The city of brotherly love. The language of family affection in the Artaxiad dynasty between the Hellenistic and the Parthian world

At section X.5, the Tabula Peutingeriana shows a settlement called Filadelfijia (Gr. Philadelpheia) located on the road between Artaxata and Ecbatana. According to modern scholarship, the settlement was on the northern shores of Lake Urmia, but its founder is unknown. Historians tentatively suggested Demetrios II of Syria (fijirst reign 145-138 BC) or Artabanos I of Parthia (126-122 BC) as the possible founders because they both had Philadelphos among their royal epithets. However, a significant political act such as the foundation of a settlement in Armenia by one of these monarchs is not convincing when we take a closer look to the geopolitical situation of the area. It is also plausible that the settlement was named Philadelpheia to celebrate the coregency of Tigranes IV and his sister-queen Erato (10-2 BC). The couple was supported by Phraates V of Parthia, who favoured an anti-Roman policy in Armenia. Taking my cue from the foundation of Philadelpheia, I will also analyse the royal titles born by the members of the Artaxiad dynasty in order to understand the place of family in the Artaxiad ideology of kingship and to show the interplay between Armenian, Parthian, and Hellenistic discourses on royal legitimacy based on kinship.