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Glaphyra (Greek: G?af??a; born around 35 BC-died around 7) was an Anatolian Princess from Cappadocia [1] and through marriage was related to the Herodian Dynasty. [2]
Glaphyra was a Monarch of Greek, Armenian and Persian descent. She was the daughter of the Roman Client King Archelaus of Cappadocia, while her only natural sibling was her younger brother Archelaus of Cilicia. [3] Her paternal grandfather was the Roman Client and High Priest Ruler Archelaus of the temple state of Comana, Cappadocia [4], while her paternal grandmother was Glaphya. Glaphyra was named in honor of her paternal grandmother. [5] Her paternal great, grandfather also named Archelaus claimed to be descended from King Mithridates VI of Pontus. [6] Chronologically her paternal great grandfather, may have been a maternal grandson of the Pontic King, who his father Archelaus, was the favorite high-ranking general of Mithridates VI, who may had married one of the daughters of Mithridates VI. [7]

The first wife of Archelaus who was the mother of Glaphyra was an unnamed Princess from Armenia[8], who died by 8 BC. There is a possibility that Glaphyra’s parents may have been distant relatives. Glaphyra’s mother may have been a daughter of King Artavasdes II of Armenia (reigned 53 BC-34 BC) of the Artaxiad Dynasty. Artavasdes II was a Monarch of Armenian, Persian and Greek Macedonian descent, who was the father of the future Armenian Kings Artaxias II and Tigranes III. The father of Artavasdes II was Tigranes the Great [9], who married Cleopatra of Pontus a daughter of Mithridates VI from his first wife, his sister Laodice [10], thus Artavasdes II was a maternal grandson to Mithridates VI and Laodice.

She was born and raised on the mainland and spent her later life at the harbor city of Elaiussa Sebaste. The Roman Emperor Augustus in 25 BC gave her father extra territories to govern and among them included Elaiussa Sebaste.[11] After 25 BC, Glaphyra and her family settled there, where her father developed the city. Her father built a royal residence, built a palace on the island in the harbor and renamed the city in honor of Augustus. [12] Glaphyra held the high ranking title of ‘king’s daughter’, which is reflective of her descent and high birth. [13] She was an attractive and a dynamic woman, who had a reputation of being so charming, desirable and proved to be a forced to be reckoned with.[14]

[edit] First MarriageRoman Emperor Augustus encouraged intermarriage among the families of the client-rulers to cement peace and to assist him in governing the Roman Empire. [15] Roman Client King of Judea Herod the Great, reorganised his alliances, though usually he married his sons or daughters to other relatives in his family or to Jews. [16] However with his son Alexander (Herod’s first child with his wife Mariamne), Herod wanted to marry Alexander to a gentile princess. [17] Herod had negotiated with Archelaus a marriage alliance between their kingdoms and families. [18] Either in 18 BC or 17 BC, in Herod’s court in Jerusalem, Glaphyra married Alexander. [19] Archelaus gave as a wedding present to her daughter a dowry, which Herod later returned to her. [20] The union of Alexander and Glaphyra was a happy marriage and when she married Alexander she didn’t encounter any opposition. [21] Glaphyra became a Jew upon marriage into Herod’s family and she did adopt Judaism even though no mention of conversion was made in the account of her first marriage. [22] Glaphyra bore Alexander three children, two sons: Tigranes [23], Alexander [24] and the last child was an unnamed daughter. [25] The names that Glaphyra and Alexander gave their children are a reflection of their cultural ancestry and royal descent.

At the court of Jerusalem, Glaphyra made a nuisance of herself by genealogical pretentiousness, parading her ancestors on the paternal side the monarchs of Macedonia, on the maternal side of Persia. [26] She taunted Salome and Herod’s wives about their low birth. Glaphyra’s attitude towards Berenice was insolent, as she regarded Berenice ‘with indignation’. Berenice and Glaphyra were equally ranked. [27] This led Aristobulus IV to make a comparison to Berenice while he had married her as a ‘woman of the people’. [28] This caused Salome to spread a rumor that Herod was ‘smitten with love for Glaphyra and that his passion was difficult to assuage. [29] This anger her husband and worsened Alexander’s relationship with his father. [30] The women in Herod’s court grew to hate Glaphyra and Alexander, thus the couple became unpopular. [31] Due to Glaphyra’s unpopularity led to rumors about Alexander and Aristobulus IV, ending with Herod’s beliefs that Alexander and his brother were plotting against him. [32]

With Augustus’ permission, Herod tried and killed Alexander and Aristobulus IV in 7 BC. Herod had questioned Glaphyra to test her loyalty to him. [33] After the burials of Alexander and Aristobulus IV, Herod acted in an extreme and brutal manner returning Glaphyra to Cappadocia, forcing her to leave her children under the sole custody of Herod in Jerusalem. Glaphyra’s children remained under Herod’s guardianship so he could be able to control their fates. [34] After Glaphyra returned to Cappadocia it didn’t rupture the friendly relations between the two client kingdoms.

[edit] Life after Alexander & Second MarriageWhen Glaphyra returned to Cappadocia, she lived with her father and brother. Herod died in 4 BC in Jericho. [35] After the death of Herod, her children decided to leave Jerusalem and to live in Cappadocia with Glaphyra and her family. After her children arrived in Cappadocia, they disinherited their Jewish descent, deserted their Jewish religion and embraced their Greek heritage, including the religion. [36] Her and her children’s family connections with the Herodian Dynasty were not wholly broken.

Between 2 BC-2, the African Roman Client King Juba II of Mauretania, accompanied Gaius Caesar (one of Augustus’ grandsons) as a member of his advisory staff as they travelled to the Eastern Mediterranean. It was during this period Glaphyra met Juba II. [37] Later they fell in love and Glaphyra married Juba II [38] as her second husband in the year 7. For Juba II this was his second marriage[39], as he was previously widowed in the year 6, by his first wife Queen of Mauretania, Cleopatra Selene II.

Through marriage, Glaphyra became Queen of Mauretania. Their marriage was brief as according to archaeological evidence, there is no trace of Glaphyra’s name in North African inscriptions. [40] However her union with Juba II lasted long enough to be given an honorific inscription by the Athenians [41] as shown below in Greek and translated in English:

? ß???? ?a? [? d]?µ?? [?]as???ssa? [G??f??a?] ßas????[?] ???????? ???[at??a], ßas????? ??ß[?] ???a??[a ??e]t?? ??[e]?a.
The Boule and Demos honors Queen Glaphyra daughter of King Archelaus and wife of King Juba on the account of her virtue.
[edit] Third MarriageIn her second marriage, she became reacquainted and fell in love with the Roman Ethnarch of Samaria, Judea and Edom, Herod Archelaus. [42] Herod Archelaus was a half-brother to her first husband and was another son to Herod the Great from his wife Malthace. [43] Herod Archelaus was so smitten with Glaphyra, he married her. [44] For Herod Archelaus and Glaphyra to marry; Glaphyra divorced Juba II[45] and Herod Archelaus divorced his first wife, who was his cousin Mariamne. [46]

The marriage of Glaphyra and Herod Archelaus took place in the time Herod Archelaus was an Ethnarch. [47] Glaphyra left Mauretania to travel to Judea to marry Herod Archelaus. After Glaphyra arrived in Judea and married Herod Archelaus, their marriage was considered immoral by the Jews and caused a major religious scandal in Jerusalem. [48] Their marriage was a complete violation of Jewish laws of levirate marriage[49] and the Jews consider a wife to marry a former brother-in-law immoral.

The marriage of Glaphyra and Herod Archelaus unfortunately didn’t have a happy ending. Shortly after Glaphyra and Herod Archelaus married, Glaphyra had a dream which her first husband stood at her side and reproached her for not being faithful to him. She had not only made a second marriage but had even come back and married her brother-in-law. In the dream, Alexander said to Glaphyra he would now reclaim her as his own. She told her friends about the dream and died two days later. [50]

About the time of Glaphyra’s death, Augustus removed Herod Archelaus from his political position, because of his cruelty and was banished to Vienne in Gaul. [51] Its uncertain if Glaphyra died before or during the exile of Herod Archelaus. [52] The death of Glaphyra, doubtless brought sorrow to many and at least in the women of the Judean Court joy to some. [53].

Hasmonean (died 29 BCE) was the second wife of Herod the Great. She was known for her great beauty, as was her brother Aristobulus. Ultimately this was the main reason for the downfall of the Hasmonean dynasty of Judea.

Her name is spelled ?a???µ? (Mariame) by Josephus, but in some editions of his work the second m is doubled (Mariamme). In later copies of those editions the spelling was dissimilated to its now most common form, Mariamne. In Hebrew, Mariamne is known as ???????, (Miriam), as in the traditional, Biblical name (see Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron).
She was the daughter of the Hasmonean Alexandros, and thus one of the last heirs to the Hasmonean dynasty of Judea.[1] Her mother, Alexandra, arranged for her betrothal to Herod in 41 BCE, but the two were not wed for four years, in Samaria. Mariamne bore Herod four children: two sons, Alexandros and Aristobulus (both executed in 7 BCE), and two daughters, Salampsio and Cypros. Mariamne's only sibling was Aristobulus III of Judea. Her father, Alexander of Judaea, the son of Aristobulus II, married his cousin Alexandra, daughter of his uncle Hyrcanus II, in order to cement the line of inheritance from Hyrcanus and Aristobulus, but the inheritance soon continued the blood feud of previous generations, and eventually led to the downfall of the Hasmonean line. By virtue of her parents' union, Mariamne claimed Hasmonean royalty on both sides of her family lineage.

Josephus writes that it was because of Mariamne's vehement insistence that Herod made her brother, Aristobulos, High Priest. Aristobulos, who was not even eighteen, drowned within a year of his appointment; Alexandra, his mother, blamed Herod. Alexandra wrote to Cleopatra, begging her assistance in avenging the boy's murder. Cleopatra in turn urged Marc Antony to punish Herod for the crime and Antony sent for him to make his defense. Herod left his young wife in the care of his uncle Joseph, along with the instructions that if Antony should kill him, Joseph should kill Mariamne. Herod believed his wife to be so beautiful that she would become engaged to another man after his death and that his great love for Mariamne prevented him from enduring a separation from her, even in death. Joseph became familiar with the Queen and eventually divulged this information to her and the other women of the household, which did not have the hoped-for effect of proving Herod's devotion to his wife. Rumors soon circulated that Herod had been killed by Antony, and Alexandra persuaded Joseph to take Mariamne and her to the Roman legions for protection. However, Herod was released by Antony and returned home, only to be informed of Alexandra's plan by his mother and sister, Salome. Salome also accused Mariamne of committing adultery with Joseph, a charge which Herod initially dismissed after discussing it with his wife. After Herod forgave her, Mariamne inquired about the order given to Joseph to kill her should Herod be killed, and Herod then became convinced of her infidelity, saying that Joseph would only have confided that to her were the two of them intimate. He gave orders for Joseph to be executed and for Alexandra to be confined, but did not punish his wife.

Because of this conflict between Mariamne and Salome, when Herod visited Augustus in Rhodes, he separated the women – he left his sister and his sons in Masada while he moved his wife and mother-in-law, Alexandra, to Alexandrium. Again, Herod left instructions that should he die, the charge of the government was to be left to Salome and his sons, and Mariamne and her mother were to be killed. Mariamne and Alexandra were left in the charge of another man named Sohemus, and after gaining his trust again learned of the instructions Herod provided should harm befall him. Mariamne became convinced that Herod did not truly love her and resented that he would not let her survive him. When Herod returned home, Mariamne treated him coldly and did not conceal her hatred for him. Salome and her mother preyed on this opportunity, feeding Herod false information to fuel his dislike. Herod still favored her; but she refused to have sexual relations with him and accused him of killing her grandfather, Hyrcanus II, and her brother. Salome insinuated that Mariamne planned to poison Herod, and Herod had Mariamne's favorite eunuch tortured to learn more. The eunuch knew nothing of a plot to poison the king, but confessed the only thing he did know: that Mariamne was dissatisfied with the king because of the orders given to Sohemus. Outraged, Herod called for the immediate execution of Sohemus, but permitted Mariamne to stand trial for the alleged murder plot. To gain favor with Herod, Mariamne's mother even implied Mariamne was plotting to commit lèse majesté. Mariamne was ultimately convicted and executed in 29 BCE. Herod grieved for her for many months.

[edit] Talmudic LegendsThere is a Talmudic legend concerning the marriage and death of Mariamne, although her name is not mentioned. It is to the effect that when the whole house of the Hasmoneans had been rooted out, she threw herself from the roof and was killed (B. B. 3b). Out of love for her, Herod is said to have kept her body preserved in honey for seven years (ib.; S. Geiger, in "O?ar Ne?mad," iii. 1). In the Talmud this sort of mental derangement is called a "deed of Herod" (Sanh. 66b). Josephus relates also that after her death Herod tried in hunting and banqueting to forget his loss, but that even his strong nature succumbed and he fell ill in Samaria, where he had made Mariamne his wife ("Ant." xv. 7, § 7). The Mariamne tower in Jerusalem, built by Herod, was without doubt named after her; it was called also "Queen."

Antipater I the Idumaean (died 43 BC) was the founder of the Herodian Dynasty and father of Herod the Great. According to Africanus and Epiphanius, he was the son of Herod (I) of Ascalon[citation needed]. According to Josephus, he was the son of Antipas (I)[citation needed].

A native of Idumaea, southeast of Judea between the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba, and which during the time of the Hebrew Bible had been known as the land of Edom, Antipater became a powerful official under the later Hasmonean kings and subsequently became a client of the Roman general Pompey the Great when Pompey conquered Judea in the name of Roman Republic.

When Julius Caesar defeated Pompey, Antipater aided Caesar in Alexandria, and was made chief minister of Judea, with the right to collect taxes. Antipater eventually made his sons Phasael and Herod the Governors of Jerusalem and Galilee respectively. After the assassination of Caesar, Antipater was forced to side with Gaius Cassius Longinus against Mark Antony. The pro-Roman politics of Antipater led to his increasing unpopularity among the devout, non-Hellenized Jews. He died by poison.

The diplomacy and artful politics of Antipater, as well as his insinuation into the Hasmonean court, paved the way for the rise of his son Herod the Great, who used this position to marry the Hasmonean princess Mariamne, endear himself to Rome and become king of Judea under Roman influence.

Antipater was married to Cypros, a Nabataean noblewoman[citation needed]. They had four sons: Phasael, Herod, Joseph, and Pheroras, and a daughter, Salome, one of several Salomes among the Herodians. Antipater was a wealthy man, and was favored by his fellow Idumeans. Josephus – from whom the details of Judean politics in this period are derived – described him as seditious in his nature.

The Idumeans had been forcibly converted to Judaism by the Sadducee-influenced Hasmonean leader John Hyrcanus. Forcible conversion was not recognized by Pharisaic tradition, so even though Antipater and Herod the Great may have considered themselves of the Jewish faith, they were not considered Jewish by the observant and nationalist Jews of Judea, and were resented for their Edomite ancestry, their Hellenized culture, and their collusion with the Roman invaders.

[edit] Activity in the Hasmonean courtAntipater laid the foundation for Herod's ascension to the throne of Judea partly through his activities in the court of the Hasmoneans, the heirs of the Maccabees, who were the hereditary leaders of the Jews, and partly by currying favor with the Romans, who made him the first Roman Procurator of Judaea.

Antipater insinuated himself into the party of Hyrcanus II in his contest for power with his brother Aristobulus II; both were Hasmonean princes. Their father, Alexander, had made Antipater general of all of Judea, for he had a rapport with the Arabians. Hyrcanus succeeded his mother as ruler, but bowed out in favor of his younger brother, Aristobulus. But Antipater continued to support Hyrcanus, and he advised Hyrcanus to put himself under the protection of the Arabian King Aretas III in Petra. Together they would attack Aristobulus in Jerusalem. Pompey put down the trouble, and made Hyrcanus the ethnarch of Judea. Antipater remained in charge of affairs of the state.

The Roman province of Judea in Syria was split, and Idumaea was eventually given to Antipater to govern. These divisions would later be seats of power for the Herodean descendants of Antipater. When Caesar defeated Pompey, Antipater aided Caesar in Alexandria, and was made chief minister of Judea, with the right to collect taxes. Antipater eventually made his son, Phasael, governor of Jerusalem, and Herod became governor of Galilee. After the assassination of Caesar, Antipater was forced to side with Cassius against Mark Antony. The pro-Roman politics of Antipater led to his increasing unpopularity among the devout, non-Hellenized Jews, and he was poisoned.

The diplomacy and artful politics of Antipater, as well as his insinuation into the Hasmonean court, paved the way for the rise of his son Herod the Great, who used this position to marry the Hasmonean princess Mariamne, endear himself to Rome, and usurp the Judean throne, to become king of Judea under Roman influence.