Septimia Zenobia was a third-century queen of the Palmyrene Empire in Syria. Many legends surround her ancestry; she was probably not a commoner and she married the ruler of the city, Odaenathus. Her husband became king in 260, elevating Palmyra to supreme power in the Near East by defeating the Sasanian Empire of Persia and stabilizing the Roman East. After Odaenathus' assassination, Zenobia became the regent of her son Vaballathus and held de facto power throughout his reign.
Inscription at Palmyra honoring Julius Aurelius Zenobius, believed by some to be Zenobia's father
Odaenathus, a bust dated to the 250s
Vaballathus, Zenobia's son and successor of his father Odaenathus (on the obverse of an antoninianus, AD 272)
The citadel of Halabiye, renamed "Zenobia" after its renovation by the queen
The Palmyrene Empire was a short-lived breakaway state from the Roman Empire resulting from the Crisis of the Third Century. Named after its capital city, Palmyra, it encompassed the Roman provinces of Syria Palaestina, Arabia Petraea, and Egypt, as well as large parts of Asia Minor.
Vaballathus (right) as king on the obverse of an Antoninianus. To the left, Aurelian as Augustus on the reverse.
Vaballathus as Augustus, on the obverse of an Antoninianus.
Zenobia as Augusta, on the obverse of an Antoninianus.
Aurelian, personification of Sol, defeats the Palmyrene Empire, and celebrates ORIENS AVG, the Augustus Rising Sun.
