Dear All, He is quite a historical king, later executed by our beloved last queen of Egypt and our friend Marc Athony, nice people ) See his history below. I have only one really rare coin of him bronze, the silver coin is one the best I have ever seen, it is beautiful,impossible to get. See my bronze coin and the silver. Sorry for my picture but the coin is quite dark, but you can see quite well it is him with his large Tiara. Anybody else has a coin from him? I got many Tigran coins ) Artavasdes II (Ancient Greek: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΟΣ ΑΡΤΑΥΑΖΔΟΥ Basileos Artavazdou, Armenian: Արտավազդ Երկրորդ Artavazd Ikrord) was a King of the Kingdom of Armenia from 54 BC until 34 BC and a member of theArtaxiad Dynasty. He succeeded his father, Tigranes the Great, also known as Tigranes II. Artavasdes II was an ally of Rome, but when Orodes II ofParthia invaded Armenia following his victory over the Roman generalMarcus Licinius Crassus at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BC, he was forced to join the Parthians. He gave his sister in marriage to Orodes' son and heirPacorus.[1] In 36 BC the Roman General Mark Antony invaded Armenia and Artavasdes II again switched sides, but abandoned the Romans once they had left Armenia to conquer Atropatene.[2] In 34 BC Antony planned a new invasion of Armenia. First he sent his friend Quintus Dellius, who offered a betrothal of Antony's six-year-old son Alexander Helios to a daughter of Artavasdes II, but the Armenian king hesitated.[3] Now the triumvir marched into the Roman western Armenia. He summoned Artavasdes II to Nicopolis, allegedly to prepare a new war against Parthia. Artavasdes II didn't come, so the Roman general quickly marched to the Armenian capital Artaxata. He arrested the king, hoping that with his hostages assistance to obtain great treasures in the Armenian castles. His son Artaxias II was elected as successor. After a lost battle Artaxias II fled to the Parthian king. Finally Antony took Artavasdes II to Alexandria.[4] The Armenian king and his family, who were bound with golden chains, had to follow Antony in his triumphal procession.[5]Cleopatra VII of Egypt awaited the triumvir on a golden throne, but Artavasdes II refused to render homage to the Egyptian Queen by Proskynesis.[6] After the Battle of Actium 31 BC, the Armenian king was executed by beheading at the behest of Cleopatra. In the past he had been an enemy of his namesake, King Artavasdes I of Media Atropatene, who had become an ally of Antony. She sent his head to Artavasdes I of Media Atropatene to secure his help.[7] Plutarch describes Artavasdes II as a well educated man, who had a great fondness for all things Greek and was an accomplished scholar who composed Greek tragedies and histories.[8] From an unnamed wife, he was survived by two sons: Artaxias II,[9] Tigranes III[10] and an unnamed daughter[11] who possibly married King Archelaus of Cappadocia.
Wonderful coins and a terrific history!!!! I'm still lightly bidding on some of these types---TOO many choices and so many I still do not even have one example of LOL
The footnoted references for the Wikipedia article copied in the OP: References Plutarch, Crassus 19; 22; 33. Plutarch, Antony 37-39; Cassius Dio, Roman History 49.25 Cassius Dio, Roman History 49.39.2 Cassius Dio, Roman History 49.39.3 - 49.40.1 Tacitus, The Annals 2.3 Cassius Dio, Roman History 49.40.3-4; Velleius, Roman History 2.82.4; Plutarch, Antony 50.6-7 Cassius Dio, Roman History 51.5.5; Strabo, Geography, book 11, p. 532 Plutarch, Crassus 33 Swan, The Augustan Succession: An Historical Commentary on Cassius Dio’s Roman History, Books 55-56 (9 B.C.-A.D. 14), p.112 Bunson, Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, p.47 Cassius Dio, Roman History 49.39.2 It's an interesting coin and I hadn't previously read anything about the Armenians nor had I looked closely at their coins. Maybe I should .
any chance for a better obverse pic cy? it's not so much that it's dark, but it's a tad out of focus.
Man, that's like 75 miles. I would nap for a couple of days if I were you. In fact, I just might take a nap for ya.
the coin is similar to this one: Artavasdes II (56 - 34 BC) AE Tetrachalkous Bedoukian CAA 132, SGCv2 7315 17 mm. 5.80 gm. Die position=1h Obverse: Bust of Artavasdes right wearing Armenian tiara. Reverse: Nike advancing left. Greek legend BASILEWS, right; BASILEWN ARTAUAZDOU, left.
oooo I like the Armenians, because they where always in the middle and played a major part in the history between all great empires.
some very nice reading about Roman wearing a Tiara http://www.peopleofar.com/2015/08/26/why-a-roman-god-wears-an-armenian-tiara/
I have been looking at couple Armenian ancient coins as well as some of the Sassanian era and some crusader stuff. They have a rich numismatic history, of which I have no example. So this must be remedied. Thanks for sharing and I look forward to improved infocus pictures.
