A report on Achaemenid Empire and Artaxerxes II

Relief of Artaxerxes II on his tomb at Persepolis, Iran

The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest territorial extent under the rule of Darius I (522 BC–486 BC)

Retreat of the Ten Thousand, at the Battle of Cunaxa, Jean Adrien Guignet

Armoured cavalry of Achaemenid Hellespontine Phrygia attacking a Greek psiloi at the time of Artaxerxes II and his Satrap Pharnabazus II, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early fourth century BC

The King's Peace, promulgated by Artaxerxes II in 387 BC, put an end to the Corinthian War under the guarantee of the Achaemenid Empire.

Map of the expansion process of Achaemenid territories

Achaemenid campaign of Pharnabazus II against Egypt in 373 BC.

Cyrus the Great is said, in the Bible, to have liberated the Hebrew captives in Babylon to resettle and rebuild Jerusalem, earning him an honored place in Judaism.

The tomb of Cyrus the Great, founder of the Achaemenid Empire. At Pasargadae, Iran.

Ethnicities of the soldiers of the Empire, on the tomb of Artaxerxes II. On the lintel over each figure appears a trilingual inscription describing each ethnicity. These are known collectively as "Inscription A2Pa".

The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest extent, c. 500 BC

The Persian queen Atossa, daughter of Cyrus the Great, sister-wife of Cambyses II, Darius the Great's wife, and mother of Xerxes the Great

Upper Relief of the tomb of Artaxerxes II.

Map showing events of the first phases of the Greco-Persian Wars

Soldiers of many ethnicities on the upper relief

Greek hoplite and Persian warrior depicted fighting, on an ancient kylix, 5th century BC

Achaemenid king fighting hoplites, seal and seal holder, Cimmerian Bosporus.

Achaemenid gold ornaments, Brooklyn Museum

Persian Empire timeline including important events and territorial evolution – 550–323 BC

Relief showing Darius I offering lettuces to the Egyptian deity Amun-Ra Kamutef, Temple of Hibis

The 24 countries subject to the Achaemenid Empire at the time of Darius, on the Egyptian statue of Darius I.

The Battle of Issus, between Alexander the Great on horseback to the left, and Darius III in the chariot to the right, represented in a Pompeii mosaic dated 1st century BC – Naples National Archaeological Museum

Alexander's first victory over Darius, the Persian king depicted in medieval European style in the 15th century romance The History of Alexander's Battles

Frataraka dynasty ruler Vadfradad I (Autophradates I). 3rd century BC. Istakhr (Persepolis) mint.

Dārēv I (Darios I) used for the first time the title of mlk (King). 2nd century BC.

Winged sphinx from the Palace of Darius in Susa, Louvre

Volume of annual tribute per district, in the Achaemenid Empire, according to Herodotus.

Achaemenid tax collector, calculating on an Abax or Abacus, according to the Darius Vase (340–320 BC).

Letter from the Satrap of Bactria to the governor of Khulmi, concerning camel keepers, 353 BC

Relief of throne-bearing soldiers in their native clothing at the tomb of Xerxes I, demonstrating the satrapies under his rule.

Achaemenid king killing a Greek hoplite. c. 500 BC–475 BC, at the time of Xerxes I. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Persian soldiers (left) fighting against Scythians. Cylinder seal impression.

Color reconstruction of Achaemenid infantry on the Alexander Sarcophagus (end of 4th century BC).

Seal of Darius the Great hunting in a chariot, reading "I am Darius, the Great King" in Old Persian (𐎠𐎭𐎶𐏐𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁𐎴 𐏋, "adam Dārayavaʰuš xšāyaθiya"), as well as in Elamite and Babylonian. The word "great" only appears in Babylonian. British Museum.

Achaemenid calvalryman in the satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.

Armoured cavalry: Achaemenid Dynast of Hellespontine Phrygia attacking a Greek psiloi, Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early 4th century BC.

Reconstitution of Persian landing ships at the Battle of Marathon.

Greek ships against Achaemenid ships at the Battle of Salamis.

Iconic relief of lion and bull fighting, Apadana of Persepolis

Achaemenid golden bowl with lioness imagery of Mazandaran

A section of the Old Persian part of the trilingual Behistun inscription. Other versions are in Babylonian and Elamite.

A copy of the Behistun inscription in Aramaic on a papyrus. Aramaic was the lingua franca of the empire.

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven wonders of the ancient world, was built by Greek architects for the local Persian satrap of Caria, Mausolus (Scale model)

Reconstruction of the Palace of Darius at Susa. The palace served as a model for Persepolis.

Lion on a decorative panel from Darius I the Great's palace, Louvre

Apadana Hall, Persian and Median soldiers at Persepolis

Lateral view of tomb of Cambyses II, Pasargadae, Iran

Plaque with horned lion-griffins. The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Arses ( 445 – 359/8 BC), known by his regnal name Artaxerxes II ( Artaxšaçāʰ; ), was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 405/4 BC to 358 BC. He was the son and successor of Darius II ((r.

- Artaxerxes II

Queen Parysatis favoured Cyrus more than her eldest son Artaxerxes II.

- Achaemenid Empire

20 related topics with Alpha

Cyrus the Younger

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Relief depicting Artaxerxes II, from his tomb at Naqsh-e Rostam, Persepolis

Meeting between Cyrus the Younger and Spartan general Lysander in Sardis. The encounter was related by Xenophon. Francesco Antonio Grue (1618-1673).

Jean-Adrien Guignet, Episode in the Retreat of the Ten Thousand (1842). The Greek mercenaries of Cyrus (the "Ten Thousand"), are shown being encircled.

Route of Cyrus the Younger and the Ten Thousand mercenaries to Cunaxa, and return route of the Ten Thousand led by Xenophon, back to Byzantium, in red. The satrapy of Cyrus the Younger is delineated in green.

Cyrus the Younger in the Achaemenid lineage.

Cyrus the Younger ( Kūruš; Kyros; died 401 BC) was a Achaemenid prince and general.

He ruled as satrap of Lydia and Ionia from 408 to 401 BC. Son of Darius II and Parysatis, he died in 401 BC in battle during a failed attempt to oust his elder brother, Artaxerxes II, from the Persian throne.

Battle of Cunaxa

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Satrap Tissaphernes invited the Greek generals to a feast, then had them arrested and executed.

thumb|upright=1.8|Army of Artaxerxes II, as depicted on his tomb at Persepolis.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Briant |first1=Pierre |title=Darius in the Shadow of Alexander |date=2015 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=9780674493094 |page=25 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j02xBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA25 |language=en}}</ref>

19th Century English School depiction of the Battle of Cunaxa

The Battle of Cunaxa was fought in the late summer of 401 BC between the Persian king Artaxerxes II and his brother Cyrus the Younger for control of the Achaemenid throne.

Tissaphernes

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Persian soldier and statesman, Satrap of Lydia and Ionia.

Tissaphernes was Satrap of Lydia, including Ionia, under the Achaemenid Empire.

Coin of Tissaphernes, with ΤΙΣΣΑ ("TISSA") clearly visible below neck. Astyra, Mysia. Circa 400-395 BC

Coinage of Phokaia, Ionia, circa 478-387 BC. Possible portrait of Satrap Tissaphernes, with satrapal headress, but since these coins have no markings, attribution remains uncertain.

On the death of Darius II in 404 BC, Artaxerxes II was crowned king of Persia.

Xenophon

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Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens.

Route of Xenophon and the Ten Thousand (red line) in the Achaemenid Empire. The satrapy of Cyrus the Younger is delineated in green.

Xenophon leading his Ten Thousand through Persia to the Black Sea. 19th-century illustration

Bas-reliefs of Persian soldiers together with Median soldiers are prevalent in Persepolis. The ones with rounded caps are Median.

Fragments of Xenophon's Hellenica, Papyrus PSI 1197, Laurentian Library, Florence.

Statue of Xenophon in front of the Austrian parliament

Xenophon dictating his history, illustration from 'Hutchinson's History of the Nations', 1915

King's Peace, promulgated by Artaxerxes II, 387 BC, as reported by Xenophon.

At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Greek mercenary armies of the Achaemenid Empire, the Ten Thousand, that marched on and came close to capturing Babylon in 401 BC. As the military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge wrote, "the centuries since have devised nothing to surpass the genius of this warrior".

Xenophon's Anabasis recounts his adventures with the Ten Thousand while in the service of Cyrus the Younger, Cyrus's failed campaign to claim the Persian throne from Artaxerxes II of Persia, and the return of Greek mercenaries after Cyrus's death in the Battle of Cunaxa.

Ten Thousand

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Retreat of the Ten Thousand at the Battle of Cunaxa, by Jean-Adrien Guignet. Louvre

Xenophon and the Ten Thousand hail the sea, 19th-century illustration

Thálatta! Thálatta! (Θάλαττα! θάλαττα!, "The Sea! The Sea!").
Trapezus (Trebizond) was the first Greek city the Ten Thousand reached on their retreat from inland Persia, 19th-c. illustration by Herman Vogel

Achaemenid satrap Pharnabazus fought the Ten Thousand to prevent them from plundering Bithynia and Hellespontine Phrygia.

An Athenian mercenary peltast (left) supporting an Achaemenid knight of Hellespontine Phrygia (center) attacking a Greek psilos (right), Altıkulaç Sarcophagus, early fourth century BCE

Θάλαττα, θάλαττα — Thalatta! Thalatta! (The Sea! The Sea!) — painting by Bernard Granville Baker, 1901

The Ten Thousand (, oi Myrioi) were a force of mercenary units, mainly Greeks, employed by Cyrus the Younger to attempt to wrest the throne of the Persian Empire from his brother, Artaxerxes II.

Persepolis

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As is typical of Achaemenid cities, Persepolis was built on a (partially) artificial platform.

Darius the Great, by Eugène Flandin (1840)

Aerial architectural plan of Persepolis.

Perspolis in 1920s, photo by Harold Weston

Hemidrachm from the Kingdom of Perside.Date: c. 100AC. - 100 AD.

Bust of Alexander the Great (British Museum of London).

"The Burning of Persepolis", led by Thaïs, 1890, by Georges-Antoine Rochegrosse

Ruins of the Western side of the compound at Persepolis.

Achaemenid frieze designs at Persepolis.

Reliefs of lotus flowers are frequently used on the walls and monuments at Persepolis.

Statue of a Persian Mastiff found at the Apadana, kept at the National Museum, Tehran.

Babylonian version of an inscription of Xerxes I, the "XPc inscription".

The lithograph of Shapur II in Bishapour, which is modeled on the maps of the Persepolis donors.

Sketch of Persepolis from 1704 by Cornelis de Bruijn.

Drawing of Persepolis in 1713 by Gérard Jean-Baptiste.

Drawing of the Tachara by Charles Chipiez.

A bas-relief at Persepolis, representing a symbol in Zoroastrianism for Nowruz.{{ref|a}}

A bas-relief from the Apadana depicting Delegations including Lydians and Armenians{{ref|page 39 image 21 in The Arts of Persia edited by R W Ferrier}} bringing their famous wine to the king.

Achaemenid plaque from Persepolis, kept at the National Museum, Tehran.

Objects from Persepolis kept at the National Museum, Tehran.

The Great Double Staircase at Persepolis.

Bas-relief on the staircase of the palace.

Depiction of united Medes and Persians at the Apadana, Persepolis.

Depiction of trees and lotus flowers at the Apadana, Persepolis.

Ruins of the Hall of the Hundred Columns, Persepolis.

Forgotten Empire Exhibition, the British Museum.

Persepolitan rosette rock relief, kept at the Oriental Institute.

alt=Museum display case showing Achaemenid objects.|Achaemenid objects at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, including a bas relief from Persepolis.

A general view of the ruins at Persepolis.

Persepolis (, Pārsa; ) was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (c.

The two completed graves behind the compound at Persepolis would then belong to Artaxerxes II and Artaxerxes III.

Parthian Empire

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Major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conquering the region of Parthia in Iran's northeast, then a satrapy under Andragoras, in rebellion against the Seleucid Empire.

The silver drachma of Arsaces I (r. c. 247–211 BC) with the Greek language inscription ΑΡΣΑΚΟΥ "of Arsaces"

Parthia, shaded yellow, alongside the Seleucid Empire (blue) and the Roman Republic (purple) around 200 BC

Drachma of Mithridates I, showing him wearing a beard and a royal diadem on his head. Reverse side: Heracles/Verethragna, holding a club in his left hand and a cup in his right hand; Greek inscription reading ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΑΡΣΑΚΟΥ ΦΙΛΕΛΛΗΝΟΣ "of the Great King Arsaces the Philhellene"

Drachma of Mithridates II (r. c. 124–91 BC). Reverse side: seated archer carrying a bow; inscription reading "of the King of Kings Arsaces the Renowned/Manifest Philhellene."

Han dynasty Chinese silk from Mawangdui, 2nd century BC, silk from China was perhaps the most lucrative luxury item the Parthians traded at the western end of the Silk Road.

Bronze statue of a Parthian nobleman from the sanctuary at Shami in Elymais (modern-day Khūzestān Province, Iran, along the Persian Gulf), now located at the National Museum of Iran. Dated 50 BC-150 AD, Parthian School.

A Roman marble head of the triumvir Marcus Licinius Crassus, who was defeated at Carrhae by Surena

Roman aurei bearing the portraits of Mark Antony (left) and Octavian (right), issued in 41 BC to celebrate the establishment of the Second Triumvirate by Octavian, Antony and Marcus Lepidus in 43 BC

Drachma of Phraates IV (r. c. 38–2 BC). Inscription reading ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΝ ΑΡΣΑΚΟΥ ΕΥΕΡΓΕΤΟΥ ΕΠΙΦΑΝΟΥΣ ΦΙΛΕΛΛΗΝΟΣ "of the King of Kings Arsaces the Renowned/Manifest Benefactor Philhellene"

A close-up view of the breastplate on the statue of Augustus of Prima Porta, showing a Parthian man returning to Augustus the legionary standards lost by Marcus Licinius Crassus at Carrhae

A denarius struck in 19 BC during the reign of Augustus, with the goddess Feronia depicted on the obverse, and on the reverse a Parthian man kneeling in submission while offering the Roman military standards taken at the Battle of Carrhae

Map of the troop movements during the first two years of the Roman–Parthian War of 58–63 AD over the Kingdom of Armenia, detailing the Roman offensive into Armenia and capture of the country by Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo

Parthian king making an offering to god Herakles-Verethragna. Masdjid-e Suleiman, Iran. 2nd–3rd century AD. Louvre Museum Sb 7302.

Rock relief of Parthian king at Behistun, most likely Vologases III (r. c. 110–147 AD)

A Parthian (right) wearing a Phrygian cap, depicted as a prisoner of war in chains held by a Roman (left); Arch of Septimius Severus, Rome, 203 AD

A Sarmatian-Parthian gold necklace and amulet, 2nd century AD. Located in Tamoikin Art Fund

Parthian golden necklace, 2nd century AD, Iran, Reza Abbasi Museum

A Parthian ceramic oil lamp, Khūzestān Province, Iran, National Museum of Iran

Coin of Kamnaskires III, king of Elymais (modern Khūzestān Province), and his wife Queen Anzaze, 1st century BC

A statue of a young Palmyran in fine Parthian trousers, from a funerary stele at Palmyra, early 3rd century AD

Coin of Mithridates II of Parthia. The clothing is Parthian, while the style is Hellenistic (sitting on an omphalos). The Greek inscription reads "King Arsaces, the philhellene"

A ceramic Parthian water spout in the shape of a man's head, dated 1st or 2nd century AD

Parthian votive relief from Khūzestān Province, Iran, 2nd century AD

A barrel vaulted iwan at the entrance at the ancient site of Hatra, modern-day Iraq, built c. 50 AD

The Parthian Temple of Charyios in Uruk.

A wall mural depicting a scene from the Book of Esther at the Dura-Europos synagogue, dated 245 AD, which Curtis and Schlumberger describe as a fine example of 'Parthian frontality'

A sculpted head (broken off from a larger statue) of a Parthian soldier wearing a Hellenistic-style helmet, from the Parthian royal residence and necropolis of Nisa, Turkmenistan, 2nd century BC

Parthian long-necked lute, c. 3 BC – 3 AD

Royal Parthian objects at the Persia exhibition, Getty Museum

The Arsacid rulers were titled the "King of Kings", as a claim to be the heirs to the Achaemenid Empire; indeed, they accepted many local kings as vassals where the Achaemenids would have had centrally appointed, albeit largely autonomous, satraps.

A fictitious claim was later made from the 2nd-century BC onwards by the Parthians, which represented them as descendants of the Achaemenid king of kings, Artaxerxes II of Persia ((r.

Meeting between Spartan king Agesilaus (left) and Pharnabazus II (right) in 395 BC, when Agesilaus agreed to remove himself from Hellespontine Phrygia.

Agesilaus II

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King of Sparta from c. 399 to 358 BC. Generally considered the most important king in the history of Sparta, Agesilaus was the main actor during the period of Spartan hegemony that followed the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC).

Tens of thousands of Darics (popularly called "archers"), the main currency in Persia, were used to bribe the Greek states to start a war against Sparta, so that Agesilaus would have to be recalled from Asia.

Map of the situation in the Aegean in 394 BC, with the long return of Agesilaus from Asia.

Agesilaus expels the Illyrians from Epirus in 385 BC

Agesilas (center), with Athenian general Chabrias (left), in the service of Egyptian king Nectanebo I, Egypt.

Thanks to three treaties signed with Persia in 412–411, Sparta received funding from the Persians, which it used to build a fleet that ultimately defeated Athens.

In 401, these cities and Sparta supported the bid of Cyrus the Younger (the Persian Emperor's younger son and a good friend of Lysander) against his elder brother, the new emperor Artaxerxes II, who nevertheless defeated Cyrus at Cunaxa.

Satrap

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A dignitary of Asia Minor in Achaemenid style, circa 475 BC. Karaburun tomb near Elmalı, Lycia

Coin of Themistocles, a former Athenian general, as Achaemenid Empire Satrap of Magnesia, circa 465–459 BC

Coinage of Tiribazos, Satrap of Achaemenid Lydia, 388–380 BC

Achaemenid Satrap Autophradates receiving visitors, on the Tomb of Payava, circa 380 BC

Banquet scene of a Satrap, on the "Sarcophagus of the Satrap", Sidon, 4th century BC

The satraps appointed by Alexander the Great during his campaign

Bagadates I (Minted 290–280 BC), the first indigenous satrap to be appointed by the Seleucid Empire

Coin of "Western Satrap" Nahapana, circa 120 CE

A satrap was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires.

Darius I struggled with widespread rebellions in the satrapies, and under Artaxerxes II occasionally the greater parts of Asia Minor and Syria were in open rebellion (Revolt of the Satraps).

Artaxerxes III

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Achaemenid coinage of Idrieus of Caria during the reign of Artaxerxes III, showing the Achaemenid king on the obverse, and his satrap Idrieus on the reverse. Circa 350-341 BC.

Coinage of Tennes, the king of Sidon who revolted against the Achaemenid Empire. Dated 351/0 BC.

Artaxerxes III as Pharaoh of Egypt, satrapal coinage of Mazaeus in Cilicia.

Soldiers of various ethnicities of the Achaemenid Empire, tomb of Atarxerxes III.

Historically, kings of the Achaemenid Empire were followers of Zoroaster or heavily influenced by Zoroastrian ideology.

The Unfinished Gate at Persepolis gave archaeologists an insight into the construction of Persepolis.

Ochus ( Ochos), known by his dynastic name Artaxerxes III ( Artaxšaçāʰ; ), was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 359/58 to 338 BC. He was the son and successor of Artaxerxes II and his mother was Stateira.