Artakama (fl. 324 BC) was a

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

noblewoman and the second wife of

Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy I Soter (; gr, Πτολεμαῖος Σωτήρ, ''Ptolemaîos Sōtḗr'' "Ptolemy the Savior"; c. 367 BC – January 282 BC) was a Macedonian Greek general, historian and companion of Alexander the Great from the Kingdom of Macedon ...

, a Macedonian general under

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

and the first Pharaoh of the

Ptolemaic dynasty The Ptolemaic dynasty (; grc, Πτολεμαῖοι, ''Ptolemaioi''), sometimes referred to as the Lagid dynasty (Λαγίδαι, ''Lagidae;'' after Ptolemy I's father, Lagus), was a Macedonian Greek royal dynasty which ruled the Ptolemaic ...

of Egypt.

Biography

Artakama (or as Plutarch calls her Apama ''Eum. 18.1'') was a daughter of Artabazus of Phrygia, a grandson of king Artaxerxes II and queen Strateira. Her father was a

Satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires. The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...

Dascylium Dascylium, Dascyleium, or Daskyleion ( grc, Δασκύλιον, Δασκυλεῖον), also known as Dascylus, was a town in Anatolia some inland from the coast of the Propontis, at modern Ergili, Turkey. Its site was rediscovered in 1952 and ...

under Artaxerxes III and

Darius III Darius III ( peo, 𐎭𐎠𐎼𐎹𐎺𐎢𐏁 ; grc-gre, Δαρεῖος ; c. 380 – 330 BC) was the last Achaemenid King of Kings of Persia, reigning from 336 BC to his death in 330 BC. Contrary to his predecessor Artaxerxes IV Arses, Dar ...

, and a

Bactria Bactria (; Bactrian: , ), or Bactriana, was an ancient region in Central Asia in Amu Darya's middle stream, stretching north of the Hindu Kush, west of the Pamirs and south of the Gissar range, covering the northern part of Afghanistan, southwe ...

under Alexander. Her mother was most likely the only known wife of Artabazus, an anonymous sister of the Rhodian generals

Memnon In Greek mythology, Memnon (; Ancient Greek: Μέμνων means 'resolute') was a king of Aethiopia and son of Tithonus and Eos. As a warrior he was considered to be almost Achilles' equal in skill. During the Trojan War, he brought an army t ...

and Mentor, who were in Persian service in the late 340 BCs and the 330 BCs. Artakama married Ptolemy (then a general) in April 324 BC at a marriage festival in the city of

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

, as ordered by

. Many of the Macedonian and other Greek officers took Persian wives shortly afterward. Artakama was not mentioned in historical texts again, probably because Ptolemy quietly discarded her when he left Babylon for Egypt after Alexander's death. If so, his action was a contrast to that of his friend Seleucus, whose Persian wife, Apama, married also on that occasion, remained with him permanently. Seleucus and Apama became the ancestors of the kings of the Seleucid dynasty and, through a future dynastic marriage, of the last rulers of the Ptolemaic dynasty.Translation of Anabasis
by the Greek author Arrian of Nicomedia at www.livius.com Artakama is called Apama by

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, but this is likely an error. Ptolemy had no known children by Artakama. Family tree of the later Pharnacids complete

References

External links

Genealogy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Artakama Queens consort of the Ptolemaic dynasty 4th-century BC women Women of the Achaemenid Empire 4th-century BC Iranian people