Faghfoury, Mostafa (ed.). Ancient Iranian Numismatics: In Memory of David Sellwood. Brill. pp. 63β112. ISBN 978-1-949743-16-6.
Mithridates III of Parthia Died: 87 BC | ||
Preceded by | King of the Parthian Empire 87β80 BC | Succeeded by |
- v
- t
- e
- Arsaces I (247β217 BC)
- Arsaces II (217β191 BC)
- Priapatius (191β170 BC)
- Phraates I (170β165/64 BC)
- Mithridates I (165/4β132 BC)
- Phraates II (132β127 BC)
- Artabanus I (127β124 BC)
- Mithridates II (124β91 BC)
- Gotarzes I (91β87/80 BC)
- Mithridates IIIΒ§ (87β80 BC)
- Orodes I (80β75 BC)
- Sinatruces (75β69 BC)
- Phraates III (69β57 BC)
- Mithridates IV (57β54 BC)
- Orodes II (57β38 BC)
- Pacorus I (39 BC)
- Phraates IV (37β2 BC)
- Tiridates II§ (32 BC)
- Musa (2 BCβ4 AD)
- Phraates V (2 BCβ4 AD)
- Orodes III (4β6 AD)
- Vonones I (6β12 AD)
- Artabanus II (12β35 AD)
- Tiridates III (35β36 AD)
- Artabanus II (36β38/41 AD)
- Vardanes I (40β46 AD)
- Gotarzes II (40β51 AD)
- MeherdatesΒ§ (49β51 AD)
- Vonones II (51 AD)
- Vologases I (51β78 AD)
- Vardanes IIΒ§ (55β58 AD)
- Pacorus II (78β110 AD)
- Vologases IIΒ§ (78β80 AD)
- Artabanus IIIΒ§ (79β81 AD)
- Osroes IΒ§ (109β129 AD)
- Vologases III (110β147 AD)
- ParthamaspatesΒ§ (116β117 AD)
- Sinatruces II§ (116 AD)
- Mithridates VΒ§ (129β140 AD)
- Vologases IV (147β191 AD)
- Osroes II§ (191 AD)
- Vologases V (191β208 AD)
- Vologases VI (208β228 AD)
- Artabanus IV (213β224 AD)