Rhodogune (; 2nd century BCE) was a queen of the

Seleucid Empire The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great ...

by marriage to Demetrius II Nicator. She was the daughter of the Parthian king Mithridates I (171-132 BCE), and sister of

Phraates II Phraates II (also spelled Frahad II; ''Frahāt'') was king of the Parthian Empire from 132 BC to 127 BC. He was the son and successor of Mithridates I (). Because he was still very young when he came to the throne, his mother Rinnu initially ru ...

(ruled 132-127 BCE).

Life

In 138 BCE Rhodogune married Seleucid King Demetrius II Nicator (ruled 146-139 BCE, 129-126 BCE). They were kept by her brother in Hyrcania on the shores of the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

, during which time they had several children. During their marriage, Demetrius was temporarily a hostage in the Parthian court after an ill-fated campaign in Babylonia. Polyaenus wrote that Rhodogune, informed of a revolt while preparing for a bath, vowed not to bathe or brush her hair until the revolt was quashed. She immediately went into battle, riding out to the head of her army. She defeated the rebels, and was depicted thereafter on seals of the kings of Persia with long, disheveled hair because of her adherence to her vow. This incident is also mentioned in the anonymously written '' Tractatus de mulieribus'', which elaborates further on the story, describing her as being depicted with a golden statue showing her hair half-braided, half unbraided.Gera, Deborah Levine. Warrior Women: The Anonymous Tractatus De Mulieribus, p.8 She was presumably abandoned in 129 BCE when Demetrius, after numerous failed attempts to escape from Parthia, was dispatched back to

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...

during the invasion of Parthia by Demetrius's brother, Antiochus VII Sidetes.

References

Sources

* 2nd-century BC births 2nd-century BC Iranian people 2nd-century BC women Seleucid royal consorts Parthian princesses Women in ancient Near Eastern warfare Year of death unknown {{Iran-royal-stub Daughters of kings