Pharaoh.se

The Thirty-first Dynasty of Ancient Egypt

A foreign dynasty, as Egypt was re-conquered by the Persian Empire, and its status reduced to that of a province.

An appointed governor, or satrap, ruled in the name of the emperor. Also known as the Second Persian Domination or the Second Egyptian Satrapy.

Dynasty 31

The chronological order

It is important to note that the chronological order of the pharaohs is an evolving subject and should therefore be treated with a certain degree of caution. As new research is conducted, the order may be subject to change, which is a fundamental principle that applies to all Egyptian dynasties.

Table 1: The Persian kings of the Thirty-first Dynasty
№ Pharaoh Also known as Dates (BC)
1Artaxerxes IIIArtaxerxes III343–338
2ArsesArtaxerxes IV338–336
3Darius IIIDareios336–332

The Thirty-first Dynasty according to Manetho

It is possible that the kings of this last dynasty are a later editorial insertion. Neither Africanus nor Eusebius lists the years of this dynasty. Syncellus also states that "Extending up to the time of Ochos and Nektanebo, Manetho's outline of the thirty-one dynasties of Egypt encompassed a period of 1050 years for his third book."

ACCORDING TO AFRICANUS

Thirty-first dynasty of three Persian kings

  1. Ochos, in the twentieth year of his reign over the Persians, became king of Egypt,
    ruling for2 years
  2. Arses 3 years
  3. Dareios 4 years

Total in Book Three 1050 years


Syncellus:
Here ends the work of Manetho. Subsequent Egyptian chronology is based on Greek historians.

ACCORDING TO EUSEBIOS

Thirty-first dynasty of three Persian kings

  1. Ochos, in the twentieth year of his reign over the Persians, gained control of Egypt and
    ruled for 6 years
  2. After him, Arses son of Ochos 4 years
  3. After him, Dareios 6 years
    Alexander of Macedon put him to death.

This is from the third book of Manetho.

Syncellus:
Here ends the work of Manetho. Subsequent Egyptian chronology is presented from Greek historians.

ARMENIAN TRANSLATION

Thirty-first dynasty of three Persian kings

  1. Ovkʻos, in the twentieth year of his reign over the Persians, obtained Egypt for 6 years
  2. After him, Arsēs son of Ovkʻos 4 years
  3. After him, Darius 6 years
    Alexander of Macedon put him to death.

All this is from the third book of Manetho.

1

This notice is taken from Africanus. Additionally, Syncellus presents a distinct chronology of Egyptian kings, concluding with Teos and encompassing 32 dynasties prior to the Persian conquest. See Adler and Tuffin 2002, pp. 372 and 374.

2

The sum of the total number of individual reigns is 855 years.