The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I: Ancient India v1.c30.s3.14

v1.c30.s3.14

The bull, like the elephant, is a common emblem in Indian mythology, and is associated with the deities worshipped by various sects; but in this case it would seem undoubtedly to be the bull of Çiva; for the coin-type passed from the Yavanas and their successors, the Çakas, to the Kushāṇa kings who added to it the figure of the god himself. The bull continued to appear on the coins of this region for many centuries. It is seen on the ‘Bull and Horseman’ coins of the Shāhis of Gandhāra as late as the eleventh century A.D., and from them it is borrowed by the early Muhammadan conquerors.