Kingdom of Elymais

Origins

Elymais (from Elam) covered the mountains of eastern Khuzestan and, at times, the plain of Susa. Its people resisted the Seleucid Empire: Antiochus III was killed in 187 BCE while plundering a temple of Bel there. Around 147 BCE a local ruler, Kamnaskires I, took Susa and issued coins as king.

Rule and society

Elymais mixed Iranian, Mesopotamian and Greek traditions, worshipping Bel, Nanaya and Artemis at rich temples. Its kings, often called Kamnaskires or later Orodes, minted bronze coins and ruled as vassals of the Parthian Empire, sometimes in revolt. Rock reliefs at Hung-e Azhdar, Tang-e Sarvak and Hung-e Kamalvand show rulers and nobles in Parthian dress, and the bronze statue from Shami belongs to this world.

Decline and legacy

Ardashir I of the Sasanian Empire conquered Elymais around 221 CE, ending the dynasty. Its lands became part of the Sasanian province of Khuzestan.

Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.