It is naive to think that the history of the Earth has been studied for a long time, that there are almost no "white spots" in it. It's not like that at all. A lot of unusual and surprising things have not been solved yet. Everything in the world is interdependent and interconnected. It is known that 99% of historical events passed unnoticed, they were not given special importance, or they were simply ignored and, as a result, they passed into the category of unsolved historical mysteries.
One of these historical secrets is the mystery of the treasures of King Mithridates Eupator (Mithridates VI). Moreover, this story is closely related to modern Crimea.
Where did Mithridates VI get such enormous wealth? And what place did he occupy among the ancient rulers?
It is known that Mithridates Eupator was a direct descendant of the Persian dynasty - Achaemenids. By his mother, Mithridates VI was a descendant of Alexander the Great. Mithridates Eupator was the author of the Byzantine-Russian project, and he adopted the symbol of the Achaemenid dynasty - the two-headed eagle as the symbol of his Pontic kingdom. Myrtidat VI made every effort to fulfill the dream of his life - to restore the unity of languages and unite all the peoples of the world. This was done in opposition to the wishes of the great Rome, which built the world according to the principle of “divide and rule”. At the court of Mithridates Eupator's father, Mithridates V Everget, two parties constantly fought - the anti-Roman and the pro-Roman. This confrontation led to the death of his father as a result of a palace coup, and the culprit of his death was the mother of Mithridates Eupator - Laodice,which led the pro-Roman party and wished to maintain extremely friendly relations with Rome. After the death of his father and as a result of the intrigues of his mother, Mithridates Eupator was forced to flee from home to the Bosphorus and the Caucasus.
For seven whole years, the future king of the Pontic state lived in exile. During this time, he received the best education. So, the great Plutarch gave a very high characteristic to the personal qualities of Mithridates Eupator. For example, the young prince had unique linguistic abilities: he knew all the languages of the world at that time!
He gained his power by force, killing his brothers and marrying his sister. He mercilessly took revenge on the Pontic nobility, who for many years pursued him, killing all enemies and foes.
Mithridates Eupator ruled for about 52 years. Under him, the Pontic kingdom became one of the prosperous, wealthy, influential Hellenistic states.
Mithridates VI was a very active and talented ruler, but at the same time he was distinguished by a despotic and cruel character. He was especially aggressive towards the Roman Empire, which was at that time in its heyday and controlled the entire Mediterranean, actively cooperating with many kingdoms.
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During his reign, Mithridates Eupator created a strong army through an effective military reform. It is said that, having a phenomenal memory, he knew all the warriors by name. Twice he helped the troops of Chersonesos, who suffered from the raids of the Scythians. Mithridates Eupator conquered the Bosporus state by military force, killing the ruler of Perisad V and subjugating the Greek cities of the entire Northern Black Sea region. Subdued Colchis and Lesser Armenia.
Mithridates maintained friendly relations with most of the barbarian tribes, the Scythians, the Armenian king Tigranes, and the Franks. Opposing Rome, Mithridates planned to take possession of Galatia, Bithynia, Cappadonia. This was a special historical era called the Mithridates wars. During it, military happiness periodically passed from the Romans to Mithridates and back - the forces were equal.
It is known that Mithridates Eupator was very afraid of attempts on his life (the experience of palace intrigues in the palace of his parents did not pass without leaving a trace). To prevent poisoning, he constantly took small doses of poisons, gradually accustoming the body. Therefore, the king soon became insensitive to poisons.
As the ruler of Panticapaeum, Mithridates Eupator reached unprecedented heights. All Taurida (the modern peninsula of Crimea) was under his royal hand. The legends speak of the king's favorite talisman - a full-length horse statue made of pure gold. On all trips, Mithridates took him with him to show the level of his wealth and power.
Time passed. Mithridates so believed in his own strength, influence, power that he challenged the hated Rome. The Roman legionaries and the army of Mithridates met in a great battle. The forces of the two powerful troops were equal. But at the most crucial moment, the son of Mithridates Eupator, Pharnacs, betrayed his father and went with his soldiers to the side of the Romans. Farnak had been planning this step for a long time, he seduced the soldiers with gold, promising to share between them the talisman of his father - the famous golden horse.
The spirit of the great king was broken after he learned about the betrayal of his son. He no longer dreamed of becoming the ruler of the world, the days of the decline of the power of the Mithridat empire came. Mithridates became a recluse, hiding behind the high and impregnable walls of the Acropolis. He decided to die by drinking poison, but forgot that he had become immune to any poison. Then the king turned to his servant to kill him with the sword. Legends say that Mithridates Eupator perished from the hand of his servant, and the golden horse disappeared along with its master. Many treasure hunters tried to find the statue, but no one was lucky.
In modern Kerch there is a hill on which, during the time of Mithridates, the acropolis of Panticapaeum was located, it is called the Mount of Mithridates. Today the word "mithridates" has become synonymous with antidote.
With the death of Mithridates Eupator, the Pontic kingdom, so cherished by him, perished. The result of the Mithridates wars was the strengthening of the Roman Empire. And the son of the king, Pharnak, after the death of his father, became the founder of a completely new dynasty in the Bosporus kingdom.
Krasnodar archaeologists were lucky to find fragments of the residence of Mithridates Eupator on the territory of the Taman Peninsula on the site of the ancient city of Phanagoria. And although so far only part of the foundation and the road near the former grandiose structure have been cleared, the finds are of great historical value. The head of the expedition said that most likely the residence was an expensive and pompous two-story building. Valuables belonging to the family of a powerful ruler were also found here. Most likely, the palace where the family of Mithridates lived was the center of the Bosporus kingdom and the main trading hub of that time.
Today, part of the city of Phanagoria is under water, therefore archaeological work is also carried out at sea. It was at the bottom of the sea that confirmation was found that the family of Mithridates lived here. A well-preserved marble tombstone with a carved inscription: "Gipsikrates, wife of Tsar Mithridates Eupator, goodbye" was found under the water.
The finds also suggested that in the 1st century BC. The Bosporan kingdom found itself in the grip of a severe economic crisis. The level of the state's economy was very dependent on the demand for grain, and it began to fall sharply. And wars required large investments. Fearing to lose their acquired property, people buried jewelry, gold and silver coins in the ground. Scientists suggested the following scenario of the events of those days and their consequences: “First, gold began to disappear from circulation, then silver gradually disappeared. And the number of coin hoards testifies to this crisis. It is assumed that the last treasure, which has not yet been published, is on the expedition and includes 8 thousand coins. This is the largest treasure."
The life and work of the famous statesman of the ancient world, Mithridates Eupator, is currently interesting for politicians and adventurers. After all, until now, the lands previously controlled by Mithridates participate in many geopolitical plans of modern world states. Therefore, everything related to the "Mithridates Wars" and Mithridates VI himself is interesting for historians and politicians of the modern world.
And on the Crimean peninsula, in memory of the great ruler Mithridates VI, there is a city named after him - Evpatoria. And as long as the memory of this greatest ruler lives on, the link between generations will not be broken and many subsequent generations will take into account the lessons of the events that took place in ancient times. By the way, the huge treasures of Mithridates Eupator, including the golden statue of a horse, have never been found. But the fact that today historians and archaeologists are engaged in active searches gives hope that another historical riddle will soon be solved.