Saurmag ( ka, საურმაგი) was a
monarch of
Kartli (an ancient
Georgian kingdom known as
Iberia to the
Classical sources) listed as the second king in the traditional royal list of medieval Georgian chronicles. Professor
Toumanoff suggest the years 234–159 BC as the period of his reign.
''The Life of Kings'', written c. 800, identifies Saurmag as the son and successor of
Parnavaz, the founder of the
Parnavaziani dynasty, and establishes a pattern of succession based upon
primogeniture
Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...
. According to this account, the nobles of the realm united to kill Saurmag. Learning of the plot, Saurmag took refuge in the land of Dzurdzuks (ancestors of modern-day
Vainakhs), a country of his mother’s origin. With the Dzurdzuk help, Saurmag quashed a revolt, and went on to create a new class of nobles directly dependent on the crown.
The chronicle also states that Saurmag remained adherent to the pro-
Seleucid policy adopted by his father. The contemporary ties with the Iranian world are also emphasized by the name “Saurmag” itself, which is based on a root from
Scytho-Sarmatian. Saurmag also reportedly married a daughter of the Iranian official based at
Partaw. He is reported to have died without a male heir, and succeeded by his adopted son and son-in-law
Mirian. Saurmag is also credited with the introduction of the cult of
Ainina and Danina
Ainina and Danina ( ka, აინინა და დანინა) or Ainina and Danana (აჲნინა და დანანა) are a pair of pre-Christian female deities worshipped in ancient Kartli — Iberia of the Classical sources ...
.
[Rapp (2003), p. 281.]
References
Sources
*
Rapp, Stephen H.
Stephen H. Rapp Jr is an American professor and scholar of history, with a focus and primary research investigating the Roman Empire, ancient Iran, Armenia and Georgia. He is a professor of history at Sam Houston State University.
Education and c ...
(2003), ''Studies In Medieval Georgian Historiography: Early Texts And Eurasian Contexts''. Peeters Bvba, .
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saurmag 01 Of Iberia
Pharnavazid kings of Iberia
3rd-century BC rulers
2nd-century BC rulers