Alexander II Zabinas

Alexander II Zabinas

Alexander II Zabinas (Greek Polytonic|Ἀλέξανδρoς Zαβίνας), ruler of the Greek Seleucid kingdom, was a counter-king who emerged in the chaos following the Seleucidian loss of Mesopotamia to the Parthians. Zabinas was a false Seleucid who claimed to be an adoptive son of Antiochus VII Sidetes, but in fact seems to have been the son of an Egyptian merchant named Protarchus. Antioch, Apamea, and several other cities, disgusted with the tyranny of Demetrius, acknowledged the authority of Alexander. He was used as a pawn by the Egyptian king Ptolemy VIII Tryphon, who introduced Zabinas as a means of getting to the legitimate Seleucid king Demetrius II, who supported his sister Cleopatra II against him in the complicated dynastic feuds of the latter Hellenistic dynasties.cite encyclopedia | last = Schmitz | first = Leonhard | authorlink = | title = Alexander Zabinas | editor = William Smith | encyclopedia = Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology | volume = 1 | pages = 127-128 | publisher = Little, Brown and Company | location = Boston | year = 1867 | url = http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=moa;cc=moa;idno=acl3129.0001.001;q1=demosthenes;size=l;frm=frameset;seq=142]

Zabinas managed to defeat Demetrius II, who fled to Tyre and was killed there, and thereafter ruled parts of Syria (128 BC-123 BC), but soon ran out of Egyptian support and was in his turn was defeated by Demetrius' son Antiochus VIII Grypus.

Zabinas fled to the Seleucid capital Antiochia, where he plundered several temples. He is said to have joked about melting down a statuette of the goddess of victory Nike which was held in the hand of a Zeus statue, saying "Zeus has given me Victory". Enraged by his impiety the Antiochenes cast Zabinas out of the city. He soon fell into the hands of robbers, who delivered him up to Antiochus, by whom he was put to death, in 122 BC.

The name "Zabinas" means "the purchased slave", and was applied to him, deprecatingly, in response to a report that he had been bought by Ptolemy as a slave. For reasons unknown, Alexander II was the only late Seleucid not to use epithets on his coins. Several of his coins are extant. [Justin, xxxix. 1, 2] [Josephus, "Antiquities of the Jews" xiii. 9, 10] [Clinton, "Fasti", iii. p. 334]

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Alexander II. Zabinas — (griechisch: der Gekaufte) war ein Gegenkönig in dem Chaos, das im Seleukidenreich nach dem Verlust Mesopotamiens an die Parther einsetzte. Zabinas war angeblich ein Sohn Alexanders I. Balas und lediglich ein Bauer im Machtspiel des exilierten …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alexander I. — Alexander hießen folgende Herrscher: Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Herrscher namens Alexander 1.1 Alexander I. 1.2 Alexander II. 1.3 Alexander III. 1.4 Alexander IV …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alexander II. — Alexander II. ist der Name folgender Personen: Alexander II. (Makedonien) († 368 v. Chr.), König (370 bis 368 v. Chr.) Alexander II. (Epirus) († 245/240 v. Chr.), König von Epiros Alexander II. Zabinas († 123 v. Chr.), König von Syrien (128 bis… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alexander the Great — This article is about the ancient king of Macedon. For other uses, see Alexander the Great (disambiguation). Alexander the Great Basileus of Macedon …   Wikipedia

  • Alexander I. Balas — Silbermünze von Alexander I. Balas Alexander I. Balas (* vor 153 v. Chr.; † 145 v. Chr.) war als Usurpator ein König des Seleukidenreichs. Balas stammte aus Smyrna und war von einfacher Herkunft. Von König Attalos II. von Pergamon und der Familie …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alexander — This article is about the male first name. For other uses, see Alexander (disambiguation). Alexander Paris, depicted in this c. 1636 painting by Peter Paul Rubens making his famous judgment, was given the surname Alexander as a child when he rou …   Wikipedia

  • Liste der Herrscher namens Alexander — Alexander hießen folgende Herrscher: Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Herrscher namens Alexander 1.1 Alexander I. 1.2 Alexander II. 1.3 Alexander III …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alejandro II Zabinas — Rey seléucida Moneda de Alejandro II Zabinas; Zeus es representado en el reverso, sosteniendo en su mano derecha una pequeña Niké (victoria). Reinado 128 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Kleopatra Thea — (* um 165 v. Chr.; † 121 v. Chr.), genannt Euergetis, war die älteste Tochter Ptolemaios’ VI. Philometor von Ägypten und seiner Schwestergemahlin Kleopatra II. Sie regierte das Seleukidenreich von 125 v. Chr. bis zu ihrem Tod. Münze der Kleopatra …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Seleukiden — Münze mit dem Bild des Gründers Seleukos I. Nikator Das Seleukidenreich gehörte zu den Diadochenstaaten, die sich nach dem Tod Alexanders des Großen gebildet hatten. Während des 3. und 2. Jahrhunderts vor Christus beherrschte das Reich den… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”