Mithridates I
165 – 132 BCE
Mithradates | Mihrdad | Mehrdad | Mitradat | مهرداد یکم | اشک پنجم | مهرداد بزرگ | 𐭌𐭄𐭓𐭃𐭕
Recreation of Parthian King, Mithridates I from coins and a rock relief. Download
Ver.2.0 - Last updated: Jan 29th 2022, by Mo. Rasoulipour
Brief Biography
Mithridates I (Mihrdāt), also known as Mithridates I the Great, was king of the Parthian Empire from 171 BC to 132 BC. He first conquered Aria, Margiana and Bactria in the east and then waged war with the Seleucid Empire, conquering Media and Atropatene. In 141 BC, he conquered Babylonia and shortly afterwards, The kingdoms of Elymais and Characene became Parthian vassals. In 140 BC, while Mithridates was fighting the nomadic Saka in the east, the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator attempted to regain the lost territories. Although successful at first, he was eventually defeated and captured in 138 BC. He was afterwards paraded in front of the Greeks of Media and Mesopotamia with the intention of making them accept Parthian rule. Mithridates then sent him to one of his palaces in Hyrcania where he was treated with great hospitality. Afterwards Mithridates I punished the Parthian vassal kingdom of Elymais for aiding the Seleucids. Around the same period, Mithridates I conquered the southwestern Iranian region of Persis and installed Wadfradad II as its governor; he granted him more autonomy, in order to maintain healthy relations with Persis. As a result of his conquests, Mithridates transformed Parthia from a small kingdom into a major political power in the Ancient East .
Due to his accomplishments, Mithridates I has been compared to Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Mithridates I died in 132 BC, and was succeeded by his son Phraates II.
Paraphrased from Wikipedia, by Mahdi Valian
Insignia
Our team’s study and compilation of the personal and family insignia of this era of Iranian history is at its beginning stages. If you are interested in helping this effort please visit the Insignia Project Page.
Name
“ ‘Mithridates’ is the Greek attestation of the Iranian name Mihrdāt, meaning ‘given by Mithra’, the name of the ancient Iranian sun god. The name itself is derived from Old Iranian Miθra-dāta-. ” - Via Encyclopedia Iranica
References
A comparison of coins minted in east and west of the Parthian empire of Mithridates I from ‘Numismatic art of Persia: the Sunrise collection…’ Source.
The coins of this period of the Parthian Empire assigned to Mithridates I are spectacular in terms of artistic detail and believable realism. However, in close examination, coins struck in the east of the empire and Ecbatana, clearly show a different face than the ones minted in Seleucia. Although the faces depicted in Selucia coins, seem more detailed and appear more artistically believable, they might have been skewed to show more of an idealistic greek god/hero image (?). The coins minted in the east, while not as detailed, offer a more believable face when compared to his father
Priapatius, or his brother Phraates I’s coins.
Due to the uncertainty of the level of idealism used in Seleucia minted coins of Mithridates I, an average of features in coins from east and west is used. The Khunag Azhdar rock relief in Izeh, Iran is also used to inform not only the face but clothing as well. We see the robe explicitly depicted in the rock relief and Ecbatana coins. You can see the torque neckwear in this very rare coin, detached and each side ending in small spherical depictions. It is very likely that this gap was in fact front-facing and shown to the side in the coin to be more readable.
Likely Accuracy of the Creative Recreation
Weak - Fair Guess:
The coins of this period of the Parthian Empire assigned to Mithridates I are spectacular in terms of artistic detail and believable realism. However, as explained above the stark difference between the faces depicted in coins minted in Seleucia compared to those in the west, requires more caution. Therefore this portrait would be considered a Weak to Fair Guess.
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