Acheron Empire
Encyclopedia
The term Acheron Empire is a fictional lost or fallen kingdom, found within the world of Robert E.Howard 's Hyborian Age
used as a backdrop for many Conan
stories, and it seems to be based in a historical civilization, in this case the Roman Empire
. It was first mentioned in the Conan novel, The Hour of the Dragon, as an ancient realm ruled by sorcerers and that collapsed before the timespan of the Conan stories. Later stories mention the fallen Acheron Empire from time to time, mostly with the Marvel Comic publication, written by Roy Thomas
.Thomas would frequently,when possable,make references to the Acheron Empire,such asthe city of Kara-Shehr.Table of Correspondences Kingdom, Region, or Ethnic Group Correspondence(s)
Acheron A fallen kingdom corresponding to the Roman Empire. Its territory covered Aquilonia, Nemedia, and Argos. The name comes from Acheron, a river of the underworld in Greek mythology.
Acheron was a country of the Hyborian Age more than 3000 years before Conan.It is not mentioned in the Hyborean Age fictional history essay.
Geography: It was an empire which included lands of southern Nemedia and Brythunia, most of Corinthia, most of Ophir, western Koth and the western lands of Shem, northern Argos, and eastern Aquilonia.
History and politics: It was destroyed by the tribes of Nemedians, Aquilonians, and Argosseans.
The older kingdoms of Ophir, Corinthia and western Koth were subject to Acheron and regained their independence with its fall.
The descendants of the people of Acheron are more plentiful than people suppose, dwelling in the fastness of the hills, in communities in the great cities, and scattered as priests, menials, secretaries, and scribes.
Population and culture:
It was inhabited by Hyborians more highly civilized than their neighbors to the east and the west.
The wizards of Acheron practised foul necromancy, thaumaturgy of the most evil kind, grisly magic taught them by devils. Many a barbarian, both man and woman, died screaming on the altar. Their heads were piled to make a pyramid in the great square in Python, the capital city, when the kings returned from the west with their spoils and naked captives.
Purple-towered cities.
Stories set in
Characters from ■Xaltotun — high priest of Set
References■The Hour of the Dragon [wikisource]
■Conan of Cimmeria: Volume Two (1934) — Untitled Synopsis (The Hour of the Dragon)
, Acheron mentioned as the dominion of the demon queen Akivasha and that Acheron's time was an age of demons roaming freely on Hyboria.
In the 2011 movie, Conan the Barbarian, Acheron is used a plot device in relation to the heroine Tamara who is a descendant of Acheron's necromancers.
Hyborian Age
The Hyborian Age is a fictional period within the artificial mythology created by Robert E. Howard, in which the sword and sorcery tales of Conan the Barbarian are set....
used as a backdrop for many Conan
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...
stories, and it seems to be based in a historical civilization, in this case the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. It was first mentioned in the Conan novel, The Hour of the Dragon, as an ancient realm ruled by sorcerers and that collapsed before the timespan of the Conan stories. Later stories mention the fallen Acheron Empire from time to time, mostly with the Marvel Comic publication, written by Roy Thomas
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
.Thomas would frequently,when possable,make references to the Acheron Empire,such asthe city of Kara-Shehr.Table of Correspondences Kingdom, Region, or Ethnic Group Correspondence(s)
Acheron A fallen kingdom corresponding to the Roman Empire. Its territory covered Aquilonia, Nemedia, and Argos. The name comes from Acheron, a river of the underworld in Greek mythology.
Acheron was a country of the Hyborian Age more than 3000 years before Conan.It is not mentioned in the Hyborean Age fictional history essay.
Geography: It was an empire which included lands of southern Nemedia and Brythunia, most of Corinthia, most of Ophir, western Koth and the western lands of Shem, northern Argos, and eastern Aquilonia.
History and politics: It was destroyed by the tribes of Nemedians, Aquilonians, and Argosseans.
The older kingdoms of Ophir, Corinthia and western Koth were subject to Acheron and regained their independence with its fall.
The descendants of the people of Acheron are more plentiful than people suppose, dwelling in the fastness of the hills, in communities in the great cities, and scattered as priests, menials, secretaries, and scribes.
Population and culture:
It was inhabited by Hyborians more highly civilized than their neighbors to the east and the west.
The wizards of Acheron practised foul necromancy, thaumaturgy of the most evil kind, grisly magic taught them by devils. Many a barbarian, both man and woman, died screaming on the altar. Their heads were piled to make a pyramid in the great square in Python, the capital city, when the kings returned from the west with their spoils and naked captives.
Purple-towered cities.
Stories set in
Characters from ■Xaltotun — high priest of Set
References■The Hour of the Dragon [wikisource]
■Conan of Cimmeria: Volume Two (1934) — Untitled Synopsis (The Hour of the Dragon)
In films
In the 1998 movie Kull the ConquerorKull the Conqueror
Kull the Conqueror is a 1997 fantasy film about the Robert E. Howard character Kull starring Kevin Sorbo. It is a movie adaptation of Howard's Conan novel The Hour of the Dragon, with the protagonist changed to the author's other barbarian hero Kull...
, Acheron mentioned as the dominion of the demon queen Akivasha and that Acheron's time was an age of demons roaming freely on Hyboria.
In the 2011 movie, Conan the Barbarian, Acheron is used a plot device in relation to the heroine Tamara who is a descendant of Acheron's necromancers.