DOCSLIB.ORG

The North Pontic Area and Septimius Severus

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The North Pontic Area and Septimius Severus THE NORTH PONTIC AREA AND SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS VITALIJ M. ZUBAR (Kiev) One of the principal problems of the ancient history of the North Pontic area concerns the nature of relations between the Greek towns of the region and the administration of the Roman Empire. In spite of the fact that the problem has attracted considerable attention in Soviet historiography, it cannot be con- sidered to have been finally solved. With rare exceptions, the scholars who have discussed the relations of the Roman Empire with the population of the North Pontic cities, have analyzed the situation through its chronological development in various centres.1 However, an analysis of the situation in the region as a whole in the various stages of its historical development has never been undertaken. The present paper is an attempt to discuss the character of relations between the ancient centres of the region and the Roman Empire in the reign of Scptimius Severus (193-211 A.D.) and to trace the influence of changes in Roman policy on the position of these cities. I should note that this study deals only with Roman policy towards Tyras, Olbia and Chersonesos. In fact from the reign of Pharnaces down to late anti- quity the kingdom of Bosporus was with the exception of small intervals friendly to Rome. Besides, after the intervention of Roman troops in the dynastic struggle in Bosporus and the enthronement of Cotys I (45/46-62/63 A.D.) in the wake of the Roman-Bosporan war a stable system of Roman con- trol was built up in the North Pontic area, and all further Roman effort was aimed at preserving and strengthening this. After the Roman-Bosporan war the Bosporan Kingdom came finally under the direct control of the governors of the province of Bithynia-Pontus, whereas the western part of the region, 183 including Tyras, Olbia and Chersonesos, was included in the sphere of interest 2 of first the legates of Moesia, then those of Moesia Inferior.2 Such a situation was preserved later on. And for just this reason the soldiers of Roman auxiliary units, transferred from Bithynia-Pontus,3 were stationed from time to time in Bosporus. Friendship with Rome, especially strong after the Roman-Bosporan war, led to a situation where the status of friendly kingdom implied certain duties towards the Empire, for instance, that of recruiting auxiliary units for the Roman army, known from the epigraphical sources already in 8-7 B.C.4 Units formed in Bosporus took part in the Dacian wars of Trajan,5 and in 136 A.D. Bosporan archers and spearmen were fighting the Alans, perhaps on the western borders of the Empire.6 Further- more, a Bosporan ala is known from inscriptions from Dacia, while there were I Bosporan cohorts in Armenia and Pannonia ? Besides recruiting auxiliary troops, the Bosporan kings paid a special phoros to the Empire in the second half of the 2nd cent. A.D. Lucian reports a meeting with Bosporan ambassadors, who were on their way to Bithynia to bring the Roman administration there an "annual tribute".8 Interesting from this point of view is an inscription of the period of Sauromates II, found in Tanais and dated to 193 A.D., which mentions among other things that the King of Bosporus mentioned above had cleared the seas for sailings to Pontus `-' and Bithynia. I't is worth noting that Zosimus, referring to the events of the Gothic wars and following the testimony oi' Deixippos of Athens, wrote about the subsidies paid by the Empire to the Bosporan Kings, who prevented the Scythians from crossing the straits into Asia. ° There are therefore some grounds for the con- clusion that Bosporus maintained relations with the Roman administration of the province of Bithynia-Pontus not only in the final stages of the Roman- Bosporan war and during the reign of Trajan," but also throughout a period .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • People, Plagues, and Prices in the Roman World: the Evidence from Egypt
    People, Plagues, and Prices in the Roman World: The Evidence from Egypt KYLE HARPER The papyri of Roman Egypt provide some of the most important quantifiable data from a first-millennium economy. This paper builds a new dataset of wheat prices, land prices, rents, and wages over the entire period of Roman control in Egypt. Movements in both nominal and real prices over these centuries suggest periods of intensive and extensive economic growth as well as contraction. Across a timeframe that covers several severe mortality shocks, demographic changes appear to be an important, but by no means the only, force behind changes in factor prices. his article creates and analyzes a time series of wheat and factor Tprices for Egypt from AD 1 to the Muslim conquest, ~AD 641. From the time the territory was annexed by Octavian in 30 BCE until it was permanently taken around AD 641, Egypt was an important part of the Roman Empire. Famously, it supplied grain for the populations of Rome and later Constantinople, but more broadly it was integrated into the culture, society, and economy of the Roman Mediterranean. While every province of the sprawling Roman Empire was distinctive, recent work stresses that Egypt was not peculiar (Bagnall 1993; Rathbone 2007). Neither its Pharaonic legacy, nor the geography of the Nile valley, make it unrepresentative of the Roman world. In one crucial sense, however, Roman Egypt is truly unique: the rich- ness of its surviving documentation. Because of the valley’s arid climate, tens of thousands of papyri, covering the entire spectrum of public and private documents, survive from the Roman period (Bagnall 2009).
    [Show full text]
  • 143 Greek Settlement on the Lower Reaches of the River Tyras, The
    Acta Archaeologica Lodziensia nr 66 Mariusz Mielczarek https://doi.org/10.26485/AAL/2020/66/12 HERODOTUS AND GREEK SETTLEMENTS IN THE LOWER DNIESTER REGION ABSTRACT The evidence for Greek settlement on the Lower Dniester region in the ancient written sources is very scanty. The evidence in Herodotus is of prime importance. In reality Herodotus was more interested in Scythian matters than those of the Greeks. Herodotus gave special attention to the history of king Scyles and his special relations with Olbia. In light of the coin evidence Scyles could also be connected with Nikonion. Key words: Herodotus, Lower Dniester region, Greek settlements, the Scythians HERODOT I OSADNICTWO GRECKIE NAD DOLNYM DNIESTREM ABSTRAKT Osadnictwo greckie w dolnym biegu rzeki Dniestr w źródłach antycznych opisane jest bardzo skromnie. Wczesną, bardzo ogólną informacje podał Herodot. Dalsze uwagi Herodota w pierwszej kolejności od- noszą się do Scytów. Dużą uwagę poświęcił on na historię scytyjskiego króla Skylesa, i jego szczególne związki z Olbią. Skyles, w świetle znalezisk monetarnych związany mógł być również z Nikonion. Słowa kluczowe: Herodot, dolne Naddniestrze, osadnictwo grecki, Scytowie Greek settlement on the lower reaches of the The limited interest of ancient authors in the river Tyras, the present-day Dniester, was not of activities of the Greeks who settled on the River particular interest to Greek and Roman authors. At Tyras,4 may be a result of the region’s peripheral different times and on the basis of various sources,1 location in relation to the areas where events of they mentioned (frequently as an aside to the main major importance for the Greek world took place.5 subject being discussed) the names of several set- It cannot be ruled out that the lack of more de- tlements located on the River Tyras.
    [Show full text]
  • The Top-Ranking Towns in the Balkan and Pannonian Provinces of the Roman Empire Najpomembnejša Antična Mesta Balkanskih Provinc in Obeh Panonij
    Arheološki vestnik 71, 2020, 193–215; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3986/AV.71.05 193 The top-ranking towns in the Balkan and Pannonian provinces of the Roman Empire Najpomembnejša antična mesta balkanskih provinc in obeh Panonij Damjan DONEV Izvleček Rimska mesta balkanskih in podonavskih provinc so bila doslej le redko del raziskav širših mestnih mrež. Namen prispevka je prepoznati glavne značilnosti mestnih sistemov in na podlagi najpomembnejših mest provincialne mestne hierarhije poiskati njihovo vpetost v ekonomijo provinc v času severske dinastije. Avtor se osredotoča na primerjavo veli- kosti prvorazrednih mest z ostalimi naselbinami, upošteva pa tudi njihovo lego in kmetijsko bogastvo zaledja. Ugotavlja, da moramo obravnavano območje glede na ekonomske vire razumeti kot obrobje rimskega imperija. Glavna bogastva obravnavanih provinc so bili namreč les, volna, ruda in delovna sila, kar se jasno izraža tudi v osnovnih geografskih parametrih prvorazrednih mest: v njihovi relativno skromni velikosti, obrobni legi in vojaški naravi. Ključne besede: Balkanski polotok; Donava; principat; urbanizacija; urbani sistemi Abstract The Roman towns of the Balkan and Danube provinces have rarely been studied as parts of wider urban networks. This paper attempts to identify the principle features of these urban systems and their implications for the economy of the provinces at the time of the Severan dynasty, through the prism of the top-ranking towns in the provincial urban hierarchies. The focus will be on the size of the first-ranking settlements in relation to the size of the lower-ranking towns, their location and the agricultural riches of their hinterlands. One of the main conclusions of this study is that, from an economic perspective, the region under study was a peripheral part of the Roman Empire.
    [Show full text]
  • Ukraine–Greece Cooperation: Imbued with Common History and Vision
    Georgios POUKAMISSAS, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Hellenic Republic to Ukraine (2016–2019) UKRAINE–GREECE COOPERATION: IMBUED WITH COMMON HISTORY AND VISION – Let me start with an opening statement. Greece upholds the territorial in- tegrity, independence and sovereignty of Ukraine, not recognizing the illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula by the Russian Federation. International law, including various treaties, constitutes a fundamental guiding principle for the Hellenic Republic, and this does also apply in the case of Ukraine. Our ties to the Ukrainian lands are both ancient and modern; Tyras and Olvia were prosperous cities on the estuary of the Dnister and Dnipro Rivers respec- tively built by the Greeks as early as the 6th century BC. Mariupol, on the other hand, was founded in the late 18th century by the Greeks getting out of Crimea (Tavryda) to the northern shore of the Azov Sea. A few years after Mariupol, Odessa was built, a city of symbolic significance for modern Greece; in Odessa, in 1814, Filiki Eteria was founded, the secret so- ciety which masterminded and set in motion the Greek independence struggle. – Ukraine hosts a considerable Greek expatriate community. Is there a proper liaison with representatives of the community and is the Embassy following the living conditions of the Greeks? – First of all, we follow closely the fortunes of the Greek community which is concentrated in the hinterland of Mariupol. They are part and parcel of the society in these areas. We are also content with their treatment by the Ukrainian authorities, includ- ing on oblast and city level.
    [Show full text]
  • Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 2010 (EBGR 2010)
    Kernos Revue internationale et pluridisciplinaire de religion grecque antique 26 | 2013 Varia Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 2010 (EBGR 2010) Angelos Chaniotis Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/2216 DOI: 10.4000/kernos.2216 ISSN: 2034-7871 Publisher Centre international d'étude de la religion grecque antique Printed version Date of publication: 10 October 2013 Number of pages: 241-302 ISSN: 0776-3824 Electronic reference Angelos Chaniotis, “Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 2010 (EBGR 2010)”, Kernos [Online], 26 | 2013, Online since 01 October 2014, connection on 02 March 2021. URL: http:// journals.openedition.org/kernos/2216 ; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/kernos.2216 Kernos Kernos 26 (2013), p. 241-302. Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 2010 (EBGR 2010) The 23rd issue of the Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion presents a selection of the epigraphic publications of 2010 and additions to earlier issues (especially publications of 2008 and 2009). As usual, emphasis was placed on the presentation of editions of new texts. This issue contains several interesting new epigraphic finds, mostly from Asia Minor. I would like to highlight a long Hellenistic inscription from Lykia (Tlos or Xanthos) that concerns a funerary foundation (143); besides providing interesting details regarding the sacrifice and the banquet, this text is an important piece of evidence for the devotion of an individual to a personal patron god (Helios, in this case), for belief in a personal ‘hero’ (or daimon), and the heroization through private initiative. A decree from Nysa provides valuable information about the exploitation of offering tables by trapezonai in a sanctuary of Plouton and Kore (54, 1st cent.
    [Show full text]
  • LEG(Io) X GEM(Ina): Hispanic Legionary Countermarks During the Reign of Vitellius
    LEG(io) X GEM(ina): Hispanic Legionary Countermarks during the Reign of Vitellius. Appendix: eagle (head) and boar types LEG(io) X GEM(ina): contramarcas legionarias hispánicas del reinado de Vitelio. Apéndice: tipos águila (cabeza) y jabalí Rodolfo Martini ([email protected]) Gabinetto Numismatico e Medagliere. Milano Resumen: La relectura de dos contramarcas imperiales romanas, conservadas en el Museo Arqueológico Nacional de Madrid (figs. 4-5), nos permite precisar y actualizar lo que se conoce sobre los tipos relacionados con la Legio X Gemina en el área hispanica: dos de ellos (B-C) ya están recogidos por la bibliografía, pero interpretados de forma incompleta y no relacionados entre sí; además, un nuevo ejemplar del tipo B (fig. 3) confirma el uso de la grafía arcaica cursiva para la letra E, en la forma de II, y hace que los dos tipos B-C sean únicos para las costumbres epigráficas de las contramarcas imperiales romanas. Los tres tipos (A-C) están atestiguados en las acuñaciones romanas imperiales de bronce de la ceca de Tarraco, sestercios de Claudio (A-B) y ases de Vitelio (C); su producción se sitúa aproximadamente a mediados del año 69 d. C., en el momento del traslado de la Legio X Gemina hacia la Germania Inferior para participar en la guerra contra los bátavos. Su acuñación fue reducida tanto por el corto período como por el volumen producido, y a este respecto parece probable que se utilizase un solo cuño para cada uno de los tres tipos. Las relaciones entre los tres grupos de contramarcas sobre monedas de bronce imperiales nos permiten también investigar desde un punto de vista diferente la producción y la circulación de una de las contramarcas romanas más comunes en el área hispánica, presente sobre las monedas de bronce locales de Augusto y Tiberio, la cabeza de águila; su tipología se discute brevemente junto a la contramarca jabalí por sus estrechas relaciones con el entorno legionario y el contexto histórico y social de la época de las guerras civiles.
    [Show full text]
  • The Beautiful Burial in Roman Egypt
    OXFORD STUDIES IN ANCIENT CULTURE AND REPRESENTATION General Editors Simon Price R. R. R. Smith Oliver Taplin OXFORD STUDIES IN ANCIENT CULTURE AND REPRESENTATION Oxford Studies in Ancient Culture and Representation publishes signiWcant inter- disciplinary research into the visual, social, political, and religious cultures of the ancient Mediterranean world. The series includes work which combines diVerent kinds of representations which are usually treated separately. The overarching programme is to integrate images, monuments, texts, performances and rituals with the places, participants, and broader historical environment that gave them meaning. The Beautiful Burial in Roman Egypt Art, Identity, and Funerary Religion CHRISTINA RIGGS 1 3 Great Clarendon Street, Oxford ox2 6dp Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With oYces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York © Christina Riggs 2005 The moral rights of the author have been asserted Database right Oxford University Press (maker) First published 2005 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographics rights organization.
    [Show full text]
  • A Comparative Study of Ancient Greek City Walls in North-Western Black Sea During the Classical and Hellenistic Times
    INTERNATIONAL HELLENIC UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES MA IN BLACK SEA CULTURAL STUDIES A comparative study of ancient Greek city walls in North-Western Black Sea during the Classical and Hellenistic times Thessaloniki, 2011 Supervisor’s name: Professor Akamatis Ioannis Student’s name: Fantsoudi Fotini Id number:2201100018 Abstract Greek presence in the North Western Black Sea Coast is a fact proven by literary texts, epigraphical data and extensive archaeological remains. The latter in particular are the most indicative for the presence of walls in the area and through their craftsmanship and techniques being used one can closely relate these defensive structures to the walls in Asia Minor and the Greek mainland. The area examined in this paper, lies from ancient Apollonia Pontica on the Bulgarian coast and clockwise to Kerch Peninsula.When establishing in these places, Greeks created emporeia which later on turned into powerful city states. However, in the early years of colonization no walls existed as Greeks were starting from zero and the construction of walls needed large funds. This seems to be one of the reasons for the absence of walls of the Archaic period to which lack comprehensive fieldwork must be added. This is also the reason why the Archaic period is not examined, but rather the Classical and Hellenistic until the Roman conquest. The aim of Greeks when situating the Black Sea was to permanently relocate and to become autonomous from their mother cities. In order to be so, colonizers had to create cities similar to their motherlands. More specifically, they had to build public buildings, among which walls in order to prevent themselves from the indigenous tribes lurking to chase away the strangers from their land.
    [Show full text]
  • Rome, Inc. Campaign Game Replay 27 BCE Scenario
    Rome, Inc. Campaign Game Replay Caesar. Quiet turn, relatively speaking. Only one Barbarian leader arrives and with no matching War just sits in his With the rules for Rome, Inc. pretty much complete, I figured homeland. Money is low, so I don’t purchase new units, and I’d do a replay of the four-scenario campaign game. The keep my legions and Auxilia in place to put down empire starts out with Augustus as Caesar, and his friend insurgencies. I pick up Paulinus, who has a high military Agrippa as Consul. Only one War is on the map, an 8/1 (8 ability of 4. Paulinus takes over Hispania, but he can only land strength, 1 naval strength) Cantabrian War in Hispania. muster a -1 advantage over the War that had kicked Numerous provinces across the empire are in insurgency Claudius’ ass, and I don’t want to risk a repeat (negative die status, but legions and auxilia are stacked up against some roll modifiers benefit the player). of them, using the stick approach to make the provinces Turn 3 (9-1 BCE) loyal. As the game moves along, more barbarian wars and leaders will appear along the frontier, and statesmen will More Inflation, leaving the Treasury with just 12 Gold, and show up, some welcome, others not. Let the games begin! Plague. Legions have two levels – ordinary legions with one shield icon on its counter, and veteran legions with two shield icons on their reverse. The Plague Event flips one veteran in each command to its ordinary side, halving their 27 BCE Scenario strength, though they can be promoted back to veteran later, usually in a Triumph.
    [Show full text]
  • THE SUCIDAVA TYPE of BUCKLES and the RELATIONS BETWEEN the LATE ROMAN EMPIRE and the BARBARIANS in the 6Th CENTURY
    THE SUCIDAVA TYPE OF BUCKLES AND THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE LATE ROMAN EMPIRE AND THE BARBARIANS IN THE 6th CENTURY , by ALEXANDRU MADGEARU Joachim Wemer gave the name of this type of buckles because several pieces have been found at Celei- Sucidava when he published its paper (in 1955)1 . These buckles have a sheld-shaped plate and are adomed by pierced work with cruciform or crescent motifs or with a human stylized face. Joachim Wemer established their dating in second half of the 6th century. Dezso Csallâny wrote, few years after, a study on these buckles, focused especially on the pieces with human face2 . The number of buckles increased very much during the last three decades. Dan Gh. Teodor 3 and Syna Uenze 4 made two typologies in 1991 and 1992. In 1992 Valentin Varsik also published a study about several types of buckles including Sucidava, but he did not proposed a typology3. In the same year the buckles found in the Lower Danubian area were put together into a repertory by Uwe Fiedler 6. The typologies drawn up by S. Uenze and Dan Gh. Teodor are very important for the study of these objects, but we consider possibie a more accurate classification. We remind here that S. Uenze classified the Sucidava buckles into five types: a) - with a simple cruciform decor; , ■ , b) - a cross with all the arms rounded; • c) - a cross with the down arm rounded; d) - with tangent circles; e) - with a human stylized face. The classification made by D. Gh. Teodor is based on the same criterion of the ornament, but is more coherent: a) - without ornament; • b) - with a simple cross; c) - wiţh a cross and a crescent; .
    [Show full text]
  • The Catalyst for Warfare: Dacia's Threat to the Roman Empire
    The Catalyst for Warfare: Dacia’s Threat to the Roman Empire ______________________________________ ALEXANDRU MARTALOGU The Roman Republic and Empire survived for centuries despite imminent threats from the various peoples at the frontiers of their territory. Warfare, plundering, settlements and other diplomatic agreements were common throughout the Roman world. Contemporary scholars have given in-depth analyses of some wars and conflicts. Many, however, remain poorly analyzed given the scarce selection of period documents and subsequent inquiry. The Dacian conflicts are one such example. These emerged under the rule of Domitian1 and were ended by Trajan2. Several issues require clarification prior to discussing this topic. The few sources available on Domitian’s reign describe the emperor in hostile terms.3 They depict him as a negative figure. By contrast, the rule of Trajan, during which the Roman Empire reached its peak, is one of the least documented reigns of a major emperor. The primary sources necessary to analyze the Dacian wars include Cassius Dio’s Roman History, Jordanes’ Getica and a few other brief mentions by several ancient authors, including Pliny the Younger and Eutropius. Pliny is the only author contemporary to the wars. The others inherited an already existing opinion about the battles and emperors. It is no surprise that scholars continue to disagree on various issues concerning the Dacian conflicts, including the causes behind Domitian’s and Trajan’s individual decisions to attack Dacia. This study will explore various possible causes behind the Dacian Wars. A variety of reasons lead some to believe that the Romans felt threatened by the Dacians.
    [Show full text]
  • Around Moesia Oliver, James H Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Spring 1965; 6, 1; Proquest Pg
    Athens and Roman Problems around Moesia Oliver, James H Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Spring 1965; 6, 1; ProQuest pg. 51 Athens and Roman Problems around Moesia James H. Oliver HEN M. Licinius Crassus, who on July 4,27 B.C. was to cele­ W brate a triumph ex Thracia et Geteis, won his victory as proconsul of Macedonia and received the acclamation im­ perator from his troops, his friends gave him the honor for a while. The Athenians erected a monument on the Acropolis with the inscription (IG 112 4118): o ofj/Lo~ Mf1PKoV ALK{VVLOV MapKov vwv"K' paaaov. av'0' V1TaTOV Kat\, aVTOKpaTopa. I apET7JS:) .... ;VEKEV K[aJl Evvo{as When he reached Rome, Crassus received his triumph but was refused the right to claim spolia opima or the acclamation imperator, which was now reserved for the princeps (Dio 51.25.2). The question of the acclamation seldom arose again for anyone except an emperor or his heir, though in A.D. 22 Tiberius allowed the pro­ consul of Africa to be acclaimed. So the Athenian inscription is peculiar in this. On the other hand, the Athenians did not need to indicate that Crassus was proconsul of Macedonia because as proconsul of Mace­ donia, he was their local governor. The term of M. Licinius Crassus antedated the separation of Achaia from Macedonia in 27 B.C. The separation began with the appointment of his successor, and there­ after the title av8v1TCtTos in an Athenian inscription usually (but not always) meant the proconsul of Achaia unless specifically differen­ tiated.
    [Show full text]