Demetrius III Aniketos

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Demetrios III Aniketos ("The Invincible")
Indo-Greek king
Demetrius Aniketou.jpg
Copper coins of Demetrius Aniketos.
Obv: Bust of king, wearing an elephant's scalp, with Greek legend: BASILEOS ANIKETOU DEMETRIOU "Of Invincible King Demetrius".
Rev: Winged thunderbolt. Kharoshthi legend: MAHARAJASA APARAJITASA DIMETRIA (Invincible king Demetrius).
Reign c. 100 BCE

Demetrius III Aniketos (Greek: Δημήτριος Γ΄ ὁ Ἀνίκητος; epithet means "the Invincible") is here identified with an Indo-Greek king who reigned in the area of Gandhara and Punjab.

Controversy about time of reign[edit]

The coins of Demetrius III are few and rather crude. He copies some of his imagery from the renowned Bactrian king Demetrius I (c. 200–180 BCE). The two namesakes share the war-like epithet "The Invincible" and wear elephant-crowns, the symbol that Alexander the Great used to celebrate his conquest of the Indus Valley.

The historical sources of the Indo-Greek kingdom are very few, and the separation of kings with the same name is not an easy process. Numismatician Osmund Bopearachchi identifies three kings named Demetrius, placing the third around 100 BCE due to mintmarks and style of the coins. (See discussion under Demetrius II). R C Senior agrees with this reconstruction, even though their dates are somewhat different: according to Bopearachchi he ruled around 100 BCE, whereas R. C. Senior places him circa 70 BCE, in both cases as successor of Heliokles II.

However, Demetrius III is the only Demetrius to strike bilingual Greek/Indian (Kharoshti) coins, and is therefore a likely candidate to be identified with the "Demetrius, king of the Indians" mentioned by Roman historian Justin.[1] This Demetrius is said to have fought with the Bactrian king Eucratides (c. 170–145 BCE) during the latter part of Eucratides' rule. Bopearachchi nevertheless identifies Justin's Demetrius with the king Demetrius II even though he only struck Greek coins and reigned c. 175–170 BCE, even before Eucratides. In addition, Bopearachchi's early dating of Demetrius II has been challenged (see discussion under Demetrius II.

Yet other authors have identified Justin's Demetrius with Demetrius I of Bactria, ignoring both Bopearachchi's chronology as well as modifying Justin's text.[2]

Earlier authors such as Tarn and Narain thought that the Demetrius who struck the coins now identified with Demetrius III [3] was the king who fought Eucratides, and saw him as a son of Demetrius I.

The absence of absolute proofs of dating Demetrius III (such as counter-marked coins), and the remaining problems of all current reconstructions, means the problem is not definitely solved, and the alternative chronology would be to place Demetrius III around 150 BCE in compliance with Tarn's and Narain's ideas about his identity as a Euthydemid prince who fought against Eucratides.[4]

Possible dynastic context[edit]

If Demetrius III ruled around 100 or 70 BCE, he seems to have been a relative of Heliokles II, though his title and use of the elephant-crown of Demetrius I also associates him with the king Lysias.

If he ruled around 150 BCE, he was very likely a surviving Euthydemid prince like Tarn and Narain assumed. The symbols of his coin connect him with several Euthydemid kings: the kausia hat on one of his portrait with Antimachus I, the elephant-crown and the title Aniketos as mentioned with Demetrius I, and the standing Zeus on his silver reverses with Agathocles.

Coins of Demetrius III[edit]

The actual coins of Demetrius III are very few and struck with a single, unique monogram. This suggests a short and insignificant reign. On his silver, Demetrius III appears in the kausia hat (on the unique known tetradrachm) or diademed, with a reverse of Zeus holding thunderbolt. His bronzes feature a king in elephant's crown, either Demetrius III or Demetrius I, with thunderbolt on the reverse.

Indo-Greek Kings and their territories
Based on Bopearachchi (1991)
Territories/
dates
Paropamisade
Arachosia Gandhara Western Punjab Eastern Punjab
200–190 BCE Demetrius I DemetriusCoin.jpg
190–180 BCE Agathocles AgathoclesWithAlexander.jpg PantaleonCoin of Greco-Baktrian Kingdom king Pantaleon.jpg
185–170 BCE Antimachus IAntimachusMedaille.jpg
180–160 BCE Apollodotus ICoin of Indo-Greek king Apollodotos I.jpg
175–170 BCE Demetrius II Coin of the Baktrian king Demetrios II.jpg
170–145 BCE EucratidesTetradrachm Eukratides.jpg
160–155 BCE Antimachus IICoin of Antimachus II.jpg
155–130 BCE Menander IMenander Alexandria-Kapisa.jpg
130–120 BCE Zoilos IZoilosI-525.jpg AgathokleiaCoin of Agathokleia.jpg
120–110 BCE Lysias Lysias-150.jpg Strato ICoin of Agathokleia & Strato.jpg
110–100 BCE AntialcidasCoin of Antialcidas.jpg Heliokles IICoin of Heliocles II.jpg
100 BCE PolyxenosCoin of Indo-Greek king Polyxenos.jpg Demetrius IIIDemetrius Aniketou.jpg
100–95 BCE PhiloxenusCoin of Philoxenos.jpg
95–90 BCE DiomedesCoin of Diomedes Soter.jpg Amyntas Coin of Amyntas Nicator.jpg EpanderCoin of Epander.jpg
90 BCE Theophilos Theophilos-634.jpg PeukolaosPeukolaos coin.jpg Thraso
90–85 BCE NiciasCoin of Indo-Greek king Nikias Soter.jpg Menander IICoin of Menander Dikaiou.jpg ArtemidorosCoin of Artimedoros.jpg
90–70 BCE HermaeusHermaeusCoin.jpg ArchebiusCoin of Indo-Greek king Archebios.jpg
Yuezhi tribes Maues (Indo-Scythian)
75–70 BCE Telephos Coin of Telephos.jpg Apollodotus IICoin of Appollodotos II.jpg
65–55 BCE HippostratosCoin of Hippostratos.jpg DionysiosDyonisos coin.jpg
55–35 BCE Azes I (Indo-Scythian) Zoilos IIZoilosIICoin.JPG
55–35 BCE ApollophanesCoin of Apollophanes.jpg
25 BCE – 10 CE Strato II and IIICoin of Strato II.jpg
Rajuvula (Indo-Scythian)

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Justin, Epitome of Pompeius Trogus, XLI:6
  2. ^ L.M. Wilson, and G.R.F. Assar, Re-dating Eukratides I relative to Mithradates I, ONS Journal 191 (2007). They suggest that Justin's reference that Eucratides "carried on many wars" before his campaign against Demetrius refers to wars fought before Eucratides became king, so that the war took place during the early stages of Eucratides' rule. Against this interpretation must be said that Justin continues to state that these "many wars" seriously weakened Eucratides, whereas in Wilson's and Assar's reading, the wars in question lead to Eucratides becoming an important king.
  3. ^ Tarn and Narain usually refer to this king as Demetrius II, since they did not separate him from Demetrius II of Bactria
  4. ^ The actual datings suggested by Tarn and Narain differ from 150 BCE, but a number of circumstances has made their general chronology outdated.
Preceded by:
Heliokles II
Indo-Greek Ruler
(Gandhara and Punjab)
(c.100 BCE)
Succeeded by:
Philoxenus