Camasarye II Philoctenus: Co-Ruler of the Bosporan Kingdom

Introduction

Camasarye II Philoctenus, also rendered Comosarye, was a Spartocid queen and co-ruler of the Bosporan Kingdom alongside her husband Paerisades III, ruling from 180 to between 160 and 150 BC. She was a daughter of Spartocus V and a granddaughter of Leucon II. After Leucon II’s death Hygiaenon served as Archon until 200 BC; Spartocus V then became king and ruled until 180 BC, at which point Camasarye entered the ruling generation.

Her reign is attested epigraphically; she appears in multiple inscriptions and, together with Paerisades III, was honored at Delphi for the kingdom’s treatment of foreigners. During her rule she used the surname Philotecnus, rendered “children-adoring.” Records place the end of her co-regency by 150 BC, when Paerisades IV succeeded. Camasarye’s principal historical footprint is documentary and epigraphic, reflecting active political presence and external honor rather than surviving extended narrative histories.