Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/742

Rh 730 SAUROMATES. heads of Commodus, Severus, and Caracalla, the latest date being a. d. 210. Plis reign must thus have comprised a period of more than thirty-two years. He was succeeded by Rhescuporis III. The annexed coin has the head of Commodus, with the date 475 (a.d. 180).* COIN OF SAUROMATES III. 4. SAUROMATES IV. was a contemporary of Alexander Severus. His coins bear dates from A. D. 230 to 232. The one annexed has the head of Alexander Severus, and the date 527, or A. d. 231; and it thus appears that his short reign must have intervened between those of Rhescuporis III. and Cotys IV. COIN OF SAUROMATES IV. 5. SAUROMATES V. was a contemporary of the emperor Probus, as we learn from a coin bearing the date of 572 (a. d. 276). He is very probably identical with the following, though Mionnet con- siders him to be distinct. 6. SAUROMATES VI., E contemporary of the emperor Diocletian. No coins are extant of this prince, and our knowledge of his reign is derived solely from Constantine Porphyrogenitus, who informs us that he took advantage of the weakness of the Roman empire to raise a large army among the Sarmatian tribes, with which he invaded Colchis, ravaged that country and the whole of Pontus, and advanced as far as the river Halys. Here, however, he was met by the Roman ge- neral Constantius, who held him in check, while Chrestus, king of Cherson, at the instigation of Diocletian, invaded the kingdom of Bosporus, and actually made himself master of its capital city. Sauromates in consequence found himself obliged to purchase peace and the restitution of his capital, by giving up all his prisoners, as well as aban- doning his conquests. This expedition appears to have taken place in a.d. 291. (Const. Por- phyrog. de Administ. Imper. c. 53, pp. 244 — 249, ed. Bonn.) 7. Sauromates VII., a grandson of the pre- ceding, ascended the throne after the accession of from the Bosporan era, began in the summer, so that the same date would correspond to two calendar years. As Commodus did not reign alone before the spring of a.d. 180, the above coin cannot have been struck previQus to that date. SAXA. Constantine the Great. Being desirous to obli- terate the disgrace incurred by the failure of his grandfather in the above expedition, he assembled an army, and invaded the territory of the Cher- sonites, but was defeated, and compelled to con- clude a treaty, by which he ceded a part of his own dominions. (Const. Porphyrog. I.e. pp. 252, 253.) 8. Sauromates VIII. was the last king of Bosporus. His connection with the preceding is not mentioned. But we learn that he renewed the war with the Chersonites, and the two armies met at a place called Caphae. Here it was agreed to refer the issue of the contest to a single combat between Sauromates and Phamaces, king of Cher- son, in which Sauromates, though greatly superior in strength and stature, was vanquished and slain by his antagonist. From this time the kingdom of Bosporus became subject to the rulers of Cherson. The date of these events is unfortunately unknown to us. (Const. Porphyrog. I. c. pp. 253, 255.) There are no coins extant of any of these three last princes. Concerning the kings of Bosporus, and their coins in general, see Cary, Hist, des Rois du Bosphore Cimmerien, 4to. Paris, 1752 j Eckhel, vol. ii. pp. 373 — 382 ; Dumersan, Descr. des Midailles du Cabinet de M. AUier de Hauterocfie, 4to. Paris, 1829, pp. 63— 66 ; Mionnet, SuppL vol. iv. p. 479, &c. [E. H. B.] SAXA, DECI'DIUS. 1. A native of Celti- beria, was one of Caesar's soldiers, who rose from the ranks to offices of importance and trust. Ac- cording to Cicero, he was originally a land-surveyor, who marked out the ground for the camp, and was not even a Roman citizen (Cic. Phil. xi. 5, xiii. 13). He served under Caesar in Spain, against the legates of Pompey, in B. c. 49, and appears to have remained in that country till the conclusion of the war against the sons of Pompey in B. c. 45, when he came to Rome with Caesar, and was made by the latter tribune of the plebs for the following year. In the troubles following Caesar's death, Saxa took an active part in supporting the friends of his murdered patron. He attached himself to M. Antonius, and served under him as centurion in the siege of Mutina. In B. c. 42, Saxa and Norbanus were sent by Antonius and Octavianus to Macedonia, with eight legions. They took pos- session of the mountain-passes beyond Philippi, in order to stop the march of Brutus and Cassius, but the latter changed their route and arrived safely at Philippi. Saxa and Norbanus now fell back upon Amphipolis, and confined themselves to the defen- sive, as the forces of the enemy far outnumbered their own. After the defeat of Brutus and Cassius Saxa accompanied Antony to the East, and was made by the latter governor of Syria. Soon after his appointment the younger Labienus invaded Syria (b. c. 40), at the head of a powerful Parthian army, and defeated Saxa, who fled from his camp in the course of the same night, fearing that his soldiers would go over to Labienus. He had in- tended to take refuge in Antioch ; but hearing that the important town of Apameia had fallen into the hands of Labienus, he did not venture to go to Antioch, but continued his flight towards Cilicia. He was, however, overtaken by the troops of La- bienus, and put to death by them. One account states that he killed himself to avoid falling into their power. (Caes. B.C. i. 66 ; Cic. Phil. viii. 3, ix. 26, X. 10, xi. 5, xii. 8, xiii. 13, xiv. 4 ; Dioo
 * It must be observed that the years reckoned