Stratonice (; died about 135 BC) was a princess of

Cappadocia Cappadocia (; , from ) is a historical region in Central Anatolia region, Turkey. It is largely in the provinces of Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. Today, the touristic Cappadocia Region is located in Nevşehir ...

and through marriage a queen of

Pergamon Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; ), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greece, ancient Greek city in Aeolis. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north s ...

Life

Stratonice was of Greek Macedonian and Persian ancestry. She was the first child born to King

Ariarathes IV of Cappadocia Ariarathes IV, surnamed ''Eusebes'', "the Pious", (, Ariaráthēs Eusebḗs), was the king of Cappadocia in 220–163 BC. Early life Ariarathes IV was the son of the king of Cappadocia Ariarathes III and his Macedonian Greek wife Stratonice ...

and Queen

Antiochis The name Antiochis () is the female name of Antiochus. Women Seleucid Princesses & Hellenistic Queen Consorts *Antiochis I , a daughter of Achaeus and granddaughter of Seleucus I Nicator. She married Attalus and became the mother of Attalus I, King ...

. Her younger brothers were

Ariarathes V Ariarathes V Eusebes Philopator (; reigned 163–130 BC) was a son of the preceding king Ariarathes IV of Cappadocia and queen Antiochis. He was distinguished by his contemporaries for the excellence of his character and his cultivation of phil ...

and Orophernes. Her paternal grandparents were King Ariarathes III and Queen Stratonice of Cappadocia, while her maternal grandparents were the Seleucid monarchs,

Antiochus III the Great Antiochus III the Great (; , ; 3 July 187 BC) was the sixth ruler of the Seleucid Empire, reigning from 223 to 187 BC. He ruled over the region of Syria and large parts of the rest of West Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC. Rising to th ...

and

Laodice III Laodice III (Greek: Λαοδίκη, ''Laodikē'') also known as Laodika, was a princess of Pontus and a Seleucid queen. She was regent for her first born son, Antiochus, during the Anabase expedition of her husband, Antiochus III the Great, betwee ...

. She was born and raised in Cappadocia. In 188 BC, Cappadocia was accepted as a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

ally. Later that year, Stratonice married King

Eumenes II Eumenes II Soter (; ; ruled 197–159 BC) was a ruler of Pergamon, and a son of Attalus I Soter and queen Apollonis and a member of the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon. Biography The eldest son of king Attalus I and queen Apollonis, Eumenes was pr ...

of Pergamon, based on an arrangement between her father and Eumenes II. The Kingdom of Pergamon, like Cappadocia, were allies of Rome. Eumenes II and Stratonice were distantly related, as they were direct descendants of

Seleucus I Nicator Seleucus I Nicator (; Ancient Greek, Greek: Σέλευκος Νικάτωρ, ''Séleukos Nikátōr'', "Seleucus the Victorious"; ) was a Ancient Macedonians, Macedonian Greek general, officer and successor of Alexander the Great who went on to fo ...

. Eumenes II visited

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, ...

in 172 BC. During his visit, Eumenes II expressed his hostility towards King

Perseus of Macedon Perseus (; – 166 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 179 until 168BC. He is widely regarded as the last List of kings of Macedonia, king of Macedonia and the last ruler from th ...

. He informed the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate () was the highest and constituting assembly of ancient Rome and its aristocracy. With different powers throughout its existence it lasted from the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in 753 BC) as the Sena ...

about Perseus' alleged plans to gain influence in Greece. On his return to Pergamon, Eumenes II was attacked near Cirrha and was thought at the time to have been killed. Eumenes' brother

Attalus II Philadelphus Attalus II Philadelphus (Greek: Ἄτταλος ὁ Φιλάδελφος, ''Attalos II Philadelphos'', which means "Attalus the brother-loving"; 220–138 BC) was a ruler of the Attalid kingdom of Pergamon and the founder of the city of Att ...

became king and married Stratonice. When Eumenes II returned, his brother ceded power and Stratonice returned to Eumenes II. Prior to 159 BC, Stratonice dedicated a statue of the goddess

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretism, syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarde ...

in the library of Pergamon. In 159 BC, Eumenes II died. His brother, Attalus II Philadelphus, succeeded him and remarried Stratonice. Stratonice had children from her marriage to Eumenes II, among whom was his son

Attalus III Attalus III () Philometor Euergetes ( – 133 BC) was the last Attalid king of Pergamon, ruling from 138 BC to 133 BC. Biography Attalus III was the son of king Eumenes II and his queen Stratonice of Pergamon, and he was the nephew of A ...

. Attalus III was too young to reign as king. So Attalus II acted as a regent for Attalus III. Attalus III accepted the honorific title ''Philometor'', which means ''the one who loves his mother''. Attalus II appointed his nephew/stepson as his successor. In 153 BC, the succession was confirmed by the

. Stratonice and Attalus III had a very close relationship. During her reign with her second husband, her brother

Ariarathes V of Cappadocia Ariarathes V Eusebes Philopator (; reigned 163–130 BC) was a son of the preceding king Ariarathes IV of Cappadocia and queen Antiochis. He was distinguished by his contemporaries for the excellence of his character and his cultivation of phi ...

was brought to their kingdom, because her other brother Orophernes became King, and Orophernes was supported by their first cousin, the Seleucid King

Demetrius I Soter Demetrius I Soter (, ''Dēmḗtrios ho Sōtḗr,'' "Demetrius the Saviour"; 185 – June 150 BC) reigned as king of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire from November 162 to June 150 BC. Demetrius grew up in Rome as a hostage, but returned to Greek S ...

. In 138 BC, Attalus II died and Attalus III succeeded as King. Stratonice died about 135 BC. It is possible that Attalus III poisoned those individuals he held responsible for the death of his mother Stratonice and his wife Berenice. During her reign as Queen of Pergamon, two statues were dedicated to Stratonice. One was set up at Pergamon and the other on the Greek island of

Delos Delos (; ; ''Dêlos'', ''Dâlos''), is a small Greek island near Mykonos, close to the centre of the Cyclades archipelago. Though only in area, it is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. ...

.Lin Foxhall, ''When men were men: masculinity, power and identity in classical antiquity'' p. 131 The Pergamene statue was dedicated by Attalus III. Most probably due to her family's connections in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, the

Demos Demos may refer to: Computing * DEMOS, a Soviet Unix-like operating system * DEMOS (ISP), the first internet service provider in the USSR * Demos Commander, an Orthodox File Manager for Unix-like systems * Plural for Demo (computer programming ...

of Athens honoured Stratonice with a marble statue of her on Delos. The Greek sculptor

Damophon Damophon (; fl. 2nd century BC) was an ancient Greek sculptor of the Hellenistic period from Messene, known for his many acroliths found in Messene, Megalopolis, Aegium, Lycosura and other cities of the Peloponnesus. Other cities beyond the Pelop ...

sculpted her statue free of charge.Palagia, ''Personal Styles in Greek Sculpture'' p. 185 Both statues' inscriptions only state that Stratonice was the daughter of Ariarathes IV. Her Delian statue states on a bronze plaque "her virtue and goodwill toward it". Both statues of Stratonice identify her as the Queen of Pergamon and a queen of the

Attalid Dynasty The Kingdom of Pergamon, Pergamene Kingdom, or Attalid kingdom was a Greek state during the Hellenistic period that ruled much of the Western part of Asia Minor from its capital city of Pergamon. It was ruled by the Attalid dynasty (; ). The ...

. These two statues represented her political role in Pergamon.

References

Sources

*C. Knight, ''Penny cyclopaedia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge'', Volumes 3-4, Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge (Great Britain), 1835 *P. Cartledge, P. Garnsey & E.S. Gruen, ''Hellenistic constructs: essays in culture, history and historiography'', University of California Press, 1997 *J.B. Lin Foxhall, ''When men were men: masculinity, power and identity in classical antiquity'', Routledge, 1998 *O. Palagia & J.J. Pollitt, ''Personal Styles in Greek Sculpture'', Cambridge University Press, 1999 *W. Bell Dinsmoor,
The Repair of the Athena Parthenos: A Story of Five Dowels
. ''American Journal of Archaeology'' 1934. 38(1). *Mikalson, Jon D, 1998. ''Religion in Hellenistic Athens''
"Delian Apollo"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stratonice Of Pergamon Attalid dynasty 2nd-century BC Greek people 2nd-century BC monarchs in Asia 2nd-century BC women Ancient Greek queens consort Ariarathid dynasty Daughters of kings