Empire of the Black Sea

The Rise and Fall of the Mithridatic World

By: Duane W. Roller

Narrated by: Bob Souer

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

What is commonly called the kingdom of Pontos flourished for over 200 years in the coastal regions of the Black Sea. At its peak in the early first century BC, it included much of the southern, eastern, and northern littoral, becoming one of the most important Hellenistic dynasties not founded by a successor of Alexander the Great. It also posed one of the greatest challenges to Roman imperial expansion in the East. Not until 63 BC, after many violent clashes, was Rome able to subjugate the kingdom and its last charismatic ruler Mithridates VI.

This book provides the first general history of this important kingdom, from its mythic origins in Greek literature to its entanglements with the late Roman Republic. Duane Roller presents its rulers and their complex relationships with the powers of the eastern Mediterranean and Near East, most notably Rome. He includes detailed discussions of Pontos' cultural achievements - a blend of Greek and Persian influences - as well as its political and military successes, especially under Mithridates VI, who proved to be as formidable a foe to Rome as Hannibal. Previous histories of Pontos have focused almost exclusively on the career of its last ruler. Setting that famous reign in its wide historical context, Empire of the Black Sea is an engaging and definitive account of a powerful yet little-known ancient dynasty.

©2020 Oxford University Press (P)2022 Tantor

Reluctant Recommendation

Have you ever recommended a TV show to someone but prefaced it with "so long as you get through the first two seasons you'll love the third season!" that's kinda like this book. It's an interesting book if you're a history nerd. It sticks to the sources, which are sadly lacking (as many ancient sources are) for details. But once you get to the last 1/3rd of the book with Mithridates VI it starts to pick up and get interesting. I usually ignore if a narrator is good or bad but for me I didn't really care for the one reading this. If you're not familiar with the territory around the Black Sea you'll probably be referring to a lot of maps over and over as I did.

So I give this book a tepid endorsement, but a similar book on the opposite side of the Black Sea from the Kingdom of Pontus called "The Scythians" by Barry Cunliffe I'd highly recommend you try before this book.

detailed dive into an over looked kingdom

a great Great telling of a long forgotten kingdom. this book is like getting the full details of a side character to an epic story. it helps you appreciate how diverse the ancient world was.

I’ll Tell You the Story

As I heard it told
Mithridates,
He died old


Arianes? The Poison King Bio and this essentially contain everything anyone anywhere knows about Pontus of yore. Top marks.

The last great king of the Greeks/persia

I liked the narrator, he has a great voice. I sincerely enjoyed this book. I have heard of mithradates before but learning about him and the kingdom of Pontus was exciting. I consider myself a lover of Hellenistic Greek history and Rome. Now I need to find more books based on that time period.

More of an academic journal than a book.

In terms of information the book is great. I always wanted to know a little more about this kingdom and I'm glad to have listened to this title.

That said, the information is presented in the same style as a 1990s history professor would teach a class. Names, dates, event, next item. It's not very interesting nor does it hold your attention for any length of time. A Dan Carlin Hardcore History mega episode this is not.

If you're just looking for information on Pontus, I give it a recommendation for sure. If you're into books by Dan Jones or history podcasts etc, this book likely isn't for you.