Azes I
Azes I | |
---|---|
Indo-Scythian king | |
Coin of Azes I. Obv: Azes I in military dress, on a horse, with couched spear. Greek legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΝ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΑΖΟΥ "of the Great King of Kings Azes". British Museum. | |
Reign | c. 48/47 – 25 BCE |
Predecessor | Spalirises |
Successor | Azilises |
Azes I (Greek: Ἄζης Azēs, epigraphically ΑΖΟΥ Azou; Kharosthi: 𐨀𐨩 A-ya, Aya[1]) was an Indo-Scythian ruler who ruled around c. 48/47 BCE – 25 BCE[2] with a dynastic empire based in the Punjab and Indus Valley,[3] completed the domination of the Scythians in the northwestern Indian subcontinent.
Name
Azes's name is attested on his coins in the Greek form Azēs (Ἄζης) and the Kharosthi form Aya (𐨀𐨩),[1] which are both derived from the Saka name *Aza, meaning "leader".[4]
History
Maues and his successors had conquered the areas of Gandhara, as well as the area of Mathura from 85 BCE forming the Northern Satraps.[citation needed]
The Azes Era
Azes's most lasting legacy was the foundation of the Azes era. It was widely believed that the era was begun by Azes's successors by simply continuing the counting of his regnal years. However, Prof. Harry Falk has recently presented an inscription at several conferences which dates to Azes's reign, and suggests that the era may have been begun by Azes himself. Most popular historians date the start of the Azes era to 58 BC and believe it is the same as the later era known as the Malwa or Vikrama era.[5]
However, a recently discovered inscription, the Bajaur reliquary inscription, dated in both the Azes and the Greek era suggests that actually this is not the case. The inscription gives the relationship Azes = Greek + 128. It is believed that the Greek era may have begun in 173 BCE, exactly 300 years before the first year of the Era of Kanishka. If that is the case then the Azes era would begin in about 45 BC.[6]
Azes I and Azes II identical?
According to Senior, Azes I may have been identical with Azes II, due to the discovery of an overstrike of the former over the latter.[7]
See also
Notes
- ^ a b Gardner, Percy (1929). The Coins of the Greek and Scythic Kings of Bactria and India in the British Museum. London: Gilbert & Rivington Ltd. pp. 73-92. ISBN 978-0-900-83452-3.
- ^ Falk and Bennett (2009), pp. 197–215.
- ^ Mac Dowell, D. W. (30 December 2012). "D. W. Mac Dowell, "AZES," Encyclopaedia Iranica, III/3, p. 257". iranicaonline.com.
- ^ Harmatta, János (1999). "Languages and scripts in Graeco-Bactria and the Saka Kingdoms". In Harmatta, János; Puri, B. N.; Etemadi, G. F. (eds.). History of civilizations of Central Asia. Vol. 2. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishing House. p. 409. ISBN 978-8-120-81408-0.
- ^ Richard Salomon (1998). Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages. Oxford University Press. pp. 182–183, 194–195. ISBN 978-0-19-509984-3.
- ^ For discussions refer to Bracey, R. (2005) 'The Azes Era' (http://www.kushan.org/essays/chronology/azesvikrama.htm), Cribb, J (2005) 'The Greek Kingdom of Bactria, its coinage and collapse' in Afghanistan, Ancien Carrefour entre l'est et l'ouest (ed. Bopearachichi O & Boussac, M-F), Turnhout: 207–225, Falk, H. & C. J. Bennett 'Macedonian Intercalary Months and the Era of Azes' Acta Orientalia 70 (2009) 197–216
- ^ Coin India
References
- Harry Falk and Chris Bennett (2009). "Macedonian Intercalary Months and the Era of Azes". Acta Orientalia (70): 197–215. ISSN 0001-6438. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- McEvilley, Thomas (2002). The Shape of Ancient Thought. Comparative studies in Greek and Indian Philosophies. Allworth Press and the School of Visual Arts. ISBN 978-1-58115-203-6. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- W.W. Tarn (2010). The Greeks in Bactria and India. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-00941-6. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
External links
- Coins of Azes I
- Discussion of the Azes and Greek Era
Preceded by | Indo-Scythian Ruler 57 – 35 BCE | Succeeded by |
Preceded by | ||
Preceded by |
- v
- t
- e
Territories/ dates | Western India | Western Pakistan Balochistan | Paropamisadae Arachosia | Bajaur | Gandhara | Western Punjab | Eastern Punjab | Mathura | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
INDO-GREEK KINGDOM | ||||||||||||
90–85 BCE | Nicias | Menander II | Artemidoros | |||||||||
90–70 BCE | Hermaeus | Archebius | ||||||||||
85-60 BCE | INDO-SCYTHIAN KINGDOM Maues | |||||||||||
75–70 BCE | Vonones Spalahores | Telephos | Apollodotus II | |||||||||
65–55 BCE | Spalirises Spalagadames | Hippostratos | Dionysios | |||||||||
55–35 BCE | Azes I | Zoilos II | ||||||||||
55–35 BCE | Azilises Azes II | Apollophanes | Indo-Scythian dynasty of the NORTHERN SATRAPS Hagamasha | |||||||||
25 BCE – 10 CE | Indo-Scythian dynasty of the APRACHARAJAS Vijayamitra (ruled 12 BCE - 15 CE)[n 1] | Liaka Kusulaka Patika Kusulaka Zeionises | Kharahostes (ruled 10 BCE– 10 CE)[n 2] Mujatria | Strato II and Strato III | Hagana | |||||||
10-20 CE | INDO-PARTHIAN KINGDOM Gondophares | Indravasu | INDO-PARTHIAN KINGDOM Gondophares | Rajuvula | ||||||||
20-30 CE | Ubouzanes Pakores | Vispavarma (ruled c.0-20 CE)[n 3] | Sarpedones | Bhadayasa | Sodasa | |||||||
30-40 CE | KUSHAN EMPIRE Kujula Kadphises | Indravarma | Abdagases | ... | ... | |||||||
40-45 CE | Aspavarma | Gadana | ... | ... | ||||||||
45-50 CE | Sasan | Sases | ... | ... | ||||||||
50-75 CE | ... | ... | ||||||||||
75-100 CE | Indo-Scythian dynasty of the WESTERN SATRAPS Chastana | Vima Takto | ... | ... | ||||||||
100-120 CE | Abhiraka | Vima Kadphises | ... | ... | ||||||||
120 CE | Bhumaka Nahapana | PARATARAJAS Yolamira | Kanishka I | Great Satrap Kharapallana and Satrap Vanaspara for Kanishka I | ||||||||
130-230 CE | Jayadaman
| Bagamira
| Vāsishka (c. 140 – c. 160)
| |||||||||
230-280 CE | Samghadaman | Miratakhma | INDO-SASANIANS | Kanishka II (c. 230 – 240)
| ||||||||
280-300 CE | Bhratadarman | Datayola II | Hormizd II, "Kushanshah" (c. 295 – 300) | Vasudeva II (c. 275 – 310) | ||||||||
300-320 CE | Peroz II, "Kushanshah" (c. 300 – 325) | Vasudeva III | ||||||||||
320-388 CE | Yasodaman II | Shapur II Sassanid king and "Kushanshah" (c. 325) | GUPTA EMPIRE
| |||||||||
388-395 CE | Rudrasimha III | Chandragupta II |
- ^ From the dated inscription on the Rukhana reliquary
- ^ An Inscribed Silver Buddhist Reliquary of the Time of King Kharaosta and Prince Indravarman, Richard Salomon, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 116, No. 3 (Jul. - Sep., 1996), pp. 442 [1]
- ^ A Kharosthī Reliquary Inscription of the Time of the Apraca Prince Visnuvarma, by Richard Salomon, South Asian Studies 11 1995, Pages 27-32, Published online: 09 Aug 2010 [2]