Long-term cross-cultural relations and state-formation in Transcaucasian Iberia: An Annaliste perspective

Abstract

This paper argues that Iberia did not form in a vacuum, nor as an imitation of more advanced systems, but was the result of long-term (fifth-second century B. C.) bilateral relationships between local elites and the Persians. Iberia arose to preserve the standing of elites after the collapse of Seleucid Persia I .