Glaphyra ( el, Γλαφύρα) was a

hetaera Hetaira (plural hetairai (), also hetaera (plural hetaerae ), ( grc, ἑταίρα, "companion", pl. , la, hetaera, pl. ) was a type of prostitute in ancient Greece, who served as an artist, entertainer and conversationalist in addition to pro ...

, a form of

courtesan Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the court of a monarch or other ...

, who lived in the 1st century BC. Glaphyra was famed and celebrated in antiquity for her beauty, charm and seductiveness. Her marriage to Archelaus the elder of Cappadocia gave her political power. Her later affair with

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...

occasioned a vulgar poem from Octavian Caesar.

Marriage to Archelaus

Glaphyra was a Greek woman from

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...

from obscure origins. Glaphyra had married a Cappadocian Greek nobleman called Archelaus, the High Priest Ruler of the temple state of

Comana, Cappadocia Comana was a city of Cappadocia ( el, τὰ Κόμανα τῆς Καππαδοκίας) and later Cataonia ( la, Comana Cataoniae; frequently called Comana Chryse or Aurea, i.e. "the golden", to distinguish it from Comana in Pontus). The Hittit ...

. Archelaus was the High Priest of the Roman Goddess of War, Bellona. Through her marriage to Archelaus, Glaphyra became a ruler of the temple state. Archelaus' father of the same name had descended from King Mithridates VI of Pontus. Glaphyra bore Archelaus two sons: * Archelaus Sisines, also known as King

Archelaus of Cappadocia Archelaus ( el, Ἀρχέλαος; fl. 1st century BC and 1st century, died 17 AD) was a Roman client prince and the last king of Cappadocia. Family and early life Archelaus was a Cappadocian Greek nobleman. His full name was ''Archelaus Sisin ...

who reigned from 36 BC until his death in 17 AD * Sisines In 47 BC the

Roman Dictator A Roman dictator was an extraordinary magistrate in the Roman Republic endowed with full authority to resolve some specific problem to which he had been assigned. He received the full powers of the state, subordinating the other magistrates, con ...

Gaius Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

after the conclusion of his military victory against the

Triumvir A triumvirate ( la, triumvirātus) or a triarchy is a political institution ruled or dominated by three individuals, known as triumvirs ( la, triumviri). The arrangement can be formal or informal. Though the three leaders in a triumvirate are ...

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

, deprived and deposed Archelaus of his office of high priest and rule over Comana. Archelaus was replaced by another Greek nobleman called

Lycomedes In Greek mythology, Lycomedes ( grc, Λυκομήδης), also known as Lycurgus, was the most prominent king of the Dolopians in the island of Scyros near Euboea during the Trojan War. Family Lycomedes was the father of seven daughters inc ...

. Pompey was their family patron and it was he who appointed his father as High Priest Ruler of the temple state of Comana. Sometime later Archelaus died at an unknown date. After the death of Archelaus, Glaphyra remained in Cappadocia with her sons. Glaphyra could be seen as the widow of the dynast of Comana.

Affair with Antony

Years later, Glaphyra became one of the mistresses to the Roman Triumvir

. Through her efforts, Glaphyra had influenced and induced Antony to designate and install her first son as King of Cappadocia. In 36 BC, Antony removed and executed Ariarathes X of Cappadocia from his throne and installed Archelaus as the successor of Ariarathes X. Glaphyra appeared to be a powerful lady at the Royal Court and was involved in internal politics in Cappadocia. Her powerful influence can be demonstrated by contemporary invective about the time of the

Perusine War The Perusine War (also Perusian or Perusinian War, or the War of Perusia) was a civil war of the Roman Republic, which lasted from 41 to 40 BC. It was fought by Lucius Antonius and Fulvia to support Mark Antony against his political enemy Octav ...

in 41 BC, by certain frank and famous verses which Triumvir Octavian composed about Antony. Antony had fallen in love with her. Allegedly Octavian wrote a vulgar squib about the affair, referring to Antony's wife

Fulvia Fulvia (; c. 83 BC – 40 BC) was an aristocratic Roman woman who lived during the Late Roman Republic. Fulvia's birth into an important political dynasty facilitated her relationships and, later on, marriages to Publius Clodius Pulcher, Gai ...

: ::"Because Antony fucks Glaphyra, Fulvia has arranged ::this punishment for me: that I fuck her too. ::That I fuck Fulvia? What if Manius begged me ::to bugger him? Would I? I don't think so, if I were sane. ::'Either fuck or let's fight,' she says. Doesn't she know ::my prick is dearer to me than life itself? Let the trumpets blare!" Original Latin: :Quod futuit Glaphyran Antonius, hanc mihi poenam :Fulvia constituit, se quoque uti futuam. :Fulvia ego ut futuam? Quid si me Manius oret :pedicem, faciam? Non puto, si sapiam. :"Aut futue, aut pugnemus" ait. Quid quod mihi vita :carior est ipsa mentula? Signa canant!

References

Sources

* * * * J. Watkins, ''A biographical, historical and chronological dictionary: containing accurate accounts of the lives, characters, and actions, of the most eminent persons of all ages and all countries: including the revolutions of states, and the succession of sovereign princes'' (Google eBook), Printed by R. Phillips by T. Gillet, 1807 * G. Crabb, ''Universal historical dictionary: or explanation of the names of persons and places in the departments of biblical, political and eccles. history, mythology, heraldry, biography, bibliography, geography, and numismatics'', Volume 1, Baldwin and Cradock, 1833 * R. Syme and A.R. Birley, Anatolica: studies in Strabo, Oxford University Press, 1995 * D. Dueck, H. Lindsay and S. Pothecary, Strabo's cultural geography: the making of a kolossourgia, Cambridge University Press, 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Glaphyra (hetaera) Hetairai Greek female prostitutes Anatolian Greeks 1st-century BC Greek women Mark Antony