The 'Indo-Greek Kingdom' (or sometimes 'Graeco-Indian Kingdom'
[2]) covered various parts of the northwest and northern
Indian subcontinent from 180 BCE to around 10 CE, and was ruled by a succession of more than thirty
Hellenic and
Hellenistic kings,
[3] often in conflict with each other. The kingdom was founded when the
Greco-Bactrian king
Demetrius invaded India in 180 BCE, ultimately creating an entity which seceded from the powerful
Greco-Bactrian Kingdom centered in Bactria (today's northern
Afghanistan). Since the term "Indo-Greek Kingdom" loosely describes a number of various dynastic polities, it had numerous capitals, but the city of
Taxila in northern
Pakistan was probably among the earliest seats of local Hellenic rulers, though cities like
Pushkalavati and
Sagala (apparently the largest of such residences) would house a number of dynasties in their times, and based on
Ptolemy's ''
Geographia'' and the nomenclature of later kings, a certain Theophila in the south was also probably a satrapal or royal seat at some point.
During the two centuries of their rule, the Indo-Greek kings combined the Greek and Indian languages and symbols, as seen on their coins, and blended
ancient Greek,
Hindu and
Buddhist religious practices, as seen in the archaeological remains of their cities and in the indications of their support of Buddhism. The Indo-Greek kings seem to have achieved a very high level of cultural
syncretism, the consequences of which are still felt today, particularly through the diffusion and influence of
Greco-Buddhist art.
The Indo-Greeks ultimately disappeared as a political entity around 10 CE following the invasions of the
Indo-Scythians, although pockets of Greek populations probably remained for several centuries longer under the subsequent rule of the
Indo-Parthians and
Kushans.
Background
Preliminary Greek presence in India
In
326 BC Alexander III conquered the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent as far as the
Hyphasis River, and established
satrapies as well as several cities, such as
Bucephala, until his troops refused to go further east. The Indian satrapies of the
Punjab were left to the rule of
Porus and
Taxiles, who were confirmed again at the
Treaty of Triparadisus in
321, and remaining Greek troops in these satrapies were left under the command of general
Eudemus. Sometime after 321 Eudemus toppled Taxiles, until he left India in 316 BCE. Another general also ruled over the Greek colonies of the Indus:
Peithon, son of Agenor,
[4] until his departure for
Babylon in 316 BCE, and a last one,
Sophytes, may have ruled in northern
Punjab until around 294 BCE.
According to Indian sources, Greek ("
Yavana") troops seem to have assisted
Chandragupta Maurya in toppling the
Nanda Dynasty and founding the
Mauryan Empire.
[5] By around 312 BCE Chandragupta had established his rule in large parts of the northwestern Indian territories.
In 303 BCE,
Seleucus I led an army to the Indus, where he encountered Chandragupta. The confrontation ended with a peace treaty, and "an intermarriage agreement" (
Epigamia, Greek: Επιγαμια), meaning either a dynastic marriage or an agreement for intermarriage between Indians and Greeks. Accordingly, Seleucus ceded to Chandragupta his northwestern territories, possibly as far as
Arachosia and received 500 war elephants (which played a key role in the victory of Seleucus at the
Battle of Ipsus):
Also several Greeks, such as the historian
Megasthenes followed by
Deimakos and
Dionysius, were sent to reside at the Mauryan court. Presents continued to be exchanged between the two rulers.
[6]
On these occasions, Greek populations apparently remained in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent under Mauryan rule. Chandragupta's grandson
Ashoka, who had converted to the Buddhist faith declared in the
Edicts of Ashoka, set in stone, some of them written in Greek, that Greek populations within his realm also had converted to Buddhism:
In his edicts, Ashoka claims he sent Buddhist emissaries to Greek rulers as far as the Mediterranean (
Edict No13), and that he developed
herbal medicine in their territories, for the welfare of humans and animals (
Edict No2).
The Greeks in India even seem to have played an active role in the propagation of Buddhism, as some of the emissaries of Ashoka, such as
Dharmaraksita, are described in
Pali sources as leading Greek ("
Yona") Buddhist monks, active in Buddhist proselytism (the
Mahavamsa, XII
[7]). It is also thought that Greeks contributed to the sculptural work of the
Pillars of Ashoka.
[8]
Again in 206 BCE, the
Seleucid emperor
Antiochus led an army into India, where he received war elephants and presents from the king
Sophagasenus:
Greek rule in Bactria
Greco-Bactrian statue of an old man or philosopher,
Ai Khanoum,
Bactria, 2nd century BCE
Alexander also had established in neighbouring Bactria several cities (
Ai-Khanoum,
Begram) and an administration that were to last more than two centuries under the
Seleucids and the
Greco-Bactrians, all the time in direct contact with Indian territory.
The
Greco-Bactrians maintained a strong Hellenistic culture at the door of India during the rule of the
Mauryan empire in India, as exemplified by the archaeological site of
Ai-Khanoum. When the Mauryan empire was toppled by the
Sungas around 185 BCE, the Greco-Bactrians expanded into India, where they established the
Indo-Greek kingdom.
Rise of the Sungas (185 BCE)
Main articles: Sunga Empire
In India, the Maurya Dynasty was overthrown around 185 BCE when
Pusyamitra Sunga, the commander-in-chief of Mauryan Imperial forces and a
Brahmin, assassinated the last of the Mauryan emperors
Brhadrata.
[9] Pusyamitra Sunga then ascended the throne and established the
Sunga Empire, which extended its control as far west as the
Punjab.
Buddhist sources, such as the ''
Asokavadana'', mention that Pusyamitra was hostile towards Buddhists and allegedly persecuted the
Buddhist faith. A large number of Buddhist monasteries (
viharas) were allegedly converted to
Hindu temples, in such places as
Nalanda,
Bodhgaya,
Sarnath or
Mathura. While it is established by secular sources that
Hinduism and
Buddhism were in competition during this time, with the Sungas preferring the former to the latter, historians such as
Etienne Lamotte[10] and
Romila Thapar[11] argue that Buddhist accounts of persecution of Buddhists by Sungas are largely exaggerated.
Establishment of the Indo-Greek kingdom
:''Main article:
History of the Indo-Greek Kingdom''
The founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom
Demetrius I "the Invincible" (205–171 BCE), wearing the scalp of an elephant, symbol of his conquests in India.
The invasion of northern India, and the establishment of what would be known as the "Indo-Greek kingdom", started around 180 BCE when
Demetrius, son of the Greco-Bactrian king
Euthydemus I, led his troops across the
Hindu Kush. In the process of the invasion, the Greeks seem to have occupied territory as far as the capital
Pataliputra, before ultimately retreating and consolodating in northwestern India.
Apollodotus, seemingly a relative of Demetrius, led the invasion to the south, while
Menander, one of the generals of Demetrius, led the invasion to the east. Following his conquests, Demetrius received the title ''ανικητος'' ("Aniketos", lit. Invincible), a title never given to any king before.
[12]
Written evidence of the initial Greek invasion survives in the Greek writings of
Strabo and
Justin, and in
Sanskrit in the records of
Patanjali,
Kālidāsa, and in the ''
Yuga Purana'', among others. Coins and architectural evidence also attest to the extent of the initial Greek campaign.
Evidence of the initial invasion
Greco-Roman sources
The Greco-Bactrians went over the
Hindu Kush and first started to re-occupy the area of
Arachosia, where Greek populations had been living since before the acquisition of the territory by
Chandragupta from
Seleucus.
Isidore of Charax describes Greek cities there, one of them called Demetrias, probably in honour of the conqueror
Demetrius.
[13]
According to
Strabo, Greek advances temporarily went as far as the Sunga capital
Pataliputra (today
Patna) in eastern India:
The 1st century BCE Greek historian
Apollodorus, quoted by Strabo, affirms that the
Bactrian Greeks, led by
Demetrius I and
Menander, conquered India and occupied a larger territory than the Macedonians under
Alexander the Great, going beyond the
Hypanis towards the
Himalayas:
[15]
The Roman historian
Justin also mentioned the Indo-Greek conquests, describing
Demetrius as "King of the Indians" ("''Regis Indorum''"), and explaining that after vanquishing him
Eucratides in turn "put India under his rule" ("''Indiam in potestatem redegit''")
[16] (since the time of the embassies of
Megasthenes in the 3rd century BCE "India" was understood as the entire subcontinent, and was cartographed by geographers such as
Eratosthenes). Justin also mentions Apollodotus and Menander as kings of the Indians.
[17]
Greek and Indian sources tend to indicate that the Greeks campaigned as far as Pataliputra until they were forced to retreat following the coup staged by
Eucratides back in Bactria circa 170 BCE, suggesting an occupation period of about eight years.
[18] Alternatively, Menander may merely have joined a raid led by Indian Kings down the
Ganga (A.K. Narain and Keay 2000), as Indo-Greek territory has only been confirmed from the the
Kabul Valley to the
Punjab.
To the south, the Greeks occupied the areas of the
Sindh and
Gujarat down to the region of
Surat (Greek: ''
Saraostus'') near
Mumbai (Bombay), including the strategic harbour of Barigaza (
Bharuch),
[19] as attested by several writers (Strabo 11; Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, Chap. 41/47) and as evidenced by coins dating from the Indo-Greek ruler
Apollodotus I:
The 1st century CE
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea describes numerous Greek buildings and fortifications in
Barigaza, although mistakenly attributing them to Alexander, and testifies to the circulation of Indo-Greek coinage in the region:
From ancient authors (Pliny, Arrian, Ptolemy and Strabo), a list of provinces, satrapies, or simple regional designations, and Greek cities from within the Indo-Greek Kingdom can be discerned (though others have been lost), ranging from the Indus basin to the upper valley of the Ganges.
[20]
Indian sources
Various Indian records describe ''
Yavana'' attacks on
Mathura,
Panchala,
Saketa, and
Pataliputra. The term ''Yavana'' is thought to be a transliteration of "Ionians" and is known to have designated Hellenistic Greeks (starting with the
Edicts of Ashoka, where
Ashoka writes about "the ''Yavana'' king
Antiochus"), but may have sometimes referred to other foreigners as well, especially in later centuries.
Patanjali, a grammarian and commentator on
Panini around 150 BCE, describes in the ''
Mahābhāsya'',
[21] the invasion in two examples using the imperfect tense of
Sanskrit, denoting a recent event:
★ "''Arunad Yavanah Sāketam''" ("The
Yavanas (Greeks) were besieging Saketa")
★ "''Arunad Yavano Madhyamikām''" ("The Yavanas were besieging Madhyamika" (the "Middle country")).
Indian depiction of foreigners of Greek appearance (bottom half) honouring the
Sanchi stupa with gifts, prayers and music. Northern gateway, Great Stupa, Sanchi. 2nd-1st century BCE (Click image for reference).
The ''Anushasanaparava'' of the
Mahabharata affirms that the country of Mathura, the heartland of India, was under the joint control of the Yavanas and the
Kambojas.
[22] The ''Vayupurana'' asserts that Mathura was ruled by seven Greek kings over a period of 82 years.
[23]
Accounts of battles between the Greeks and the Sunga in Central India are also found in the ''
Mālavikāgnimitram'', a play by
Kālidāsa which describes an encounter between Greek forces and Vasumitra, the grandson of
Pushyamitra, during the latter's reign.
[24]
Also the Brahmanical text of the ''
Yuga Purana'', which describes Indian historical events in the form of a prophecy,
[25] relates the attack of the Indo-Greeks on the capital Pataliputra, a magnificent fortified city with 570 towers and 64 gates according to
Megasthenes,
[26] and describes the ultimate destruction of the city's walls:
According to the Yuga Purana a situation of complete social disorder follows, in which the Yavanas rule and mingle with the people, and the position of the
Brahmins and the
Sudras is inverted:
Epigraphic remains
Several depictions of Greeks in Central India dated to the 2nd-1st century BCE are known, such as the Greek soldier in
Bharhut, or a frieze in
Sanchi which describes Greek-looking foreigners honouring the Sanchi stupa with gifts, prayers and music (image above). They wear the
chlamys cape over short
chiton tunics without trousers, and have high-laced
sandals. They are beardless with short curly hair and headbands, and two men wear the conical
pilos hat. They play various instruments, including two
carnyxes, and one
aulos double-flute.
[27] This is near
Vidisa, where an Indo-Greek monument, the
Heliodorus pillar, is known.
A pillar discovered in Reh, in the
Ganges valley 350 km south-east of Mathura mentions Menander:
Another inscription 17mk from Mathura, the Maghera inscription, contains the phrase "In the 116th year of the Greek kings...", suggesting Greek rule in the area until around 70 BCE, as the "Greek era" is thought to have started around 186 BCE.
[28]
Archaeological remains
Urban remains
The city of
Sirkap, today in northwestern
Pakistan near
Taxila, was built according to the "Hippodamian" grid-plan characteristic of Greek cities, and was a Hellenistic fortress of considerable proportions, with a 6,000 meter wall on the circumference, of a height of about 10 meters. The houses of the Indo-Greek level are "the best planned of all the six strata, and the rubble masonry of which its walls are built is also the most solid and compact".
[29] It is thought that the city was built by Demetrius.
Artifacts
Main archaeological artifacts from the Indo-Greek strata at
Taxila. Source:
John Marshall "Taxila, Archaeological excavations".
Several Hellenistic artifacts have been found, in particular coins of Indo-Greek kings, stone palettes representing Greek mythological scenes, and small statuettes. Some of them are purely Hellenistic, others indicate an evolution of the
Greco-Bactrian styles found at
Ai-Khanoum towards more indianized styles.
For example, accessories such as Indian ankle bracelets can be found on some representations of Greek mythological figures such as
Artemis.
The excavations of the Greek levels at Sirkap were however very limited and made in peripheral areas, out of respect for the more recent archeological strata (those of the
Indo-Scythian and especially
Indo-Parthian levels) and the remaining religious buildings, and due to the difficulty of excavating extensively to a depth of about 6 meters. The results, although interesting, are partial and cannot be considered as exhaustive.
[30] Beyond this, no extensive archaeological excavation of an Indo-Greek city has ever really been done.
Quantities of Hellenistic artifacts and ceramics can also be found throughout Northern India.
[31] Clay seals depicting Greek deities, and the depiction of an Indo-Greek king thought to be Demetrius were found at
Benares.
[32]
Stupas
Stupa decorated with
acanthus leaves, Level III,
Sirkap, 1st century BCE. Diameter: 2.5 meters.
[34]
When the Indo-Greeks settled in the area of Taxila, large Buddhist structures were already present, such as the stupa of
Dharmarajika built by
Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE. These structures were reinforced in the following centuries, by building rings of smaller stupas and constructions around the original ones. Numerous coins of the Indo-Greek king
Zoilos II were found under the foundation of a 1st century BCE rectangular chapel near the Dharmarajika stupa.
[35]
Also, various Buddhist structures, such as the
Butkara Stupa in the area of
Swat were enlarged and decorated with Hellenistic architectural elements in the 2nd century BCE, especially during the rule of
Menander.
[36] Stupas were just round mounds when the Indo-Greeks settled in India, possibly with some top decorations, but soon they added various structural and decorative elements, such as reinforcement belts, niches, architectural decorations such as
plinthes,
toruses and
cavettos, plaster painted with decorative scrolls. The niches were probably designed to place statues or friezes, an indication of early Buddhist descriptive art during the time of the Indo-Greeks.
[37] Coins of
Menander were found within these constructions dating them to around 150 BCE. By the end of Indo-Greek rule and during the
Indo-Scythian period (1st century BCE), stupas were highly decorated with colonnated flights of stairs and Hellenistic scrolls of
Acanthus leaves.
Consolidation
Retreat from eastern regions
The first invasion was completed by 175 BCE, as the Indo-Greeks apparently contained the Sungas to the area eastward of Pataliputra, and established their rule on the new territory. Back in Bactria however, around 170 BCE, an usurper named
Eucratides managed to topple the Euthydemid dynasty. He took for himself the title of king and started a civil war by invading the Indo-Greek territory, forcing the Indo-Greeks to abandon their easternmost possessions and establish their new oriental frontier at
Mathura, to confront this new threat:
Coin of
Menander.
Greek legend, BASILEOS SOTEROS MENANDROY lit. "Saviour King Menander".
The
Hathigumpha inscription, written by the king of
Kalinga,
Kharavela, also describes the presence of the ''Yavana'' king "Demetrius" with his army in eastern India, apparently as far as the city of
Rajagriha about 70 km southeast of Pataliputra and one of the foremost Buddhist sacred cities, but claims that Demetrius ultimately retreated to Mathura on hearing of Kharavela's military successes further south:
In any case, Eucratides seems to have occupied territory as far as the
Indus, between ca 170 BCE and 150 BCE. His advances were ultimately checked by the Indo-Greek king
Menander I, previously a general of Demetrius, who asserted himself in the Indian part of the empire, apparently conquered Bactria as indicated by his issue of coins in the Greco-Bactrian style, and even began the last expansions eastwards.
Consolidation and rise of Menander I
Menander is considered as probably the most successful Indo-Greek king, and the conqueror of the vastest territory.
[38] The finds of his coins are the most numerous and the most widespread of all the Indo-Greek kings. In Antiquity, from at least the 1st century CE, the "Menander Mons", or "Mountains of Menander", came to designate the mountain chain at the extreme east of the Indian subcontinent, today's
Naga hills and
Arakan, as indicated in the
Ptolemy world map of the 1st century CE geographer
Ptolemy. Menander is also remembered in Buddhist literature, where he called Milinda, and is described in the
Milinda Panha as a convert to
Buddhism: he became an
arhat whose relics were enshrined in a manner reminiscent of the Buddha. He also introduced a new coin type, with
Athena Alkidemos ("Protector of the people") on the reverse, which was adopted by most of his successors in the East.
Conquests east of the
Punjab region were most likely made during the second half of the century by the king
Menander I.
Following Menander's reign, about twenty Indo-Greek kings are known to have ruled in succession in the eastern parts of the Indo-Greek territory. Upon his death, Menander was succeeded by his queen
Agathokleia, who for some time acted as regent to their son
Strato I.
[39]
Greco-Bactrian encroachments
From 130 BCE, the
Scythians and then the
Yuezhi, following a long migration from the border of China, started to invade Bactria from the north. Around 125 BCE the Greco-Bactrian king
Heliocles, son of
Eucratides, was probably killed during the invasion and the Greco-Bactrian kingdom proper ceased to exist. Heliocles may have been survived by his relative
Eucratides II, who ruled south of the
Hindu Kush, in areas untouched by the invasion. Other Indo-Greek kings like
Zoilos I,
Lysias and
Antialcidas may possible have been relatives of either the Eucratid or the Euthydemid dynasties; they struck both Greek and bilingual coins and established a kingdom of their own.
A stabilizing alliance with the Yuezhi then seems to have followed, as hinted on the coins of
Zoilos I, who minted coins showing Heracles' club together with a
steppe-type
recurve bow inside a victory
wreath.
The Indo-Greeks thus suffered encroachments by the Greco-Bactrians in their western territories. The Indo-Greek territory was divided into two realms: the house of Menander retreated to their territories east of the
Jhelum River as far as
Mathura, whereas the Western kings ruled a larger kingdom of
Paropamisadae, western
Punjab and
Arachosia to the south.
Ideology
Buddhism flourished under the Indo-Greek kings, and their rule, especially that of Menander, has been remembered as benevolent. It has been suggested, although direct evidence is lacking, that their invasion of India was intended to show their support for the
Mauryan empire which had a long history of marital alliances,
[40] exchange of presents,
[41] demonstrations of friendship,
[42] exchange of ambassadors
[43] and religious missions
[44] with the Greeks. The historian
Diodorus even wrote that the king of Pataliputra had "great love for the Greeks".
[45]
The Greek expansion into Indian territory may have been intended to protect Greek populations in India,
[46] and to protect the Buddhist faith from the religious persecutions of the
Sungas.
[47] The city of
Sirkap founded by Demetrius combines Greek and Indian influences without signs of segregation between the two cultures.
Alternatively, the Greek invasions in India are also sometimes described as purely materialistic, only taking advantage of the ruin of the Mauryan Empire to acquire territory and wealth.
The first Greek coins to be minted in India, those of
Menander I and
Appolodotus I bear the mention "Saviour king" (BASILEOS SOTHROS), a title with high value in the Greek world which indicated an important deflective victory. For instance,
Ptolemy I had been ''Soter'' (saviour) because he had helped save
Rhodes from
Demetrius the Besieger, and
Antiochus I because he had saved
Asia Minor from the
Gauls. The title was also inscribed in Pali as ("Tratarasa") on the reverse of their coins. Menander and Apollodotus may indeed have been saviours to the Greek populations residing in India, and to some of the Indians as well.
[48]
Also, most of the coins of the Greek kings in India were bilingual, written in Greek on the front and in
Pali on the back (in the
Kharoshthi script, derived from
Aramaic, rather than the more eastern
Brahmi, which was used only once on coins of
Agathocles_of_Bactria), a tremendous concession to another culture never before made in the Hellenic world. From the reign of
Apollodotus II, around 80 BCE, Kharoshthi letters started to be used as mintmarks on coins in combination with Greek monograms and mintmarks, suggesting the participation of local technicians to the minting process.
[49] Incidentally, these bilingual coins of the Indo-Greeks were the key in the
decipherment of the Kharoshthi script by
James Prinsep (1799–1840). Kharoshthi became extinct around the 3rd century CE.
In Indian literature, the Indo-Greeks are described as
Yonas (in
Pali) or
Yavanas (in
Sanskrit), both thought to be transliterations of "
Ionians". Direct epigraphical evidence involves the Indo-Greek kings, such as the mention of the "Yona king"
Antialcidas on the
Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha, or the mention of
Menander I in the Buddhist text of the
Milinda Panha. In the Harivamsa the "Yavana" Indo-Greeks are qualified, together with the
Sakas,
Kambojas, Pahlavas and Paradas as ''Kshatriya-pungava'' i.e foremost among the Warrior caste, or
Kshatriyas. The
Majjhima Nikaya explains that in the lands of the Yavanas and Kambojas, in contrast with the numerous Indian castes, there were only two classes of people,
Aryas and
Dasas (masters and slaves). The Arya could become Dasa and vice versa.
Religion
In addition to the worship of the Classical
pantheon of the Greek deities found on their coins (
Zeus,
Herakles,
Athena,
Apollo...), the Indo-Greeks were involved with local faiths, particularly with Buddhism, but also with Hinduism and Zoroastrianism.
Buddhism
After the Greco-Bactrians militarily occupied parts of northern India from around 180 BCE, numerous instances of interaction between Greeks and Buddhism are recorded.
The conversion of Menander
Menander I, the "Saviour king", seems to have converted to
Buddhism, and is described in Buddhist texts as a great benefactor of the religion, on a par with
Ashoka or the future
Kushan emperor
Kanishka. He is famous for his dialogues with the Buddhist monk
Nagasena, transmitted to us in the
Milinda Panha, which explain that he became a Buddhist
arhat:
Another Indian writing, the ''Stupavadana'' of Ksemendra, mentions in the form of a prophecy that Menander will build a stupa in Pataliputra.
[50]
Plutarch also presents Menander as an example of benevolent rule, and explains that upon his death, the honour of sharing his remains was claimed by the various cities under his rule, and they were enshrined in "monuments" (μνημεία, probably
stupas), in a parallel with the historic
Buddha:
Some Buddhist inscriptions also mention the name of Menander, suggesting intense Buddhist activity under his sponsorship:
Buddhist proselytism
There are records of the involvement of Greeks in Buddhist pilgrimages. During the reign of Menander, the Greek (
Pali: ''
Yona'', lit: "
Ionian") Buddhist monk
Mahadhammarakkhita (
Sanskrit: Mahadharmaraksita, lit. "Great protector of the
Dharma") is said to have come from ''Alasandra'' (thought to be
Alexandria of the Caucasus, the city founded by
Alexander the Great, near today's
Kabul) with 30,000 monks for the foundation ceremony of the
Maha Thupa ("Great
stupa") built by king
Dutthagamani at
Anuradhapura in
Sri Lanka around 130 BCE, indicating the importance of Buddhism within Greek communities in northwestern India, and the prominent role Greek Buddhist monks played in them:
Several Buddhist dedications by Greeks in India are recorded, such as that of the Greek
meridarch (civil governor of a province) named
Theodorus, describing in
Kharoshthi how he enshrined relics of the Buddha. The inscriptions were found on a vase inside a stupa, dated to the reign of Menander or one his successors in the 1st century BCE (Tarn, p391):
Although the spread of Buddhism to Central Asia and Northern Asia is usually associated with the
Kushans, a century or two later, there is a possibility that it may have been introduced in those areas from
Gandhara "even earlier, during the time of
Demetrius and
Menander" (Puri, "Buddhism in Central Asia"). There is however some textual evidence to suggest that Buddhism had penetrated much earlier to Central Asia, at least in a limited form: the first two disciples of the Buddha were named
Tapassu and
Bhallika, from the region of
Balhika (the present
Balkh, and Sanskrit for Bactria), and though it cannot necessarily be presumed that any extensive prosyletization occurred on their return journey, that the Sanskrit name for Bactria derived from the name of a Bactrian-Buddhist disciple is suggestive of some early influence. Bhallika and Tapassu were both travellers, and if nothing else, the story of their conversion and their home region's Sanskrit nomenclature illustrates the possibility of early transmission via the local trade routes.
Buddhist symbolism
From around 180 BCE,
Agathocles and
Pantaleon, probable successors to
Demetrius I in the
Paropamisadae, and the earliest Greek kings to issue Indian-standard square bilingual coins (in
Brahmi), depicted the Buddhist lion together with the Hindu goddess
Lakshmi.
Some coins of Agathocles in the Indian standard also show a six-arched
stupa and a tree in a railing, typical symbol of the
Bodhi tree in early Buddhism.
[51] These coins show an unprecedented willingness to adapt to every aspect of the local culture: shape of the coinage, coinage size, language, and religion.
Later, some Indo-Greek coins incorporate the Buddhist symbol of the eight-spoked wheel, such as those of
Menander I, as well as his possible grandson
Menander II. On these coins, the wheel is associated with the Greek symbols of victory, either the palm of victory, or the victory wreath handed over by the goddess
Nike. This symbology has led some to conclude that Menander adopted the Buddhist mantle of a "Chakravartin" during his lifetime; lit., "one for whom the wheel of law turns," translated as "King of the Wheel" in Western texts.
The ubiquitous symbol of the elephant may or may not have been associated with Buddhism. Interestingly, on some coin series of
Antialcidas, the elephant holds the same relationship to Zeus and Nike as the Buddhist wheel on the coin of
Menander II, tending to suggest a common meaning for both symbols. Some of the earlier coins of king
Apollodotus I directly associate the elephant with Buddhist symbolism, such as the
stupa hill surmounted by a star, also seen, for example on the coins of the
Mauryan Empire or those of the later
Kuninda kingdom. Conversely, the bull is probably associated with
Shiva, and often described in an erectile state as on the coins of
Apollodotus I.
Also, after the reign of Menander I, several Indo-Greek rulers, such as
Agathokleia,
Amyntas,
Nicias,
Peukolaos,
Hermaeus,
Hippostratos,
Menander II and
Philoxenus depicted themselves or their Greek deities forming with the right hand a benediction
gesture[52] identical to the Buddhist vitarka
mudra (thumb and index joined together, with other fingers extended), which in Buddhism signifies the transmission of the Buddha's teaching.
.jpg)
Indian relief of probable Indo-Greek king (Susan Huntington, "The art of ancient India"), with Buddhist
triratana symbol on his sword.
Barhut stupa, 2nd century BCE.
Indian Museum,
Calcutta (drawing).
At precisely the same time, right after the death of Menander, several Indo-Greek rulers also started to adopt on their coins the
Pali title of "Dharmikasa", meaning "follower of the
Dharma" (the title of the great Indian Buddhist king
Ashoka was ''Dharmaraja'' "King of the Dharma").
[53] This usage was adopted by
Strato I,
Zoilos I,
Heliokles II,
Theophilos,
Peukolaos,
Menander II and
Archebios.
Altogether, the conversion of
Menander I to Buddhism suggested by the
Milinda Panha seems to have triggered the use of Buddhist symbolism in one form or another on the coinage of close to half of the kings who succeeded him. Especially, all the kings after Menander who are recorded to have ruled in
Gandhara (apart from the little known
Demetrius III) display Buddhist symbolism in one form or another. On the contrary, none of the kings whose rule was limited to Punjab did display Buddhist signs (with the exception of the powerful
Hippostratos, who probably took under his protection many Gandharan Greeks fleeing from the
Indo-Scythians.
[39]
A 2nd century BCE relief from a Buddhist
stupa in
Bharhut, in eastern
Madhya Pradesh (today at the
Indian Museum in
Calcutta), represents a foreign soldier with the curly hair of a Greek and the royal headband with flowing ends of a Greek king. In his left hand, he holds a branch of
ivy, symbol of
Dionysos. Also parts of his dress, with rows of geometrical folds, are characteristically Hellenistic in style. On his sword appears the Buddhist symbol of the three jewels, or
Triratana.
Representation of the Buddha
The Indo-Greek may have initiated anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha in statuary, possibly as soon as the 2nd-1st century BCE, according to
Foucher and others. Stupa constructions of the time of Menander, such as the
Butkara stupa, incorporated niches which were intended to place statue or friezes, an indication of early Buddhist descriptive art during the time of the Indo-Greeks.
[55] Also Chinese murals are known which describe
Emperor Wu of Han worshipping Buddha statues brought from Central Asia in 120 BCE.
A Chinese frescoe in the
Mogao Caves indicates that gilded statues of the Buddha were brought to China from Central Asia in 120 BCE.
Foucher especially considered Hellenistic free-standing Buddhas as "the most beautiful, and probably the most ancient of the Buddhas", assigning them to the 2nd to 1st century BCE during the reign of Menander, and making them the starting point of the anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha:
The willingness of ancient Greeks to represent and worship local deities is also attested in Egypt with the creation of the god
Serapis in Hellenistic style, an adaptation of the Egyptian god
Apis, or in
Phrygia with the Hellenistic representation of the heretofore aniconic
Cybele. On the contrary, Indian Buddhist art was traditionally aniconic (the Buddha was only represented with symbols), and the Iranian tradition (represented by the 1st century
Indo-Parthians) also did not represent their deities in human form.
[56] An Indo-Chinese tradition also explains that
Nagasena, also known as
Menander's Buddhist teacher, created in 43 BCE in the city of
Pataliputra a statue of the Buddha, the
Emerald Buddha, which was later brought to
Thailand.
Stylistically, Indo-Greek coins generally display a very high level of
Hellenistic artistic realism, which declined drastically around 50 BCE with the invasions of the
Indo-Scythians,
Yuezhi and
Indo-Parthians. The first known statues of the Buddha are also very realistic and Hellenistic in style and are more consistent with the pre-50 BCE artistic level seen on coins. This would tend to suggest that the first statues were created between 130 BCE (death of Menander) and 50 BCE, precisely at the time when Buddhist symbolism appeared on Indo-Greek coinage. From that time, Menander and his successors may have been the key propagators of Buddhist ideas and representations: "the spread of Gandhari Buddhism may have been stimulated by Menander's royal patronage, as may have the development and spread of Gandharan sculpture, which seems to have accompanied it" (Mc Evilly, "The shape of ancient thought", p378)
The representation of the Buddha may also be connected to his progressive deification, which is usually associated with the spread of the Indian principle of
Bhakti (personal devotion to a deity). Bhakti is a principle which evolved in the
Bhagavata religious movement, and is said to have permeated Buddhism from about 100 BCE, and to have been a contributing factor to the representation of the Buddha in human form. The association of the Indo-Greeks with the Bhagavata movement is documented in the inscription of the
Heliodorus pillar, made during the reign of the Indo-Greek king
Antialcidas (r.c. 115-95 BCE). At that time relations with the Sungas seem to have improved, and some level of religious exchange seems to have occurred. The point of time when
bhakti fervour would have encountered the Hellenistic artistic tradition would then be around 100 BCE.
Most of the early images of the Buddha (especially those of the standing Buddha) are anepigraphic, which makes it difficult to have a definite datation. The earliest known image of the Buddha with approximate indications on date is the
Bimaran casket, which has been found buried with coins of the Indo-Scythian king
Azes II (or possibly
Azes I), indicating a 30-10 BCE date,
[58] although this date is not undisputed. Such datation, as well as the general Hellenistic style and attitude of the Buddha on the Bimaran casket (Hellenistic treatment of the dress,
contrapposto attitude) would make it a possible Indo-Greek work, used in dedications by Indo-Scythians right after the end of Indo-Greek rule in the area of
Gandhara. Since it already displays quite a sophisticated iconography (
Brahma and
Śakra as attendants,
Bodhisattvas) in an advanced style, it would suggest much earlier representations of the Buddha were already current by that time, going back to the rule of the
Indo-Greeks (
Alfred A. Foucher and others):
The question of coinage
The anthropomorphic representation of the
Buddha is totally absent from Indo-Greek coinage. This could suggest that the Indo-Greek kings respected the Indian aniconic rule for Buddhist depictions, limiting themselves to Buddhist symbolism only (the
dharma wheel, the seated lion). According to this perspective, the actual depiction of the Buddha would be a later phenomenon, usually dated to the 1st century CE, emerging from the sponsorship of the
Indo-Scythians,
Indo-Parthians and
Kushans and executed by Greek, and, later, Indian and possibly Roman artists. Datation of
Greco-Buddhist statues is generally uncertain, but they are at least firmly established from the 1st century CE.
Another possibility is that the Indo-Greeks may not have considered the Buddha strictly as a God, but rather as an essentially human sage or
philosopher, in line with the traditional
Nikaya Buddhist doctrine. Just as philosophers were routinely represented in statues (but certainly not on coins) in Antiquity, the image of the Buddha would naturally have occurred on statuary only.
Lastly, the Indo-Greeks did at the beginning represent Indian (
Hindu) deities on their coins (coins of
Agathocles circa 180 BCE), but this happened only once, and the experiment was never repeated again by any king.
[60] Although they are known to have been sympathetic to Indian religions in general, the Indo-Greeks apparently chose, for whatever reason, not to represent Indian deities on their coinage anymore.
Hinduism
Indian-standard silver drachm of the same Agathocles r.c. 190-180 BCE.
'Obv:' Indian god
Balarama-
Sankarshan. Greek legend: BASILEOS AGATOKLEOUS "Of King Agathocles".
'Rev:' Indian god
Vasudeva-
Krishna.
Brahmi legend: RAJANE AGATHUKLAYASA "King Agathocles".
The first known bilingual coins of the Indo-Greeks were issued by
Agathocles around 180 BCE. These coins were found in
Ai-Khanoum, the great Greco-Bactrian city in northeastern Afghanistan, but introduce for the first time an Indian script (the
Brahmi script which had been in use under the
Mauryan empire), and the first known representations of Hindu deities, in a very Indian iconography:
Krishna-
Vasudeva, with his large wheel with six spokes (
chakra) and conch (shanka), and his brother
Sankarshan-
Balarama, with his plough (hala) and pestle (masala), both early avatars of
Vishnu.
[61] The square coins, instead of the usual Greek round coins, also followed the Indian standard for coinage. The dancing girls on some of the coins of Agathocles and
Pantaleon are also sometimes considered as representations of
Subhadra, Krishna's sister.
These first issues were in several respects a short-lived experiment. Hindu anthropomorphic deities were never again represented in Indo-Greek coinage (although the bull on the vast quantity of subsequent coins may have symbolized Shiva, as the elephant may have symbolized Buddhism. Alternatively the bull, according to
Foucher, represents the birth of the Buddha, which happened during the month of ''Vaicakha'' (April-May), known to Buddhists as
Vesak, under the zodiacal sign of the
Taurus, during the full moon),
[62] and the Brahmi script was immediately replaced by the
Kharoshti script, derived from
Aramaic. The general practice however of minting bilingual coins and combining Greek and Indian iconography, sometimes in the Greek and sometimes in the Indian standard continued for the next two centuries.
In any case, these coins suggest the strong presence of Indian religious traditions in the northwestern Indian subcontinent at that time, and the willingness of the Greeks to acknowledge and even promote them. Artistically, they tend to indicate that the Greeks were not particularly reluctant to make representations of local deities, which has some bearing on the later emergence of the image of the Buddha in Hellenistic style.
The
Heliodorus pillar inscription is another epigraphical evidence of the interaction between Greeks and Hinduism. The pillar was erected around 110 BCE in central
India at the site of
Vidisha, by
Heliodorus, a Greek ambassador of the
Indo-Greek king
Antialcidas to the court of the
Sunga king
Bhagabhadra. The pillar was surmounted by a sculpture of
Garuda and was apparently dedicated by Heliodorus to the temple of
Vasudeva.
:"This Garuda-standard of Vasudeva (
Vishnu), the God of Gods
:was erected here by the
Bhagavata Heliodoros,
:the son of Dion, a man of
Taxila,
:sent by the Great Greek (
Yona) King
:Antialkidas, as ambassador to
:King Kasiputra Bhagabhadra, the Savior
:son of the princess from
Benares, in the fourteenth year of his reign."
:(
Heliodorus pillar inscription)
Zoroastrianism
Persian culture and religion seem to have been rather influential among the Western Indo-Greeks, who, located around the
Paropamisadae, lived in direct contact with the Central Asian cultural sphere and the eastern reaches of the
Parthian empire. Images of the
Persian Zoroastrian god
Mithra appear extensively on the Indo-Greek coinage of the Western kings, as a god with a radiated
phrygian cap.
Coin of
Hermaeus, with seated Zeus-Mithra.
This Zeus-Mithra god is also the one represented seated (with the rays around the head, and a small protrusion on the top of the head representing the cap) on many coins of
Hermaeus,
Antialcidas or
Heliokles II, or possibly even earlier during the time of
Eucratides I, on whose coins the deity is said to be the god of the city of
Kapisa.
The future Buddha
Maitreya, usually represented seated on a throne Western-style, and venerated both in Mahayana and non-Mahayana Buddhism, is sometimes considered as influenced by the god Mithra. "Some scholars suggest he (Maitreya) was originally linked to the Iranian saviour-figure Mitra, and that his later importance for Buddhist as the future Buddha residing in the Tusita heaven, who will follow on from Sakyamuni Buddha, derives from this source." (Keown, Dictionary of Buddhism)
Art
Incipient Greco-Buddhist art
In general, the art of the Indo-Greeks is poorly documented, and few works of art (apart from their coins and a few
stone palettes) are directly attributed to them. The coinage of the Indo-Greeks however is generally considered as some of the most artistically brilliant of Antiquity.
[63] The Hellenistic heritage (
Ai-Khanoum) and artistic proficiency of the Indo-Greek would suggest a rich sculptural tradition as well, but traditionally very few sculptural remains have been attributed to them. On the contrary, most Gandharan Hellenistic works of art are usually attributed to the direct successors of the Indo-Greeks in India in 1st century CE, such as the nomadic
Indo-Scythians, the
Indo-Parthians and, in an already decadent state, the
Kushans[64] In general, Gandharan sculpture cannot be dated exactly, leaving the exact chronology open to interpretation.
The possibility of a direct connection between the Indo-Greeks and Greco-Buddhist art has been reaffirmed recently as the dating of the rule of Indo-Greek kings has been extended to the first decades of the 1st century CE, with the reign of
Strato II in the Punjab.
[65] Also, Foucher, Tarn and more recently Boardman, Bussagli or McEvilley have taken the view that some of the most purely Hellenistic works of northwestern India and Afghanistan, may actually be wrongly attributed to later centuries, and instead belong to a period one or two centuries earlier, to the time of the Indo-Greeks in the 2nd-1st century BCE:
[66]
This is particularly the case of some purely Hellenistic works in
Hadda,
Afghanistan, an area which "might indeed be the cradle of incipient Buddhist sculpture in Indo-Greek style".
[67] Referring to one of the Buddha triads in Hadda (drawing), in which the Buddha is sided by very Classical depictions of
Herakles/
Vajrapani and
Tyche/
Hariti, Boardman explains that both figures "might at first (and even second) glance, pass as, say, from Asia Minor or Syria of the first or second century BC (...) these are essentially Greek figures, executed by artists fully conversant with far more than the externals of the Classical style".
[68] Many of the works of art at Hadda can also be compared to the style of the 2nd century BCE sculptures of the Hellenistic world, such as those of the
Temple of Olympia at Bassae in Greece, which could also suggest roughly contemporary dates.
Alternatively, it has been suggested that these works of art may have been executed by itinerant Greek artists during the time of maritime contacts with the West from the 1st to the 3rd century CE.
[69]
The supposition that such highly Hellenistic and, at the same time Buddhist, works of art belong to the Indo-Greek period would be consistent with the known Buddhist activity of the Indo-Greeks (the
Milinda Panha etc...), their Hellenistic cultural heritage which would naturally have induced them to produce extensive statuary, their know artistic proficiency as seen on their coins until around 50 BCE, and the dated appearance of already complex iconography incorporating Hellenistic sculptural codes with the
Bimaran casket in the early 1st century CE.
Indo-Greeks in the art of Gandhara
The
Greco-Buddhist art of
Gandhara, beyond the omnipresence of Greek style and stylistic elements which might be simply considered as an enduring artistic tradition, offers numerous depictions of people in Greek
Classical realistic style, attitudes and fashion (clothes such as the
chiton and the
himation, similar in form and style to the 2nd century BCE
Greco-Bactrian statues of
Ai-Khanoum, hairstyle), holding contraptions which are characteristic of Greek culture (
amphoras, "kantaros" Greek drinking cups), in situations which can range from festive (such as
Bacchanalian scenes) to Buddhist-devotional.
Uncertainties in dating make it unclear whether these works of art actually depict Greeks of the period of Indo-Greek rule up to the 1st century BCE, or remaining Greek communities under the rule of the
Indo-Parthians or
Kushans in the 1st and 2nd century CE.
Stone palettes
Numerous early
stone palettes found in Gandhara are considered as direct productions of the Indo-Greeks during the 2nd to the 1st century BCE. The art style of the palettes later evolved under the Indo-Scythians and Indo-Parthians, but production stopped with the advent of the
Kushans.
[70] Usually these palettes represent people in Greek dress in mythological or gallant scenes.
Hellenistic groups
A series of reliefs, several of them known as the
Buner reliefs which were taken during the 19th century from Buddhist structures near the area of Buner in northern
Pakistan, depict in perfect Hellenistic style gatherings of people in Greek dress, socializing, drinking or playing music. Some other of these reliefs depict
Indo-Scythian soldiers in uniform, sometimes playing instruments. Finally, revelling Indian in
dhotis richly adorned with jewelry are also shown. These are considered some of the most artistically perfect, and earliest, of Gandharan sculptures, and are thought to exalt multicultural interaction within the context of Buddhism, sometime during the 1st century BCE-1st century CE.
Bacchic scenes
Greeks harvesting grapes, Greeks drinking and revelling, scenes of erotical courtship are also numerous, and seem to relate to some of the most remarkable traits of Greek culture. These reliefs also belong to Buddhist structures, and it is sometimes suggested that they might represent some kind of paradisical world after death.
Hellenistic devotees
Depictions of people in Hellenistic dress within a Buddhist context are also numerous. Some show a Greek devotee couple circambulating stupas together with shaven monks, others Greek protagonists are incorporated in Buddhist
jataka stories of the life of the Buddha (relief of The Great Departure), others are simply depicted as devotees on the columns of Buddhist structures. A few famous friezes, including one in the British Museum, also depict the story of the
Trojan horse. It is unclear whether these reliefs actually depict contemporary Greek devotees in the area of Gandhara, or if they are just part of a remaining artistic tradition. Most of these reliefs are usually dated to the 1st-3rd century CE.
Economy
Very little is known about the economy of the Indo-Greeks. The abundance of their coins would tend to suggest large mining operations, particularly in the mountainous area of the
Hindu-Kush, and an important monetary economy. The Indo-Greek did strike bilingual coins both in the Greek "round" standard and in the Indian "square" standard, suggesting that monetary circulation extended to all parts of society. The adoption of Indo-Greek monetary conventions by neighbouring kingdoms, such as the
Kunindas to the east and the
Satavahanas to the south, would also suggest that Indo-Greek coins were used extensively for cross-border trade.
Tribute payments
It would also seem that some of the coins emitted by the Indo-Greek kings, particularly those in the monolingual
Attic standard, may have been used to pay some form of tribute to the Yuezhi tribes north of the Hindu-Kush. This is indicated by the coins finds of the
Qunduz hoard in northern Afghanistan, which have yielded quantities of Indo-Greek coins in the Hellenistic standard (Greek weights, Greek language), although none of the kings represented in the hoard are known to have ruled so far north. Conversely, none of these coins have ever been found south of the Hindu-Kush.
[71]
Trade with China
An indirect testimony by the Chinese explorer
Zhang Qian, who visited Bactria around 128 BCE, suggests that intense trade with
Southern China was going through northern India, and therefore probably through the contemporary Indo-Greek realm. Zhang Qian explains that he found Chinese products in the Bactrian markets, and that they were transiting through northwestern India, which he incidentially describes as a civilization similar to that of Bactria:
Indian Ocean trade
Maritime relations across the Indian ocean started in the 3rd century BCE, and further developed during the time of the Indo-Greeks together with their territorial expansion along the western coast of India. The first contacts started when the
Ptolemies constructed the
Red Sea ports of
Myos Hormos and
Berenike, with destination the
Indus delta, the
Kathiawar peninsula or
Muziris. Around 130 BCE,
Eudoxus of Cyzicus is reported (
Strabo, ''Geog.'' II.3.4)
[72] to have made a successful voyage to
India and returned with a cargo of
perfumes and
gemstones. By the time Indo-Greek rule was ending, up to 120 ships were setting sail every year from Myos Hormos to India (Strabo ''Geog.'' II.5.12).
[73]
Armed forces
The coins of the Indo-Greeks provide rich clues on their uniforms and weapons. Typical Hellenistic uniforms are depicted, with helmets being either round in the Greco-Bactrian style, or the flat
kausia of the Macedonians (coins of
Apollodotus I).
Military technology
Their weapons were spears, swords, longbow (on the coins of
Agathokleia) and arrows. Interestingly, around 130 BCE the Central Asian
recurve bow of the steppes with its
gorytos box starts to appear for the first time on the coins of
Zoilos I, suggesting strong interactions (and apparently an alliance) with nomadic peoples, either Yuezhi or Scythian. The recurve bow becomes a standard feature of Indo-Greek horsemen by 90 BCE, as seen on some of the coins of
Hermaeus.
Generally, Indo-Greek kings are often represented riding horses, as early as the reign of
Antimachus II around 160 BCE. The equestrian tradition probably goes back to the
Greco-Bactrians, who are said by
Polybius to have faced a
Seleucid invasion in 210 BCE with 10,000 horsemen.
[74] Although
war elephants are never represented on coins, a harness plate (
phalera) dated to the 3-2nd century BCE, today in the
Hermitage Museum, depicts a helmetted Greek combatant on an Indian war elephant, and would be either Greco-Bactrian or Indo-Greek work. Indian war elephants were a standard feature of Hellenistic armies, and this would naturally have been the case for the Indo-Greeks as well.
Indo-Greek officer (on a coin of
Menander II), circa 90 BCE. He is equipped with a cuirass,
lamellar armour for the thighs, and leg protections (cnemids).
[75]
The Milinda Panha, in the questions of
Nagasena to king Menander, provides a rare glimpse of the military methods of the period:
:"(Nagasena) Has it ever happened to you, O king, that rival kings rose up against you as enemies and opponents?
:-(Menander) Yes, certainly.
:-Then you set to work, I suppose, to have moats dug, and ramparts thrown up, and watch towers erected, and strongholds built, and stores of food collected?
:-Not at all. All that had been prepared beforehand.
:-Or you had yourself trained in the management of war elephants, and in horsemanship, and in the use of the war chariot, and in archery and fencing?
:-Not at all. I had learnt all that before.
:-But why?
:-With the object of warding off future danger."
:(
Milinda Panha, Book III, Chap 7)
The Milinda Panha also describes the structure of Menander's army:
:"Now one day Milinda the king proceeded forth out of the city to pass in review the innumerable host of his mighty army in its fourfold array (of elephants, cavalry, bowmen, and soldiers on foot)." (Milinda Panha, Book I)
Size of Indo-Greek armies
The Greco-Bactrian king
Eucratides (171-145 BCE) is said to have vanquished 60,000 Indo-Greeks, before being himself defeated by Menander.
The armed forces of the Indo-Greeks during their invasion of India must have been quite considerable, as suggested by their ability to topple local rulers, but also by the size of the armed reaction of some Indian rulers. The ruler of
Kalinga,
Kharavela, claims in the
Hathigumpha inscription that he led a "large army" in the direction of Demetrius' own "army" and "transports", and that he induced him to retreat from Pataliputra to Mathura. A "large army" for the state of Kalinga must indeed have been quite considerable. The Greek ambassador
Megasthenes took special note of the military strength of
Kalinga in his ''
Indica'' in the middle of the 3rd century BCE:
That this kind of military strength was needed to confront the Indo-Greeks is indicative of the Indo-Greeks' own military commitment.
An account by the Roman writer
Justin gives another hint of the size of Indo-Greek armies, which, in the case of the conflict between the Greco-Bactrian
Eucratides and the Indo-Greek
Demetrius II, he numbers at 60,000 (although they allegedly lost to 300 Greco-Bactrians):
These are considerable numbers, as large armies during the Hellenistic period typically numbered between 20,000 to 30,000.
[77]
However, the military strength of nomadic tribes from Central Asia (
Yuezhi and
Scythians) probably constituted a significant threat to the Indo-Greeks. According to
Zhang Qian, the Yuezhi represented a considerable force of between 100,000 and 200,000 mounted archer warriors,
[78] with customs identical to those of the
Xiongnu.
Finally, the Indo-Greek seem to have combined forces with other "invaders" during their expansion into India, since they are often referred to in combination with others (especially the
Kambojas), in the Indian accounts of their invasions.
Later History
Throughout the 1st century BCE, the Indo-Greeks progressively lost ground to the Indians in the east, and the
Scythians, the
Yuezhi, and the
Parthians in the West. About 19 Indo-Greek king are known during this period, down to the last known Indo-Greek king
Strato II, who ruled in the
Punjab region until around 10 CE.
Loss of Mathura and eastern territories (circa 100 BCE)
The Indo-Greeks may have ruled as far as the area of
Mathura until sometime in the 1st century BCE: the Maghera inscription, from a village near Mathura, records the dedication of a well "in the one hundred and sixteenth year of the reign of the Yavanas", which could be as late as 70 BCE.
[79] Soon however Indian kings recovered the area of Mathura and south-eastern Punjab, west of the
Yamuna River, and started to mint their own coins. The
Arjunayanas (area of Mathura) and
Yaudheyas mention military victories on their coins ("Victory of the Arjunayanas", "Victory of the Yaudheyas"). During the 1st century BCE, the Trigartas,
Audumbaras and finally the
Kunindas (closest to Punjab) also started to mint their own coins, usually in a style highly reminiscent of Indo-Greek coinage.
The Western king
Philoxenus briefly occupied the whole remaining Greek territory from the Paropamisadae to Western Punjab between 100 to 95 BCE, after what the territories fragmented again. The western kings regained their territory as far west as
Arachosia, and eastern kings continued to rule on and off until the beginning of our era.
Scythian invasions (80 BCE-20 CE)
Main articles: Indo-Scythians
Around 80 BCE, an
Indo-Scythian king named
Maues, possibly a general in the service of the Indo-Greeks, ruled for a few years in northwestern India before the Indo-Greeks again took control. King
Hippostratos (65-55 BCE) seems to have been one of the most successful subsequent Indo-Greek kings until he lost to the Indo-Scythian
Azes I, who established an Indo-Scythian dynasty.
Although the Indo-Scythians clearly ruled militarily and politically, they remained surprisingly respectful of Greek and Indian cultures. Their coins were minted in Greek mints, continued using proper Greek and Kharoshthi legends, and incorporated depictions of Greek deities, particularly Zeus. The
Mathura lion capital inscription attests that they adopted the Buddhist faith, as do the depictions of deities forming the vitarka mudra on their coins. Greek communities, far from being exterminated, probably persisted under Indo-Scythian rule. There is a possibility that a fusion, rather than a confrontation, occurred between the Greeks and the Indo-Scythians: in a recently published coin,
Artemidoros presents himself as "son of Maues",
[80] and the
Buner reliefs show Indo-Greeks and Indo-Scythians reveling in a Buddhist context.
The Indo-Greeks continued to rule a territory in the eastern Punjab, until the kingdom of the last Indo-Greek king
Strato II was taken over by the Indo-Scythian ruler
Rajuvula around 10 CE.
Western kings and Yuezhi expansion (70 BCE-)
Silver bilingual drachm of
Hermaeus (ruled 90-70 BCE) with his wife Kalliope. King on horse, equipped with the
recurve bow of the steppes.
Around eight western Indo-Greek kings are known. The last important king was
Hermaeus, who reigned until around 70 BCE; soon after his death the
Yuezhi took over his areas from neighbouring Bactria. Chinese chronicles (the
Hou Hanshu) actually tend to suggest that the Chinese general Wen-Chung had helped negotiate the alliance of Hermaeus with the Yuezhi, against the
Indo-Scythians.
[81] When Hermaeus is depicted on his coins riding a horse, he is equipped with the
recurve bow and bow-case of the steppes.
After 70 BCE, the Yuezhi became the new rulers of the Paropamisadae, and minted vast quantities of posthumous issues of
Hermaeus up to around 40 CE, when they blend with the coinage of the
Kushan king
Kujula Kadphises. The first documented Yuezhi prince,
Sapadbizes, ruled around 20 BCE, and minted in Greek and in the same style as the western Indo-Greek kings, probably depending on Greek mints and celators.
Indo-Parthian rule (10–60 CE)
Main articles: Indo-Parthian Kingdom
The Parthians, represented by the
Suren, a noble Parthian family of
Arsacid descent, started to make inroads into the territories which had been occupied by the
Indo-Scythians and the
Yuezhi, until the demise of the last Indo-Scythian emperor
Azes II around 12 BCE. The Parthians ended up controlling all of
Bactria and extensive territories in Northern India, after fighting many local rulers such as the
Kushan Empire ruler
Kujula Kadphises, in the
Gandhara region. Around 20,
Gondophares, one of the Parthian conquerors, declared his independence from the Parthian empire and established the
Indo-Parthian kingdom in the conquered territories, with his capital in
Taxila.
Kushan supremacy (60 CE-)
.jpg)
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