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History
and monetary business of the antique states of the North-Eastern
Black Sea Coast
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The Bosporos State - is the largest
Greek state formation on the territory of the North Black Sea Coast.
It was situated on the both beaches of Bosporos Kimmeric (nowadays
Kerchensky channel) and also occupied the vast territory of the
Eastern Crimea, Kerchensky and Tamansky peninsulas with the adjoining
territory down to the foothills of the Northern Caucasus.
Six periods can be marked out in the history of the Bosporos state,
connected with the events of the political life of Bosporos:
1. Formation of the state - VI BC - 480 BC;
2. The government of Archianaktids - 480 BC - 438/437 years BC;
3. The government of Spartokhids - 438/437 years BC -109 BC;
4. Bosporos under the power of Mithradates VI Eupator and Rome -
II BC -I AD;
5. Bosporos in the first centuries AD;
6. The decay of the Bosporos state - the middle of III - the end
of IV AD.
The issue of coins in Bosporos started in the end of VI BC in Pantikapeum.
This coinage can be considered to be rather early for the antique
world as the first issues appeared in Greece only about the middle
of VI BC. Coins were minted also in such cities as Theodosia, Nimfey,
The Sindi, Phanagoreia, which later became the members of the Bosporos
state.
In the end of V BC the autonomous coinage of money of the Bosporos
cities and the coins of Pantikapeum dominated on the market of Bosporos.
From the time of the government of Levcon II (III BC) the coins
on behalf of the Bosporos kings began to be minted simultaneously
with the urban issues of Pantikapeum. From I AD the urban issues
were ceased and only the imperial coins began to circulate on the
market of Bosporos.
The coins give the information about the names and titles of the
Bosporos governors and about the sequence of their board. The pictures
of the deities on Bosporos coins give the idea about the ruling
cults here and the caulking of the portraits of the Roman emperors
- about the dependence of Bosporos from the Roman empire.
Coins of Pantikapeum.
Pantikapeum - is a capital of the Bosporos state, it was situated
within the precincts of the modern city Kerch. The title "Pantikapei"
is not Greek, it is decrypted from the Iranian roots as "a fish
route". It was based by the Miletos in VI BC. Soon it became a large
city and having consolidated the other cities on the both coasts
of Bospor Kimmeric, became the capital of the organized Bosporos
State in the first half of V century. On the border II-I centuries
BC it went through the impetuous political events: the rebellion
of Savmak, capturing the city by Diophantus, the wars of Mithradates
VI Eupator. It was severely destroyed and restored in I AD. In the
end of IV AD Pantikapeum was ruined by the Huns. In the end there
was a small town on its place.
In the second half of VI BC. Pantikapeum began to mint its own silver
coins and from IV BC gold and copper ones. The urban issues on behalf
of the Pantikapeum community continued up to the end of I BC. In
I BC the city was temporarily renamed into Kesarea and minted coins
under this name. The caulking of Bosporos of Roman time consisted
mainly from the imperial coins and lasted to the middle of IV AD.
The coins of the Apollo's
temple.
About 480 year BC, with the beginning of the government of a dynasty
Archianaktids, a caulking of the Apollo's temple separated from
the urban caulking of Panticapeum. The members of the Archianaktids
possibly were the priests of Apollo the Doctor temple, the cult
of which was quite spread on the North Black Sea Coast, because
it was Apollo the Doctor, who was the protector of the ancient colonies
of the North Pontos. The caulking of the temple coins continued
also under the power of the Spartokhids dynasty which replaced the
dynasty of Archianaktids, up to the beginning of IV BC.
The coins of the Sindi.
Sindi, Sindika - is an ancient settlement of Sinds on the eastern
coast of the Black Sea ( the modern city Anapa), the center of the
kingdom of Sindi. In VI - V BC Sindika was inhabited by the Greek
colonizers. Approximately in 430 - 420 years BC the caulking of
coins of the Sindskaya Harbour was started, presumptively at the
king of Sindi Gekatei. Only three issues of coins of Sindi are known.
Approximately in 410 BC the wife of Gekatei, meot woman Tirgatao,
aroused the mutiny, which caused the war with Bosporos. At the king
Levkon I Sindika was included in the structure of the Bosporos state,
and city was renamed into Gorgippia.
The coins of Nimfey.
Nimfey - is an antique city in the eastern Crimea, on the coast
of the Kerchensky channel (17 kms from the modern city Kerch). It
was founded in VI BC on the place of the Scyth's settlement. The
prosperity of the city dated from V - IV BC, when it conducted brisk
grain trade with Athens. In the first half IV BC the city was included
into a structure of the state of Bosporos. In the middle of III
AD it was destroyed by the Goths and ceased its existence.
The autonomous issue of little series of silver coins (3 ratings)
was carried out during the shortest term (the end of V BC), when
the city appeared to be independent from Athens, but had not got
into the arms of Seleukos and Satiros yet. In this period the Athenian
Hilon governed Nimfey, who afterwards was accused in the surrender
of the city.
The coins of Theodosia.
Theodosia - is an antique city, founded in VI BC by the Miletos.
It was situated on the coast of the Feodosijsky channel, within
the precincts of the modern city Feodosiya. In VI - V BC it was
a state-city with the developed business relations. It became a
member of Bosporos in IV BC and was a center of its grain export.
In 107 BC Teodosia was one of the centers of the Scyth's revolt
under the leadership of Savmak. In IV AD Theodosia was destroyed
by the Huns, and in the end of VI it was captured by the Hazars.
In the end of V - in the beginning of IV BC Theodosia issued some
series of autonomous coins. The first four series were the independent
urban caulking, and the latest were issued only in the end of III
BC simultaneously with the coins of Levkon II,when Theodosia was
already the member of the Bosporos state.
The Coins of Phanagorria.
Phanagorria - is an antique city, founded in the second half of
VI BC by the settlers from the Ionite city Theos. It was situated
on Tamansky peninsula, near the modern settlement Sennoe. The heyday
of city was in V - II BC due to agriculture, cattle-breeding and
trade. From V BC Phanagorria was in the structure of the Bosporos
state, and in I BC it was temporarily renamed into Agrippiya and
minted coins under this name. The city existed up to čII AD. The
caulking of its own coins began right in the end of V BC and continued
up to I BC with some breaks.
The Coins of Gorgippia.
Gorgippia - is an antique city on the eastern coast of the Black
sea within the precincts of the modern city Anapa. The city received
its title in honour of Gorgipp, the governor of the city from the
imperial Dynasty of Spartokhids. It is considered, it was renamed
into Gorgippiya with the inclusion of Sindi Harbor in the structure
of the Bosporos state in IV BC . It was a large trade-craft center
and the significant base station of Bosporos. In š - III AD there
was a large religious union of the shipowners and the city experienced
the period of its prosperity. In IV AD Gorgippia fell into decay
as a result of a general crisis and the break-up of the Bosporos
state. In the period of Mithradates VI Eupator, Gorgippia minted
its own coins. Three urban issues are known.
The Coins of Dioscuriada.
Dioscuriada, Dioscurias - is an antique city on the Caucasian coast
of the Black sea ( within the precincts of the modern city Sukhumi).
It was founded in VI BC by the Greeks from Miletos. It was a large
trade center. In the beginning of I AD it appeared to be under the
power of Rome. The city was renamed into Sevastopol, and the Roman
garrison was quartered there. The heyday of Dioscuriada fell on
II - III AD. From IV AD the downfall of the city began. The urban
caulking of copper coins dated from the time of Mithradates VI Eupator.
Rather miscellaneous weight indexes and their different size indicated
about the presence of different face-values, minted according to
the general type.
The Coins of the state
of Bosporos.
The State of Bosporos, Bospor - is a largest antique slave state
on the northern Black Sea coast with the capital in the city Panticapeum.
It was founded in 480 BC as a result of the affiliation of the Greek
colonies on Kerchensky and Tamansky peninsulas. In 480 - 438 BC
Bosporos was governed by the Greek dynasty of Archianakhtids, which
was replaced by the dynasty of Spartokhids, which governed for more
than 300 years. The king of Bosporos, Perisad V passed the power
to the king of Pontos, Mithradates I Eupator in the conditions of
the acute economical and social-political crisis. During the negotiations
on the passing of the power on Bosporos in 107 BC a revolt of slaves
led by a Scyth Savmak broke out. The commander of Pontos, Diophantus
stifled the rebellion severely, and Bosporos became a part of the
Kingdom of Pontos. In I BC as a result of " Mithradates' wars "
Bosporos became the dependent on the Roman empire; about 10 AD Aspurg
came to power, who became the founder of a new dynasty. He accepted
the title of tzar by approbation of the Roman emperor Tiberius.
The royal dynasty of Tiberius Julius governed Bosporos for nearly
four centuries. I-II centuries AD was a period of a new golden age
of the Bosporos state. In the end of II AD the king Sauromates II
inflicted a critical defeat to the Scyths and included all the territories
of the Crimea in the structure of his state. In the middle of the
III AD Bosporos was attacked by the barbarians with Goths at the
head, and the invasion of Huns in the 70-s IV lead to the final
downfall of the Bosporos state.
The monetary business in the Bosporos state was actualized for 850
years. The money caulking began in the end of VI BC in Pantikapeum.
Coins were minted also in the other cities on the both sides of
Bospor Kimeriysky. From the second half of III BC, together with
the caulking on behalf of the city community of Pantikapeum, the
coins were minted with the names of the Bosporos kings, as a result
of the appropriation of the monetary regalia by the king Levkon
II.
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