Cyrus and the Achaemenids

Abstract

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. British Institute of Persian Studies is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Iran.Understanding of early Achaemenid history has undergone significant changes in recent scholarship. Recent research has emphasised the familial distinction between Cyrus the Great and Darius I, and it has become difficult to give credence to the traditional, modem reconstruction of Darius' kinship claims that implies a dual descent from Achaemenes via Teispes: one line to Cyrus and the other to Darius. With Cyrus' inscriptions at Pasargadae demonstrated as spurious, and the "Achaemenid dynasty" demonstrated as Darius' creation ex nihilo, the relationship between Darius and his predecessors requires a new assessment.Darius has been viewed as an unabashed liar, despite the consistent antipathy toward the Lie (Old Persian drauga) emphasised in his royal inscriptions. As typical of the genre of royal apologia, the truth therein reflects the truth as the sovereign portrayed it, with historical accuracy, as we would define it, not a priority. It was certainly not beyond Darius to fabricate a connection to his royal predecessors where none existed. But, to put it somewhat paradoxically, is Darius' mendacity so straightforward? Put another way, may any of Darius' genealogical claims be salvaged by careful consideration of his imperial rhetoric and other ancient sources?This article supposes a negative answer to the first question and a positive one to the second. To find a link between the lines of Cyrus and Darius one need look no further than Cassandane, wife of Cyrus and daughter of Pharnaspes the Achaemenid (Hdt. III.2). Acceptance of Herodotus' account of the marriage of Cyrus and Cassandane, the evidence for which will be discussed below, serves as the foundation of this article's assertions. ' In order to appreciate the historical ramifications of this union, one must not only differentiate the dynastic lines of Cyrus and Darius but also examine the ideological import of Darius' use of the label "Achaemenid". Darius placed great emphasis on being an Achaemenid, i.e., descended from his eponymous ancestor, Achaemenes. Achaemenes is first mentioned in the Bisitun Inscription, wherein Darius traced his lineage to him through four generations: "Darius the king proclaims: My father is Hystaspes, the father of Hystaspes is Arsames, the father of Arsames was Ariaramnes, the father of Ariaramnes was Teispes, the father of Teispes was Achaemenes. Darius the king proclaims: For this reason we are called 'Achaemenids'.'"2 This lineal descent, in subsequent inscriptions, became simply "Achaemenid" (i.e., minus the full genealogical progression), used as a dynastic marker. This Ach...

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