Arsacid dynasty of Armenia
The Arsacid dynasty, called the Arshakuni in Armenian, ruled the Kingdom of Armenia, with some interruptions, from 12 to 428. The dynasty was a branch of the Arsacid dynasty of Parthia. Arsacid kings reigned intermittently throughout the chaotic years following the fall of the Artaxiad dynasty until 62, when Tiridates I, brother of Parthian King Vologases I, secured Arsacid rule in Armenia as a client king of Rome. However, he did not succeed in establishing his line on the throne, and various princes of different Arsacid lineages ruled until the accession of Vologases II, who succeeded in establishing his own line on the Armenian throne, which ruled the kingdom until its abolishment by the Sasanian Empire in 428.
Arshakid Mausoleum: 4th century
Coin issued to celebrate the victory of Lucius Verus Armeniacus against Vologases IV in the war for Armenia.
Anachronistic painting of the baptism of King Tiridates III (Trdat III) by St. Gregory the Enlightener.
Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)
Armenia, also the Kingdom of Greater Armenia, or simply Greater Armenia or Armenia Major sometimes referred to as the Armenian Empire, was a kingdom in the Ancient Near East which existed from 331 BC to 428 AD. Its history is divided into the successive reigns of three royal dynasties: Orontid, Artaxiad and Arsacid (52–428).
Roman coin of 141 AD, showing emperor Antoninus Pius holding a crown on the Armenia King's head
Mesrop Mashtots, the creator of Armenian Alphabet, by Francesco Maggiotto (1750–1805)
Historical provinces of Greater Armenia
World in 323 BC