Tiberius Julius Rhoemetalces
Encyclopedia
Tiberius Julius Rhoemetalces Philocaesar Philoromaios Eusebes, also known as Rhoemetalces or Rhoimetalces was a prince and Roman
Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom
.
Rhoemetalces was the son and heir of the Bosporan King Cotys II
by an unnamed wife. He was of Greek
, Iranian
and Roman ancestry
. Rhoemetalces is the only King from the Bosporan Kingdom to bear this name. His father named him in honor of his ancestor, King Rhoemetalces I
from the Odrysian kingdom
of Thrace
, who was the father of the Roman Client King Cotys VIII of Thrace.
When Cotys II died in 132, Rhoemetalces succeeded him. Rheometalces ruled as Bosporan King from 132 until his death in 153. He was a contemporary to the rule of the Roman Emperor
s Hadrian
and Antoninus Pius
. On coinage his royal title is in Greek: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΡΟΙΜΗΤΑΛΚΑΣ or of King Rhoemetalces.
According to the Augustan History
, at an unknown date in the reign of Antoninus Pius
, Rhoemetalces had travelled to Rome
for a hearing of a dispute between him and the imperial commissioner. The nature and causes leading to this dispute are unknown. After the hearing had concluded, the emperor sent Rhoemetalces back to the Bosporan.
Like his paternal grandfather Sauromates I
, Rhoemetalces appeared to be a religious person and was involved in the worship of the Goddess Aphrodite
and her cult. This can be confirmed by an inscription found on a statue base from Phanagoria.
Not much more is otherwise known on the reign and life of Rhoemetalces. Rhoemetalces married an unnamed woman from this marriage; he had a son called Eupator
, who succeeded him on his death.
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom
Bosporan Kingdom
The Bosporan Kingdom or the Kingdom of the Cimmerian Bosporus was an ancient state, located in eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula on the shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus...
.
Rhoemetalces was the son and heir of the Bosporan King Cotys II
Tiberius Julius Cotys II
Tiberius Julius Cotys II Philocaesar Philoromaios Eusebes, also known as Cotys II or Kotys II was a prince and Roman Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom....
by an unnamed wife. He was of Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
, Iranian
Iranian peoples
The Iranian peoples are an Indo-European ethnic-linguistic group, consisting of the speakers of Iranian languages, a major branch of the Indo-European language family, as such forming a branch of Indo-European-speaking peoples...
and Roman ancestry
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. Rhoemetalces is the only King from the Bosporan Kingdom to bear this name. His father named him in honor of his ancestor, King Rhoemetalces I
Rhoemetalces I
Rhoemetalces I was king of the Odrysian kingdom of Thrace from 12 BC to 12, in succession to his nephew Rhescuporis I.Rhoemetalces I was a loyal ally to the first Roman Emperor Augustus. He was a direct descendant of the Thracian King Cotys I, and the middle son of the earlier Thracian king Cotys VI...
from the Odrysian kingdom
Odrysian kingdom
The Odrysian kingdom was a union of Thracian tribes that endured between the 5th and 3rd centuries BC. It consisted largely of present-day Bulgaria, spreading to parts of Northern Dobruja, parts of Northern Greece and modern-day European Turkey...
of Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
, who was the father of the Roman Client King Cotys VIII of Thrace.
When Cotys II died in 132, Rhoemetalces succeeded him. Rheometalces ruled as Bosporan King from 132 until his death in 153. He was a contemporary to the rule of the Roman Emperor
Roman Emperor
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
s Hadrian
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
and Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius , also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii. He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne...
. On coinage his royal title is in Greek: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΡΟΙΜΗΤΑΛΚΑΣ or of King Rhoemetalces.
According to the Augustan History
Augustan History
The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
, at an unknown date in the reign of Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius , also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii. He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne...
, Rhoemetalces had travelled to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
for a hearing of a dispute between him and the imperial commissioner. The nature and causes leading to this dispute are unknown. After the hearing had concluded, the emperor sent Rhoemetalces back to the Bosporan.
Like his paternal grandfather Sauromates I
Tiberius Julius Sauromates I
Tiberius Julius Sauromates I Philocaesar Philoromaios Eusebes, also known as Sauromates I was a prince and Roman Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom....
, Rhoemetalces appeared to be a religious person and was involved in the worship of the Goddess Aphrodite
Aphrodite
Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, pleasure, and procreation.Her Roman equivalent is the goddess .Historically, her cult in Greece was imported from, or influenced by, the cult of Astarte in Phoenicia....
and her cult. This can be confirmed by an inscription found on a statue base from Phanagoria.
Not much more is otherwise known on the reign and life of Rhoemetalces. Rhoemetalces married an unnamed woman from this marriage; he had a son called Eupator
Tiberius Julius Eupator
Tiberius Julius Eupator Philocaesar Philoromaios Eusebes, also known as Eupator was a prince and Roman Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom....
, who succeeded him on his death.
External Link
Sources
- The supreme gods of the Bosporan Kingdom: Celestial Aphrodite and the Most High God By Yulia Ustinova Edition: illustrated Published by BRILL, 1999 ISBN 9004112316, 9789004112315
- http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/2986.html
- http://www.american-pictures.com/genealogy/persons/per03025.htm#0
- http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Antoninus_Pius*.html