Arsacid dynasty

Arsacid dynasty

(247 BC–AD 224) Persian dynasty. It was founded by Arsaces (r. c. 250–211? BC) of the Parni tribe, which originally dwelt east of the Caspian Sea and entered Parthia after the death of Alexander the Great (323 BC), gradually extending control southward. Arsacid power reached its peak under Mithradates I (r. 171–138 BC). The government was influenced by that of the Seleucid dynasty and tolerated the formation of vassal kingdoms. The dynasty legitimized its rule over former Achaemenian territories by claiming descent from the Achaemenian king Artaxerxes II. It controlled trade routes between Asia and the Greco-Roman world and used its resultant wealth to erect many buildings. The dynasty was overthrown in 224 by the Sasanian dynasty.