Hecatomnid dynasty

one of the seven wonders of the ancient world

Mausolus ( or , Mauśoλ) was a ruler of Caria (377–353 BCE) and a satrap of the Achaemenid Empire. He enjoyed the status of king or dynast by virtue of the powerful position created by his father Hecatomnus ( ), who was the first satrap of Caria from the hereditary Hecatomnid dynasty. Alongside Caria, Mausolus also ruled Lycia and parts of Ionia and the Dodecanese islands. He is best known for his monumental tomb and one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the construction of which has traditionally been ascribed to his wife and sister Artemisia.

4th-century BC female ruler of Caria

4th-century BC Satrap and Queen of Caria

Hecatomnus of Mylasa or Hekatomnos (, Carian: 𐊴𐊭𐊪𐊵𐊫 k̂tmno “under-son, descendant(?)”) was an early 4th-century BC ruler of Caria. He was the satrap (governor) of Caria for the Persian Achaemenid king Artaxerxes II (404–358 BC). However, the basis for Hecatomnus' political power was twofold: he was both a high appointed Persian official and a powerful local dynast, who founded the hereditary dynasty of the Hecatomnids. The Hecatomnids followed the earlier autochthonous dynasty of the Lygdamids (520-450 BC) in Caria.

Pixodarus or Pixodaros (in Lycian 𐊓𐊆𐊜𐊁𐊅𐊀𐊕𐊀 Pixedara; in Greek Πιξώδαρoς; ruled 340–334 BC), was a satrap of Caria, nominally the Achaemenid Empire Satrap, who enjoyed the status of king or dynast by virtue of the powerful position his predecessors of the House of Hecatomnus (the Hecatomnids) created when they succeeded the assassinated Persian Satrap Tissaphernes in the Carian satrapy. Lycia was also ruled by the Carian dynasts since the time of Mausolus, and the name of Pixodarus as ruler appears in the Xanthos trilingual inscription in Lycia.

thumb|upright=1.23|Achaemenid coinage of Caria during the reign of Idrieus. Circa 350-341 BC. thumb|left|Tomb of Idrieus in Labraunda (present day [[Turkey)]] Idrieus, or Hidrieus (; died 344 BC) was a ruler of Caria as a Satrap under the Achaemenid Empire. Alongside his sister and wife Ada, he enjoyed the status of king or dynast by virtue of the powerful position he inherited from his predecessors of the House of Hecatomnus (the Hecatomnids).

thumb|right|upright=1.2|Caria, under the Hecatomnids. thumb|upright=0.5|Statue of a Hecatomnid ruler, perhaps Mausolus ([[British Museum)]] The Hecatomnid dynasty or Hecatomnids were the rulers of Caria and surrounding areas BCE. They were satraps (governors) under the Achaemenid Empire, although they ruled with considerable autonomy as a hereditary dynasty. The dynasty had previously ruled the city of Mylasa, which became the capital of Hecatomnus, the first indigenous satrap of Caria. The dynastic capital was moved to Halicarnassus by Mausolus and Artemisia, who built the Mausoleum at Halica

Archaeological site and part of tentative UNESCO World Heritage Site