The Greeks in Bactria and India c28.38

c28.38

This should suffice; but other things bear it out. Debased or barbarous imitations of Hermaeus’ money continued to be struck after his death² and down to the advent of Kujula Kadphises by those, whether Sacas or Pahlavas, who then ruled in Kapisa; this makes it almost impossible to postulate another Greek king in Kapisa after him, and in fact he has always been considered to be the last Greek king; and Kujula Kadphises, who was in a position to know, certainly treated him as the last Greek king in the Paropamisadae (App. 17). While these considerations forbid us to put Telephus after Hermaeus, an additional reason arises in the case of Maues, even leaving out of account the fairly good style of his coins and the absence from them of the square omicron. The accession of the Parthian Gondophares is fixed by an inscription to A.D. 19,³ and there is good proof that his predecessor was named Azes.⁴ Between Maues and Gondophares therefore must come in the coins of the three members of the Azes dynasty—Azes, Azilises, Azes II⁵—and also those of another Saca Great King of Kings, Azes’ father Spalirises (p. 346), who is later than Maues, as his coins after he was Great King of Kings show the square omicron, while those of Maues have the round form only. Azes’ large coinage, and still more the great number of letters and monograms on his coins, indicate a reign of substantial length; and this alone suffices to exclude the idea that Maues can be anywhere near the Christian Era.