Arsacids

The Parthians largely adopted the art, architecture, religious beliefs, and regalia of their culturally heterogeneous empire, which encompassed Persian, Hellenistic, and regional cultures. The Arsacid court initially adopted elements of Greek culture, though it eventually saw a gradual revival of Iranian cultural traditions. In modern historiography, the Arsacids are considered the first indigenous Iranian dynasty to come to power in the Iranian world after the Achaemenids, in contrast to the Seleucids who represented Hellenistic rule after Alexander the Great. The Arsacid rulers were titled "King of Kings", claiming the inheritance of the Achaemenid Empire; indeed, they accepted many local kings as vassals, though the Achaemenids had centrally appointed, albeit largely autonomous, satraps. The Parthian court appointed a small number of satraps, largely outside Iran, but these satrapies were smaller and less powerful than the Achaemenid potentates. With the expansion of Arsacid power, the seat of central government shifted from Nisa to Ctesiphon along the Tigris (south of the modern city of Baghdad), although several other sites also served as capitals.