Kamnaskires II. Nikephorus

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Tetradrachm of Kamnaskires II. Nikephorus

Kamnaskires II. Nikephorus was a king of the Elymais who lived around 145-139 BC. Ruled. This is the time when the Seleucid Empire was in a phase of dissolution. Local governors rose to the rank of kings in various provinces and tried to establish their own empires. Kamnaskires was one of them.

Kamnaskires II is best known for his coinage. His exact area of ​​rule is unknown, but it has been suggested that he also ruled in the media , as coins may have been minted in Ekbatana . At times he also ruled Susa .

His coins have Greek legends and follow Seleucid models. They show a young beardless man on the front and a young god, perhaps Apollo, on the back . Embossings with other motifs on the reverse are rarer, for example a picture of a goddess ( Artemis / Ishtar ?), A horse's head, an anchor, a tripod , a cornucopia , an eagle, bow and arrows or Nike . From the astronomical diaries from Babylon it is known that Kamnaskires II. In 145 BC. In Babylonia, plundering. According to this source, a Seleucid counterattack took place in June / July 144 BC. In the year 141 BC However, the ruler was able to invade Babylonia again. The outcome of this campaign is not known, but we learn that even the inhabitants of Seleukia suffered from fear of the Elymais troops. Nothing is known about the end of the ruler. It is possible that he is identical to Kamnaskire I. Soter and that he changed his nickname in the course of his reign.

literature

  • Daniel T. Potts: The Archeology of Elam. Formation and Transformation of an Ancient Iranian State. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge et al. 1999, ISBN 0-521-56358-5 , pp. 384-388.
  • Pieter A. van't Haaf: Catalog of Elymaean Coinage. Approx. 147 BC - AD 228. Classical Numismatic Group, Lancaster PA et al. 2007, ISBN 978-0-9709268-8-3 , pp. 49-54.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ PA van't Haaf: Catalog of Elymaean Coinage. 2007, pp. 49-54.
personal data
SURNAME Kamnaskires II. Nikephorus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Ruler of the Elymais
DATE OF BIRTH 2nd century BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH 2nd century BC Chr.