ARSACID DYNASTY

also called Arshakuni (247 BCAD 224), ancient Iranian dynasty that founded and ruled the Parthian empire. The progenitors of the dynasty were members of the Parni tribe living east of the Caspian Sea. They entered Parthia (q.v.) shortly after the death of Alexander the Great (323 BC) and gradually gained control over much of Iran and Mesopotamia until, in AD 224, they were overthrown by the Sasanians, an Iranian dynasty founded by Ardashir I. The first Arsacid to gain power in Parthia was Arsaces (reigned c. 250c. 211 BC), but the Iranian plateau was not conquered in its entirety until the time of Mithradates I (reigned 171138 BC). Two of the dynasty's most powerful rulers were Mithradates II (reigned 12388 BC) and Phraates III (reigned 7058/57 BC). During the time of the Parthian empire the Arsacids claimed descent from the Achaemenian king Artaxerxes II, probably to legitimize their rule over the former Achaemenian territories; in fact, in many of its outward forms the Parthian empire was a revival of Achaemenian rule. The empire's governmental organization, however, was based on that developed by the Hellenistic Seleucids. The Arsacids encouraged the development of Hellenistic cities and tolerated the formation of vassal kingdoms. Because the Arsacids and their vassals controlled almost all the trade routes between Asia and the Greco-Roman world, they became very wealthy, with the result that the Parthian period was one of intense building activity.