The Stele of Vespasian is a stele celebrating Roman emperor Vespasian. It was written in Ancient Greek and found in 1867Lomtatidze, p. 24 at Armazi, near Mtskheta (eastern Georgia), in an ancient capital of the Kingdom of Iberia.
Stele The stele memorialises reinforcement of the fortification of Armazi walls by Emperor Vespasian.Rapp, p. 224Gamkrelidze, p. 13 Additionally, the inscription mentions two emperors Titus, Domitian and two kings Mihrdat I of Iberia, Pharasmanes I of Iberia and prince royal Amazaspus. The inscription is dated to 75 AD.Suny, p. 15Toumanoff, p. 13 The top of the stele is lost. According to Professor David Braund, the missing text was in Latin or Armazic (outgrowth of Aramaic language).Rapp, p. 215 Cyril Toumanoff identifies Amazaspus as King Amazasp I of Iberia,Toumanoff, p. 15 though it can be prince royal Amazaspus, son of Pharasmanes I of Iberia, who is known from the Epigram of Amazaspos found in Rome.
Inscription
References
Bibliography Stephen H. Rapp Jr (2014) The Sasanian World through Georgian Eyes: Caucasia and the Iranian Commonwealth in Late Antique Georgian Literature Ronald Grigor Suny (1994) The Making of the Georgian Nation, Indiana University Press, Cyril Toumanoff (1969) Chronology of the Early Kings of Iberia, Fordham University Giorgi Lomtatidze (1955) Archaeological excavations in an ancient Georgian capital of Mtskheta, Georgian National Academy of Sciences Gela Gamkrelidze (2014) Archaeology of Roman period of Georgia