Demetrius II of India
Demetrius II | |
---|---|
King of Kings | |
![]() Portrait of Demetrius II | |
Indo-GreekKing | |
Reign | 175–170 BC or 140 BC |
Predecessor | Apollodotus I |
Successor | Antimachus II |
Issue |
|
Dynasty | Euthydemid |
Father | Demetrius I |
Mother | Daughter ofAntiochus III |
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/Coin_of_the_Baktrian_king_Demetrios_II.jpg/330px-Coin_of_the_Baktrian_king_Demetrios_II.jpg)
Demetrius II(Greek:Δημήτριος) was anIndo-Greekking who ruled briefly during the 2nd century BC. Little is known about him and there are different views about how to date him. Earlier authors such as Tarn and Narain saw him as a son and sub-king ofDemetrius I,but this view has now been abandoned.
Osmund Bopearachchi has suggested that he ruled in Bactria and Arachosia c. 175–170 BC, but this has been challenged by later authors. R. C. Senior instead prefers c. 175–140 BC, and this is supported by L M Wilson[1]who also assumes from numismatical clues and portrait likeness that Demetrius II was a relative ofEucratides the Great.The later dating is supported by the circumstance that no coins of Demetrius II have been found in the ruins ofAi Khanoum,which was presumably destroyed during the reign ofEucratides I.
Coinage
[edit]Demetrius II issued only silver and mostly tetradrachms, another trait which he has in common with the last Bactrian kings. The obverse shows a diademed portrait, with a standingPallas Atheneholding a spear on the reverse. Unlike most of his contemporaries, he has no epithet. Demetrius II is depicted as a young man, though his features differ considerably among the different issues. Several coins are struck off-center and crudely; this suggests that Demetrius II used a number of temporary mints.
Identification
[edit]Roman historianJustinnames a "Demetrius, king of the Indians,"[2]who was an enemy ofEucratides the Great(reigned 172/171–145 BC).[3]Justin's Demetrius beleaguered the warlike Eucratides with an army of 60,000 men against the latter's garrison of 300, but still — according to the probably exaggerated account — eventually was defeated. This episode is referred to as occurring at the end of the reign of Eucratides, hence dating the death of Justin's Demetrius around 150 BC.
However, the king mentioned by Justin is not easily reconciled with the numismatic evidence, and views are divided as for how to interpret the various coinage series bearing the name Demetrius. Bopearachchi has identified three kings named Demetrius.Demetrius Ireigned in Bactria and India c. 200-185 BC, well before the rise of Eucratides, andDemetrius IIIwas an Indian king who is thought to have ruled much later, around 100 BC. There remains Demetrius II, who Bopearachchi suggested reigned around 170 BC.
Bopearachchi identified Demetrius II with Justin’s Demetrius of India, notwithstanding the fact that Justin's quote suggests a later reign. Furthermore, Bopearachchi’s Demetrius II reigned in Bactria and not in India, as he struck no coins with Indian legends. Therefore, the identity of Justin'sDemetrius, king of the Indians,remains uncertain. The following hypotheses may be considered:
- The account of Justin, who is a second-hand source, is confused. Either Demetrius II was not king of India but Bactria, or the account of the war is mixed up, or the king's name is wrong, Justin having confused the name of another Indo-Greek king with that ofDemetrius I.
- Bopearachchi's Demetrius III could be placed earlier - this king's coins are few and rather peculiar - and Demetrius III was in fact Justin's Demetrius who ruled half a century earlier.
Even if Justin'sDemetrius, king of the Indiansexisted, this does not foreclose the possibility that Eucratides also had a son named Demetrius, which was a common dynastic name at the time. The prince may have been named after the SeleucidDemetrius I Soter.
See also
[edit]- Indo-Greek Kingdom
- Seleucid Empire
- Greco-Buddhism
- Indo-Scythians
- Indo-Parthian Kingdom
- Kushan Empire
External links
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^L M Wilson, "Demetrios II of Bactria and Hoards from Ai Khanoum" (Oriental Numismatic Society newsletter nr 180)
- ^Justin, Epitome of Pompeius Trogus, XLI:6
- ^"Eucratides | king of Bactria".Encyclopedia Britannica.Retrieved12 August2021.
References
[edit]- The Greeks in Bactria and India,W.W. Tarn, Cambridge University Press.
Preceded by: Eucratides |
Indo-Greek Ruler (Bactria) c. 155–150 BC |
Succeeded by: Heliocles I? |