Mithridates VI. (Pontus)

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Mithridates VI. (Coin illustration)

Mithridates VI. ( Ancient Greek Μιθριδάτης Mithridātes and Μιθραδάτης Mithradātes ) (* approx. 132 BC in Sinope ; † 63 BC in Pantikapaion ), was from approx. 120 BC. Until his death King of Pontus . Pontus became the largest and most influential kingdom in Asia Minor under his rule and briefly questioned Rome's supremacy in Asia Minor. The three Mithridatic wars against the Roman Empire are named after Mithridates .

Mithridates VI. is known for newly developed alloys in coinage , multilingualism and knowledge of botany and pharmacology.

Nicknames, alternative names

Inscriptions and coins always use the name Mithradates , writers predominantly Mithridates. He is also called Mithridates VI. Eupator , Mithridates VI. Eupator Dionysus and Mithridates the Great .

The epithet Eupator ('of noble descent') is predominantly found on coins and inscriptions and in written traditions . The great one is passed down from Suetonius , Dionysus from Appian and Plutarch .

Life

Origin and family

Mithridates VI. comes from the Persian Mithridates family and was the son of Mithridates V. The origin of his mother is unclear. His year of birth is derived from inferences from traditional stations in his life and cannot be clearly determined.

Mithridates VI. had a younger brother and five sisters. His brother was also called Mithridates, nicknamed "Chrestos" ("the able one"). The first-born sister Laodike married the Cappadocian king Ariarathes Epiphanes and in the second marriage the Bithynian king Nicomedes III. Mithridates VI. married the younger sister Laodike ( sibling marriage ). The three other sisters were named Roxane, Stateira, and Nysa, and they likely remained unmarried. From his later descendants, his granddaughter Dynamis made a name for herself as Queen of the Bosporan Empire .

After the murder of his father, Mithridates was crowned King of Pontus at the age of 11. Allegedly he spent the next seven years on the run because his mother tried to kill him. He is said to have lived in the mountains and avoided villages and cities, which gave him a strong stature and great physical strength.

Upon his return, he apparently took power easily. His mother and younger brother disappeared from the scene. According to the tradition of Memnon of Herakleia , the mother was thrown into dungeon or, according to the accounts of Appian and Sallust, killed. Herodotus tells that a queen mother was worshiped by the Persian kings and that they detested parricide. Therefore the tradition of Memnon of Herakleia is to be assumed more likely. The literary sources agree on the further fate of the younger brother. His name was still on two Delian dedicatory inscriptions, which refer to the seizure of power by Mithridates VI. can be dated, but he was later apparently conspiratorial and murdered.

Ruling years

Ancient Orient around 100 BC Chr.

The new king first expanded his kingdom to Greek populated areas in and around the Crimea by acting as a protector against the steppe nomads. After Mithridates had thus expanded his power base around the Black Sea , he began with conquests in Asia Minor.

This brought him into conflict with Rome. Due to the exploitation of the Roman province of Asia by the Roman tax collectors and the weakness of Rome in the civil war, revolts broke out in Asia Minor. Since Mithridates used the widespread hatred of the Romans and appeared with the promise of freedom, he met with little resistance.

Bust of Mithridates VI. from Pontos (Paris, Louvre)

In a first campaign, Sulla , the Roman governor in Cilicia , succeeded in driving Mithridates out of Cappadocia . Shortly afterwards, the pontician made an alliance with his son-in-law Tigranes II of Armenia . This enabled Mithridates to bring large parts of Asia Minor, the Aegean and Greece under his control, as well as the Bosporan Empire . The city of Kyzikos was founded in 74 BC. Unsuccessfully besieged by him. At his command, in 88 BC. BC, allegedly in one day, about 80,000 Italians killed (so-called Vespers of Ephesus ).

Rome eventually provided Sulla with an extensive army. The First Mithridatic War began in 89 BC. BC, initially had little success for Rome and ended in 84 BC. BC with a treaty that roughly restored the situation before Mithridates' expansion on the southern shore of the Black Sea, but did not last long. The reason for this was, among other things, the high Roman demands for tribute, which soon led to revolts, which the Pontic king immediately took advantage of. Sulla's governor Lucius Licinius Murena suffered in the Second Mithridatic War that followed until 81 BC. Chr. Territorial losses. In the Third Mithridatic War , which took place from 74 to 63 BC. BC relaxed in almost all of Asia Minor, Lucullus brought Mithridates and Tigranes heavy defeats, but was then replaced by Pompeius , which further delayed the course of the war.

Pompey finally defeated Mithridates in 63 BC. And placed the political order in Asia Minor and Syria on a new basis. Mithridates was pushed back to the Crimea, from where he repeatedly tried to intervene in Asia Minor in old age. He was eventually deposed in favor of his son by his own family who negotiated with Rome.

death

On the death of Mithridates VI. exist two literary sources. According to Appian , Mithridates tried to poison himself, but failed because he had built up immunities through controlled ingestion of poisons. Finally he let his faithful Bituitus kill him by the sword in the castle of Pantikapaion . Cassius Dio, on the other hand, writes that the king was murdered by deserting troop members who defected to his son Pharnakes II .

Pharnakes II brought the father's body to Pontus, where Pompey gave him an honorable burial and had him transferred to the family grave. There is still no certainty about the location of the tombs of the individual kings of Pontus. Mithridates VI. could be buried in Sinope , but also in the royal rock tombs in Amaseia . If it could be assumed that a tomb was occupied by several dead, there is a possibility that all the kings of Pontus were buried in the rock tombs of Amaseia.

Royal court

An idea which group of people at the court of Mithridates VI. was represented, provide a memorial, inscriptions and literary sources.

In Delos are in honor of Mithridates VI. the remains of a monument. The construction is dated to 102/101 BC. And was donated by the Athenian Helianax, who was a priest on Delos at the time. The existence of a monument in the flourishing Greek metropolis for a Pontic king shows the importance that was attached to the kingdom of Pontus at that time. The special feature of the monument are thirteen portrait medallions, all of which have been lost except for one badly damaged. Corresponding inscriptions indicate the people who were represented in the medallions. Several people come from Amisos , another is a court member of the Arsacids . The nephew of Mithridates VI, Ariarathes from Cappadocia, the Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanes and the father of Helianax, the Athenian Asklepiodorus, complete the heterogeneous gathering. The portraits are used to represent the royal court of Mithridates VI. interpreted. Their composition coincides with other inscriptions and literary sources. According to this, two thirds of the Pontic court are said to have consisted of Greeks from various countries of origin. With Romans, Cappadocians and Thracians, the result is a picture of an international and multicultural court with Greek influences.

The monument is also important because it has no ideological background. It was donated by a Greek priest "on behalf of the Athenian and Roman people for the gods of the sanctuary and King Mithridates Eupator". With the unusual composition of the royal court, the building was intended to fascinate international visitors to Delos and to represent the kingdom as a promising Hellenistic part of eastern Greek power and the adjacent kingdoms.

Pioneer of coinage

Under Mithridates VI. New types of alloys were developed that can be detected in traditional coins. He was the first to introduce bimetallic systems based on copper .

Brass was an alloy seldom produced in ancient times and is only used in the Phrygia region from the 8–7 centuries BC. BC and later proven for Etruscan objects. The oldest literary sources come from the Greeks Hesiod and Homer . They describe the alloy as something special and expensive. Until the late 1960s, the first minting of brass coins was attributed to the Roman Emperor Augustus , although the first coins made of brass and dated earlier were published as early as the beginning of the 20th century. In 1970, an investigation by the British Museum showed that brass was used in coins as early as 80–70 BC. Under Mithridates VI. in the Kingdom of Pontus and in Phrygia and Bithynia .

It is certain that several mints in Paphlagonia and the Kingdom of Pontus were founded between 90 and 70 BC. Coins with the images of Perseus , made of "pure" copper, and Dionysus , made of brass, were minted. All other types of coins used during the reign of Mithridates VI. Made in both countries were made of bronze with a small amount of lead .

In a further investigation of the coin holdings of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg it was revealed that the anonymous Pontic small coins of the type “head in leather cap / eight-rayed star” probably originate from the Mithridates. Another assumption assigned the coins to the temple state of Komana Pontika during the early years of Mithridates VI's reign. to. They are made from "pure" copper and were intended to replace silver coins in some cases and therefore had to be forgery-proof. The metal used, which was unique for the time , set them apart from other bronze coins and reduced the risk of counterfeiting.

The first coins on the Bosporus were made of silver, which is of the same quality as that of coins from Amisos . Silver followed later with over 50% copper. The Pontic alloy with bronze and a small amount of lead can be found on coins from Pantikapaion . In a study, 1163 anonymous coins from the region were analyzed, of which 1158 were "pure" copper coins. They will be the sons of Mithridates VI. who ruled this area as satraps . 50 different monograms are embossed on the coins , which are similar to the monograms of Pontic communal coins. It is believed that the coins were made at the beginning of cities of the kingdom of Pontus and during the reign of Mithridates VI. Cities on the Bosporus were given the right to mint coins themselves. It is assumed that at least in the first years of coinage on the Bosporus the raw material, silver and bronze, was imported from the kingdom of Pontos, especially from Amisos.

In the 1st Mithridatic War, which took place from 89 to 85 BC. Lasted, Mithridates VI conquered. Asia Minor and he made Pergamon his new residence. During this time, the city made new tetradrachms and coins with copper-containing alloys . There are coins made of brass with a zinc content of less than 15% and alloys made of bronze with tin and lead. Other regions of Mysia minted bronze coins with a lead content of up to 27%. Brass coins have also been handed down from cities in Phrygia, bearing the Mithridatic coat of arms with the moon and star and other features of coinage from the kingdom of Pontus.

From the beginning, the same alloys were used for the same coin values, so that the coins could be differentiated. Copper-based alloys were used for coins of smaller denominations and coins made of brass could probably have superseded silver coins at least as a means of payment for the domestic market.

It has always been asked how Mithridates VI. financed his wars. One of the main reasons for the conquest of Asia Minor could be the desired control over the gold, silver and metal mines of Asia Minor, which are proven over the entire region and guaranteed a large source of income. The new alloys were created in order to be able to keep resources ready for the wars that lasted almost 30 years.

After the death of Mithridates VI. The minting of copper and brass coins was discontinued for a while. Only later did the Romans, the proconsuls C. Clovius and Q. Oppius 45–44 BC. And Augustus 23 BC. BC, the production of such alloys resumed.

Multilingualism

In his work Naturalis historia , Pliny the Elder writes that Mithridates ruled all 22 subordinate peoples in their own language. Because of this multilingualism , Conrad Gessner called his comparative study of languages ​​in the 16th century, which included the Lord's Prayer in many languages ​​known at the time, Mithridates. De differentiis linguarum . In 1806 Johann Christoph Adelung gave his comprehensive language comparison the title Mithridates, or general linguistic knowledge . Jürgen Trabant is the name of his book about the history of language thinking Mithridates in Paradise , which was published in 2003.

Botanist and pharmacologist

Mithridates VI. dealt with botany and pharmacology throughout his life. The genus Wasserdost is still named after him today. The king's knowledge of the universal remedy against poisons, called Mithridatikum , and with the development of a therapy aimed at immunization through constant ingestion of small doses of poisons ( mithridatisation ) became famous. It is said that Mithridates VI. together with Theophrastus of Eresus and Attalus III. of Pergamon was one of the first to create a botanical garden.

According to Pliny the Elder, Mithridates wrote a book about poisons, which was translated into Latin by Pompey Lenaeus on behalf of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus . The knowledge of Mithridates VI. in the field of botany and pharmacology have persisted from late antiquity through the Middle Ages to the present day. Knowledge of poisons and antidotes appears, for example, in AE Housman's cycle A Shropshire Lad , published in 1896:

“(…)
In the east a king reigned:
There, when kings sit at the feast,
They are poisoned before they catch it,
By dishes and drinks.
But he gathered all that there was of
the poisons of the earth;

A little at first, more from then on,
He tried all of their kills;
And a simple, smiling, spicy tone,
Pleased the King,
While congratulations were passed around.
They put arsenic in his flesh
And waited expectantly for him to eat it;
They poured strychnine into his cup
and shuddered when they saw him drink:
they trembled, they stared, white like their shirt:
but it was you who hurt the poison.
- I'm telling the story I heard.
Mithridates, he died old. "

Sources

Théodore Reinach has the available sources for Mithridates VI in his standard work. described in over 60 pages. The detail and length cannot hide the fact that the sources for Mithridates VI. and events at the time are marginal. The most important historical authors who wrote the reign of Mithridates VI. and the Mithridatic Wars were Appian and Justinus . Neither Appian nor Justinus were contemporaries of the events.

Appian is considered a historian who understood history as an accumulation of "bribery, corruption and greed". This attitude is particularly evident in his work Mithridatica , which is still the main literary source for Mithridates, especially for the Mithridatic Wars.

The work of Justinus, a writer of late antiquity, is the processing ( epitome ) of extracts ( epitomes ) of a universal historical work by Pompey Trogus , a historian of the Augustan period. Apart from the adaptation of Justin, the history is almost completely lost. It deals with the youth and early reign of Mithridates VI, but not the Mithridatic wars against Rome. Of particular importance is the excerpt from Books 37 and 38, in which Justin reproduces a long address by Mithridates to his troops, who receive "a considerable number of facts which would otherwise be unknown to us."

Polybios , Memnon of Herakleia , Plutarch , Sallust and Livy are other authors who have written about the king and the region, but much has been lost. Strabo 's Historical Notes would have contained useful data if they had been preserved, as they would have provided historical background as well as describing the Pontic cities. On the whole, the literary sources are insufficient to give an adequate picture of the region during the reign of Mithridates VI. to be able to deliver.

From Mithridates VI. only the portraits on the coins could be identified with him with certainty. Scientists then compared these images with statues in museums in order to be able to make further identifications. However, because the coins have been torn out of their archaeological context, further questions remain unanswered, such as whether the coins on which he so closely resembles Alexander the Great were also used within his empire or whether they were mintings that v . a. were addressed to his allies.

reception

Renaissance

In the 14th and 15th centuries, the texts of the Roman and Greek historians were printed and thus made accessible to a wider audience. They met with great interest. When Giovanni Boccaccio wrote De casibus virorum illustrium between 1357 and 1363 , Laurent de Premierfait translated the text into French and illustrated the death of Mithridates VI four times. At one point the king is portrayed as a young man without a beard , at another time as an old man with a crown and a cloak who is murdered by a Roman. The third illustration shows Mithridates VI. as an old man with a long beard and the typical clothes of a medieval ruler. He kneels with folded hands as if in prayer. The fourth picture shows Mithridates VI. without head. His killer is about to cut off other limbs. The attributes on the pictures such as architecture, weapons and clothes describe medieval objects. Mithridates VI. is in no way different from other famous men depicted in the book.

In the 16th century, the name of the king appeared repeatedly in literature and plays. The most famous drama is by Jean Racine , entitled Mithridate , published in 1674. Racine dealt very freely with the historical sources and wove them around the motif of the novella by "Don Carlos", which Abbé César Vichard de Saint-Réal published in 1672. The motif “the forbidden love of the son for the bride of the father” “should have been (...) in the end [the reason] and not the ancient person of King Mithradates VI. Eupator Dionysus, who captivated the librettists and composers. "

enlightenment

From the beginning of the 18th to the end of the 19th century, 25 operas were written that reflect the personality of Mithridates VI. had on the topic and lyrically "probably more or less" based on the piece by Racine. The most famous opera is Mithridate 're di Ponto' by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , which he wrote at the age of 14 and premiered in Milan on December 26, 1770. In the operas during the Enlightenment , the Pontic king is described as a “tragic and heroic monarch” despite “some dark sides”.

Charles Rollin published Histoire Romaine in the 18th century , a multi-volume history of the Romans in which the Mithridatic Wars and the King of Pontus appear in the 8th volume. Mithridates VI. is portrayed as a righteous ruler and the greatest enemy of the Romans. Rollin's work was widely read in the 18th and 19th centuries and served as a model for painters, sculptors and engravers.

19th century

In the 19th century the scientific interest in the person Mithridates VI grew. Several dissertations were written at German universities. It was Theodor Mommsen who initiated a new interpretation of the king with the three-volume work on Roman history. He raised the hitherto harshest criticism of the Pontic king and described him as a lustful, unbridled and violent oriental ruler. Mommsen denied him any ability to rule and accused him of being a false philhellenist . He repeatedly referred to the king as "Sultan". Mommsen thus articulated the zeitgeist of the 19th century in relation to the Orient . Theodore Reinach wrote his standard work Mithradates Eupator: King of Pontus , which was published in 1895, with the same attitude . The last reception on Mithridates VI, written in this spirit, comes from the Italian Giuseppe Antonelli with the title Mitridate. Il nemico mortale di Roma from 1992.

20th and 21st centuries

The perception of Mithridates VI. was reflected in the course of the 20th as a counterpart of the 19th century. Mithridates VI. became the Greek liberator from Roman oppression. Alfred Heuss recorded in his Roman history in 1960 that Mithridates VI. was not a barbarian, but aimed at the liberation of Greek civilization. This assessment corresponds to the established opinion of today. Herbert Rosendorfer expressed an assessment typical of the zeitgeist in his 2003 study of the figure of Mithridates in operas: “Mithradates VI. Eupator Dionysus was one of the most important historical figures in Asia Minor in the last century BC and the symbol of the vain resistance of the Greek world against the Roman conquest. Despite his Persian origins, Mithradates felt himself to be Greek, the language and education of his empire - at least the main classes - was Greek. "

Since 1980 scientists have begun to question the traditional concepts and try to paint a more objective picture of the last Pontic king. It should move away from ideological concepts that fluctuate back and forth between an oriental despot and a Greek liberator. Critical reviews of past studies on Mithridates VI. and their public impact can raise awareness of cultural and political biases about our own time.

The general public seems to be interested in Mithridates VI. to be extinguished. There are no exhibitions or documentaries. Alfred Duggan wrote the biography He died old, Mithridates Eupator, King of Pontus in 1958 , in which he contrasts the Pontic king with bloodthirsty Romans. The last book in the field of fiction was published in 2004. Michael Curtis Ford describes the king from the perspective of Pharnakes II as the brilliant king and greatest enemy Rome ever faced.

In the arts

Dramas and novels

music

literature

Web links

Commons : Mithridates VI of Pontus  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Fritz Geyer : Mithridates 12 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume XV, 2, Stuttgart 1932, Col. 2163.
  2. ^ Fritz Geyer : Mithridates 12 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume XV, 2, Stuttgart 1932, Col. 2163.
  3. ^ Fritz Geyer : Mithridates 12 . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume XV, 2, Stuttgart 1932, Col. 2163.
  4. ^ Théodore Reinach: Mithradates Eupator, King of Pontus. Leipzig 1895, pp. 40–41, p. 47.
  5. ^ Théodore Reinach: Mithradates Eupator, King of Pontus. Leipzig 1895, pp. 46–47.
  6. ^ Appian, Mithridatius 111.
  7. ↑ Cassius Dio 37:13.
  8. ↑ Jakob Munk Højte: The Death and Burial of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, p. 121 ( digitized version ).
  9. ↑ Jakob Munk Højte: The Death and Burial of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, p. 122.
  10. ↑ Jakob Munk Højte: The Death and Burial of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, p. 128.
  11. ↑ Patric – Alexander Kreuz: Monuments for the King: Royal Presence in the Late Hellenistic World of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 131–144, here p. 139.
  12. ↑ Patric – Alexander Kreuz: Monuments for the King: Royal Presence in the Late Hellenistic World of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 131–144, here pp. 132 and 137.
  13. ↑ Patric – Alexander Kreuz: Monuments for the King: Royal Presence in the Late Hellenistic World of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 131–144, here p. 139.
  14. ↑ Patric – Alexander Kreuz: Monuments for the King: Royal Presence in the Late Hellenistic World of Mithridates VI. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 131–144, here pp. 137 and 140.
  15. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 245 ( PDF ).
  16. ↑ a b Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 234.
  17. ↑ a b Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 236.
  18. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 235.
  19. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here pp. 240–242.
  20. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 237.
  21. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 238.
  22. ↑ a b Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 239.
  23. ↑ Tat'jana N. Smékalová: The Earliest Applications of Brass and "Pure" Copper in the Hellenistic Coinages of Asia Minor and the Northern Black Sea Coast. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 233–248, here p. 244.
  24. ^ Georgy Kantor: Mithridates VI Eupator Dionysus. In: The Encyclopedia of Ancient History, Volume VIII, Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2013, p. 4546.
  25. ↑ Gottlieb Wilhelm Bischoff: Natural history of the three kingdoms. Fifth volume, second part, Stuttgart 1839, p. 443.
  26. ↑ BC McGing: The Foreign Policy of Mithridates VI Eupator, King of Pontus. Leiden 1986, pp. 176-177.
  27. ^ Théodore Reinach: Mithradates Eupator, King of Pontus. Leipzig 1895, p. 435.
  28. ↑ BC McGing: The Foreign Policy of Mithridates VI Eupator, King of Pontus. Leiden 1986, p. 178.
  29. ↑ D. Burcu Arıkan Erciyas: Studies in the archeology of hellenistic Pontus: The settlements, monuments, and coinage of Mithridates VI and his predecessors. Dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2001, p. 17.
  30. ↑ D. Burcu Arıkan Erciyas: Studies in the archeology of hellenistic Pontus: The settlements, monuments, and coinage of Mithridates VI and his predecessors. Dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2001, p. 18.
  31. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here pp. 18–19.
  32. ^ A b Herbert Rosendorfer: Mithradates and Mitridate. The Pontic ruler as Mozart's opera hero. In: Hanspeter Krellmann and Jürgen Schläder (eds.): The modern composer builds on truth. Baroque operas from Monteverdi to Mozert. Stuttgart 2003, p. 180.
  33. ^ Herbert Rosendorfer: Mithradates and Mitridate. The Pontic ruler as Mozart's opera hero. In: Hanspeter Krellmann and Jürgen Schläder (eds.): The modern composer builds on truth. Baroque operas from Monteverdi to Mozert. Stuttgart 2003, p. 183.
  34. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here p. 21.
  35. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here pp. 22–23.
  36. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here pp. 24–25.
  37. ^ Theodor Mommsen: Roman history. Volume 2: From the Battle of Pydna to Sulla's death. Weidmannsche Buchhandlung, Berlin 1855, pp. 268, 284
  38. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here p. 26.
  39. ^ Herbert Rosendorfer: Mithradates and Mitridate. The Pontic ruler as Mozart's opera hero. In: Hanspeter Krellmann and Jürgen Schläder (eds.): The modern composer builds on truth. Baroque operas from Monteverdi to Mozert. Stuttgart 2003, p. 178.
  40. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here p. 28.
  41. ↑ Latife Summerer: The Search for Mithridates. Reception of Mithridates VI between the 15th and the 20th Centuries. In: Jakob Munk Højte (Ed.): Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom. Aarhus University Press, Århus 2009, pp. 15–34, here p. 27.
predecessor Office successor
Mithridates V. King of Pontus
120–63 BC Chr. 		-
personal data
SURNAME Mithridates VI.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mithridates Eupator Dionysus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION King of Pontus
DATE OF BIRTH uncertain: 134 BC Chr.
PLACE OF BIRTH Sinope
DATE OF DEATH 63 BC Chr.
Place of death Pantikapaion