Biography
I received my BA in Classics from Duke University in 2014 and my PhD in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from the University of Chicago in 2021. Before coming to St Andrews, I spent a year at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World (part of New York University) and a year working on a project funded by the German Research Foundation.
Teaching
At the University of St Andrews, I teach widely across the AN modules in Near Eastern, Greek, and Roman history. In the Candlemas semester, I am teaching an honours module called Local Communities under Empire in Ancient Persia, 550-330 BCE.
Research areas
I have broad interests in the social, economic, and political history of the Achaemenid Persian Empire (550-330 BCE), which stretched from the eastern Mediterranean to Central Asia. In my research, I utilize Greek historiographical sources, like Herodotus and Xenophon, as well as the rich documentary sources in Akkadian, Aramaic, and Elamite. I am in the process of publishing my first monograph, titled The House of the Satrap and the Making of the Ancient Persian Empire. Satraps were the regional representatives of royal power in the Persian Empire, and they conceptualized the people and property under their remit as a “house.” I argue that the network of satrapal houses competing and communicating with one another laid the foundation for imperial stability. Satraps and their associates managed their houses in such a way as to benefit both their own personal goals and the interests of the Persian Empire writ large.
Selected publications
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"Camels of the King" between Persepolis and Bactria
King, R., 2023, Kār-nāmag ī Pārsa: Studies from the Persepolis World Heritage Site. Fadaei, H., Delshad, S., Bordbar, M. & Owladhussein, M. J. (eds.). Tehran: Parthava, p. 129-142Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
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La desigualdad en la alimentación y la classificación de personas en Persépolis
King, R., Apr 2023, Desigualdades antiquas. Economía, cultura y sociedad en el Oriente Medio y el Méditerráneo. Campagno, M., Gallego, J., García Mac Gaw, C. & Payne, R. (eds.). Barcelona: Miño y Dávila editores, p. 341-358 (Estudios del Mediterráneo Antiguo / PEFSCEA; vol. 28).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution
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Review of Achemenet. Vingt ans après. Études offertes à Pierre Briant à l’occasion des vingt ans du Programme Achemenet, edited by Damien Agut-Labordère, Rémy Boucharlat, Francis Joannès, Amélie Kuhrt, and Matthew W. Stolper. Persika, 21. Leuven: Peeters, 2021.
King, R., 25 Sept 2023, In: Bibliotheca Orientalis. 79, 5/6, p. 643-648Research output: Contribution to journal › Book/Film/Article review
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Slavery in Achaemenid-period Babylonia: the social world of Rībat, son of Bēl-erība
King, R. & Pirngruber, R., 25 May 2022, In: Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History. 9, 1, p. 113-145Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Trips to the King, taxation, and the New Year in the Persepolis fortification archive
King, R., 28 Jul 2022, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Iran: Journal of British Institute of Persian Studies.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Local Powerbrokers in Iranian and Post-Iranian Bactria (ca. 300-800 CE): Aristocrats, Dependents, and Imperial Regimes
King, R., 2020, The Limits of Empire in Ancient Afghanistan: Rule and Resistance in the Hindu Kush, circa 600 BCE – 600 CE. p. 245-270Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
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The Limits of Empire in Ancient Afghanistan: Rule and Resistance in the Hindu Kush, circa 600 BCE – 600 CE
Payne, R. (ed.) & King, R. (ed.), 2020, Harrassowitz Verlag. (Classica et Orientalia; vol. 24)Research output: Book/Report › Book
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The Limits of Empire in Ancient Afghanistan: An Introduction
Payne, R. & King, R., 2020, The Limits of Empire in Ancient Afghanistan: Rule and Resistance in the Hindu Kush, circa 600 BCE – 600 CE. p. vii-xxiResearch output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter (peer-reviewed) › peer-review
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Taxing Achaemenid Arachosia: Evidence from Persepolis
King, R., 2019, In: Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 78, 2, p. 185-199Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review