| Juba II | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Portrait bust of Juba II,Louvre Museum | |||||
| King ofNumidia | |||||
| Reign | 30 BC – 25 BC (5 years) | ||||
| Predecessor | Juba I | ||||
| Successor | Annexed to theRoman Republic/Empire | ||||
| King ofMauretania | |||||
| Reign | 25 BC – AD 23 (47 years) | ||||
| Predecessor | Bocchus II | ||||
| Successor | Ptolemy of Mauretania | ||||
| Died | 23 AD | ||||
| Spouse | Cleopatra Selene II Glaphyra of Cappadocia | ||||
| Issue | Ptolemy of Mauretania Julia | ||||
| |||||
| Father | Juba I | ||||
Juba II of Mauretania (Latin:Gaius Iulius Iuba;[1]Ancient Greek:Ἰóβας, Ἰóβα orἸούβας;[2] c. 48 BC – AD 23) was the son ofJuba I andclient king ofNumidia (30–25 BC) andMauretania (25 BC – AD 23). Aside from his very successful reign, he was a highly respected scholar and author. His first wife wasCleopatra Selene II, daughter of QueenCleopatra VII ofPtolemaicEgypt and Roman TriumvirMark Antony.
Juba II was aBerber prince fromNumidia. He was the only child and heir of KingJuba I of Numidia; his mother's identity is unknown, though Juba II claimed to be a descendant of GeneralHannibal (Scol. Lucan, Pharsalia 8.287). In 46 BC, his father was defeated byJulius Caesar (inThapsus, North Africa), and in 40 BC Numidia became a Roman province.[2] His father had been an ally of the Roman GeneralPompey.
Several modern scholars cite his age at Caesar's triumph in 46 BC as four or six giving rises to the typically cited birth year range of 52–50 BC, which his biographer, Duane Roller, believes is incorrect. Roller instead places his birth in early 48 BC because the Greek termbrephos was used for him which means infant. The word for a child of age 4 to 6 ispais which was not used for him in the ancient sources. Therefore, Roller places his age in the triumph at anywhere from 2 months to 2 years, which actually indicates a birth year range between 48 and 46 BC.[3]
Juba II was brought toRome by Julius Caesar and he took part in Caesar's triumphal procession.[4] In Rome he learned theLatin andGreek, becameromanized and was granted Roman citizenship.[2] Through dedication to his studies, he is said to have become one of Rome's best educated citizens, and by age 20 he wrote one of his first works entitledRoman Archaeology.[2]
He was raised by Julius Caesar and later by his great-nephew Octavian (future EmperorAugustus). While growing up, Juba II accompanied Octavian on military campaigns, gaining valuable experience as a leader. He fought alongside Octavian in theBattle of Actium in 31 BC.
In 30 BC, Octavian restored Juba II as king ofNumidia.[5][6] Juba II established Numidia as an ally of Rome. Probably as a result of his services to Augustus in a campaign in Hispania, between 26 BC and 20 BC the Emperor arranged for him to marryCleopatra Selene II, giving her a largedowry and appointing her queen.[7] His kingdom replaced the province of Africa Nova which included territories of both Eastern Numidia and Western Numidia. This kingdom of Numidia (except the territory of Western Numidia) was in 25 BC directly annexed to theRoman Empire as the part of theRoman province ofAfrica Proconsularis and Juba II receivedMauretania as his kingdom, enlarged by territory of Western Numidia.[5]
According toStrabo, upon the death of the Mauretanian kingBocchus II, who was an ally of the Romans, his kingdom was briefly governed directly by Rome (33 BC - 25 BC), then in 25 BC Juba II received it fromAugustus.[8] When Juba II and Cleopatra Selene moved toMauretania, they named their new capitalCaesaria (modernCherchell,Algeria), in honour of Augustus. The construction and sculpture projects at Caesaria and another city,Volubilis, display a rich mixture ofEgyptian,Greek andRoman architectural styles.
Cleopatra is said to have exerted considerable influence on Juba II's policies. Juba II encouraged and supported the performing arts, research of the sciences and research of natural history. Juba II also supported Mauretanian trade. The Kingdom of Mauretania was of great importance to the Roman Empire. Mauretania engaged in trade all across the Mediterranean, particularly withSpain andItaly. Mauretania exportedfish,grapes, pearls, figs, grain, wooden furniture and purple dye harvested from certain shellfish, which was used in the manufacture of purple stripes for senatorial robes. Juba II sent a contingent toIles Purpuraires to re-establish the ancient Phoenician dye manufacturing process.[9] Tingis (modernTangier), a town at the Pillars of Hercules (modernStrait of Gibraltar) became a major trade centre. In Gades, (modernCádiz) and Carthago Nova (modernCartagena) inSpain, Juba II was appointed by Augustus as an honoraryDuovir (a chief magistrate of a Roman colony or town).[10]
The value and quality of the Mauretanian coinage became highly regarded. The GreekhistorianPlutarch describes him as 'one of the most gifted rulers of his time'. Between 2 BC and AD 2, he travelled withGaius Caesar (a grandson of Augustus), as an advisor to the Eastern Mediterranean. In AD 21, Juba II made his son Ptolemy his co-ruler.
Juba II died in AD 23. Juba II was buried alongside his first wife in theRoyal Mausoleum of Mauretania. Ptolemy then became the sole ruler of Mauretania.[11]
Juba wrote a number of books inGreek on history, natural history, geography, grammar, painting and theatre. He compiled a comparison of Greek and Roman institutions known as Όμοιότητες (Resemblances).[13] His guide to Arabia became a bestseller in Rome. Only fragments of his works survive. He collected a substantial library on a wide variety of topics, which no doubt complemented his own prolific output.Pliny the Elder refers to him as an authority 65 times in theNatural History and inAthens, a monument was built in theGymnasium of Ptolemy in recognition of his writings.[14][15]
Ten works by Juba II have provisionally been identified, but all are fragmentary:
Juba's works survive only in quotations or citations by others, in both Greek and Latin. There are around 100 of these, about half inPliny the Elder'sNatural History.[17] Others can be found in Athenaeus,Plutarch,Claudius AelianusHarpokration,Dioscórides,Galen,Philostratus,Herodian,Tatian,Ammianus Marcellinus,Solinus,Hesychius of Miletus,Stephanos of Byzantium,Photios, theEtymologicum Magnum, theGeoponica and variousscholia on classical authors.[16]
Juba may have written plays, but these are not quoted, and no titles are known. The supposition relies on a reading of a passage in Athenaeus. There are two late citations to Juba that seem to be spurious. Photios cites the otherwise unknownOn the Deterioration of Words, whileFulgentius cites a certainFisiologia. Both may have been epitomes of Juba's authentic works.[18]
A treaty on metrics was formerly ascribed to him, but is now generally thought to have been written by anhomonym.[19]
Juba II was a noted patron of the arts and sciences and sponsored several expeditions and biological research. According toPliny the Younger, Juba II sent an expedition to theCanary Islands andMadeira.[20] He named them the Canary Islands for the particularly ferocious dogs (canarius – fromcanis – meaningof the dogs in Latin) the expedition found there.
Flavius Philostratus recalled one of his anecdotes: "And I have read in the discourse of Juba that elephants assist one another when they are being hunted, and that they will defend one that is exhausted, and if they can remove him out of danger, they anoint his wounds with the tears of the aloe tree, standing round him like physicians."[21]
Juba's Greek physicianEuphorbus wrote that asucculentspurge found in the High Atlas was a powerfullaxative.[22] In 12 BC, Juba named this plantEuphorbia after Euphorbus, in response toAugustus dedicating a statue toAntonius Musa, Augustus's own personal physician and Euphorbus's brother.[22] Botanist and taxonomistCarl Linnaeus assigned the nameEuphorbia to the entire genus in the physician's honour.[23]Euphorbia was later calledEuphorbia regis-jubae ("King Juba's euphorbia") to honour the king's contributions to natural history and his role in bringing the genus to notice. Thepalm tree genusJubaea is also named after Juba.[24]
.jpg)
