Traveler’s Log:
Heading to the north and west of the Caspian gates, the traveler finds himself in the footsteps of Alexandros himself! On the southern shores of the great inland sea, which stretches north toward the domain of Amazons, lays the land from which the sea derives its name. Hyrkania is a land of wondrous fertility, one the Persikoi claim is blessed by Ahura-Mazda himself. Verily, it is unlike any other land in the entire world! There are great forests here, a sight most uncommon in this part of the world. In fact some compare them to the forests of far off India, though these men should know that Hyrkania is famous for its oak and pine, not the firs or pitch pines of that distant land. There also abound many dangerous and exotic beasts here. The Hyrkanian tiger is known to the traveler from far off, but it is a more common and dangerous sight to see packs of wolves nearby. In fact, the Persikoi even gave this land the name Verkâna, “land of wolves.” The traveler through this land should beware, for they have no fear of men and often grow to the size of a horse! Passing eastwards the traveler finds themselves coming upon more arid regions as you move from the foothills of the Alburz. This is a land known to the horsemen from the north, fierce and cunning. It would not do well to journey alone here, as these tribes often fall upon the unwary traveler as a human wolf upon its prey.
Geography:
The ancient province of Hyrkania roughly equates to the modern regions of Gorgan, Golestan, Mazandaran, Gilan, and Ardabil in Iran. It is home to one of the more diverse ecosystems on Earth, featuring mountains, subtropical forests, and desert. The climate of the land itself is defined by the geographical features which surround it; by the Elburz Mountains, which stretch across its southern border from the Caspian Gates towards the east, and the Caspian Sea which creates a northern boundary. The mountains themselves buffer Hyrkania from the arid regions to the south and the rainfall off of these same peaks creates suitable land for farming throughout much of the territory. Some notable rivers running through the province include the Mardos, the Sarneius, the Socanaa, the Syderis, the Maxera, and the Ochus, which ancient writers noted as one of the main rivers to water the Caspian Sea. Hundreds of smaller rivers run down from the mountains towards the Caspian, though some of these are seasonal, as more rainfall is received in the spring, fall, and winter months. The subtropical regions of Hyrkania, located in the foothills and moderate elevations of the Elburz, are populated by oak, poplar, date-plum, and beech trees in great number. As the elevation slopes downwards, alluvial plains dotted with oaks and wildflowers dominate the countryside, many of which gave rise to towns and cities in the Achaemenid and Hellenistic periods. The grasslands themselves were famous for their grape vines, figs, and wheat which grew in great abundance and often produced a surplus.
The eastern stretches of Hyrkania are remarkable for their transition from subtropical forests in the highlands and a descent into desert as the elevation drops. Unlike most of the district, rainfall is relatively light in the south-eastern corner of the Caspian leading to arid summers and mild winters. The vegetation here is typical of dry steppe, with forests replaced by shrub and grasslands.
Hyrkania is also a region with a wide variety of fauna. The famed Hyrkanian Tiger is now extinct, but was well known to writers such as Livy, who used it to denote fierceness in the Aenead. Panthers and Persian leopards are likewise native to Hyrkania, but perhaps the most iconic is the wolf, from which the region derived its name. Verkâna in Old Persian means “Land of Wolves” and Hyrkania is a Greek derivative of this name. Smaller denizens include bees, said to have produced sweet honey in such great quantities that it quite literally dripped from the trees, jackals, wild boar, lynx, otters, and numerous water fowl.
The People, Society and Government:
Human habitation of the area along the southern Caspian Sea dates back at least 50,000 years. The earliest communities were mainly pastoral, with permanent settlements few and far between who would eventually coalesce into tribal identities. There is substantial proof of widespread Bronze Age settlement of Hyrkania, with the archeological evidence pointing towards a uniquely Iranian culture. The archeological record leaves traces of what appears to have been a flourishing culture; tombs contain intricately crafted gold, silver and bronze artifacts along with pottery native to the region, often with long spouts. The most common figure which appears in these tombs is the humped bull, though figures of humans, stags, boars and rams are also widespread. A great number of these tombs seem to belong to warriors, due to the proliferation of weapons they were buried with. The majority of these are made of bronze though the presence of arms of iron in several tombs indicates that this civilization lasted at least into the early Iron Age.
The people of Hyrkania were, according to writers such as Strabo, as varied as the geography of the country. The main tribes of the country include the Gelae, the Amardi, the Vitii, the Anariacae, the Hyrkani, and most prominent of all the Cadusii. According to Strabo, the Cadusii occupy the greater portion of the lowlands surrounding the Caspian Sea for a distance of nearly five thousand stadia from Media into Hyrkania. Of the Cadusii it is said they are excellent mountaineers and javelin-throwers. Those tribes who resided in the mountainous regions of Hyrkania were renowned for being predatory and fiercely independent while those who lived along the Caspian Sea were considered more compliant. There are also traces of Hellenes living along the sea, possibly as colonists settled either by the Persians or by Alexander and his successors. Strabo mentions a city called Aeniana located within the territory of the Vitii where Greek armor and bronze amphora are to be found and that there is another town nearby with a Hellenic oracle. Another people placed in Hyrkania were the Tabyri who it appears were named as such since their land was so heavily wooded and the use of such a tool as an axe in clearing the dense forests. Tabyri men were said to practice the custom of giving away their wives in marriage to another husband after they had secured multiple children by them. Strabo makes note of another unique custom of the Hyrkanians, where revelers gather near larger rivers where the water rushes down from higher places. They will seek out recesses behind the waterfalls and in here worship their gods and recline during the warmer months in the sunlight filtering through the water.
History:
Hyrkania first enters recorded history when, according to Xenophon, they were one of the people subdued by the Assyrians. We next hear of Hyrkania from the Behistun Inscription which mentions them as one of the conquered peoples of the Achaemenids. It is likely that the region was incorporated sometime during the rule of Cyrus the Great but since the Behistun Inscription dates from the reign of Darius, it is impossible to discern if it was indeed integrated during the reign of Cyrus or of Cambyses. Hyrkania was one of the regions which saw fit to rebel against Achamenid authority after the ascension of Darius to the throne. They joined their neighboring province Parthia in siding with the Median ruler Phraortes who had set himself up as king as various parts of the Achaemenid Empire broke away. After Phraortes’ defeat it appears Hyrkania was re-integrated by Darius. Next we know that Hyrkanians made up a considerable detachment of the Persian force which invaded Hellas under Xerxes as Herodotus makes mention of them in his list of the peoples which constituted this force.
In 423 BCE a satrap of Hyrkania named Ochus, who may have been an illegitimate son of Artaxerxes I, rebelled against his brother Sogdianus who had in turn, murdered his older brother Xerxes II after he had ascended to the throne. Ochus assumed the kingship of Persia and renamed himself Darius II. After these events, Hyrkania again fades from history until the coming of Alexandros in the 4th century BCE.
Hyrkanians are mentioned again as part of the force which opposed Alexander at Gaugamela. After the final defeat and subsequent murder of Darius III by Bessus in 330 BCE, Alexander marched to Hyrkania where a large contingent of Persian nobility had fled, hoping to receive their surrender but also to continue his pursuits of Bessus as well as a group of Greek mercenaries who had fought on the side of Darius. Shortly after entering Hyrkania, Alexander was met by Nabarzanes, one of Darius’ most loyal advisors, and Phrataphernes, the satrap of Hyrkania and Parthia, where both men yielded to the invader. Phrataphernes was then reinstituted as satrap of Hyrkania and Parthia under the new Makedonian dynasty. Alexander then marched to Zadrakarta, the capital of Hyrkania although he was harassed en route by the various mountain tribes of the region. After spending some time in Zadrakarta, Alexander marched against the Mardians and subjugated them before accepting the surrender of the Hellenic mercenaries of Darius and absorbing them into his own army. It seems that while he was in Hyrkania, Alexander also placed under arrest several Lakedaemonian ambassadors who had traveled east seeking Persian assistance should they possibly seek to challenge Makedonian hegemony in Hellas.
After Alexander’s death, Phrataphernes seems to have retained his position for at least several years before he was displaced by a Macedonian named Philip in 321 BCE who was himself killed by Pithon, the satrap of Media in 318 and replaced with Eudames. During the wars of the Diadochi, Hyrkania was brought into the fold of the Seleukid Empire by Seleucus I, though when and whether with force or through diplomatic means is unknown. The next important figure associated with Hyrkania is the satrap Andragoras who was ruler of both Parthia and Hyrkania under the Seleukids. An inscription recording the manumission of a slave in a temple dedicated to Serapis reveals that Andragoras was satrap during the reign of Antiochus I and he was still in place after the death of Antiochus II in 247 BCE. The successor to Antiochus was Seleucus II who was soon embroiled in both the Third Syrian War with the Ptolemies as well as a war against the pretender Antiochus Hierax. When Antioch itself was captured by Ptolemy III, Andragoras rebelled against Seleucid authority, declaring independence for the joint satrapy of Parthia and Hyrkania. This move may have seemed opportunistic but its root cause may have been similar to that of Baktria’s. Seleucid authority was never as strong in the eastern provinces of the empire as it was in the heartlands of Syria, Babylon and Asia Minor and it seems that pressure from nomadic tribes may have provoked this declaration from the veteran satrap. Nevertheless, Andragoras began minting coins in his image for some time until a new disaster befell the region. A sub-group of the nomadic Dahae confederacy, the Parni under Arsaces I, began moving south, possibly due to pressures from other nomadic peoples. They took Andragoras by surprise and were able to kill him in battle and take control of the satrapy. This began Pahlava control of Hyrkania though it is unclear as to how strong of a grip the Arsacids were able to maintain in the region. What is known is that Seleucus II mounted an expedition eastwards after consolidating his realm and campaigned against the Parni who were beginning to identify themselves as “Parthian.” The details of the campaign are unknown with sources disagreeing on whether it was the Parni or the Seleukids who gained the upper hand but eventually the forces of Arsaces were able to reconsolidate control over Hyrkania.
It was this situation which existed when Antiochus III came into power on the Syrian throne. Seeking to re-establish Seleukid authority over the upper satrapies, Antiochus began his anabasis by marching against the rebellious Parni who now controlled Hyrkania and Parthia. Antiochus captured the capital of Parthia at Hekatompylos and then moved north into Hyrkania where he was met with greater resistance at Mount Labus. Overcoming this, the Seleukids were able reach the fortified city of Syrinx (likely a Greek nickname for Zadrakata) and lay siege to it. The city would eventually fall to Antiochus and he would conclude a treaty with the Parni which allowed for Arsacid rule of Hyrkania and Parthia but as vassals kings of the Seleukids. Under Phraates I who came to power in 176 BCE the Parthians would reassert their independence and Hyrkania was never to be considered again part of the Arche Seleukia. The natural beauty of Hyrkania would attract the independent Arsacid rulers and at some point, the Shahanshah would use the region as a royal retreat. After the unsuccessful attempt to reconquer Babylonia in 140 BCE by the Seleukid Demetrius II Nicator, the captured Basileus was brought before Mithradates I at his royal residence in Hyrkania where he was treated kindly and even offered the daughter of Mithradates in marriage. Hyrkania was now considered one of the core provinces of the Arsacid Parthian Empire but its rule was not entirely uncontested. It is believed that the earliest formations of the Wall of Alexander, also known as the Great Wall of Gorgan on the eastern border of Hyrkania, had their origins in this period as waves of nomadic Saka challenged Parthian authority in their northern possessions and likely raided into Hyrkania as the Parni themselves had done several centuries earlier. Hyrkania would later shelter the deposed Parthian kings Artabanus III and Gotarzes during a long period of civil strife in the early part of the first century AD. In 59 AD Hyrkania declared outright independence from Arsacid rule and sought alliance with Rome, though it was eventually brought back into the fold as a Parthian possession.
Strategy:
Hyrkania is a rich province, one with many resources a strong ruler might desire. Besides the wealth of the region, its position on the southern shores of the Hyrkanian Sea is also strategically important for a ruler from either east or west. The road through Hyrkania is the surest and quickest path for a Seleukid army to reinforce the upper satrapies but it also a tempting target for the nomadic raiders of the Pahlava.
Re: Regional Descriptions: Help the EBII Team
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