obv. Diademed head of Ariobarzanos I facing right rev. Helmeted Athena standing left, holding Victoria, speer and shield set on ground, monogram to inner left, BAΣIΛEΩΣ to outer right, APIOBAPZANOY to outer left, ΦIΛOPΩMAIOY in exergue Ariobarzanes I belonged to one of the Persian aristocratic families of Kappadokia. He claimed to be a direct descendant of the companions of Darius the Great (r. 522–486 BC), the king of the Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BC). In 96 BC, the Romans attempted to end the disturbances created in Kappadokia by the meddling of Mithradates VI Eupator of Pontos, Nikomedes III Euergetes of Bithynia, and the various pretenders to the Kappadokian throne that they supported. To this end, the monarchy was dissolved and the Senate declared Kappadokia to be a republic. This change of the ancestral form of government almost immediately produced outcry from the Kappadokians, who requested that the Romans give them a new king. Two possible candidates were presented: Gordios, the murderer of Ariarathes VI Epiphanes and close associate of Mithradates VI, and Ariobarzanos, a Kappadokian noble of Persian ancestry. Not wishing to create new opportunities for further Pontic intervention in Kappadokia, the Senate granted the kingship to Ariobarzanos. The new king ascended the throne as Ariobarzanos I Philoromaios (″Friend of the Romans″).The reign of Ariobarzanos I over the Kappadokian kingdom was troubled from the start by Gordion, Mithradates VI, and Mithradates′ son-in-law, Tigranes II of Armenia, Ariobarzanos I was driven from the throne by an Armenian invasion supporting Gordios in 93 BC, but he was restored in the following year by the Lucius Cornelius Sulla, the proconsular governor of Cilicia. Soon after his restoration, Tigranes II and Gordios again forced Ariobarzanos I to flee, but he was returned to power by the Roman legate, Manius Aquilius in 91 BC. At the outbreak of the first Mithradatic War (89-85 BC), the armies of Mithradates VI, rather than those of his Armenian son-in-law, drove Ariobarzanos I out of the Kappadokian kingdom. This time, he did return to the throne until 84 BC, when the Roman legate Caius Scribonius Curio restored him under the terms of the Peace of Dardanos.The Second Mithradatic War (83-81 BC), ignited by the Roman legate, Lucius Licinius Murena, quickly spilled over into Kappadokia and Mithradates VI forced Ariobarzanos I tof lee yet again. Murena returned him to the throne at the conclusion of the unnecessary conflict. Ariobarzanos I was driven out of his kingdom by Mithradates VI at the opening of the Third Mithradatic War (73-63 BC), but returned with the assistance of Lucius Licinius Lucullus, following the successful Roman invasion of Pontos in 72-71 BC. He was deposed one last time by the combined forces of Mithradates VI and Trigranes II in 67 BC., before he was restored by the Roman general, Pompeius the Great in the following year. Tired of the roller coaster of Kappadokian kingship, Ariobarzanos I happily abdicated the throne in favor of his son, Ariobarzanos II in 63 BC.BMC- (cf. page 40, 15) | SNG.von Aulock - | SNG.Copenhagen- cf. Simonetta 1977, page 40, 37b | HGC 7, 846 minor weakness of strike vf
Please respect our order minimum of 20 Euros. For EU only IBAN payment please. Shippings to China are on risk of the buyer and only payment by bankwire or WISE. Shipping will take place within 5 days after receipt of payment. Sendings to Russia,Ukraine and Israel are not possible. Additional administration- and risk costs for PayPal & creditcard payments. No PayPal or creditcardpayments possible for orders over 10.000 euro.