Pantaleon
Encyclopedia
Pantaleon was a Greek king who reigned some time between 190–180 BCE in Bactria
and India
. He was a younger contemporary or successor of the Greco-Bactrian king Demetrius
, and is sometimes believed to have been his brother and/or subking. He was the first Greek king to strike Indian coins, peculiar irregular bronzes which suggests he had his base in Arachosia
and Gandhara
and wanted support from the native population.
The limited size of his coinage indicates a short reign. Known evidence suggests that he was replaced by his (probable) brother or son Agathocles
, by whom he was commemorated on a "pedigree" coin. Some of his coins (as well as those of Agathocles and Euthydemus II
) have another surprising characteristic: they are made of copper-nickel alloy, a technology that would not be developed in the West until the 18th century, but was known by the Chinese at the time. This suggests that exchanges of the metallic alloy or technicians happened between China and the region of Bactria.
Bactria
Bactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. He was a younger contemporary or successor of the Greco-Bactrian king Demetrius
Demetrius I of Bactria
Demetrius I was a Buddhist Greco-Bactrian king . He was the son of Euthydemus and succeeded him around 200 BC, after which he conquered extensive areas in what now is eastern Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan thus creating an Indo-Greek kingdom far from Hellenistic Greece...
, and is sometimes believed to have been his brother and/or subking. He was the first Greek king to strike Indian coins, peculiar irregular bronzes which suggests he had his base in Arachosia
Arachosia
Arachosia is the Latinized form of the Greek name of an Achaemenid and Seleucid governorate in the eastern part of their respective empires, around modern-day southern Afghanistan. The Greek term "Arachosia" corresponds to the Iranian land of Harauti which was between Kandahar in Afghanistan and...
and Gandhara
Gandhara
Gandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
and wanted support from the native population.
The limited size of his coinage indicates a short reign. Known evidence suggests that he was replaced by his (probable) brother or son Agathocles
Agathocles of Bactria
Agathocles Dikaios was a Buddhist Indo-Greek king, who reigned between around 190 and 180 BCE. He might have been a son of Demetrius and one of his sub-kings in charge of the Paropamisade between Bactria and India...
, by whom he was commemorated on a "pedigree" coin. Some of his coins (as well as those of Agathocles and Euthydemus II
Euthydemus II
Euthydemus II was a son of Demetrius I of Bactria, and became king of Bactria in the 180s BCE, either after his father's death or as a sub-king to him. The style and rare nickel alloys of his coins associates him closely in time with the king Agathocles but their precise relation remains uncertain...
) have another surprising characteristic: they are made of copper-nickel alloy, a technology that would not be developed in the West until the 18th century, but was known by the Chinese at the time. This suggests that exchanges of the metallic alloy or technicians happened between China and the region of Bactria.