Mar-Zutra II () was a Jewish

Exilarch The exilarch was the leader of the Jewish community in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) during the era of the Parthians, Sasanians and Abbasid Caliphate up until the Mongol invasion of Baghdad in 1258, with intermittent gaps due to ongoing polit ...

who led a revolt against the

Sasanian The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign ...

rulers in 495 CE and achieved seven years of political independence in

Mahoza Al-Mada'in (, ; ''Māḥozā''; ) was an ancient metropolis situated on the Tigris in what is now Iraq. It was located between the ancient royal centers of Ctesiphon and Seleucia, and was founded by the Sasanian Empire. The city's name was used ...

. Mar-Zutra II became Exilarch of the Jewish community in

Babylon Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-s ...

at the age of fifteen in 483 CE, twelve years before the revolt. After King

Kavadh I Kavad I ( ; 473 – 13 September 531) was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 488 to 531, with a two or three-year interruption. A son of Peroz I (), he was crowned by the nobles to replace his deposed and unpopular uncle Balash (). Inhe ...

had denied Jews the right to organize their own militia, Mar-Zutra took advantage of the confusion into which

Mazdak Mazdak (, Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭦𐭣𐭪, also Mazdak the Younger; died c. 524 or 528) was an Iranian Zoroastrian '' mobad'' (priest) and religious reformer who gained influence during the reign of the Sasanian emperor Kavadh I. He claimed to ...

's communistic attempts had plunged Persia and led a successful military revolt that achieved political independence for the Jews of Mahoza. The Jewish state lasted seven years, until 502 CE. Mar-Zutra II remained exarch until 520. He had a son named

Mar-Zutra III Mar-Zutra III, also called Mar-Zutra bar Mar-Zutra, according to the Seder Olam Zutta, was the posthumous and only son of the 30th Exilarch of Babylon, Mar-Zutra II. He lived at the beginning of the Savora period. Mar-Zutra II had been crucified o ...

. The latter did not attain to the office of Exilarch, but returned to the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

, where he became head of the Academy of

Tiberias Tiberias ( ; , ; ) is a city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Four Holy Cities, along with Jerusalem, Heb ...

, under the title of "Resh Pirka" ('Aρχιφεκίτησ), several generations of his descendants succeeding him in this office. Mar Zutra's successor, Mar Ahunai, did not dare to appear in public for almost thirty years following this episode and it is not known whether he ever truly assumed the full powers of Exilarch during Kavadh's reign, which ended in 531 CE.

References

5th-century births 520 deaths Jewish royalty Exilarchs People executed by crucifixion Jewish rebels 5th-century Jews 6th-century Jews Jews in the Sasanian Empire People executed by the Sasanian Empire Rebellions against the Sasanian Empire {{Jewish-hist-stub