Tiberius Julius Aspurgus Philoromaios: Roman Client King of the Bosporan Kingdom

Introduction

Tiberius Julius Aspurgus Philoromaios was a prince and Roman client king of the Bosporan Kingdom, active from the late first century BC into the first half of the first century AD; he died in 37 or 38 AD. His name is of Iranian origin. He was the son of Asander and Dynamis, and a maternal grandson of the Roman client king Pharnaces II and a Sarmatian wife.

Aspurgus became head of the Bosporan domain after the death of his mother, Dynamis, in 7 or 8 CE. His early dynastic context included the 17 BC crisis in which his father Asander died after losing support to the impostor Scribonius, who subsequently married Dynamis and was removed by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa; Agrippa then installed Polemon I of Pontus, who married Dynamis and thus became Aspurgus’ stepfather. Because of these prior conflicts, the Emperor Augustus and the Roman Senate formally recognised Aspurgus as the legitimate Bosporan king only in 14 AD. He received Roman citizenship and the patronage of Augustus and the future emperor Tiberius, adopting the Roman names “Tiberius Julius.” Contemporary sources record little about his internal policies or military actions, but describe him as apparently strong and capable.

Aspurgus married the Thracian princess Gepaepyris and had two sons, Tiberius Julius Mithridates and Tiberius Julius Cotys I. He ruled until his death in 37 or 38 AD; Gepaepyris succeeded him as sole ruler. His principal historical legacy is as a Bosporan monarch who secured dynastic continuity through Roman recognition and patronage and established the Julian-Tiberian nomenclature for his successors.