Azes II

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Azes II
Indo-Scythian king
Azes II in armour, riding a horse, on one of his silver tetradrachms, minted in Gandhara.
Reign	Indo-Scythians: 35 BC - 12 BC
Predecessor	Azilises
Successor	Zeionises/Kharahostes

Azes II (reigned circa 35-12 BCE), was an Indo-Scythian king who completed the rule of the Scythians in northern India.

1 Decline of the Scythians
2 Coinage
3 The Bimaran casket
4 See also
5 External links
6 References

[edit] Decline of the Scythians

After the death of Azes II, the rule of the Indo-Scythians in northwestern India finally crumbled with the conquest of the Kushans, one of the five tribes of the Yuezhi who had lived in Bactria for more than a century, and who were then expanding into India to create a Kushan Empire.

Soon after, the Parthians invaded from the west. Their leader Gondophares temporarily displaced the Kushans and founded the Indo-Parthian Kingdom that was to last until the middle of the 1st century CE.

The Kushans ultimately regained northwestern India circa 75 CE, where they were to prosper for several centuries.

Some Indo-Scythian kingdom persisted in northern India until the 5th century CE.

[edit] Coinage

Silver coin of King Azes II (r.c. 35-12 BCE).
Obv: King with coat of mail, on horse, holding a sceptre, with Greek royal headband. Greek legend BASILEWS BASILEWN MEGALOU AZOU "The Great King of Kings Azes".
Rev: Athena with shield and lance, making a hand gesture identical to the Buddhist vitarka mudra. Kharoshti legend MAHARAJASA RAJADIRAJASA MAHATASA AYASA "The Great King of Kings Azes". Buddhist triratna symbol in the left field.

Azes II's coins use Greek and Kharoshti, depict a Greek goddess as his protector, and thereby essential follow the numismatic model of the Greek kings if the Indo-Greek kingdom, suggesting a high willingness to accommodate Greek culture. An originality of the Indo-Scythians is to show the king on a horse, rather than his bust in profile as did the Greeks.

Other coins of Azes depict the Buddhist lion and the Brahmanic cow of Shiva, suggesting religious tolerance towards his subjects.

[edit] The Bimaran casket

The Bimaran casket, representing the Buddha surrounded by Brahman (left) and Indra (right) was found inside a stupa with coins of Azes II inside. British Museum.

Azes II is also connected to the Bimaran casket, one of the earliest representations of the Buddha. The casket, probably Greek work, was used for the dedication of a stupa in Bamiran, near Jalalabad in Afghanistan, and placed inside the stupa with several coins of Azes II. This event may have happened during the reign of Azes (35-12 BCE), or slightly later. The Indo-Scythians are otherwise connected with Buddhism (see Mathura lion capital), and it is indeed possible they would have commendited the work.

Preceded by:
Azilises

Indo-Scythian Ruler
(35-12 BCE)

Succeeded by:
In Kashmir:
Zeionises

In Mathura:
Kharahostes

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

"The Shape of Ancient Thought. Comparative studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies" by Thomas McEvilley (Allworth Press and the School of Visual Arts, 2002) ISBN 1-58115-203-5
"The Greeks in Bactria and India", W.W. Tarn, Cambridge University Press.

Portrait of Azes II	Coin of Azes II with Buddhist triratna symbol.	Coin of Azes II.	Coin of Azes II, with a clear depiction of his military outfit, with coat of mail and reflex bow in the saddle.
		Coin of Azes II, with king seated, holding a drawn sword and a whip.	Seated king Azes II
Profile of king Azes II.