Axum's King Zoskales: The Merchant King of Adulis

Before the great stelae and the gold coins, Axum was a small kingdom finding its footing in the bustling port city of Adulis. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the shadowy figure of Zoskales, the first Axumite king named in any historical record—the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. Zoskales wasn't a conqueror like Ezana or Kaleb; he was a shrewd trader who ruled the emporium of Adulis, commanding the ivory, frankincense, and spice routes that connected the Red Sea to the Roman world. We dig into the Periplus, a first-century Greek merchant's guide, which describes Zoskales as 'a man of few possessions, but of great insight into the affairs of trade.' We ask: Was he a client king of the Sabaeans? How did his reign set the stage for Axum's imperial ambitions? And what does his obscurity tell us about the early years of this ancient African power? This is the story of a merchant king who built the foundations of an empire. #Zoskales #Adulis #Periplus #Axum #Aksum #RedSea #IvoryTrade #Frankincense #AncientTrade #RomanWorld #Sabaeans #KingZoskales #MerchantKing #EastAfrica #Ethiopia #FirstCentury #AncientHistory #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo