The Court of Cyrus the Younger in Anatolia: Some Remarks
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Iranian Coins & Mints: Achaemenid Dynasty
IRANIAN COINS & MINTS: ACHAEMENID DYNASTY DARIC The Achaemenid Currency By: Michael Alram DARIC (Gk. dareiko‚s statê´r), Achaemenid gold coin of ca. 8.4 gr, which was introduced by Darius I the Great (q.v.; 522-486 B.C.E.) toward the end of the 6th century B.C.E. The daric and the similar silver coin, the siglos (Gk. síglos mediko‚s), represented the bimetallic monetary standard that the Achaemenids developed from that of the Lydians (Herodotus, 1.94). Although it was the only gold coin of its period that was struck continuously, the daric was eventually displaced from its central economic position first by the biga stater of Philip II of Macedonia (359-36 B.C.E.) and then, conclusively, by the Nike stater of Alexander II of Macedonia (336-23 B.C.E.). The ancient Greeks believed that the term dareiko‚s was derived from the name of Darius the Great (Pollux, Onomastikon 3.87, 7.98; cf. Caccamo Caltabiano and Radici Colace), who was believed to have introduced these coins. For example, Herodotus reported that Darius had struck coins of pure gold (4.166, 7.28: chrysíou statê´rôn Dareikôn). On the other hand, modern scholars have generally supposed that the Greek term dareiko‚s can be traced back to Old Persian *dari- "golden" and that it was first associated with the name of Darius only in later folk etymology (Herzfeld, p. 146; for the contrary view, see Bivar, p. 621; DARIUS iii). During the 5th century B.C.E. the term dareiko‚s was generally and exclusively used to designate Persian coins, which were circulating so widely among the Greeks that in popular speech they were dubbed toxo‚tai "archers" after the image of the figure with a bow that appeared on them (Plutarch, Artoxerxes 20.4; idem, Agesilaus 15.6). -
Artaxerxes II
Artaxerxes II John Shannahan BAncHist (Hons) (Macquarie University) Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Department of Ancient History, Macquarie University. May, 2015. ii Contents List of Illustrations v Abstract ix Declaration xi Acknowledgements xiii Abbreviations and Conventions xv Introduction 1 CHAPTER 1 THE EARLY REIGN OF ARTAXERXES II The Birth of Artaxerxes to Cyrus’ Challenge 15 The Revolt of Cyrus 41 Observations on the Egyptians at Cunaxa 53 Royal Tactics at Cunaxa 61 The Repercussions of the Revolt 78 CHAPTER 2 399-390: COMBATING THE GREEKS Responses to Thibron, Dercylidas, and Agesilaus 87 The Role of Athens and the Persian Fleet 116 Evagoras the Opportunist and Carian Commanders 135 Artaxerxes’ First Invasion of Egypt: 392/1-390/89? 144 CHAPTER 3 389-380: THE KING’S PEACE AND CYPRUS The King’s Peace (387/6): Purpose and Influence 161 The Chronology of the 380s 172 CHAPTER 4 NUMISMATIC EXPRESSIONS OF SOLIDARITY Coinage in the Reign of Artaxerxes 197 The Baal/Figure in the Winged Disc Staters of Tiribazus 202 Catalogue 203 Date 212 Interpretation 214 Significance 223 Numismatic Iconography and Egyptian Independence 225 Four Comments on Achaemenid Motifs in 227 Philistian Coins iii The Figure in the Winged Disc in Samaria 232 The Pertinence of the Political Situation 241 CHAPTER 5 379-370: EGYPT Planning for the Second Invasion of Egypt 245 Pharnabazus’ Invasion of Egypt and Aftermath 259 CHAPTER 6 THE END OF THE REIGN Destabilisation in the West 267 The Nature of the Evidence 267 Summary of Current Analyses 268 Reconciliation 269 Court Intrigue and the End of Artaxerxes’ Reign 295 Conclusion: Artaxerxes the Diplomat 301 Bibliography 309 Dies 333 Issus 333 Mallus 335 Soli 337 Tarsus 338 Unknown 339 Figures 341 iv List of Illustrations MAP Map 1 Map of the Persian Empire xviii-xix Brosius, The Persians, 54-55 DIES Issus O1 Künker 174 (2010) 403 333 O2 Lanz 125 (2005) 426 333 O3 CNG 200 (2008) 63 333 O4 Künker 143 (2008) 233 333 R1 Babelon, Traité 2, pl. -
Pax Persica and the Peoples of the Black Sea Region: Extent and Limits of Achaemenid Imperial Ideology
Pax Persica and the Peoples of the Black Sea Region: Extent and Limits of Achaemenid Imperial Ideology Maria Brosius The problem of the historical record In contrast to ancient historians studying the Black Sea region in the sixth and fifth centuries BC, archaeologists appear to have a considerable amount of data on which to base scholarly debate. The finds emerging from Georgia and Azerbaijan are particularly striking. But, while archaeologists are able to hold on to undeniable factual evidence for Achaemenid presence in this region in the shape of Achaemenid column bases and entire palace-like structures, the attempt of ancient historians to provide a historical assessment of the Black Sea region in the Achaemenid period resembles a clutching at straws. To be sure, the evaluation of the archaeological evidence is not without its own problems, yet incorporating the Black Sea region into the historical discussion of our period poses a difficult challenge. Amongst other concerns there is a debate over the extent of the Persian controlled area,1 the exact definition of its borders, the duration of Persian presence, the question of Persian naval communication across the Black Sea, the status of these regions within the Persian political structure, as well as that of the Greek cities of the Black Sea region and Persian rulers.2 The following observations aim to address some of these issues and con- tribute to the discussion on how we are to contextualize the evidence for the Black Sea region during the Achaemenid period and to evaluate the impact of the Persian presence there. -
The Outbreak of the Rebellion of Cyrus the Younger Jeffrey Rop
The Outbreak of the Rebellion of Cyrus the Younger Jeffrey Rop N THE ANABASIS, Xenophon asserts that the Persian prince Cyrus the Younger was falsely accused of plotting a coup I d’état against King Artaxerxes II shortly after his accession to the throne in 404 BCE. Spared from execution by the Queen Mother Parysatis, Cyrus returned to Lydia determined to seize the throne for himself. He secretly prepared his rebellion by securing access to thousands of Greek hoplites, winning over Persian officials and most of the Greek cities of Ionia, and continuing to send tribute and assurances of his loyalty to the unsuspecting King (1.1).1 In Xenophon’s timeline, the rebellion was not official until sometime between the muster of his army at Sardis in spring 401, which spurred his rival Tissaphernes to warn Artaxerxes (1.2.4–5), and his arrival several months later at Thapsacus on the Euphrates, where Cyrus first openly an- nounced his true intentions (1.4.11). Questioning the “strange blindness” of Artaxerxes in light of Cyrus’ seemingly obvious preparations for revolt, Pierre Briant proposed an alternative timeline placing the outbreak of the rebellion almost immediately after Cyrus’ return to Sardis in late 404 or early 403.2 In his reconstruction, the King allowed Cyrus 1 See also Ctesias FGrHist 688 F 16.59, Diod. 14.19, Plut. Artax. 3–4. 2 Pierre Briant, From Cyrus to Alexander (Winona Lake 2002) 617–620. J. K. Anderson, Xenophon (New York 1974) 80, expresses a similar skepticism. Briant concludes his discussion by stating that the rebellion officially (Briant does not define “official,” but I take it to mean when either the King or Cyrus declared it publicly) began in 401 with the muster of Cyrus’ army at Sardis, but it is nonetheless appropriate to characterize Briant’s position as dating the official outbreak of the revolt to 404/3. -
The Satrap of Western Anatolia and the Greeks
University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2017 The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Eyal Meyer University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons Recommended Citation Meyer, Eyal, "The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks" (2017). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2473. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Abstract This dissertation explores the extent to which Persian policies in the western satrapies originated from the provincial capitals in the Anatolian periphery rather than from the royal centers in the Persian heartland in the fifth ec ntury BC. I begin by establishing that the Persian administrative apparatus was a product of a grand reform initiated by Darius I, which was aimed at producing a more uniform and centralized administrative infrastructure. In the following chapter I show that the provincial administration was embedded with chancellors, scribes, secretaries and military personnel of royal status and that the satrapies were periodically inspected by the Persian King or his loyal agents, which allowed to central authorities to monitory the provinces. In chapter three I delineate the extent of satrapal authority, responsibility and resources, and conclude that the satraps were supplied with considerable resources which enabled to fulfill the duties of their office. After the power dynamic between the Great Persian King and his provincial governors and the nature of the office of satrap has been analyzed, I begin a diachronic scrutiny of Greco-Persian interactions in the fifth century BC. -
Herodotus on Sacred Marriage and Sacred Prostitution at Babylon
Kernos Revue internationale et pluridisciplinaire de religion grecque antique 31 | 2018 Varia Herodotus on Sacred Marriage and Sacred Prostitution at Babylon Eva Anagnostou‑Laoutides and Michael B. Charles Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/2653 DOI: 10.4000/kernos.2653 ISSN: 2034-7871 Publisher Centre international d'étude de la religion grecque antique Printed version Date of publication: 1 December 2018 Number of pages: 9-37 ISBN: 978-2-87562-055-2 ISSN: 0776-3824 Electronic reference Eva Anagnostou‑Laoutides and Michael B. Charles, “Herodotus on Sacred Marriage and Sacred Prostitution at Babylon”, Kernos [Online], 31 | 2018, Online since 01 October 2020, connection on 24 January 2021. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/2653 ; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/ kernos.2653 This text was automatically generated on 24 January 2021. Kernos Herodotus on Sacred Marriage and Sacred Prostitution at Babylon 1 Herodotus on Sacred Marriage and Sacred Prostitution at Babylon Eva Anagnostou‑Laoutides and Michael B. Charles In this article, abbreviations follow the “Liste des périodiques” in L’Année philologique. Other abbreviations are as per OCD 3. Translations of ancient texts are attributed to their respective translator as they are used. Introduction 1 The article examines two passages in Herodotus: a) his description of the ziggurat at Babylon (1.181.5–182.1–2 and 1.199), which has been often quoted as corroborating evidence for the practice of “sacred marriages” in the ancient Near East;1 and b) his description -
Some Phrygian Monuments
256 SOME PHRYGIAN MONUMENTS. SOME PHRYGIAN MONUMENTS. [PL. XXVI.—XXIX.] OF the five Phrygian monuments now published from the drawings of Mr. A. C. Blunt, No. 4 on PL XXVIII. may be assigned to an early period of Phrygian history. It has been already pub- lished by Steuart, Anc. Monum.; but like all his drawings, this is very incorrect and gives an inaccurate idea of the original.1 The monument is at Yapuldak (see the map in last number of this Journal). There was at this place a town or fortification of some kind on the top of a hill, which rises about 200 feet above the plain. The western side of the hill is a precipice of rock, and on all other sides it is very steep. On the western side an underground staircase cut in the rock leads down to the plain: a similar one at Pishmish Kalessi has already been men- tioned above, p. 6. Near this staircase there is a doorway leading into a small rock-chamber, from which another door in the opposite wall leads into a second chamber, larger than the first. At the back of the second chamber a door admits into a third chamber, and in the back of this third chamber there is a door or window which looks out over the precipice to the west. One can step out through this window and stand on a ledge about eighteen inches wide; and this is the only way to get a near view of the carved front which is now given according to Mr. -
The Idea of 'Celtic Justice' in the Greco-Roman Lighter Literature
Cruel and Unusual? The Idea of ‘Celtic justice’ in the Greco-Roman Lighter Literature Antti Lampinen Abstract This article seeks to demonstrate that dramatically illustrated examples of the Celts’ sense of justice emerge as a minor trope in Greek and Roman ‘lighter literature’. In sources ranging from the Hellenistic to the Imperial era, novelistic narratives taking their cue from the register of lighter literature—with its emphasis on pathos, cultural difference, and romantic themes—feature several barbarian characters, characterised as ‘Celts’ or ‘Galatae’, who act according to a code of conduct that was constructed purposefully as barbarian, archaic, and alien. This set of motifs I venture to call the trope of ‘Celtic justice’. While almost certainly devoid of historical source value to actual judicial cultures of Iron Age Europeans, neither are these references mere alterité. Instead, their relationship with other literary registers demonstrate the literariness of certain modes of thought that came to inform the enquiry of Greek and Roman observers into the Celtic northerners. Their ostensibly ethnographical contents emerge as markers of complex textual strategies and vibrant reception of literary motifs. While lacking ‘anthropological’ source value, these texts demonstrate the variety and intensity with which the contacts between Greeks and Celts affected the epistemic regime of the Mediterranean societies.* From the 270s onwards the Hellenistic era witnessed among the Greeks an intense and emotionally charged interest in Celts. -
ROMANIZATION and SOME CILICIAN CULTS by HUGH ELTON (BIAA)
ROMANIZATION AND SOME CILICIAN CULTS By HUGH ELTON (BIAA) This paper focuses on two sites from central Cilicia in Anatolia, the Cory cian Cave and Kanhdivane, to make some comments about religion and Romanization. From the Corycian Cave, a pair of early third-century AD altars are dedicated to Zeus Korykios, described as Victorious (Epinikios), Triumphant (Tropaiuchos), and the Harvester (Epikarpios), and to Hermes Korykios, also Victorious, Triumphant, and the Harvester. The altars were erected for 'the fruitfulness and brotherly love of the Augusti', suggesting they come from the period before Geta's murder, i.e. between AD 209 and 212. 1 These altars are unremarkable and similar examples are common else where, so these altars can be interpreted as showing the homogenising effect of the Roman Empire. But behind these dedications, however, may lie a re ligious tradition stretching back to the second millennium BC. At the second site, Kanhdivane, a tomb in the west necropolis was accompanied by a fu nerary inscription erected by Marcus Ulpius Knos for himself and his family, probably in the second century AD. Marcus then added, 'but if anyone damages or opens [the tomb] let him pay to the treasury of Zeus 1000 [de narii] and to the Moon (Selene) and to the Sun (Helios) above 1000 [denarii] and let him be subject to the curses also of the Underground Gods (Kata chthoniai Theoi). ' 2 When he wanted to threaten retribution, Knos turned to a local group of gods. As at the Corycian Cave, Knos' actions may preserve traces of pre-Roman practices, though within a Roman framework. -
An Introduction to Old Persian Prods Oktor Skjærvø
An Introduction to Old Persian Prods Oktor Skjærvø Copyright © 2016 by Prods Oktor Skjærvø Please do not cite in print without the author’s permission. This Introduction may be distributed freely as a service to teachers and students of Old Iranian. In my experience, it can be taught as a one-term full course at 4 hrs/w. My thanks to all of my students and colleagues, who have actively noted typos, inconsistencies of presentation, etc. TABLE OF CONTENTS Select bibliography ................................................................................................................................... 9 Sigla and Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... 12 Lesson 1 ..................................................................................................................................................... 13 Old Persian and old Iranian. .................................................................................................................... 13 Script. Origin. .......................................................................................................................................... 14 Script. Writing system. ........................................................................................................................... 14 The syllabary. .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Logograms. ............................................................................................................................................ -
The Greek Sources Proceedings of the Groningen 1984 Achaemenid History Workshop Edited by Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg and Amélie Kuhrt
Achaemenid History • II The Greek Sources Proceedings of the Groningen 1984 Achaemenid History Workshop edited by Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg and Amélie Kuhrt Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten Leiden 1987 ACHAEMENID HISTORY 11 THE GREEK SOURCES PROCEEDINGS OF THE GRONINGEN 1984 ACHAEMENID HISTORY WORKSHOP edited by HELEEN SANCISI-WEERDENBURG and AMELIE KUHRT NEDERLANDS INSTITUUT VOOR HET NABIJE OOSTEN LEIDEN 1987 © Copyright 1987 by Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten Witte Singe! 24 Postbus 9515 2300 RA Leiden, Nederland All rights reserved, including the right to translate or to reproduce this book or parts thereof in any form CIP-GEGEVENS KONINKLIJKE BIBLIOTHEEK, DEN HAAG Greek The Greek sources: proceedings of the Groningen 1984 Achaemenid history workshop / ed. by Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg and Amelie Kuhrt. - Leiden: Nederlands Instituut voor het Nabije Oosten.- (Achaemenid history; II) ISBN90-6258-402-0 SISO 922.6 UDC 935(063) NUHI 641 Trefw.: AchaemenidenjPerzische Rijk/Griekse oudheid; historiografie. ISBN 90 6258 402 0 Printed in Belgium TABLE OF CONTENTS Abbreviations. VII-VIII Amelie Kuhrt and Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg INTRODUCTION. IX-XIII Pierre Briant INSTITUTIONS PERSES ET HISTOIRE COMPARATISTE DANS L'HIS- TORIOGRAPHIE GRECQUE. 1-10 P. Calmeyer GREEK HISTORIOGRAPHY AND ACHAEMENID RELIEFS. 11-26 R.B. Stevenson LIES AND INVENTION IN DEINON'S PERSICA . 27-35 Alan Griffiths DEMOCEDES OF CROTON: A GREEKDOCTORATDARIUS' COURT. 37-51 CL Herrenschmidt NOTES SUR LA PARENTE CHEZ LES PERSES AU DEBUT DE L'EM- PIRE ACHEMENIDE. 53-67 Amelie Kuhrt and Susan Sherwin White XERXES' DESTRUCTION OF BABYLONIAN TEMPLES. 69-78 D.M. Lewis THE KING'S DINNER (Polyaenus IV 3.32). -
Xenophon's Life and Times: Some Important Dates
Xenophon Anabasis Xenophon’s Life and Times: Some Important Dates BC 431 Outbreak of Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta 430 – 425 Birth of Xenophon (in Athens) 423 Birth of Cyrus the Younger 413 Destruction of the Athenian expedition to Sicily 411 – 410 Athenian democracy overthrown, and oligarchic rule imposed (The 400) 410 Democracy restored at Athens 407 Cyrus becomes viceroy of Asia Minor 406 Athenian victory at the Battle of Arginusae, and the subsequent trial of the generals. 405 Artaxerxes II (elder brother of Cyrus) succeeds to the throne of Persia The Athenian fleet is destroyed by Lysander at Aegospotami 404 Athens surrenders to Sparta The Thirty Tyrants are established at Athens Xenophon serves in their cavalry (?) 401 Xenophon joins the expedition of Cyrus the Younger who is defeated at the Battle of Cunaxa (near Babylon) Xenophon becomes a general and the Ten Thousand begin their retreat 400 The Ten Thousand reach the Black Sea, and continue their retreat to Byzantium Agesilaus becomes one of Sparta’s two kings 400 – 399 Xenophon and the Ten Thousand with Seuthes in Thrace 399 Xenophon brings the remnant of the Ten Thousand to join the Spartan Thibron in Asia Minor Socrates is tried and executed in Athens 399 – 394 Xenophon serves under the Spartans in Asia Minor 395 Outbreak of the Corinthian War: Athens, Corinth and Thebes in coalition against Sparta 394 Agesilaus is recalled from Asia Minor to Greece; Xenophon accompanies him Xenophon fights with Sparta at Coronea; he is formally exiled from Athens (if not already