Cypros (circa 10 E.C. - 50 C.E.), also called Cypros II, was a queen consort of Judea. She was married to her cousin king

Herod Agrippa Herod Agrippa I ( Roman name: Marcus Julius Agrippa; ), also simply known as Herod Agrippa, Agrippa I, () or Agrippa the Great, was the last king of Judea. He was a grandson of Herod the Great and the father of Herod Agrippa II, the last known k ...

of Judea. Queen Cyprus II evidently played a public role during the reign of Herodes Agrippa, who had coins minted in her image as well as sculptural portraits made of her. She reported to have acted in favor of her husband's political career on at least two occasions.

Life

Cyprus was born to Phasael II and

Salampsio Salampsio (Hebrew language, Hebrew: שלומציון, ''Shlomtzion'') was the eldest daughter of Herod the Great by his royal Hasmonean wife, Mariamne I. Family Marriage and Children She was married to Phasael, the son of Phasael, Herod's brot ...

in circa 10 C.E. She was thereby the paternal granddaughter of

Phasael Phasael (died 40 BCE; ,; ; from ), was a prince from the Herodian Dynasty of Judea. Name Origins and early career Phasael was born in the Hasmonean Kingdom to a Jewish aristocratic family of Edomite descent. His father, Antipater the Idumaean ...

I, brother of

Herod the Great Herod I or Herod the Great () was a History of the Jews in the Roman Empire, Roman Jewish client king of the Herodian kingdom of Judea. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea. Among these works are the rebuilding of the ...

, and belonged to both the Herodian and Hasmonean royal houses. Cypros II was named after Cypros I, the mother of King Herod the Great. The marriage between the two cousins Cypros and Herod Agrippa took place soon after Herod's return to Idumea from Rome, where he had been raised, in circa 23 C.E. At the time Herod was in a bad situation, since he had spent most of his fortune in Rome, and needed a lucrative office. His lack of position and finances made Cypros fear that he would commit suicide and search for an office for him. With the help of

Herodias Herodias (; , ''Hērōidiás''; c. 15 BC – after AD 39) was a princess of the Herodian dynasty of Judea, Judaea during the time of the Roman Empire. Christian writings connect her with the Beheading of John the Baptist, execution of John the Ba ...

, in 25 EC she convinced

Herod Antipas Herod Antipas (, ''Hērṓidēs Antípas''; ) was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea. He bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter") and is referred to as both "Herod the Tetrarch" and "King Herod" in the New Testament. He was a s ...

to appoint Herod Agrippa as governor in Tiberias in Galilee. In 34 CE, when Agrippa and Antipas became involved in conflict, Agrippa wished to return to Rome. Cypros II accompaned him as far as Alexandria, where she successfully negotiated a loan from the banker Alexander the Alabarch of Alexandria, to finance his exile and a make it possible for him to live in accordance with his rank during his exile in Rome. In 36 C.E., Herod Agrippa I was made King of Judea by Emperor Caligula. Herod returned to Judea, and Cyprus became Queen of Judea. Queen Cyprus II evidently played a public role as queen, as was the common custom of the Hellenized world at the time. King Herod Agrippa I is known to have made at least two coins of his wife that bear the inscription, “Cypros” or “Queen Cypros”on them; one of them is showing the bust portrait of the queen, and on the other, she is standing, facing forward. King Herod Agrippa I died in 44 C.E. Queen Cypros II outlived him, and died circa 50 C.E. Queen Cyprus II is mentioned in an epigram attributed to Phillip of Thessalonica: :“Modeling all with shuttle laboring on the loom, Cypros made a perfect copy of the harvest-bearing earth, all that the land-encircling ocean girdles, obedient to great Caesar, the grey sea too…it was a Queen’s duty to bring gifts so long due to gods.”

Issue

Agrippa and Cypros had five children: Herodes Agrippa II, Drusus (died in infancy), Berenice, Mariamne and Drusilla. Agrippa and Cypros repaid their loan from Alexander Alabarchs by arranging a marriage between their daughter Berenice and the son of Alexander, Marcus Julius Alexander. *

Herod Agrippa II Herod Agrippa II ( Roman name: Marcus Julius Agrippa, ; AD 27/28 – or 100), sometimes shortened to Agrippa II or Agrippa, was the last ruler from the Herodian dynasty, reigning over territories outside of Judea as a Roman client. Agrippa ...

. AD 27/28?-d. 93?became the eighth and final ruler from the Herodian family, but without any control of Judea. He supported Roman Rule and died childless. * Berenice . AD 28-after 81 who first married Marcus Julius Alexander, son of

Alexander the Alabarch Alexander Lysimachus the Alabarch (Greek: Άλέξανδρος ό Αλάβαρχος; c. 10 BC – after 41 AD) was an Alexandrian Jewish aristocrat. His brother was the exegete and philosopher Philo of Alexandria. Ancestry and family Alexander' ...

around AD 41. After Marcus Julius died D 44 she married her uncle Herod of Chalcis by whom she had two sons, Berenicianus and Hyrcanus.Josephus, ''Antiquities of the Jews'' XX.5.2 She later lived with her brother Agrippa II, reputedly in an

incest Incest ( ) is sexual intercourse, sex between kinship, close relatives, for example a brother, sister, or parent. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by lineag ...

uous relationship. Finally, she married Polemon, king of

Cilicia Cilicia () is a geographical region in southern Anatolia, extending inland from the northeastern coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Cilicia has a population ranging over six million, concentrated mostly at the Cilician plain (). The region inclu ...

, as alluded to by

Juvenal Decimus Junius Juvenalis (), known in English as Juvenal ( ; 55–128), was a Roman poet. He is the author of the '' Satires'', a collection of satirical poems. The details of Juvenal's life are unclear, but references in his works to people f ...

. Berenice also had a

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

relationship with the Roman emperor

Titus Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September AD 81) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death, becoming the first Roman emperor ever to succeed h ...

. Similar to her brother Herod Agrippa II, she supported Roman Rule. *Drusus .?-d.? According to

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

, there was also a younger brother called Drusus, who died before his teens.Josephus, ''Antiquities of the Jews'' XVIII.5.4 * Mariamne . 34/35- who married Julius Archelaus, son of Chelcias AD 49/50; they had a daughter Berenice (daughter of Mariamne) . AD 50who lived with her mother in Alexandria, Egypt after her parents' divorce. Around AD 65 Mariamne left her husband and married Demetrius of

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

who was its

Alabarch An alabarch was a traditionally Jewish official in Alexandria during the Hellenistic and Roman periods, seemingly responsible for taxation and especially customs at the harbor. History The following alabarchs are known by name: * Alexander the A ...

and had a son from him named Agrippinus. * Drusilla D 38–79 who married first to Gaius Julius Azizus, King of

Emesa Homs ( ; ), known in pre-Islamic times as Emesa ( ; ), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is above sea level and is located north of Damascus. Located on the Orontes River, Homs is also the central link b ...

and then to

Antonius Felix Antonius Felix (possibly Tiberius Claudius Antonius Felix, in Greek: ὁ Φῆλιξ; born ) was the fourth Roman procurator of Judea Province in 52–60, in succession to Ventidius Cumanus. He appears in the New Testament in Acts 23 and 2 ...

, the procurator of Judaea.

Eusebius of Caesarea Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...

, ''

Ecclesiastical History Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of the ...

'' ii. 10 Drusilla and her son Marcus Antonius Agrippa died in Pompeii during the eruption of Vesuvius. A daughter, Antonia Clementiana, became a grandmother to a Lucius Anneius Domitius Proculus. Two possible descendants from this marriage are Marcus Antonius Fronto Salvianus (a quaestor) and his son Marcus Antonius Felix Magnus, a high priest in 225.

References

{{Reflist Herodian dynasty 1st-century Jews 1st-century women 1st-century people 50 deaths Ancient princesses Ancient Jewish women Ancient queens consort Herod Agrippa Mothers of monarchs