164 BC
Encyclopedia
Year 164 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Torquatus and Longinus (or, less frequently, year 590 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 164 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman calendar
The Roman calendar changed its form several times in the time between the founding of Rome and the fall of the Roman Empire. This article generally discusses the early Roman or pre-Julian calendars...
. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Torquatus and Longinus (or, less frequently, year 590 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 164 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Egypt
- The EgyptianAncient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
King Ptolemy VI PhilometorPtolemy VI PhilometorPtolemy VI Philometor was a king of Egypt from the Ptolemaic period. He reigned from 180 to 145 BC....
is expelled from AlexandriaAlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
by his brother Ptolemy VIII Euergetes and flees to RomeRoman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
to seek support.
Seleucid Empire
- The Seleucid king Antiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV Epiphanes ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great. His original name was Mithridates; he assumed the name Antiochus after he ascended the throne....
dies while on a campaign in Tabae (or Gabae, now Isfahan) in PersiaIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. He is succeeded by his son Antiochus V Eupator who is only nine years old. The regent for the boy is the late king's chancellor, LysiasLysias (Syrian chancellor)Lysias, or Lusias was a 2nd century Seleucid General and governor of Syria under the Seleucid Empire.He was described as, "A noble man, and one of the blood royal"...
, who has been left in charge of Syria when Antiochus IV departed for his campaign in Persia. Lysias is, however, seriously challenged by other Syrian generals and finds himself with a precarious hold on power. To make matters worse for him, the Roman SenateRoman SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
is holding DemetriusDemetrius I SoterDemetrius I , surnamed Soter , was a ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire....
, the son of the former king Seleucus IVSeleucus IV PhilopatorSeleucus IV Philopator , ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire, reigned from 187 BC to 175 BC over a realm consisting of Syria , Mesopotamia, Babylonia and Nearer Iran . He was the second son and successor of Antiochus III the Great and Laodice III...
and, therefore, the rightful heir to the Seleucid throne, as a hostage. By threatening to release him, the Senate is able to influence events in the Seleucid kingdom. - The Battle of Beth ZurBattle of Beth ZurThe Battle of Beth Zur was fought between the Maccabees led by Judas Maccabeus and a Seleucid Greek army led by Viceroy Lysias in 164 BCE. Maccabeus won the battle, and was able to recapture Jerusalem soon after. The Jews did not fight in open terrain; they used guerrilla and hit and run tactics...
is fought between Jewish rebel forces led by Judas MaccabeusJudas MaccabeusJudah Maccabee was a Kohen and a son of the Jewish priest Mattathias...
and a Seleucid army led by the regent Lysias. Judas Maccabeus wins the battle and is able to recapture Jerusalem soon after. Judas purifies the defiled Temple in JerusalemTemple in JerusalemThe Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
, destroys the idolsCult imageIn the practice of religion, a cult image is a human-made object that is venerated for the deity, spirit or daemon that it embodies or represents...
erected there by Antiochus IV and restores the service in the Temple. The reconsecration of the Temple becomes an annual feast of dedication in the Jewish calendar, HanukkahHanukkahHanukkah , also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE...
.
Roman Republic
- RhodesRhodesRhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
signs a treaty with Rome and becomes its ally. - Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus is elected censorCensor (ancient Rome)The censor was an officer in ancient Rome who was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....
in Rome.
Art
- Construction of the detail of the frieze from the east front of the altar in PergamonPergamonPergamon , or Pergamum, was an ancient Greek city in modern-day Turkey, in Mysia, today located from the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north side of the river Caicus , that became the capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon during the Hellenistic period, under the Attalid dynasty, 281–133 BC...
, Athena Attacking the Giants, begins and is finished eight years later156 BCYear 156 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Lupus and Figulus...
. It is now kept at the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Antikensammlung, Pergamonmuseum in BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Births
- Cleopatra TheaCleopatra TheaCleopatra Thea surnamed Eueteria was the ruler of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire. She ruled Syria from 125 BC after the death of Demetrius II Nicator...
Euergetis ("Benefactress"), ruler of the Seleucid kingdom from 125 BC125 BCYear 125 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Hypsaeus and Flaccus...
, a daughter of Ptolemy VIPtolemy VI PhilometorPtolemy VI Philometor was a king of Egypt from the Ptolemaic period. He reigned from 180 to 145 BC....
of Egypt and his sister/wife Cleopatra IICleopatra II of EgyptCleopatra II was a queen of Ptolemaic Egypt.-Family:Cleopatra II was the daughter of Ptolemy V and likely Cleopatra I. She was the sister of Ptolemy VI and Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II Tryphon. She would eventually marry both of her brothers.Her first marriage was with her brother Ptolemy VI in ca....
(d. 121 BC121 BCYear 121 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Opimius and Allobrogicus...
) (approximate date)
Deaths
- Antiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV EpiphanesAntiochus IV Epiphanes ruled the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. He was a son of King Antiochus III the Great. His original name was Mithridates; he assumed the name Antiochus after he ascended the throne....
("God Manifest"), Seleucid king of the SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n kingdom who has reigned since 175 BC175 BCYear 175 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Scaevola and Lepidus...
, and has encouraged Greek culture and institutions but also attempted to suppress Judaism, which has led to the uprisings in JudeaJudeaJudea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
towards the end of his reign (b. c. 215 BC215 BCYear 215 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Albinus/Marcellus/Verrucosus and Gracchus...
)