Sauromates I ( el, Τιβέριος Ἰούλιος Σαυρομάτης Α' Φιλοκαῖσαρ Φιλορωμαῖος Εὐσεβής, ''Tiberios Iulios Sauromates Philocaesar Philoromaios Eusebes'', means ''lover of Caesar, lover of Rome who is the Pius one'', flourished the second half of the 1st century and the first half of the 2nd century AD, died 123) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

client king A client state, in international relations, is a state that is economically, politically, and/or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (called the "controlling state"). A client state may variously be described as satellite state, ...

of the

Bosporan Kingdom The Bosporan Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of the Cimmerian Bosporus (, ''Vasíleio toú Kimmerikoú Vospórou''), was an ancient Greco-Scythian state located in eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula on the shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus, ...

. Sauromates I was the son and heir of the Bosporan king

Rhescuporis II Rhescuporis II was king of the Sapaean kingdom of Thrace from 12 to 19 AD. He ruled half of the kingdom in succession to his brother Rhoemetalces I, and briefly ruler of the entire realm thereafter, usurping the other half from nephew Cotys VIII ...

. He was of

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Iranian Iranian may refer to: * Iran, a sovereign state * Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran * Iranian lan ...

and Roman ancestry. The name ''Sauromates'' is a name of

Sarmatian The Sarmatians (; grc, Σαρμαται, Sarmatai; Latin: ) were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th cen ...

origin. His paternal grandparents were the previous ruling Bosporan Monarchs Cotys I and

Eunice Eunice is a feminine given name, from the Greek Εὐνίκη, ''Euníkē'', from "eu", good, and "níkē", victory. Eunice is also a relatively rare last name, found in Nigeria and the Southeastern United States, chiefly Louisiana and Georgia. Pe ...

. Through his paternal grandfather, Sauromates I was a descendant of the Roman Triumvir

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...

from his second marriage to his paternal cousin Antonia Hybrida Minor (second daughter of

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

an Politician

Gaius Antonius Hybrida Gaius Antonius Hybrida (flourished 1st century BC) was a politician of the Roman Republic. He was the second son of Marcus Antonius and brother of Marcus Antonius Creticus; his mother is unknown. He was also the uncle of the famed triumvir Mark ...

, Antony's paternal uncle), thus Sauromates I was related to various members of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. He was also a descendant of Roman Client Rulers

Polemon I of Pontus Polemon I Pythodoros ( grc-gre, Πολέμων Πυθόδωρος; fl. 1st century BC – died 8 BC) was the Roman Client King of Cilicia, Pontus, Colchis and the Bosporan Kingdom. Polemon was the son and heir of Zenon and possibly Tryphaena. Z ...

, Pythodorida of Pontus and

Cotys VIII Cotys III (Ancient Greek: Κότυς, flourished second half of 1st century BC and first half of 1st century, died 18 AD) was the Sapaean Roman client king of eastern Thrace from 12 to 18 AD. Family and origins Cotys was the son and heir of loya ...

Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to ...

. Through his paternal grandfather, Sauromates I was a descendant of Greek Macedonian Kings: Antigonus I Monophthalmus,

Seleucus I Nicator Seleucus I Nicator (; ; grc-gre, Σέλευκος Νικάτωρ , ) was a Macedonian Greek general who was an officer and successor ( ''diadochus'') of Alexander the Great. Seleucus was the founder of the eponymous Seleucid Empire. In the po ...

and

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

, Antipater. These three men served under King

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

. He is also descended from the Monarchs Mithridates VI of Pontus and his first wife, his sister Laodice and the previous Bosporan King

Asander Asander or Asandros ( el, Άσανδρoς; lived 4th century BC) was the brother of Parmenion and Agathon, and uncle of Philotas. He was a Macedonian general under Alexander the Great, and satrap of Lydia from 334 BC as well as satrap of Caria ...

. When Rhescuporis II died in 93, Sauromates I succeeded his father as Bosporan King and reigned until his own death in 123. He was a contemporary of the Roman Emperors

Domitian Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Fl ...

, Nerva,

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

and Hadrian. Sauromates I continued his father's legacy of rebuilding the Bosporan Kingdom. In 68, Rhescuporis II had restored the Bosporan Kingdom, previously a part of the

Roman province The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...

of Moesia Inferior, as a semi-independent Roman Client State. On coins, his royal title is in Greek: ''ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΑΥΡΟΜΑΤΟΥ'' or ''of King Sauromates''. Sauromates I is mentioned in the letters of

Roman Senator The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...

Pliny the Younger. About 103, Pliny served as the Roman Governor of Bithynia. Sauromates I sent his ambassador (

legatus A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

) to travel to Bithynia to deliver two letters to Pliny. The nature of these letters is unknown. The first letter requested Pliny, for a messenger to use a diploma (a permit to use an official wagon) to assist the messenger's journey, which Pliny respected. The second letter was for Trajan. Pliny learned no more than that it contained news which Trajan needed to know. An imperial freedman called Lycormas took the second letter from Bithynia to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

for Trajan, a journey that would have taken 6–8 weeks. Either Rhescuporis II or Sauromates I established

Phanagoria Phanagoria ( grc, Φαναγόρεια, Phanagóreia; russian: Фанагория, translit=Fanagoriya) was the largest ancient Greek city on the Taman peninsula, spread over two plateaus along the eastern shore of the Cimmerian Bosporus. The ...

as the new capital city of the Bosporan Kingdom. From the late 1st century,

Panticapaeum Panticapaeum ( grc-gre, Παντικάπαιον , from Scythian , "fish-path") was an ancient Greek city on the eastern shore of Crimea, which the Greeks called Taurica. The city lay on the western side of the Cimmerian Bosporus, and was found ...

, the original capital city, had gradually lost its importance. Phanagoria became the new capital city because of the increasing popularity of the city's titulary goddess,

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...

, and her cult. In 105, Sauromates I, entrusted and appointed a priest as an official to oversee the restoration of the porticos at the temple at Hermonassa. Out of his personal religious devotion in 110, he erected a temple dedicated to Aphrodite in

Gorgippia Anapa (russian: Ана́па, ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. Population: History The area around Anapa was settled in antiquity. It was originally a major seaport (Sin ...

. In an honorific inscription dedicated to Sauromates I, found in

Nicaea Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and s ...

, Sauromates I was given the honorific title ''Ktistes'' or ''Founder''. He was awarded this title because of his goodness, generosity and his contributions throughout the Bosporan and

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...

. At Panticapaeum, there is in Latin an honorific inscription, dedicating and honoring Sauromates I: :‘King Tiberius Julius Sauromates, an outstanding friend of Emperor and the populus Romanus‘. Sauromates I had at least one son, Cotys II. Cotys II would succeed his father. Through his son, Sauromates I would have three descendants ruling the Bosporan that would bear his name.

Sources

* The supreme gods of the Bosporan Kingdom: Celestial Aphrodite and the Most High God By Yulia Ustinova Edition: illustrated Published by BRILL, 1999 , * Rome, the Greek world, and the East By Fergus Millar, Hannah M. Cotton, Guy M. Rogers Edition: illustrated Published by UNC Press, 2004 , {{Bosporan kings Sauromates 1 1st-century monarchs in Europe 2nd-century monarchs in Europe Sauromates 1, Tiberius

See also

Sources