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ThePonticKingdom,ArsacidIranandArmenia...
17
subjugatingDuraEuropos,12andinnorthernMesopotamia,theannexationof
Armeniamayhavehappenedatthattime.ThestrategicpositionofArmenia
onthewayfromAnatoliaorthesteppesnorthoftheCaucasustoIran,and
itsmilitaryandeconomicpotential,wererecognizedbyMithradatesII.Thatis
whytheArsacidsmadethecontrolofArmeniaoneofthefundamentaltargets
intheirpolicytowardRomeuptotheendofthedynasty.
***
ParthiancontroloverArmeniamighthavecompelledMithradatesEupatorto
getintouchwiththeArsacidempire.Itseems,therefore,highlyprobablethat
oneoftheessentialcomponentsinthePontic-Parthianrelations,establishedby
101/102b.C.,wasPonticinterestinreceivingatleastsafetyguaranteesfrom
Parthian-dominatedArmeniaandParthiaherself.
AfterspendingmanyyearsattheParthiancourt,Tigraneswasreleasedby
hissovereignMithradatesIItheGreatandappointedkingofArmenia.13The
year96b.C.forTigranes’saccessioncanbesurmisedbasedonPlutarch,who
describesameetingbetweenTigranesandClaudiusinwinter71/70b.C.:by
thattimeTigraneshadbeenrullingfor25years,thushemusthavebegunhis
ruleinabout96b.C.14
InformationonTigranes’saccessionisalsoprovidedbythebabylonian
AstronomicalDiaries.OneofthesetextssaysthatTigranes’sfatherdiedin
monthIoftheyear216accordingtotheSeleukidera(27March124April96
b.C.).WhileinbabylonattheParthiancourt,Tigranesmadepreparationsfor
hisjourneyhome:15
5:[...]Iheardasfollows:thekingof(thecity)Arminidied...
.[...]
6:[...]wasentrusted[with]...,tothis(city)Arminiforking[ship?...
.]
7:[...]wholivedinbabylon,hegatheredandtohissupporthe[...]
TigranesdepartedinmonthIIoftheyear216(Seleukidera)(25April124
May96b.C.)toascendtheArmenianthrone:16
11:[...
.T]igranes,crownprinceof(thecity)Armini,[took?]theroadtothe
city[...]
12M.J.Olbrycht:ArsakidIran...
13OnTigranes,seeM.Schottky:“Tigranes.”DNP,bd.12,2002,pp.5671568;
N.Garsoian:“TigranII.”In:EncyclopediaIranica(www.iranica.com),2005.
14Plut.Luc.21.DetaileddiscussioninM.Schottky:Media...,p.216,n.240.Tigranes
IIdiedinabout55b.C.(Cic.Sest.59;Plut.Crass.19)attheageof85(cf.Lukian,Makrob.
15).
15A.J.Sachs,H.Hunger:AstronomicalDiaries...,pp.4181419,no.-95C.
16Ibidem,pp.4221423,no.-95D.
