Decree of Dionysopolis
Encyclopedia
The Decree of Dionysopolis was written around 48 BC by the citizens of Dionysopolis (today's Balchik
, on the Black Sea
coast of Bulgaria
) to Akornion
, who traveled far away in a diplomatic mission to meet somebody's farther in Argedauon. The decree, a fragmentary marble inscription, is presently located in the National Historical Museum
in Sofia
.
or Argedava
.
The stone is damaged and name was read differently by various editors and scholars:
The inscription also refers to the Dacian king Burebista
, and one interpretation is that Akornion was his chief adviser in Dionysopolis. Other sources indicate that Akornion was sent as an ambassador of Burebista to Pompey
, to discuss an alliance against Julius Caesar
.
This leads to the assumption that the mentioned Argedava was Burebista's capital of the Dacian kingdom. This source unfortunately doesn't mention the location of Argedava and historians opinions are split in two groups.
One school of thought, led by historians Constantin Daicoviciu
and Hadrian Daicoviciu, assume the inscription talks about Argidava and place the potential capital of Burebista at Vărădia
, Caraş-Severin County
, Romania
. The forms Argidava and Arcidava found in other ancient sources like Ptolemy
's Geographia (c. 150 AD) and Tabula Peutingeriana
(2nd century AD), clearly place a Dacian town with those names at this geographical location. The site is also close to Sarmizegetusa
, a later Dacian capital.
Others, led by historian Vasile Pârvan
and professor Radu Vulpe place Argedava at Popeşti, a district in the town of Mihăileşti
, Giurgiu County
, Romania. Arguments include the name connection with the Argeş River
, geographical position on a potential road to Dionysopolis which Akornion followed, and most importantly the size of the archaeological discovery at Popeşti that hints to a royal palace. However no other sources seem to name the dava
discovered at Popeşti, so no exact assumptions can be made about its Dacian name.
It is also quite possible for the two different davae to be just homonyms.
Unfortunately, the marble inscription is damaged in many areas, including right before the word Argedauon, and it is possible the original word could have been Sargedauon or Zargedauon. This form could potentially be linked to Zargidaua mentioned by Ptolemy
at a different geographical location. Or again, these two could be simple homonyms.
Balchik
Balchik is a Black Sea coastal town and seaside resort in the Southern Dobruja area of northeastern Bulgaria. It is located in Dobrich Oblast and is 42 km northeast of Varna...
, on the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
coast of Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) to Akornion
Akornion
Akornion was an important citizen of the Ionian Greek colony of Dionysopolis .He is mentioned in the Decree of Dionysopolis, written around 48 BC by the citizens of the polis...
, who traveled far away in a diplomatic mission to meet somebody's farther in Argedauon. The decree, a fragmentary marble inscription, is presently located in the National Historical Museum
National Historical Museum (Bulgaria)
The National Historical Museum in Sofia is Bulgaria's largest museum. It was founded on 5 May 1973 and its first representative exposition was opened in 1984 to commemorate 1300 years of Bulgarian history...
in Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
.
Inscription
The decree mentions a Dacian town named Argedauon , potentially ArgidavaArgidava
Argidava is a genus of moth in the family Geometridae.-References:*...
or Argedava
Argedava
Argedava was an important Dacian town mentioned in the Decree of Dionysopolis , and potentially located at Popeşti, a district in the town of Mihăileşti, Giurgiu County, Romania.- Decree of Dionysopolis :This decree was written by the citizens of Dionysopolis to Akornion, who traveled far away in a...
.
The stone is damaged and name was read differently by various editors and scholars:
- [ἐπορεύθη εἰς] Ἀργέδα[υι]ον by Wilhelm Dittenberger (1898)
- [πέμψας?] Αρ[γ]έδα[ρ]ον by Ernst Kalinka (1905)
- [...εἰ]ς Ἀργέδαυον by Wilhelm Dittenberger and Friedrich Hiller (1917), noting that the υ is an uncertain reading
- Ἀργέδαβον by Vasile Pârvan (1923)
The inscription also refers to the Dacian king Burebista
Burebista
Burebista was a king of the Getae and Dacians, who unified for the first time their tribes and ruled them between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led plunder and conquest raids across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes...
, and one interpretation is that Akornion was his chief adviser in Dionysopolis. Other sources indicate that Akornion was sent as an ambassador of Burebista to Pompey
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey or Pompey the Great , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
, to discuss an alliance against Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
.
This leads to the assumption that the mentioned Argedava was Burebista's capital of the Dacian kingdom. This source unfortunately doesn't mention the location of Argedava and historians opinions are split in two groups.
One school of thought, led by historians Constantin Daicoviciu
Constantin Daicoviciu
Constantin Daicoviciu – May 27, 1973) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian historian and archaeologist.He was rector of Babeş-Bolyai University, and a member of the Romanian Academy....
and Hadrian Daicoviciu, assume the inscription talks about Argidava and place the potential capital of Burebista at Vărădia
Varadia
Vărădia is a commune in Caraş-Severin County, in the west of Romania. It is composed of two villages, Mercina and Vărădia.It is located near the border with Serbia, on the Caraş River....
, Caraş-Severin County
Caras-Severin County
Caraș-Severin is a county of Romania, in the historical region of Banat and few villages in Transylvania, with the county seat at Reșița.-Demographics:The county is part of the Danube-Kris-Mureș-Tisza euroregion....
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. The forms Argidava and Arcidava found in other ancient sources like Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
's Geographia (c. 150 AD) and Tabula Peutingeriana
Tabula Peutingeriana
The Tabula Peutingeriana is an itinerarium showing the cursus publicus, the road network in the Roman Empire. The original map of which this is a unique copy was last revised in the fourth or early fifth century. It covers Europe, parts of Asia and North Africa...
(2nd century AD), clearly place a Dacian town with those names at this geographical location. The site is also close to Sarmizegetusa
Sarmizegetusa
Sarmizegetusa Regia was the capital and the most important military, religious and political center of Dacians...
, a later Dacian capital.
Others, led by historian Vasile Pârvan
Vasile Pârvan
Vasile Pârvan was a Romanian historian and archaeologist.He studied history in Bucharest, with Nicolae Iorga as one of his professors. He continued his studies in Germany. His Ph.D. thesis, written in 1909, was titled The nationality of merchants in the Roman Empire...
and professor Radu Vulpe place Argedava at Popeşti, a district in the town of Mihăileşti
Mihailesti
Mihăileşti is a town located in Giurgiu County, Romania. It administers three villages: Drăgănescu, Novaci and Popeşti.Popeşti village is the location of an important archeological discovery: a large Dacian settlement believed by some historians such as Vasile Pârvan and professor Radu Vulpe to be...
, Giurgiu County
Giurgiu County
Giurgiu is a county of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Giurgiu.- Demographics :In 2002, it had a population of 297,859 and the population density was 84/km².* Romanians – over 96%* Roma – 3.5%, and others.- Geography :...
, Romania. Arguments include the name connection with the Argeş River
Arges River
Argeș is a river of Southern Romania. It starts at the junction of headwaters Buda and Capra in the Făgăraș Mountains, in the Southern Carpathians and flows into the Danube at Oltenița.The main city on the Argeş is Piteşti...
, geographical position on a potential road to Dionysopolis which Akornion followed, and most importantly the size of the archaeological discovery at Popeşti that hints to a royal palace. However no other sources seem to name the dava
Dava (Dacian)
Dava is a Geto-Dacian name for a city, town or fortress. Generally, the name indicated a tribal center or an important settlement, usually fortified...
discovered at Popeşti, so no exact assumptions can be made about its Dacian name.
It is also quite possible for the two different davae to be just homonyms.
Unfortunately, the marble inscription is damaged in many areas, including right before the word Argedauon, and it is possible the original word could have been Sargedauon or Zargedauon. This form could potentially be linked to Zargidaua mentioned by Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
at a different geographical location. Or again, these two could be simple homonyms.
See also
- Dionysopolis
- BurebistaBurebistaBurebista was a king of the Getae and Dacians, who unified for the first time their tribes and ruled them between 82 BC and 44 BC. He led plunder and conquest raids across Central and Southeastern Europe, subjugating most of the neighbouring tribes...
- ArgedavaArgedavaArgedava was an important Dacian town mentioned in the Decree of Dionysopolis , and potentially located at Popeşti, a district in the town of Mihăileşti, Giurgiu County, Romania.- Decree of Dionysopolis :This decree was written by the citizens of Dionysopolis to Akornion, who traveled far away in a...
- ArgidavaArgidavaArgidava is a genus of moth in the family Geometridae.-References:*...
- DaciaDaciaIn ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
- List of ancient cities in Thrace and Dacia
External links
- Searchable Greek Inscriptions at The Packard Humanities Institute (PHI) - Argedava segment from Decree of Dionysopolis reviewed in Inscriptiones graecae in Bulgaria repertae by Georgi Mihailov
- A fost Argedava (Popesti) resedinta statului geto-dac condus de Burebista? - Article in Informatia de Giurgiu (Romanian)