Mithridatic War Research Articles

PURSES OF MITHRIDATES’ MERCENARIES FROM THE CIMMERIAN BOSPORUS

This article examines the numismatic sources from the Cimmerian Bosporus: hoards representing soldiers’ purses, cases of cash payments for rations, as well as the coinages minted to make these payments during the Mithridatic Wars. Several hoards of a military context came from this time, consisting of coins, which were precisely used for the allowances of soldiers. On the one hand, these hoards provide evidence of the payment made to Mithridates’ mercenaries who served in garrisons in cities and in their chora to protect the grain-producing areas that supplied the king’s army with bread. Such hoards consist of silver or bronze coinages specially minted for military payments in Bosporus. However, except for two cases of wage payment made to the garrison in silver (CH XI, 137, 138), using bronze coins for military payments is characteristic of the Bosporus in the Late Hellenistic period. On the other hand, at least five garrisons in Bosporus, whose existence has been attested due to finds of soldiers’ purses, are in Tyritace (IGCH 1145 = СΗ ΧΙ, 140), Myrmecium (CH XI, 116, 141), Patraeus (CH XI, 142), Phanagoria (CH XI, 145A-B) and the Vyshesteblievskaya 3 settlement, located in the grain-producing area subordinate to Phanagoria. These purses show that during the Mithridatic Wars, mercenaries were paid in Bosporan and Pontic bronze coins of significant denominations, which apparently amounted to less than an obol per day. The purses of mercenaries containing the same amount indicate the approximate level of their pay, equal to 22(?) obols per month. The case of Bosporus demonstrates the success of one of the major innovations of the Hellenistic period – the systematic use of bronze for military payment.

THE BATTLE OF CHAERONEA: 86 BCE

In 86 BCE Proconsul Lucius Cornelius Sulla’s (138-78 BCE) looked over the potential battlefield at the broad plain near Chaeronea. He heard horses neigh, and men rumble as they set up camp. Sulla knew the upcoming engagement of his 30,000 legionnaires against the 120,000-man army of Mithridates VI (135-78 BCE) (Appian 12.3.17, 12.6.41) of Pontus would be bloody, brutal, and deadly. General Archelaus commanded the Pontic forces. Sulla may have reflected on the cascade of events which placed him in this dire situation.In 107 BCE. Consul Gaius Marius (157-86 BCE) initiated policies designed to enhance the efficacy of the Roman army. One of these reforms placed the responsibility to supply and manage an army under the authority of the commanding general, rather than the Consul and Senate. This change allowed charismatic, ambitious generals to divert the primary loyalty of soldiers to themselves rather than the State. Sulla used this change in loyalty to march on Rome in 88 BCE and 82 BCE. (Plutarch 2.3.1)In 89 BCE Mithridates embarked on a policy of military expansionism. He invaded Bithynia and Cappadocia, even though Roman officials warned him to respect Bithynia’s sovereignty. The Roman Senate declared war on Pontus, appointed Sulla to prosecute the war, and the First Mithridatic War began (89-84 BCE). (Appian 12.4.22, 12.5.30) Mithridates’ army overran Roman provinces in Asia Minor. Cassius Dio reported: “All the Asiatic, at the bidding of Mithridates massacred the Romans.” (Dio 31.101) Mithridates then invaded the Roman province of Greece. The seizure of Roman territory and murder of Roman citizens was a grievous affront to the honor of Senatus Populusque Romanus (the Senate and People of Rome). Mithridates must have known from the history of Carthage what fate awaited him and Pontus if his military adventurism failed. Either he must destroy the Roman Republic, or it would destroy Pontus and humiliate, then kill him. Control over the region of the Eastern Mediterranean was at stake. Civil War diverted Sulla’s attention, but he finally advanced against Pontic armies in Greece in 87 BCE. He quickly drove two Mithridatic armies into the fortifications of Athens and the Piraeus. Then he successfully moved against these two fortifications. Archelaus escaped by sea to Boeotia. Sulla followed him with his army to Chaeronea, in central Greece. He had Legates Sulpicious Galba, Licinious Murena, and Lucius Hortensius under his command (Plutarch 15.17).

Mad Honey and the Poisoner King: A Case of Mass Grayanotoxin Poisoning in the Roman Military.

We describe an episode of mass poisoning during the ancient Third Mithridatic War. In a brutal and well-planned ambush, forces from the Kingdom of Pontus destroyed a Roman column through the clever use of "mad honey." Incapacitated by the acute poisoning, the Romans were unable to hold off the Pontic forces. We conclude that the debilitating symptoms that the Roman soldiers experienced were due to the presence of grayanotoxins in the honey. Although they were likely self-limiting, developing these symptoms in an enemy ambush made a lethal combination. The "mad honey" environmental threat continues to persist in the Black Sea region to this day and is an etiology that modern physicians should be aware of.

Рим и Каппадокия накануне Митридатовых войн: от бездействия к вмешательству

the article examines the relations between Rome and the Kingdom of Cappadocia on the eve of the First Mithridatic War. Although allied relations between them had existed for several decades, Rome showed little interest in events in this remote region. Only the rise of Pontus and the desire of Mithridates Eupator to strengthen his influence here prompted the Senate to take more active action. It is generally accepted that Gaius Marius studied the situation in the East on the spot during his trip to Pessinunt; the article suggests that it is more likely to associate this with the Asian mission of the Princeps Senatus M. Aemilius Scaurus. Little is known about it, but this does not give reason not to take into account this fact itself. The direct intervention of Rome occurred in connection with the election of a new monarch after the suppression of the Ariaratid dynasty. This intervention was carried out by L. Cornelius Sulla in the interests of Ariobarzan, who was elected king. The article accepts the opinion that Sulla, fulfilling the task entrusted to him, was in the East not for one year, but for two or three. However, the success of his mission was temporary, since later Mithridates, in alliance with Tigranes the Great, king of Armenia, again invaded Cappadocia. The result of all these events was the war of Rome with Mithridates. Ariobarzan had no opportunities for independent politics and was completely dependent on the support of Rome, without which his kingdom would simply disappear from the political map.

Publius at Naupaktos: The First Macedonian War and Phlegon of Tralles’ anti-Roman Prophecies inDe Mirabilia3

SummaryA brief state of the art for Phlegon of Tralles’De Mirabilia3 anti-Roman prophecies is followed by a reassessment of four of its components: the historical identification of the Roman protagonist “Publius”, Naupaktos as the main stage for the prophecies, the multiple meanings of the Red Wolf as well as the Oak Tree, and the Roman military retreat. By analyzing these specific elements, it will be argued that these presages were not only associated with events during the Antiochean and Mithridatic Wars, but were also related with historical experiences from the First Macedonian Conflict.

Coins of the Cappadocian Kingdom from the Collection of the Historical State Museum

The present paper is a publication of a collection of the coins of Hellenistic Cappadocia held by the State Historical Museum (Moscow). This collection consists of 37 items: 36 drachms and a tetradrachm, including rare and unique specimens. The coins under investigation relates to the coinage of Ariarates IV, Ariarates V, Ariarates VI, Ariarates IX, Ariobarzanes I, Ariobarzanes III and Ariarates X. A great part of these items derives from the acquisitions of the late XIX – early XX centuries. Unfortunately, the precise information about its provenance is unavailable. Ten pieces were received by SHM after 1945 and come from private collections of various collectors. 24 items out of 37 belong to the reign of Ariobarzanes I and represent coins of the same denomination – drachm. A relatively chronologically representative sample made it possible to analyze the surface composition of the metal alloy of coins by X-ray fluorescence analysis. The results show that by the end of reign of Ariobarzanes I the percentage of silver in the coin decreases while the proportion of copper increases. The correlation analysis demonstrates a very high level of inverse correlation between silver and copper, which means that the "spoilage" of the coin took place precisely due to an increase in the proportion of copper, and the trace impurities of other metals found in the metal were not included in this process. It could be assumed that such a decrease of proportion of silver in the coins of Ariobarzan I was caused by the difficult financial situation of Cappadocia at the end of the Third Mithridatic War.

New Finding of an Imported Helmet in a Sarmatian Burial on the Right Bank of the Kuban

The article is devoted to the publication of an iron segmented helmet found in mound 2 of the Beysuzhek 36 burial ground in the Kuban steppe region. Ciscaucasian Sarmatian burials with helmets belong to the culture of nomads of the 2nd – 1st centuries BC, identified with the Siraces of Strabo. It is obvious that the helmet from the Beysuzhek 36 burial ground is imported. It was made by a professional armourer and certainly does not belong to Greek, Celtic or Roman traditions of armour production. Middle Eastern helmets of the first millennium BC are represented by single finds. The lack of archaeological finds is partly compensated by images of similar helmets on the Bosporan tombstones, reliefs of Trajan’s column and Nile mosaic of Palestrina. The burial inventory is dated back to the late 2nd – 1st centuries BC. According to literary sources, the Sarmatians fought against the commanders of Mithridates VI Eupator, and later, as a part of the army of Mithridates, against the Romans in Asia Minor. The Sarmatians also made up a significant part of the army of the Bosporus of Cimmeria King Pharnaces II during his attempt to recapture the Pontic Kingdom. Thus, the appearance of the helmet in question in the North Caucasus region could be associated both with the participation of the Sarmatians in the Mithridatic wars, and with the events of 48–47 BC, when King Pharnaces II tried to take back the territories that had previously belonged to his father. During these wars, a Sarmatian soldier somehow received the rare Middle Eastern helmet.

Cicerone e la geografia dellʼimpero nellʼorazione De imperio Cn. Pompei

In his De imperio Cn. Pompei (66 BCE), Cicero supports the law proposal by the tribune C. Manilius to entrust Pompey with an extraordinary command over the third Mithridatic war. The article analyses the importance of geography in the orator’s argumentation for its economical and political implications. First, by sketching a centre-periphery dynamic, Cicero stresses the vital role of the provinces (especially Asia that is now under attack) for Rome’s own welfare and supply with goods; then, in his celebration of Pompey’s military achievements, Cicero insists on their worldwide extent, presenting him as the only one who can bring the Pontic war to an end.

Два ритуальных клада эпохи Митридатовых войн из Нижнего Подонья

The article is about two ritual deposits of the 2nd—1st centuries BC from the Lower Don region. The first votive hoard was found in 2018 in the inter-mound space of Turbuta III burial ground and transferred to the NovocherkasskMuseum of the History of Don Cossacks. The complex consisted of a crumpled bronze situla and helmet, a set of silver phalerae and a frontlet, as well as six sets of bits and cheekpieces. In 2016, information about another ritual deposit from illegal excavations in the Rostov region got on the Internet. Both complexes are very similar in composition, the nature of ritual damage, and the way things are placed. Phalerae and the frontlet from Turbuta III find close analogies in the well-known Starobelsk hoard. Obviously, in the Lower Don region, the same pattern can be traced as in the Northern Black Sea region — the connection of sets of phalerae with votive hoards. The helmets from both hoards are later versions of the Celtic helmets with a reinforced crown. It is difficult to determine unambiguously whether these helmets were made by Celtic armourer, or in a workshop of one of the Hellenistic kingdoms according to Celtic patterns. Situlae are believed to have been part of Roman military equipment. Probably, objects from both ritual deposits reflect participation of the Sarmatians in the Mithridatic wars, recorded in written sources.

Investigating the Relations Between Iran and Rome (Focusing on the Mithridatic Wars) in the 1st Century BC

نخستین ارتباط دیپلماتیک بین ایران و روم در نتیجه تلاقی منافع اشکانیان با روم در آسیای کوچک شکل گرفت. اتحاد مهرداد ششم (پونتی) با تیگران دوم (ارمنی) و دخالت آن‌ها در امور کاپادوکیه باعث شد پای روم به سرزمین­های آسیای کوچک باز شود. ورود رومی‌ها به این منطقه باعث به وجود آمدن چالشی در روابط ایران و روم شد که تا پایان اشکانیان ادامه پیدا کرد. ازاین‌رو هدف این پژوهش تبیین و بررسی روابط ایران و روم در دوران جنگ‌های مهردادی است. بررسی این مسئله با رویکرد توصیفی و تحلیل تاریخی بیانگر آن است که پس از مهرداد دوم و ظهور مدعیان سلطنت، شاهنشاهی اشکانی دچار ضعف و زوال شد. در چنین موقعیتی از طرفی، روم سعی در نفوذ در آسیای کوچک و قفقاز را داشت و از سوی دیگر تیگران دوم ابتدا از این فرصت برای حمله به قلمرو اشکانیان و توسعه نفوذ خود به سمت غرب و سوریه استفاده کرد و در ادامه از طریق اتحاد با مهرداد ششم با روم درگیر شد و اشکانیان با در پیش گرفتن سیاست موازنۀ منفی در قبال جنگ­های مهردادی، به فاصله اندکی توانستند دوباره پایگاه­های پیشین خود را در آسیای کوچک و قفقاز به دست آورند.

Roman Agamemnon

Abstract This article examines three sections of the proem to Lucretius’ De rerum natura: the so-called hymn to Venus (Lucr. 1.1-43), the praise of Epicurus (1.62-79), and the Iphigenia passage (1.80-101). The article’s goal is to show that distinct, interconnected political echoes are perceptible in these three sections of Lucretius’ proem, and that Lucretius intertwines his philosophical teaching with Roman political culture in such a way as to make his Epicurean message more acceptable to Roman audiences. The article demonstrates Lucretius’ interaction with the use of myth in political language in Rome in the 60s and 50s BCE. It analyzes the relevance of the Mithridatic wars to Roman discussions of imperialism and Lucretius’ exploitation of this conflict’s iconic status. This article suggests that Memmius’ political action in the 60s may have made him a particularly suitable addressee for Lucretius’ poem. It also explores the implications of this new reading of the proem for the date of Lucretius’ De rerum natura.

Catalogue of the Winners of the Charitesia and Homoloia of Orchomenus

The stele, found immured in a wall near the entrance of the Church of Mary in the Monastery of Skripù, close to the site of the ancient temple of the Graces at Orchomenus, preserves the names of the victors of two poetic-musical festivals, Charitesia and Homoloia. The date based on prosopography in the first half of the first century B.C. and the mention of the competition ‘for the epinicians’ allow to postulate a relationship between the institution of the two festivals and the policy of Sulla after the First Mithridatic war, when the roman general sought to gain the support of the Boeotians through the establishment of musical contests in many towns.

Catalogo dei vincitori dei Charitesia e degli Homoloia di Orcomeno

The stele, found immured in a wall near the entrance of the Church of Mary in the Monastery of Skripù, close to the site of the ancient temple of the Graces at Orchomenus, preserves the names of the victors of two poetic-musical festivals, Charitesia and Homoloia. The date based on prosopography in the first half of the first century B.C. and the mention of the competition ‘for the epinicians’ allow to postulate a relationship between the institution of the two festivals and the policy of Sulla after the First Mithridatic war, when the roman general sought to gain the support of the Boeotians through the establishment of musical contests in many towns.

Sulla, i Caecilii Metelli e Lanuvium

This article aims at throwing light on the connection between the municipal elite of Lanuvium and some members of Rome’s senatorial aristocracy. In particular, from the examination of the sources, a picture of a close tie between the Caecilii Metelli and the gentes Lanuvinae becomes apparent, allowing one to suppose that a patronage relationship existed between the powerful family and the municipium already in the 2nd century BC. At the beginning of the following century, the city of Lanuvium openly supported Silla. The attitude of the Lanuvian community is characterized by the involvement of the Licinii Murenae in the Mithridatic War alongside the dictator. Further indications of the presence in the municipium of the Caecilii Metelli, particularly devoted to the poliadic goddess Iuno Sospita Mater Regina, can be found in the background of these events.

Notes on the First Mithridatic War in Macedonia and Greece

Notes on the First Mithridatic War in Macedonia and Greece

L’argent rhodien après les plinthophores

The post-plinthophoric silver coins of Rhodes with a radiate head of Helios facing on the obverse and a full-blown rose viewed from above on the reverse were called Attic weight drachms. They should be re-considered as didrachms of the monetary system established by the last plinthophoric groups (the so called D, D1 and E groups according to K. Jenkins’study : drachms and hemidrachms weighing as the silver Roman quinarii and sestertii respectively). The post-plinthophoric Rhodian didrachms reflect a monetary reform, which was indispensable for the protection of the closed character of the Rhodian economy. Rhodes, being part of the winners of the mithridatic war and recompensed with new possessions, must have made considerable profits by striking a new coinage. This should be equally necessary for the military needs and/ or financial contributions to Roman generals.

Rewriting Family History: Strabo and the Mithridatic Wars

Strabo's Pontic ancestors saw their lives transformed by the Mithridatic Wars. His account of his family's history shows how they coped: they re-anchored their identities by retelling and reshaping family stories. The unsolved mystery of his ancestor Dorylaus the Younger can be explained by such an instance of rewriting family history.

Rewriting Family History: Strabo and the Mithridatic Wars

Rewriting Family History: Strabo and the Mithridatic Wars

The harbour of Elaia: A palynological archive for human environmental interactions during the last 7500 years

Abstract Elaia, the harbour city for ancient Pergamon (western Turkey), was investigated using geoarchaeological methods. The rise and fall of Elaia were closely linked to the flourishing period of Pergamon, which ruled wide parts of today's western Turkey in Hellenistic times. In the framework of this research, the palynological analysis of a 9 m sediment core, Ela-70, retrieved from the enclosed harbour of the city, was carried out to reconstruct the vegetation and environmental history of the wider Gulf of Elaia region. An age-depth model, based on 11 calibrated radiocarbon ages, starting from 7.5 ka BP, provides the basis for the high resolution study of sediments from the Hellenistic period, as well as before and after. The lower part of the pollen diagram is characterised by high percentages of deciduous oaks and pines, suggesting the dominance of open forests close to the coring site. The change from oak forests to a cultural landscape, with olive, pistachio, walnut, and grape, started around 850 BC, reaching a maximum ca. 250 BC, and continuing to ca. AD 800. This period is characterised by increase of fire activity, soil erosion intensity, and pastoral farming. Such long-lasting intensive land use likely led to the climax ecosystem turnover from open deciduous oak forests to pine stands, while salt marshes developed around the coring site. The discovery of the dinoflagellate cysts of Peridinium ponticum , a Black Sea endemic species, in the harbour of Elaia evidences maritime trade between the Aegean Sea and the Black Sea; its first occurrence coincides with the time of the Mithridatic Wars (1st century BC). In conclusion, palynological data, in addition to historical and archaeological records, provide a deeper insight into human environmental interactions, as derived from the geoarchaeological archive of the harbour of Elaia.

Athenion of Athens Revisited*

Summary The usual view historiography has taken into account about the controversial data concerning the politician Athenion of Athens, mainly based in the perspective of one of Posidonius’ extant fragments, has portrayed Athenion as a tyrant. A close look at the information we have about him and his policies allows to ask new questions and to get a deeper perspective about the complex age of Athenian history that led the city to take part in the Ist Mithridatic War on the Pontic side, against Rome.