| Aripharnes The Thataean | |
| King of the Siracae | |
| Reign: | fl.310-309 BC |
| Predecessor: | Unknown |
| Successor: | Unknown |
| Spouse: | Unknown |
| Father: | Unknown |
| Birth Date: | Unknown |
| Death Date: | Unknown |
| Death Place: | Unknown |
Aripharnes (fl. 310–309 BC) or Arypharnasha the Thataean was king of the Sarmatian tribe of Siraces[1] and took part in the First Bosporan Civil War of 310-309 between king Satyros II and his brother Eumelos, a pretender to the throne.[2]
At first, all three claimants to the throne, Satyros, Prytanis, and Eumelos sought Aripharnes to back them to the throne.[3] Aripharnes then ordered each of the lads to hurl a javelin into their father's corpse. Satyros and Prytanis did so, but Eumelos refused.[4] There, Aripharnes proclaimed Eumelos "King of the Cimmerians".[5]
Aripharnes and Eumelos fought Satyrus at the Battle of River Thatis, but they were defeated by the numerically inferior Satyric army. Afterward, he retreated with Eumelos to his settlement Siracena.[6]
The settlement was besieged by Satyros and after a lengthy siege, he was mortally wounded.[7] Meniscus, the mercenary captain in charge of Satyros's mercenaries, broke off the siege and took the body of Satyros to Panticapaeum for a royal burial. After this war, Aripharnes is no longer mentioned during Eumelos's later campaigns as king of the Bosporus.