Hyspaosines

Hyspaosines (also Aspasine or Spasines ) (* 209 BC; † 124 BC ) was the first ruler of the Charakene, a vassal state in the Parthian Empire, which existed about 300 years.

About the person of Hyspaosines was a long time in addition to the coin finds only the few known what ancient authors reported. The ruler, however, mentioned several times in the so-called astronomical diaries, in which it is cuneiform records from Babylon, include the exact dates shown and the main events of a particular year. These records have been fully exploited only recently by research. Otherwise, the ruler of the Elder ( Natural History, 6.31 ) is also attested in Lucian of Samosata and Pliny.

The time before the survey to the king

Pliny referred Hyspaosines as Arabs and son of a certain Sagdodonacos, nothing of which is also known. Hyspaosines is the Hellenized ( housed in a Greek language form ) form of the Iranian name Vispa - Canah what at all pleasing wealthy means. Hyspaosines seems BC Seleucid king Antiochus designated by the IV in 166/165 as eparch in the Kingdom Charakene, then as the satrapy of the Erythraean Sea, to have been used ( as Juba II, which in turn Pliny the Elder as incorrectly rejects ). Capital was Charax - Spasinu, which has been renamed in Antioch at the time of Alexandria ( on the Tigris ), since it had to be IV rebuilt after a flood disaster of Antiochus.

For the following years, we learn nothing more about the person of Hyspaosines. In the years 141 and 139 BC are considered by some researchers copper coins with his name dated that were probably minted in Antioch on the Tigris; the dating is not backed up. His political status is not read from these coins, he was probably still eparch. Appears staggered a second, older man who could be his father Sagdodonacos, although this is not documented in writing on some of these coins. The imprints show on the backs of an anchor, Athena and Artemis.

Hyspaosines as King

From the years 139-125 BC, no further coins for Hyspaosines are occupied. In this period, the Seleucid Empire had to contend with great internal political difficulties. Already 162 BC Timarchos, the Seleucid satrap of Media, had seceded from the Empire, declared himself king and minted its own coins. A little later the Parthians expanded under Mithridates I. 148/147 BCE he conquered Media. 141 BC Seleucia on the Tigris is occupied. The Seleucid Empire was in a phase of rapid resolution, the Parthians probably not yet gained full control of all newly acquired provinces. So the Elymais seems to have declared independent.

In this context, one hears again in 138 BC by Hyspaosines, who led a campaign and so the astronomical texts from Baylon, the Charakene have freed from the dominion elymäischen:

The exact circumstances of these campaigns are unclear. Above all, one wonders if Hyspaosines fought for the Seleucids, the Parthians or for yourself. From November 133 BC he fought obvious to those building their own empire. The Babylonian texts report:

On June 24, 127 BC, he is referred to for the first time as "king ", which was probably the Charakene formally independent. Shortly before this time, he seems to have conquered Babylon, the city which, however, was only a short time in his hand and was soon ruled again by the Parthians. The conquest of Babylon must have happened shortly after 129/128 BC, because this year a certain Himeros was governor of the Parthians in Babylon. This was seen as especially cruel, so that the local population the Hyspaosines opposed no resistance. Hyspaosines has apparently also occupied briefly the capital of the Parthian Seleucia on the Tigris. There are coins with his name, which have been marked there. In the year 126 BC, Babylon and probably quite Babylonia is again in Parthian hands, for the benefit of the victims Parthian ruler in Babylon are in a text for this year listed.

In the following period, but there was still fighting against the Parthians. In this particular son of Hyspaosines, Timarchos was involved, which is BC, mentioned in November 125. A month later, however, he was defeated and his father tied presented.

From a Greek inscription on a stele which was found to Bahrain, we know the name of the wife of Hyspaosines. There was a certain amount of Thalassia. It can be assumed that he also dominated Bahrain. The text of the stele is:

Hyspaosines died, according to the astronomical diaries on June 11, 124 BC from a disease. According to Lucian of Samosata ( Macrobii, 15) he reached the age of 85 years, after which his date of birth can be calculated to about 209 BC. Coins with his name were still marked up 122/121 BC, making long rise to the speculation was that he had lived until then. These coins were perhaps at the instigation of Thalassia, the widow of the ruler, marked. According to cuneiform texts they tried to establish their still infant son as his successor. From the year 122/121 BC, finally, come the first coins of Mithridates II of Parthia, of the coins of Hyspaosines overprinted. So the Charakene seems to have reached in the meantime under Parthian rule. However, the exact circumstances of this acquisition remain in the dark.