Rome recognises Aspurgus as king of the Bosporus
In 14 Augustus and the Senate recognised Aspurgus, son of Queen Dynamis, as king of the Bosporus. He became a Roman citizen with the names Tiberius Julius, and his descendants ruled the kingdom as Roman clients until the mid-4th century.
- Date
- 14year known
- Place
- Panticapaeumtoday: Kerch, Crimea · Eastern Europe
- Participants
- Bosporan Kingdom, Aspurgus, Roman Empire, Augustus, Tiberius
- Threads
- Eastern Europe and Rus’ before the Baptism (1st–10th c.)
- Also known as
- Tiberius Julius Aspurgus; Tiberian-Julian dynasty; Aspurgids; Тиберий Юлий Аспург; Аспургиды; Тиберии Юлии
Aspurgus was the son of Queen Dynamis, a granddaughter of Mithridates VI of Pontus, and probably of her first husband Asander; his name is Iranian, derived from aspa, “horse”. He came to power after the turbulent years of Dynamis, the usurper Scribonius and Polemon I; reference works date the beginning of his rule variously, between 8 BC and AD 7/8. Aspurgus travelled to Rome, where Augustus recognised him as lawful king; the recognition is dated to 14, and Russian reference works count his reign from that year. He styled himself Philoromaios, “friend of the Romans”, married the Thracian princess Gepaepyris and fought successful wars against the Scythians and the Tauri of Crimea.
All later Bosporan kings bore the names Tiberius Julius, and their gold staters showed the reigning Roman emperor together with the king. The Tiberian-Julian dynasty founded by Aspurgus ruled the Cimmerian Bosporus with short interruptions into the 4th century — its last coins are dated 341 — and the Bosporan Kingdom outlived every other Hellenistic monarchy. Aspurgus died in 37 or 38; the war of 45–49 was fought between his sons Mithridates and Cotys I.
Connections
Related events
- Roman–Bosporan War45–49 · Eastern Europethe war of 45–49 was fought between his sons Mithridates and Cotys I
- Sauromates II defeats the Siraces and the Scythiansbetween 193 and 194 · Eastern EuropeSauromates II belonged to the dynasty founded by Aspurgus, who had also fought the Scythians and the Tauri
Same participants
- Battle of the Teutoburg ForestSeptember 9 · Western and Central Europevia Roman Empire
- Death of Augustus19 August 14 · Western and Central Europevia Roman Empire
Adjacent events in the thread
- Zarubintsy culturec. 200 BC – c. 200 · Eastern Europe
Meanwhile in the world
Other regions, within a year of this event
Western and Central Europe
- Death of Augustus19 August 14
Middle East and Egypt
- Aretas IV and the height of Petra9 BC – AD 40
Africa
- Reign of Juba II in Mauretania25 BC – between 23 and 24
- Temple of Apedemak at Naqabetween 1 BC and AD 70
Central and Northern Asia
- The burials of Tillya Tepe (the Bactrian Gold)between 16 and 100
South Asia
- Gandharan art: the first images of the Buddhabetween 30 BC and AD 100
- Heyday of Indo-Roman trade: Muziris and Arikameduc. 30 BC – c. 250
Southeast Asia and Oceania
- Founding of Funan: Kaundinya and Queen Liuyebetween 1 and 100
- Óc Eo, the port of Funanbetween 1 and 100 – between 601 and 700
- Sa Huỳnh culturec. 1000 BC – c. 200
North America
- Hopewell traditionbetween 200 and 100 BC – c. 500
Latin America
- Monte Albán II: the Zapotec state expandsc. 100 BC – c. 200
- Rise of Teotihuacanc. 1 – c. 250
- Nazca culture and the Nazca Linesbetween 200 and 100 BC – between 500 and 800
The same period
Sources
- Wikipedia (English): Aspurgus
- Wikipedia (English): Tiberian-Julian dynasty
- Wikipedia (Russian): Аспург
- Wikipedia (Russian): Боспорское царство
- Гайдукевич В. Ф. Боспорское царство. — М.; Л.: Изд-во АН СССР, 1949.
- Сапрыкин С. Ю. Аспург, царь Боспора // Древности Боспора. — 2002. — Вып. 5. — С. 207–223.