Obverse: King on Horseback Facing Right Reverse: Athena Standing to the Right, Holding a Spear and a Shield Azes II, who reigned approximately from 35 B.C.-5 A.D., was the last of the so-called Indo- Scythian to rule the region in northern India once dominated by the Greek Bactrian Kingdom. Little is know about his reign, and after his death the Kushan tribe, which had been steadily expanding, conquered the region and established their own empire. Although they had lost the wealth of Bactria, some form of Indo- Scythian rule remained in northern India until the 5th century A.D. The coinage of Azes II follows a standard bilingual Greek Kharoshti type first introduced by the Indo-Greek Kingdoms of northwestern India and represents the lengths to which the Scythians went in order to accommodate their Greek-cultured populations. One innovation of Indo-Scythian coinage was the substitution of the image of the king on horseback on the obverse in place of the standard bust-type found on Bactrian and Indo- Greek coinage, no doubt revealing the importance horsemanship played in this nomadic culture. Origin: Western India Circa: 35 BC to 5 AD Collection: Numismatics Style: Indo-Scythian Medium: Silver

Antique Coins
Ancient coins