Seleucus VII Philometor () or Kybiosactes (), was a possible ruler of the

Seleucid kingdom 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 ...

based in Syria, but his existence is disputed.

Biography

King of Syria

The last members of the once mighty

Seleucid dynasty The Seleucid dynasty or the Seleucidae (; , ', "descendants of Seleucus") was a Macedonian Greek royal family, which ruled the Seleucid Empire based in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded by Seleucus I Nicator, a general an ...

are shadowy figures; local dynasts with complicated family ties whose identities are hard to ascertain: many of them also bore the same names. Seleucus was unknown until recently. From coins issued by him and his mother,

Ptolemaic Ptolemaic is the adjective formed from the name Ptolemy, and may refer to: Pertaining to the Ptolemaic dynasty *Ptolemaic dynasty, the Macedonian Greek dynasty that ruled Egypt founded in 305 BC by Ptolemy I Soter *Ptolemaic Kingdom Pertaining t ...

princess Cleopatra Selene, it is presumed that he was her son by king

Antiochus X Eusebes Antiochus X Eusebes Philopator (; – 92 or 88 BC) was a Seleucid Empire, Seleucid monarch who reigned as King of Syria during the Hellenistic period between 95 BC and 92 BC or 89/88 BC (224 Seleucid era, SE eleucid year. He was ...

, and a brother of later king

Antiochus XIII Asiaticus Antiochus XIII Philadelphus, ( Greek: Ἀντίοχος ΙΓ' Φιλάδελφος) known as Asiaticus, (Ἀσιατικός) was the penultimate ruler of the Seleucid kingdom. Biography Antiochus took the throne after the death of his father ...

. He appears to have "reigned" during the occupation of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

n king

Tigranes Tigranes (, ) is the Greek rendering of the Old Iranian name ''*Tigrāna''. This was the name of a number of historical figures, primarily kings of Armenia. The name of Tigranes, which was theophoric in nature, was uncommon during the Achae ...

(83-69 BC). In reality, only a few cities were loyal to the Seleucids during this period. Some time after

had conquered Syria (83 BC), his mother travelled to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to have her sons recognized as kings of Egypt, but to no avail. They were there between at least 75 BC and 73 BC; recognized as "Kings of Syria", and "maintained a royal state".

Co-regent of Egypt

The young boy-king is probably the same Seleucus who later went to marry a Ptolemaic princess called

Berenice IV Berenice IV Epiphaneia (; 77–55 BC, born and died in Alexandria, Egypt) was ruling Ptolemaic queen and Hellenistic pharaoh of the Ptolemaic kingdom. From 58 to 55 BC, Berenice IV ruled Egypt during the political exile of her father Ptolemy XII ...

on an unknown date (a sister of the famous

Cleopatra VII of Egypt Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

) to become co-regent of Egypt, but allegedly was murdered by the discontented bride for his lack of manners. He bore the derogatory name ''Kybiosaktes'', the term for the foul-smelling work of cutting tuna fish.

Controversy

In 2002, the numismatist Brian Kritt announced the discovery and decipherment of a coin bearing the portrait of Cleopatra Selene and a co-ruler. Kritt read the name of the ruler as Seleucus Philometor and, based on the epithet, identified him with Cleopatra Selene's son, unnamed by Cicero. Kritt gave the newly discovered ruler the regnal name Seleucus VII, and considered it very likely that he is identical with Kybiosaktes. But Hoover rejected Kritt's reading, noting that the coin was badly damaged and some letters were unreadable. Hoover read the king's name as Antiochus and identified him with Antiochus XIII.

References

Sources