Adiabene was an ancient kingdom in northern Mesopotamia, corresponding to the northwestern part of ancient Assyria. The size of the kingdom varied over time; initially encompassing an area between the Zab Rivers, it eventually gained control of Nineveh and starting at least with the rule of Monobazos I, Gordyene became an Adiabenian dependency. It reached its zenith under Izates II, who was granted the district of Nisibis by the Parthian king Artabanus II as a reward for helping him regain his throne. Adiabene's eastern borders stopped at the Zagros Mountains, adjacent to the region of Media. Arbela served as the capital of Adiabene.
Phraates III, was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 69 BC to 57 BC. He was the son and successor of Sinatruces.
Artaxias I was the founder of the Artaxiad dynasty of Armenia, ruling from 189 BC to 160 BC. Artaxias was a member of a branch of the Orontid dynasty, the earlier ruling dynasty of Armenia. He expanded his kingdom on all sides, consolidating the territory of Greater Armenia. He enacted a number of administrative reforms to order his expanded realm. He also founded a new capital in the central valley of the Araxes River called Artaxata (Artashat), which quickly grew into a major urban and commercial center. He was succeeded by his son Artavasdes I.
Zariadres was an Orontid ruler of Sophene in the early 2nd century BC. According to Strabo, he was a general of the Seleucid ruler Antiochus III who was made ruler of Sophene, although most scholars believe that he was a member of the Orontid dynasty, which ruled Armenia and Sophene. After the Seleucids were defeated by the Romans in 190 BC, Zariadres and his ally Artaxias I of Greater Armenia revolted against the Seleucids, became independent kings and expanded their territories. The last information about Zariadres' reign dates to 188 BC. He was succeeded as king by Mithrobouzanes, possibly his son.
Sames I, was the Orontid king of Sophene, Armenia and Commagene, ruling around 260 BC.
Charaspes was a Scythian king ruling in the Black Sea region.
Xerxes was king of Sophene and Commagene from 228 BC to 212 BC. He was the son and successor of Arsames I.
Ptolemaeus was initially the satrap of Commagene, later becoming its first king in 163 BC. He belonged to the Orontid dynasty, founded by Orontes I. Ptolemaeus' father was King Orontes IV of Armenia, son of Arsames I.
Sames or Samos II Theosebes Dikaios was the second king of Commagene. He was the son and successor of Ptolemaeus of Commagene.
Mithridates I Callinicus was a king of Orontid Iranian descent who lived during the late 2nd century BC and early 1st century BC. Mithridates was a prince, the son, and successor of King of Commagene, Sames II Theosebes Dikaios. Before his succession in 109 BC, he married the Syrian Greek Princess Laodice VII Thea, daughter of King Antiochus VIII Grypus and Ptolemaic princess Tryphaena, as a part of a peace alliance. Mithridates embraced Greek culture. Laodice bore Mithridates a son, Antiochus I Theos of Commagene, a prince and future king of Commagene. Mithridates died in 70 BC and Antiochus succeeded him.
Mithridates III Antiochus Epiphanes was a prince who served as a King of Commagene.
Antiochus III Epiphanes was the ruler of the Kingdom of Commagene from 12 BC to 17 AD. He was the son and successor of King Mithridates III of Commagene and Iotapa, and of mixed Iranian, Armenian, Greek and Median descent – the last through his mother. His parents were first cousins.
The Kingdom of Sophene, was a Hellenistic-era political entity situated between ancient Armenia and Syria. Ruled by the Orontid dynasty, the kingdom was culturally mixed with Greek, Armenian, Iranian, Syrian, Anatolian and Roman influences. Founded around the 3rd century BCE, the kingdom maintained independence until c. 95 BCE when the Artaxiad king Tigranes the Great conquered the territories as part of his empire. Sophene laid near medieval Kharput, which is present day Elazığ.
Antiochus II was a man of Iranian and Greek descent. Antiochus II was a prince from the Kingdom of Commagene and the second son of King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene. He was the youngest brother of prince and future king Mithridates II of Commagene.
Orontes IV was the son of King Arsames and is recorded as ruling Armenia from inscriptions found at the historic capital of the Orontid dynasty, Armavir. He was the founder of the city of Yervandashat and Ervandakert. In his reign the religious site of Bagaran was founded. Large bronze statues in the Hellenistic style of the gods, Zeus (Aramazd), Artemis (Anahit) and Herakles (Vahagn) were brought there and set up in temples dedicated to them. He is also said to have founded a shrine at Armavir dedicated to Apollo (Mithra), a golden statue of four horses pulling a chariot with Apollo as god of the Sun. This was later destroyed by the Sassanid Persian army in the 4th century AD.
Michał Marciak is Associate Professor of History at Jagiellonian University since 2018, specializing in Jewish studies. He has a MA in history (2007), a MA in theology (2007), and received his PhD in 2012 from the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Leiden.
In scholarship, the term Armenian tiara is used to refer to a spikey tiara that was characteristic of the coinage of Armenia during the Late Hellenistic period. It originated from the insignia used by the royal and satrapal authority in the Achaemenid Empire. The best known example was the one worn by the Artaxiad king of Armenia, Tigranes the Great.
The Carduchii or Karduchoi were a group of warlike tribes that inhabited an area stretching from the Botan River in the south to an area north of Cizre in present-day Turkey. Sometime after 401 BC, they expanded their authority into the northern Tigris valley. Between 165–95 BC, they established the independent kingdom of Gordyene, seemingly as a result of the power vacuum that took place following the weakening of the Greek Seleucid Empire.
The military campaigns of Tigranes the Great constituted offensives by Tigranes the Great, King of Armenia, against client kingdoms of the Roman and Parthian Empires. His conquests from 95 to 75 bce expanded his territory from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean. He built a new capital Tigranocerta and populated it with people deported from Cappadocia. His initial invasions of Cappadocia drew the attention of the Roman Empire and after being defeated in two separate campaigns, Tigranes was allowed to keep Armenia as a client kingdom of Rome while paying an indemnity of 6,000 talents and relinquishing all his conquests.
