PARTHIAN KINGDOM. Mithradates III (ca. 87-80 BC). AR drachm (19mm, 4.10 gm, 11h). NGC MS 5/5 - 3/5, brushed. Ectabana. Diademed, draped bust of Mithradates III left, wearing tiara decorated with eight-rayed star / BAΣIΛEΩΣ / MEΓAΛOY-APΣ-AKOY-ΦIΛOΠATOPOΣ / AYTOKPATOΣ-EΠΙΦANOΣ / ΦIΛEΛΛHNOΣ, archer (Arsaces I) enthroned right, in Parthian dress, with bow in outstretched right hand. Sunrise 308. Sellwood 31.5 var. (Orodes I, legend). Shore 123 var. (same). The holder notes that this coin is also attributed to Orodes I. Mithradates III ascended to the throne in the depths of the Parthian Dark Age, a half century period during which nearly no written records survive beyond numismatics, with historians having difficulty pinpointing the exact years of each sovereign’s rule, their relation to one another, and their military confrontations. The main event of Mithradates III’s reign was his defeat and capture of the Seleucid king of Syria, Demetrius III Eucaerus. The reverse of Mithradates III’s coins include the epithet "Father-Loving", possibly identifying his paternal lineage with Mithradates II. HID09801242017 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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