Gepaepyris (, flourished 1st century) was a
Thracian princess, and a Roman Client Queen of the
Bosporan Kingdom, the longest known surviving Roman Client Kingdom. She ruled in AD 37/38–39.
Life
Gepaepyris was the first daughter and was among the children of Roman Client Rulers of Thrace,
Cotys III and
Antonia Tryphaena. Her maternal grandparents were
Polemon Pythodoros and
Pythodorida of Pontus, while her paternal grandparents were
Rhoemetalces I and Pythodoris I of Thrace. Her maternal grandmother was the first grandchild of Roman Triumvir
Mark Antony
Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman people, Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the Crisis of the Roman Republic, transformation of the Roman Republic ...
. Gepaepyris was related to various members of the
Julio-Claudian dynasty. Gepaepyris was of
Persian,
Greek and
Roman descent.
Gepaepyris is not mentioned by any ancient literary sources. What is known of this
Thracian princess has come from surviving inscriptions from the
Bosporan Kingdom, the ancient Greek city of
Cyzicus
Cyzicus ( ; ; ) was an ancient Greek town in Mysia in Anatolia in the current Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peninsula (the classical Arctonnesus), a tombolo which is said to have or ...
(modern
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
) and numismatic evidence. Cyzicus became the second residence for her family, where Gepaepyris grew up. From coins we know, her royal title was Queen Gepaepyris.
Little is known on the life of Gepaepyris. She married the Roman Client King of the
Bosporan Kingdom,
Tiberius Julius Aspurgus, who was of
Greek and
Iranian ancestry. Aspurgus was the son of Bosporan Queen
Dynamis from her first marriage to General and Bosporan King
Asander.
Gepaepyris seems to have been the only child from the family of Cotys VIII and Antonia Tryphaena to have children. Gepaepyris bore Aspurgus two sons:
*
Tiberius Julius Mithridates - he was named in honor of Mithridates VI of Pontus, and died in 68.
*
Tiberius Julius Cotys I - he was named in honor of his late maternal grandfather, Cotys VIII.
Through Cotys I, Gepaepyris and Aspurgus had various descendants ruling the Bosporan Kingdom until the mid-4th century. These included descendants that bore Thracian ancestral monarch names such as
Cotys,
Rhoemetalces and Rhescuporis.
Aspurgus headed the Bosporan domain until his death in 37 or 38. On his death Aspurgus left his wife Gepaepyris, and two sons, Mithridates and Cotys. Gepaepyris succeeded her husband as sole ruler. Coins of Gepaepyris prove her sole rule in Bosporus. There is no mention of Mithridates, and Gepaepyris herself is represented on the obverse as a ruler in full authority. In AD 39 Mithridates inherited the throne of his mother.
See also
*
Bosporan Kingdom
*
Roman Crimea
References
External links
Coinage of Gepaepyris
Sources
*http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/greece/bosporos/kings/i.html
*http://www.guide2womenleaders.com/womeninpower/Womeninpower01.htm
*https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001107/http://www.tyndalehouse.com/Egypt/ptolemies/cleopatra_vii_fr.htm
*H. Temporini & W. Haase, Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt: Geschichte und Kultur Roms im Spiegel der neueren Forschung, Walter de Gruyter, 1980
{{Hellenistic rulers
1st-century queens regnant
1st-century monarchs in Europe
Monarchs of the Bosporan Kingdom
Ancient princesses
Roman client monarchs
Thracian women