THE COINS OF THE PᾹRATARᾹJAS PANKAJ TANDON, Boston University, 270 Bay State Rd., Room 526, Boston, MA 02215, USA. Email: [email protected] ABSTRACT The Pāratarājas (Pārata kings) were the ruling dynasty of an almost forgotten tribe, originally from northern Iran, which settled in what is now the state of Balochistan in western Pakistan (see map, courtesy the Huntington Archive). They are mentioned occasionally in the literary sources but are otherwise known only from one archaeological find and from their coins. These were first noted by Rapson in 1905, and studied subsequently by Mukherjee and Senior, but it is only now that they are fully understood. Coins are known of 11 kings, from which we can identify 15 individuals. Thirteen of these bear Iranian names and two have Indian names. Coins are found mostly in Balochistan but a small group was found as far as Sri Lanka, indicating a robust trade. They suggest a prosperous kingdom that managed to survive in the borderlands between powerful neighbors: the Parthians, Sasanians, Kushans and Kushano-Sasanians. BIBLIOGRAPHY Falk, Harry: “The Names of the Pāratarājas Issuing Coins with Kharoshthi Legends,” The Numismatic Chronicle 167, 2007, pp. 171-178. Konow, Sten: Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Vol. II pt. I, pp 173-76. Mukherjee, B.N.: The Pāradas: A Study in their Coinage and History, Calcutta: A. Mukherjee & Co., 1972. Rapson, E.J.: “Notes on Indian Coins and Seals,” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1905, pp. 789- 792. Senior, R.C.: Indo-Scythian Coins and History, Vol. 4: Supplement, Additional Coins and Hoards, Lancaster, PA: Classical Numismatic Group, Inc., 2006. Tandon, Pankaj : “New Light on the Pāratarājas,” The Numismatic Chronicle 166, 2006, pp. 173-209. ----------: “Further Light on the Pāratarājas,” The Numismatic Chronicle 169, 2009, pp. 137-171. ----------: “The Coins of the Pāratarājas: A Synthesis,” Supplement to the Journal of the Oriental Numismatic Society 205 (Autumn 2010): A Seminar on the Occasion of the 100 th Anniversary of the Numismatic Society of India,” pp. 15-31. ----------: “The Location and Kings of Pāradān,” Studia Iranica, Volume 41, Issue 1, 2012, pp. 25-56. Yolamira s/o Bagareva (c. 130-150 CE) Coin 1: AR drachm, 3.72 gm, 16 mm. Yolamira’s earliest coin Hemi- & quarter drachms also known Coin 2: AR drachm, 3.56 gm, 16 mm. Phase 2 of Yolamira’s coinage Coin 3: AR drachm, 4.04 gm, 15 mm. Phase 3 of Yolamira’s coinage Note the retrograde legend Bagamira s/o Yolamira (c. 150 CE) Coin 4: AR drachm, 3.66 gm, 15 mm. Same obverse die as Coin 3 Bagamira’s only known coin type (Photo, courtesy Anne van’t Haaff) Arjuna s/o Yolamira (c. 150-165 CE) Coin 5: AR drachm, 4.46 gm, 16 mm. Same obverse die as Coin 3 and 4 Hemidrachms using Yolamira’s die are also known from this phase Coin 6: AR drachm, 3.69 gm, 17 mm. Phase 2 of Arjuna’s coinage Coin 7: AR drachm, 3.55 gm, 17 mm. Phase 3 of Arjuna’s coinage Same obverse die as Coin 6 Hvaramira s/o Yolamira (c. 165-175 CE) Coin 8: AR drachm, 3.70 gm, 15 mm. Phase 1 of Hvaramira’s coinage Same obverse die as Coins 6 and 7 Coin 9: AR didrachm, 7.53 gm, 20 mm. Phase 2 of Hvaramira’s coinage included this double issue; the obverse die must have been made for Yolamira: compare the style with that of Coin 2. Coin 10: AR drachm, 3.78 gm, 15 mm. Phase 2 drachm Coin 11: AR drachm, 3.64 gm, 15.5 mm. Phase 3 of Hvaramira’s coinage Mirahvara s/o Hvaramira (c. 175-185 CE) Coin 12: AR drachm, 4.13 gm, 15.5 mm. Phase 1 of Mirahvara’s coinage Same obverse die as Coin 11. Coin 13: AR didrachm, 6.76 gm, 17 mm. Phase 2 of Mirahvara’s coinage included this didrachm, made with the same obverse die as Coin 9 Coin 14: AR drachm, 3.08 gm, 15.5 mm. Phase 2 drachm Coin 15: AR drachm, 3.58 gm, 15 mm. Phase 3 of Mirahvara’s coinage Same obverse die as Coin 14 Miratakhma s/o Hvaramira (c. 185-200 CE) Coin 16: AR drachm, 3.39 gm, 14 mm. Phase 1 of Miratakhma’s coinage Same obverse die as Coins 14 and 15 Coin 17: AR drachm, 3.53 gm, 14 mm. Phase 2 of Miratakhma’s coinage Coin 18: AR drachm, 3.66 gm, 14 mm. Phase 3 of Miratakhma’s coinage Note the left-facing bust with tiara Kozana s/o Bagavharna (c. 200-220 CE) Coin 19: AR hemidrachm, 1.67 gm, 13 mm. Last coin known with Brāhmī legend No drachm of this type is known (Photo, courtesy R.C. Senior) Coin 20: AR drachm, 3.47 gm, 15 mm. First coin with Kharoshthī legend Coin 21: AR didrachm, 5.05 gm, 17 mm. Same obverse die as Coins 9 and 13 Coin 22: AR hemidrachm, 1.04 gm, 12 mm. Kozana reduced the weight standard of his coinage and imitated the last coins of Miratakhma (Coin 18) featuring a left-facing bust with tiara Bhimarjuna s/o Yolatakhma (c. 220-230 CE) Coin 23: AR drachm, 2.56 gm, 16 mm. Phase 1 of Bhimarjuna’s coinage was in silver and very similar in style to the last coins of Kozana (see Coin 22) Coin 24: AE drachm, 2.09 gm, 15.5 mm. But very quickly, Bhimarjuna’s coinage turned to billon and then copper Koziya s/o Kozana (c. 230-270 CE) Coin 25: AE drachm, 1.65 gm, 15 mm. Coins show that Koziya did not succeed his father Kozana, Bhimarjuna’s coinage clearly intervenes. Coin 26: AE drachm, 1.47 gm, 14 mm. Koziya issued the most varied coinage of any Pāratarāja king. His early coins show him clean-shaven Coin 27: AE drachm, 1.76 gm, 13 mm. Note the Parthian style curls Coin 28: AE drachm, 1.54 gm, 13 mm. A later phase introduced a moustache Coin 29: AE drachm, 1.28 gm, 13 mm. The final phase shows the bust right with a turban like head-dress Coin 30: AE didrachm, 3.87 gm, 21 mm. Koziya introduced a double weight standing king type with an obverse Brahmi legend that helped unlock the reading of the Kharoshthī legends Coin 31: AE didrachm, 4.66 gm, 18 mm. The first standing king types showed the king wearing a tiara (Coin 30); the last ones showed him with a turban Datarvharna s/o Datayola (c. 270-285 CE) Coin 32: AE didrachm, 4.13 gm, 19 mm. Datayola s/o Datarvharna (c. 285-300 CE) Coin 33: AE didrachm, 3.40 gm, 17 mm. CATALOGUE OF COINS For more coins, see coinindia.com/galleries-parata-rajas A pdf of this poster is available on that page TABLE OF LEGENDS Yolamira yolamirasa bagarevaputrasa paratarajasa Kozana (Brāhmī) kozanasa bagavharnaputrasa paratarajasa Bagamira bagamirasa yolamiraputrasa paratarajasa Kozana (Kharoshthī) kozanasa bagavharnaputrasa paratarajasa Arjuna arjunasa yolamiraputrasa paratarajasa Bhimarjuna bhimarjunasa yolatakhmaputrasa paratarajasa Hvaramira hvaramirasa yolamiraputrasa paratarajasa Koziya (Kharoshthī) koziyasa kozanaputrasa paratarajasa Mirahvara mirahvarasa hvaramiraputrasa paratarajasa Koziya (Brāhmī) koziya Miratakhma miratakhmasa hvaramiraputrasa paratarajasa Datarvharna datarvharnasa datayolaputrasa paratarajasa This column legends in Brāhmī, next column in Kharoshthī Datayola datayolasa datarvharnaputrasa paratarajasa HISTORY c.650 BCE Herodotus places the “Paraitakenoi” as subject to the Medean king. c.650 BCE Strabo also says the “Paraitakai” are from “above Babylonia.” c.330 BCE Arrian reports that Alexander encountered the “Pareitakai” in Bactria and Sogdiana. 187 BCE Strabo says the “Paraitakenoi” murdered Antiochus III Magnus. c.25 BCE Isidore of Charax identifies the area beyond Sakastene as Paraitakene. c.1 st Cent. The Periplus locates “Paradon” on the coast of modern Balochistan. c.2 nd Cent. Ptolemy identifies the interior of Gedrosia as Paradene. c.125 CE The Hou Hanshu of Fan Ye says that Arachosia had come to be called Paizhi or Paite (Parata kingdom?). 262 CE The Naqsh-i-Rustam inscription of Shapur I names P’rtu as a Sasanian province between Makran and Hind. 293- 302 The Paikuli inscription of Narseh says the Paradanshah congratulated him on his victory over Vaharan III. ? Mentioned in Indian sources as one of the tribes west of the Indus. FAMILY TREE Note: The red lines with question marks are guesses; the other familial relationships are revealed by the coins. Note: The red lines with question marks are guesses; the other familial relationships are revealed by the coins. The numbered kings are ones for whom coins are known. • Several kings used the obverse dies of their predecessors on their own coins (see Catalogue). This helps establish the chronology of kings. • The intended order of words in the circular legend is revealed by a few coins where the legend is presented in four lines. Quarter drachm of Yolamira • The language of the legends is Prakrit, the script was first Brāhmī (c. 130-200) and then Kharoshthī. • Some coins of Datayola have been found overstruck on coins of the Kushano-Sasanian king Hormizd I. • The Pārata economy may have been based on exports of nard, bdellium and mercury.