India and its Foreign Invaders.

Coins of Ancient Foreign Invaders. A new phase in Indian history commenced with the coming of Alexander the Great to India in 326 B.C. He crossed the Indus, marched to Taxila and then advanced to Hydespes (Jhelum), where he was strongly opposed by Puru (Porus). The final victory was achieved by Alexander and the victory was commemorated by silver `decadrachms` and `tetradrachms`. These coins were found in Babylonia. The coins manifest a figure which was identified as Alexander, in the form of the Greek god Zeus, was shown on one side. On the other side of the coins were the goddess of victory, Nike was crowning him. Another scene was depicted that defined a horseman with a lance at rest charging upon a retreating elephant, on whose back were two men turning round to face their pursuer. 

The coins of foreign invaders include the coins that were issued during the time of Greek, Bactrian and Sakas. Apart from these invaders, several other invaders came to India and issued coins for their trading purpose. After the death of Alexander, the true association of foreign coinage with India took place. During this time the far flung territories that he had conquered were divided amongst the powerful officers of his army. A Greek kingdom was established in Syria under Seleucus in this period. The Greek rulers extended their territory with the progression of time. Later, gold coins were found of this period that proves issuing of gold coins during this time. These gold coins were issued by Diodotus (Seleucid satrap of Bactria), Eucratides (one of the most important Greco-Bactrian kings) and Euthydemus. But these coins were confined to Bactria and were never issued in India. According to the basis of their types, a few legendless gold coins were attributed to Menander. During this period, most of the coins were issued in silver and copper. A few pieces of Pantaleon and Agathocles were found in nickel and they are considered to be the earliest coins in the world issued in this metal. The kings of Bactria adhered strictly to the monetary system of Athens, which had been adopted by the Greek ruler Alexander and his successors in Syria. The silver Indo-Bactrian coins were also issued with exception of certain square coins. The coins were all round and struck to Persian standard. The copper coins were issued in umpteen numbers and believed to have been issued on the standards of the local copper coins of Taxila. 

The coins of Indo-Bactrian rulers issued coins by die-striking technique which followed the Greek pattern. They give a new form to the Indian coinage by placing portraits of the king on the obverse side of the coin. A form of coin was common during this period which was the helmeted head or bust. Apart from these, some coins issued during this time manifest the king wearing an elephant scalp, sometimes to commemorate the kings, the heads of the kings were portrayed on the coins. The portraits on the coins were realistic and boldly drawn and represent clearly the facial features of the early foreign invaders of India. They also introduced the effigy of the Greek gods and goddesses or some of the symbols of their worship. The symbols were invariably placed on the reverse side of the coin but occasionally they were also found on the obverse side of the coin. The copper coins issued during this time, bore an image of a deity with superscription `Kavishaye nagara devada` in Kharoshthi. After coming under the Indian influence, the Indo-Bactrian rulers started etching the Indian gods and goddesses were found. Inscription was another feature of the coins that were issued during this time. 

The later invaders of India were the Sakas. Two main lines of Saka invaders were known from their coins. Two main lines of Saka invaders are known from their coins. One was Maues in the Punjab and its adjoining lands, and the other of Vonones and his associates in Kandahar (Arachosia) and Baluchistan (Gadrosia and Drangiana). The coins of Maues were minted in silver and copper and those cons were similar to those of the Indo-Bactrian king Apollodotus. In the coins of Maues, no bust or head was seen as he did not use them in his coins. Though most of the coins retain the Bactrian devices, some of the coins show nomadic traits also. Most significant device of the coins was the device of the king with a spear on horse-back and in the later period this trait became one of the important characteristics of Saka coinage. 

Many of the coins issued during the time of Maues, the reverse of the coin showed a man seated cross-legged which was identified with the figure of Buddha by some scholars. On another type of coin, a striding male figure with club and trident was seen and the figure was identified as Shiva but this is uncertain. The coins of this period were mostly of copper and bore an elephant`s head on the obverse and caduceus (staff of the god Hermes) on the reverse side of the coin. These types of coins had the Greek legend `Basileos Mayou` on the reverse side of the coin and all the other coins were bilingual. The coins of Vonones, who was contemporary of Maues, were comparatively few. The silver coins issued during this time bore a king with a spear on horseback on the obverse and on the reverse side; the coin bore Zeus standing with a long scepter and thunderbolt. On the obverse of the copper coins, a standing Heracles was shown crowning himself and Palas Athene standing left with shield and spear on the reverse side of the coin. 

In the later period silver coins, round and square copper coins bearing the name of the king were issued. As the time advanced, the rulers started incorporating new devices on the coins. Sometimes the nomadic influences were seen on the coins and at5 the same time, some kings introduced some original Indian device on the coins, which was Abhisheka Lakshmi. In the later period, during the ruling period of Saka-Pahlava coins were introduced with the base metal silver and copper. In the later period, even certain small coins were also introduced. The coins issued in the later period reign, followed the patterns of Saka-Pahlava. 

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Indo-Bactrian Empire of India

Bactria was a province of the Persian empire located in modern Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.

 After the defeat of Darius III of Persia, Bactria continued to offer resistance against Alexander the Great, led by Bessus, who had proclaimed himself successor to Darius. Alexander conquered it with great difficulty between 329-327 BCE, largely with the help of local auxiliary forces. During his stay there, Alexander married a Bactrian woman, Roxanne, to aid his effort of controlling the region.

After Alexander's death, Bactria was part of the Seleucid Empire. The many difficulties against which the Seleucid kings had to fight and the attacks of Ptolemy II of Egypt gave Diodotus, satrap of Bactria, the opportunity to declare independence (about 255 BCE) and conquer Sogdiana, founding the Indo-Greek Kingdom.

 Bactria (Zariaspa) was an ancient country lying between the mountains of the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya (Present day Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan). Cyrus the Great in the 6th century BCE conquered Bactria and it remained under Persian rule for the next 200 years as a Bactrian Satrapy. Alexander the Great defeated Persian King Darius III and Bactria came under Alexander III. Upon the death of Alexander (323 BCE), Bactria come under the rule of Seleucus I Nicator and Selecid Kingdom. Satrap of Bactria, Diodotus or/and his son Diodotus II rebelled and set up an independent kingdom in 250 BCE. Euthydemus I deposed Diodotus II and became King of Bactria c. 230 BCE. Demetrios I, son of Euthydemus II and grand son of Euthydemus I advanced his kingdom into the Hindu Kush and northwestern India. He established the Indo-Bactrian (Indo-Greek) branch of the kingdom in Indus Valley. History of Bactria was not recorded properly. Most of the history of Bactria was surmised from their coins and other collateral evidence. Bactrian coins were minted in greek style. They were treasure troves of information with names and portraits of the kings.  Chronology of the Indo-Bactrian rulers is based largely on numismatic evidence. Bactrian coins were imitations of Greek issues, but gradually acquired a style of their own. Legend of Indo-Bactrian coins were inscribed in Greek, Brahmi and Kharosti scripts. They also used images of indian deities and animals like indian elephants. Menander, later successor to Indo-Bactrian Empire possibly expanded the Indo-Bactrian Empire into Ganges river plain with help of Panchala king. Menander was well known to Indians as the great King Milinda, who debated Buddhist doctrine with the philosopher Nagasena in a question and answer format. Very little is known about the successors of Menander. There was a mention of Antialcidas and his emissary Heliodorus in the form of an inscription on a pillar at Sanchi in India.

Demetrios I
c. 200 - 190 BCE

Tetradrchm of Demetrios I c. 200 - 190 BCE
Obverse: Draped bust wearing elephant scalp headdress.
Reverse: Herakles holding club and lion's skin.

Menander
c.155-130 BC

Square Copper coin of Menander c.155-130 BCE.
Obverse: Helmeted bust of Menander.
Reverse: Nike.

Menander. Silver Tetradrachm . c.155-130 BCE.
Obverse: Helmeted bust of Menander.
Reverse: Athena standing with a shield and thunderbolt.

A short list of Indo - Bactrian Kings.

Antimachos I (c.185-170 BCE) Demetrios II (c.175-170 BCE) Menander (c.155-130 BCE) Plato (c.145-140 BCE) Zoilos I (c.130-120 BCE) Strato I (c.130-110 BCE) Polyxenos (c.100-95 BCE) Demetrios III (c.100 BCE) Epander (c.95-90 BCE)

Meander II Dikaios (c.90-85 BCE) Artemidoros (c.85 BCE) Apollodotos II (c. 80-65 BCE) Hippostatos (c.65-55 BCE) Dionysios (c.65-55 BCE) Zoilos II (c.55-35 BCE) Apollophanes (c.35-25 BCE) Strato II (c. 25-10 BCE)

INDO-PARTHIAN DYNASTY

INDO-PARTHIAN DYNASTY, rulers over a large part of northwestern India from Seistan (portions of the present-day border provinces of that name of Iran and of Afghanistan) to Sindh on the Indus river at the beginning of the 1st century C.E. They came after the Indo-Greeks and the Indo-Scythians and were, in turn, defeated by the Kushans in the second half of the 1st. century C.E. The main difficulty in studying this period is the lack of firm sources. Very few texts mention the Indo-Parthians, and inscriptions do not refer directly to them. Furthermore, archeological sites have yielded few pieces of information, some of which are controversial. Coins thus remain the main source of information for reconstructing Indo-Parthian history. Five distinct regions can be distinguished by their coin types, the chronology of which will be considered here from west to east.

Seistan. Indo-Parthian issues in Seistan (Drangiana, q.v.) and in the Herat region (Areia; see HERAT ii.) are directly inspired by silver Parthian drachms, as far as types and weight standard are concerned. They depict on the obverse the bust of the king, turned to left, sometimes wearing a tiara, and on the reverse the king seated on a low chair, generally holding a bow, sometimes shown as being crowned by a Nike standing to left (see also INVESTITURE ii.). The surrounding Greek legend is shaped into a square. These are silver drachms, weighing ca. 3.7 g, with a good percentage of silver.
Gondophares (q.v.), founder of the Indo-Parthian dynasty, is depicted in left profile with a simple diadem having a frontal ornament (obverse) and being crowned by a Nike (reverse; Senior, type 210;

He was probably followed by Sases, whose issues are quite rare (five specimens are known so far). His portrait and Greek legend are very similar to those of Gondophares; but on the obverse he wears a tiara, and on the reverse he is called Gondophares; but the Greek legend ends with SAH, except for one coin on which a tiny S can be seen between A and H (Senior, type 240). Thus, the reading must be SASH /sasē/.
Sases was followed by Orthagnes, depicted with a simple tiara (Senior, type 256), and by Ubouzanes, known before as Otannes (Alram, 1983, pp. 69-74; Senior, type 259; coin f). In his Greek legend, Ubouzanes specifies he is Orthagnes’ son.
For the following rulers, from Sanabares onwards, a Pahlavi legend is added on the obverse, and the Nike crowning the king on the reverse is abandoned. Sanabares struck coins in Seistan (Senior, types 261-62) and also bronze drachms of poor style, which perhaps were issued in Iran (Senior, type 266). There is a possibility that there were two Sanabares. Sanabares I, Indo-Parthian, would have struck coins in Seistan and in Arachosia (coin h), while Sanabares II, a Parthian, issued coins in Marv (Alram, 1986, p. 260, n. 930; Chiesa, 1982; coin c). These are to be differentiated from the issues of Abdagases I, who struck coins in northern Arachosia, Gandhara, and Jammu. The depiction of Abdagases II is very similar to that of Pacores, the last Indo-Parthian king in Seistan; the Greek legend copies the well-known, stereotyped Parthian Greek legend. It also seems that Abdagases II struck gold coins, with a specific iconography and Pahlavi legends (Grenet and Bopearachchi, 1996, pp. 219-31; 1999, pp. 73-82); these were prestige issues with poor-quality engraving. Lastly, Pacores issued silver drachms very similar to those of Abdagases II, and a portrait that clearly reminds one of his own Arachosian issues. On the reverse is an imitation of the Parthian monogram

Arachosia. In Arachosia, the coins issued by Indo-Parthian kings are bronze tetradrachms (9.40 g), with the bust of the king (obverse) and a Nike holding a crown (reverse). On the obverse, the legend is in Greek, on the reverse, in Kharoṣṭhī script. Arachosian coins repeat types inaugurated in this area by the Indo-Greeks. Two mints can be distinguished, one in southern Arachosia, in the Kandahār area, one in northern Arachosia, in the Begrām (q.v.) region (coin d).
In Kandahār, seven kings struck coins, often in a poor style; they are depicted on the obverse turned to left. Tetradrachms of Gondophares represent the king with a diadem and a frontal ornament, as in Seistan (Senior, type 212). He was probably followed by Sarpedones, recognizable thanks to his goatee beard (Senior, type 255; coin g). On the obverse, to the left of the king’s bust in left profile, stands a symbolic device or tamga specific to the Indo-Parthian dynasty

 The ruler Orthagnes also insisted on his belonging to the Gondophares dynasty by using Gondophares’ name before his own name in the slightly corrupt Greek legend (Senior, type 257). The Kharoṣṭhī legend is less clear, ending with gada or gadana; the meaning of that word has not yet been deciphered. Orthagnes introduced on his coins a large number of mintmark combinations.
Very few coins of his successor, Sases, are known, and those mainly due to hoards (Senior, type 244; coins b, e). The absence of a frontal ornament and the name Sases following the Gondophares title certify the identification of Gondophares-Sases. Therefore the name “Gondophares,” as used by Sases and Orthagnes in Arachosia and by Ubouzanes, Sarpedones, and Sases in Jammu certainly served as a dynastic title; similarly, the tamga was a dynastic mintmark (Cribb, 1985, p. 295; MacDowall, 1991, p. 246).

Among the three last Indo-Parthian kings in Arachosia whose names are known, Sanabares issues are clearly identified, since the king is depicted with a tiara on the obverse and the legend is written in Greek on both obverse and reverse (Senior, type 265). A single coin of Abdagases II is known so far, found in a hoard. The depiction of the king (obverse) is very similar to that of Pacores; and the Kharoṣṭhī akṣaras, with curved lines under the syllabic signs, are the same as on Pacores issues (Cribb, 1985, fig. 36; Senior, type 235). Pacores tetradrachms, by contrast, are very numerous. They provide a chronology for this king, since a good number of them are overstruck on coins of a Kushan King, Soter Megas (Sims-Williams and Cribb, 1995-96, fig. 12, type 5d and e). Pacores was thus contemporary with Soter Megas-Vima Tak[tu] or followed him, probably in the beginning of the 2nd century C.E.

Pacores, Sanabares, and Abdagases coins were subsequently imitated by unnamed kings, in a very poor style and struck on irregular dies (Senior, types 271-73, 275-77; coins i, j). On the obverse a Pahlavi legend was added, and on the reverse the Pacores Kharoṣṭhī legend was progressively abandoned for a Pahlavi legend.
In northern Arachosia only two kings, Gondophares (Senior, type 213) and Abdagases I (Senior, 2001 type 224), struck coins, the latter in a style cruder than that of Gondophares; Gondophares’ issues are the more numerous. Some of these are overstruck on Hermaeus imitations and are also overstruck by the satrap Zeionises and by the early Kushan ruler, Kujula Kadphises. From these it can be inferred that by ca. 50 C.E. the Kushans put an end to the Indo-Parthian power in northern Arachosia.

Gandhara and Taxila. Traces of Indo-Parthian kings in Gandhara and Taxila area are more numerous than elsewhere. In this region they imitated Indo-Scythian bronze coins, with a king mounted on horseback on the obverse and a Greek deity (Zeus or Athena) on the reverse. It seems that there were two mints, one in Gandhara and another one in Taxila.

In these two mints, three kings struck coins: Gondophares, Abdagases, and Sases. In Gandhara, Gondophares reigned first (Senior, types 216-20; coin k). Apparently Abdagases, who specifies he is Gondophares’ nephew (Senior, types 226-230; coin l), initially ruled at the same time as Gondophares, as his title (“king,” and not “great king of kings”) and coin weight suggest. He gradually assumed higher titles and later was followed by Sases (Senior, types 241-42). Sases must have been defeated by the Kushans, probably by Soter Megas or Kujula Kadphises. In the very same area, perhaps during Abdagases’ reign, some local rulers governed under the Indo-Parthian power in northern Gandhara. In the Bajaur area, some fifteen inscriptions (Falk, 1998, pp. 87-108), a few archeological remains, and bronze coins attest the presence of a strategos and local princes of the Apracarāja family (Senior, types 177-85). They imitated the Greek legend and the types of the Indo-Scythian Azes (q.v.), but coin weight, mintmarks, and hoard evidence (Malakand hoard, Rajjar hoard) prove they belong to the Indo-Parthian period.

The Sirkap city site in Taxila, contrary to what J. Marshall (1951, p. 59) thought, was not the place visited by Apollonius of Tyana (in Philostratus, Vita Apollonii), who thus cannot be used to date Gondophares (Bernard, 1996, pp. 505-19). Furthermore, all the coins attributed to Gondophares by J. Marshall with Zeus Nikephorus on the reverse were very probably struck by Sases (Senior, type 243) or even Abdagases (Senior, type 231). Kujula Kadphises and Soter Megas coins found in Taxila and in the Swat valley suggest that Sases was defeated by one of these kings, as an overstrike of Soter Megas over Sases indicate (N. Sims-Williams and J. Cribb, 1995-96, pp. 119-20).
Hoard evidence indicates that in Gandhara Indo-Parthians or their contemporary local rulers imitated Azes drachms and tetradrachms in a very debased and crude style (Senior, types 105, 138-39, 175).
Jammu. In Jammu, on the Indo-Pakistan border, the Indo-Parthian coinage closely imitates that of the early 1st-century C.E. Indo-Scythian satrap, Rajuvula. Small debased drachms of a very poor style, they depict the head of the king (obverse) and Athena Alkidemos (reverse). They all weigh around 2.50 g. The succession is very clearly indicated by hoards (Cribb, 1985, pp. 282-300): the satrap Rajuvula, who is also known in Mathura (Senior, types 151-52), defeated the last Indo-Greek kings, Strato II and his son (Bopearachchi, 1991, pp. 125-32 and series Strato II, 1-2 and Strato II and his son, 6). He was expelled by Gondophares (Senior, type 222) and his followers. It is quite difficult to reconstruct a firm sequence for the Indo-Parthian kings. Five kings are known in this region, some of whom must have had a short reign. Few coins of Abdagases (Senior, type 232), Sarpedones (coin n), and Ubouzanes (Senior, types 254, 260; coin m) have been found; Sases, who is attested in a wider area, seems to have ruled longer, as the number of his coins and the variety of mintmark combinations suggest (Senior, type 246). He was followed by the Kushans, probably by Soter Megas.
Sindh. Few coins struck in Sindh, the lower Indus valley, are known, and all were found in Taxila, but they still represent a clue to the reconstruction of Indo-Parthian chronology. They are silver drachms, bearing the bust of the king wearing a tiara, with a Greek legend (obverse) and a Nike holding a crown and a Kharoṣṭhī legend (reverse). They might weigh around 2.35 g, but their exact weight was not given in publication (Marshall, 1951, p. 160). Three Indo-Parthian kings struck coins in Sindh. Sarpedones, recognizable thanks to his goatee beard (Marshall, 1951, coins nos. 211, 213-16) reigned first. Satavastres (Marshall, 1951, coins nos. 212, 218-21) is known only through six coins. Finally, Sases (Marshall, 1951, coins nos. 201-8, 210) declares he is nephew of “Aspa,” which has been interpreted as a short name for the 1st-century C.E. strategos in Gandhara, Aspavarman. These Indo-Parthian coin types were subsequently imitated by the Kushan Kudjula Kadphises (Cribb, 1992, pp. 131-45).

More importantly for chronology, Satavastres issues were overstruck by a Western Satrap, Nahapana; and Nahapana issues also were overstruck by Satavastres. Later, Sases as well overstruck Nahapana’s coins (Cribb, 1992, pp. 131-35, fig. 17-18 and 20). Nahapana, named in the Periplus Maris Erythraei (ed. Schoff, 41.14.1-4, 8-9) as Mambanos, is known thanks to his coins, inscriptions, and to Greek texts (Bhandare, 1999, pp. 240-69). His date corresponds to the first Kushan invasion, and therefore Satavastres, his exact contemporary, and Sases, who came a little later, have to be placed during the third quarter of the 1st century A.D. This corroborates the evidence given by the Indo-Parthian coinage in other areas.