Polycrates of Argos, son of Mnasiades, was a Ptolemaic commander at the

Battle of Raphia The Battle of Raphia, also known as the Battle of Gaza, was fought on 22 June 217 BC near modern Rafah between the forces of Ptolemy IV Philopator, king and pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt and Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid Empire durin ...

, as well as a governor of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

and chancellor of the Ptolemaic Kingdom in the late third and early second centuries BC. Descended from an illustrious family from Argos, Polycrates joined the court of the Egyptian monarch

Ptolemy IV Philopator egy, Iwaennetjerwymenkhwy Setepptah Userkare Sekhemankhamun Clayton (2006) p. 208. , predecessor = Ptolemy III , successor = Ptolemy V , horus = ''ḥnw-ḳni sḫꜤi.n-sw-it.f'Khunuqeni sekhaensuitef'' The strong youth whose f ...

, just before his campaign against

Antiochus III Antiochus III the Great (; grc-gre, Ἀντίoχoς Μέγας ; c. 2413 July 187 BC) was a Greek Hellenistic king and the 6th ruler of the Seleucid Empire, reigning from 222 to 187 BC. He ruled over the region of Syria and large parts of the r ...

in 217 BC. He was of great service in drilling and encouraging the Egyptian troops, and he commanded the cavalry on the left wing at the battle of Raphia, in which Antiochus was defeated, and which secured for Ptolemy the provinces of

Coele-Syria Coele-Syria (, also spelt Coele Syria, Coelesyria, Celesyria) alternatively Coelo-Syria or Coelosyria (; grc-gre, Κοίλη Συρία, ''Koílē Syría'', 'Hollow Syria'; lat, Cœlē Syria or ), was a region of Syria in classical antiquit ...

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...

, and Palestine. Although still young, Polycrates was second to no one in the king's court, says Polybius, and was accordingly appointed by Ptolemy governor of

. He discharged the duties of this office with the utmost fidelity and integrity. He secured the island for Ptolemy V Epiphanes, the infant son and successor of Ptolemy IV and, on his return to Alexandria in about 196 BC, he brought with him a considerable sum of money for the king's use. He was received at

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

with great applause which made him a powerful influence in the kingdom. But as he advanced in years, it is said that his character changed for the worse, and he indulged in every kind of vice and wickedness. Because of the loss of the later books of Polybius, Polycrates' subsequent career is unknown. He seems to have taken part in the suppression of rebels in Egypt, wherein four rebel leaders named Athinis, Pausiras, Chesufus and Irobastus were brought in for negotiations, but executed publicly and humiliatingly by Ptolemy instead. Polybius also recounts a story where mercenaries were presented to Ptolemy at

Naucratis Naucratis or Naukratis (Ancient Greek: , "Naval Command"; Egyptian: , , , Coptic: ) was a city and trading-post in ancient Egypt, located on the Canopic (western-most) branch of the Nile river, south-east of the Mediterranean sea and the city ...

, but Ptolemy merely took them to the capital Alexandria rather than to participate in an ongoing war, and this was somehow Polycrates's fault (perhaps due to bad advice?). Polycrates was married to Zeuxo of Cyrene and had three daughters: Zeuxo, Eucrateia and

Hermione Hermione may refer to: People * Hermione (given name), a female given name * Hermione (mythology), only daughter of Menelaus and Helen in Greek mythology and original bearer of the name Arts and literature * ''Cadmus et Hermione'', an opera by ...

. Following his father's example as an athlete, Polycrates was a winner of the horse races at the Panathenaic Games from 192 to 184 BC, as were his wife and daughters. At that time, it was rare for women to participate in these races. For this reason they are frequently mentioned in texts from the

Hellenistic period In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

References

{{Source-attribution, Smith, William (editor); "Polycrates (3)", in ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 ...

'', Boston: Little, Brown, and Company. (1867). {{nobreak, p
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3rd-century BC Greek people 2nd-century BC Greek people Ancient Argives Ptolemaic generals Ptolemaic governors of Cyprus Sportspeople in antiquity