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Sinatruces (also spelled Sinatrukes or Sanatruces) was king of the Parthian Empire from to . He was presumably a son of the Parthian ruler Mithridates I (). Sinatruces was succeeded by his son
Phraates III Phraates III (also spelled Frahad III; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭇𐭕 ''Frahāt''), was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 69 BC to 57 BC. He was the son and successor of Sinatruces (). At Phraates III's accession, his empire coul ...
.


Reign

The Parthian Empire had since the death of Mithridates II () fallen into a state of turmoil and decline; the authority of the crown had decreased, while the empire lost lands to its neighbours. Sinatruces, who originally resided amongst the
Saka The Saka (Old Persian: ; Kharoṣṭhī: ; Ancient Egyptian: , ; , old , mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit ( Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae ( Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples who hist ...
of Central Asia, took advantage of the chaotic situation in the empire, and with the aid of the Saka captured the Parthian throne in , at the age of eighty. The name of the
Arsacid The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...
branch established by Sinatruces on the Parthian throne has been coined by the modern historian Marek Jan Olbrycht as the "Sinatrucids", which ruled the Parthian Empire till 12 AD. The Sinatrucid family was notably supported by the Suren clan of
Sakastan Sistān ( fa, سیستان), known in ancient times as Sakastān ( fa, سَكاستان, "the land of the Saka"), is a historical and geographical region in present-day Eastern Iran ( Sistan and Baluchestan Province) and Southern Afghanistan ...
. During Sinatruces' reign, the Artaxiad king of
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
, Tigranes the Great (), took advantage of the weakness of the Parthians, and retook the "seventy valleys" he had previously ceded to Mithridates II, and also went to conquer the Parthian domains of
Media Atropatene Atropatene ( peo, Ātṛpātakāna; grc, Ἀτροπατηνή), also known as Media Atropatene, was an ancient Iranian kingdom established in by the Persian satrap Atropates. The kingdom, centered in present-day northern Iran, was ruled by ...
,
Gordyene Corduene hy, Կորճայք, translit=Korchayk; ; romanized: ''Kartigini'') was an ancient historical region, located south of Lake Van, present-day eastern Turkey. Many believe that the Kardouchoi—mentioned in Xenophon’s Anabasis as havi ...
,
Adiabene Adiabene was an ancient kingdom in northern Mesopotamia, corresponding to the northwestern part of ancient Assyria. The size of the kingdom varied over time; initially encompassing an area between the Zab Rivers, it eventually gained control of N ...
, Osroene, and northern Mesopotamia. Sinatruces died in 69 BC and was succeeded by his son
Phraates III Phraates III (also spelled Frahad III; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭇𐭕 ''Frahāt''), was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 69 BC to 57 BC. He was the son and successor of Sinatruces (). At Phraates III's accession, his empire coul ...
.; ; ; The modern historian Saghi Gazerani has come up with the hypothesis that the story of the legendary Iranian monarch Zav Tahmasp includes echoes of the life of Sinatruces.


Coinage

On the observe of his coins, Sinatruces is portrayed with a
tiara A tiara (from la, tiara, from grc, τιάρα) is a jeweled head ornament. Its origins date back to ancient Greece and Rome. In the late 18th century, the tiara came into fashion in Europe as a prestigious piece of jewelry to be worn by women ...
decorated with a line of stags. The stags are a reference to the religious symbolism of the Saka, who had helped him ascend the throne. Sinatruces' son Phraates III also made use of stag symbols on his coins.


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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parthia, Sinatruces of 150s BC births 69 BC deaths 1st-century BC Parthian monarchs Parthian Dark Age