Characene
Characene | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 141 BC–222 AD | |||||||||
Aramaic (cultural language)[1] | |||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
• 141–124 BC | Hyspaosines (first) | ||||||||
• 210–222 AD | Abinergaios III (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Classical antiquity | ||||||||
• Established | 141 BC | ||||||||
• Sasanian conquest | 222 AD | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Characene (
Name
The name "Characene" originated from the name of the capital of the kingdom, Charax Spasinu. The kingdom was also known by the older name of the region, "Mesene", which is seemingly of Persian origin, meaning "land of buffalos" or the "land of sheep."[6]
History
The capital of Characene,
During this period Antiochia briefly flourished, until Antiochus IV's abrupt death in 163 BC, which weakened Seleucid authority throughout the empire.
The Seleucids had suffered heavy defeats by the Iranian
The kings of Characene are known mainly by their coins, consisting mainly of silver tetradrachms with Greek and later Aramaic inscriptions. These coins are dated after the Seleucid era, providing a secure framework for chronological succession.
In his Natural History, Pliny the Elder praises the port of Charax:
- The embankments extend in length a distance of nearly 4½ kilometers, in breadth a little less. It stood at first at a distance of 1¾ km from the shore, and even had a harbor of its own. But according to Juba, it is 75 kilometer from the sea; and at the present day, the ambassadors from Arabia, and our own merchants who have visited the place, say that it stands at a distance of one 180 kilometers from the sea-shore. Indeed, in no part of the world have alluvial deposits been formed more rapidly by the rivers, and to a greater extent than here; and it is only a matter of surprise that the tides, which run to a considerable distance beyond this city, do not carry them back again.[13]
Trade continued to be important. A famous Characenian, a man named Isidore, was the author of a treatise on Parthian trade routes, the Mansiones Parthicae. The inhabitants of Palmyra had a permanent trading station in Characene. Many inscriptions mention caravan trade.
Next to Charax, other important cities were
In AD 115 the Roman emperor
In 221–222 AD, an ethnic Persian,
Charax continued, under the name Maysān, with Persian texts making various mention of governors throughout the fifth century. A
The earliest references from the first century A.D. indicates that the people of Characene were referred to as Μεσηνός and lived along the Arabian side of the coast at the head of the Persian Gulf.
Kings
| History of Iran | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 3200–2700 | |
| Jiroft culture | c. 3100–2200 |
| Lullubi Kingdom/Zamua | c. 3100-675 |
| Elam | 2700–539 |
| Marhaši | c. 2550-2020 |
| Oxus Civilization | c. 2400–1700 |
| Akkadian Empire | 2400–2150 |
| Kassites | c. 1500–1155 |
| Avestan period | c. 1500–500 |
| Neo-Assyrian Empire | 911–609 |
| Urartu | 860–590 |
| Mannaea | 850–616 |
| Zikirti | 750-521 |
| Saparda | 720-670 |
