Demetrius III Aniketos

Demetrius III Aniketos (Greek: Δημήτριος Γ΄ ὁ Ἀνίκητος; epithet means "the Invincible") is an Indo-Greek king who reigned in the area of Gandhara and Punjab.

Demetrios III Aniketos ("The Invincible")
Portrait of Demetrius III.
Indo-Greek king
Reignc. 100 BC
Copper coins of Demetrius Aniketos.
Obv: Bust of king, wearing an elephant's scalp, with Greek legend: BASILEOS ANIKETOU DEMETRIOU "Of Invincible King Demetrius".
Rev: Winged thunderbolt. Kharoshthi legend: MAHARAJASA APARAJITASA DIMETRIA (Invincible king Demetrius).
Copper coins of Demetrius Aniketos.
Obv: Bust of king, wearing an elephant's scalp, with Greek legend: BASILEOS ANIKETOU DEMETRIOU "Of Invincible King Demetrius".
Rev: Winged thunderbolt. Kharoshthi legend: MAHARAJASA APARAJITASA DIMETRIA (Invincible king Demetrius).

Controversy about time of reign

The coins of Demetrius III are few and rather crude. He copies some of his imagery from the renowned Bactrian king Demetrius I (c. 200–180 BC). The two namesakes share the war-like epithet "The Invincible" and wear elephant-crowns, the symbol that Alexander the Great used to celebrate his conquest of the Indus Valley.

The historical sources of the Indo-Greek kingdom are very few, and the separation of kings with the same name is not an easy process. Numismatician Osmund Bopearachchi identifies three kings named Demetrius, placing the third around 100 BC due to mintmarks and style of the coins (see discussion under Demetrius II). R C Senior agrees with this reconstruction, even though their dates are somewhat different: according to Bopearachchi he ruled around 100 BC, whereas R. C. Senior places him circa 70 BC, in both cases as successor of Heliokles II.

However, Demetrius III is the only Demetrius to strike bilingual Greek/Indian (Kharoshti) coins, and is therefore a likely candidate to be identified with the "Demetrius, king of the Indians" mentioned by Roman historian Justin.[1] This Demetrius is said to have fought with the Bactrian king Eucratides (c. 170–145 BC) during the latter part of Eucratides' rule. Bopearachchi nevertheless identifies Justin's Demetrius with the king Demetrius II even though he only struck Greek coins and reigned c. 175–170 BC, even before Eucratides. In addition, Bopearachchi's early dating of Demetrius II has been challenged (see discussion under Demetrius II).

Yet other authors have identified Justin's Demetrius with Demetrius I of Bactria, ignoring both Bopearachchi's chronology as well as modifying Justin's text.[2]

Earlier authors such as Tarn and Narain thought that the Demetrius who struck the coins now identified with Demetrius III[3] was the king who fought Eucratides, and saw him as a son of Demetrius I.

The absence of absolute proofs of dating Demetrius III (such as counter-marked coins), and the remaining problems of all current reconstructions, means the problem is not definitely solved, and the alternative chronology would be to place Demetrius III around 150 BC in compliance with Tarn's and Narain's ideas about his identity as a Euthydemid prince who fought against Eucratides.[4]

Possible dynastic context

If Demetrius III ruled around 100 or 70 BC, he seems to have been a relative of Heliokles II, though his title and use of the elephant-crown of Demetrius I also associates him with the king Lysias.

If he ruled around 150 BC, he was very likely a surviving Euthydemid prince like Tarn and Narain assumed. The symbols of his coin connect him with several Euthydemid kings: the kausia hat on one of his portrait with Antimachus I, the elephant-crown and the title Aniketos as mentioned with Demetrius I, and the standing Zeus on his silver reverses with Agathocles.

Coins of Demetrius III

The actual coins of Demetrius III are very few and struck with a single, unique monogram. This suggests a short and insignificant reign. On his silver, Demetrius III appears in the kausia hat (on the unique known tetradrachm) or diademed, with a reverse of Zeus holding thunderbolt. His bronzes feature a king in elephant's crown, either Demetrius III or Demetrius I, with thunderbolt on the reverse.

See also

Notes
  1. Justin, Epitome of Pompeius Trogus, XLI:6
  2. L.M. Wilson, and G.R.F. Assar, Re-dating Eukratides I relative to Mithradates I, ONS Journal 191 (2007). They suggest that Justin's reference that Eucratides "carried on many wars" before his campaign against Demetrius refers to wars fought before Eucratides became king, so that the war took place during the early stages of Eucratides' rule. Against this interpretation must be said that Justin continues to state that these "many wars" seriously weakened Eucratides, whereas in Wilson's and Assar's reading, the wars in question lead to Eucratides becoming an important king.
  3. Tarn and Narain usually refer to this king as Demetrius II, since they did not separate him from Demetrius II of Bactria
  4. The actual datings suggested by Tarn and Narain differ from 150 BC, but a number of circumstances has made their general chronology outdated.
Preceded by
Heliokles II		 Indo-Greek Ruler
(in Gandhara, Punjab)
c. 100 BC		 Succeeded by
Philoxenus
Greco-Bactrian and Indo-Greek kings, territories and chronology
Based on Bopearachchi (1991)[1]
Greco-Bactrian kings Indo-Greek kings
Territories/
dates		West BactriaEast BactriaParopamisade
ArachosiaGandharaWestern PunjabEastern PunjabMathura[2]
326-325 BCE Campaigns of Alexander the Great in India Nanda Empire
312 BCE Creation of the Seleucid Empire Creation of the Maurya Empire
305 BCE Seleucid Empire after Mauryan war Maurya Empire
280 BCE Foundation of Ai-Khanoum
255–239 BCE Independence of the
Greco-Bactrian kingdom
Diodotus I		 Emperor Ashoka (268-232)
239–223 BCE Diodotus II
230–200 BCE Euthydemus I
200–190 BCE Demetrius I Sunga Empire
190-185 BCE Euthydemus II
190–180 BCE Agathocles Pantaleon
185–170 BCE Antimachus I
180–160 BCE Apollodotus I
175–170 BCE Demetrius II
160–155 BCE Antimachus II
170–145 BCE Eucratides I
155–130 BCE Yuezhi occupation,
loss of Ai-Khanoum		 Eucratides II
Plato
Heliocles I		 Menander I
130–120 BCE Yuezhi occupation Zoilos I Agathokleia Yavanarajya
inscription
120–110 BCE Lysias Strato I
110–100 BCE Antialcidas Heliokles II
100 BCE Polyxenos Demetrius III
100–95 BCE Philoxenus
95–90 BCE Diomedes Amyntas Epander
90 BCE Theophilos Peukolaos Thraso
90–85 BCE Nicias Menander II Artemidoros
90–70 BCE Hermaeus Archebius
Yuezhi occupation Maues (Indo-Scythian)
75–70 BCE Vonones Telephos Apollodotus II
65–55 BCE Spalirises Hippostratos Dionysios
55–35 BCE Azes I (Indo-Scythians) Zoilos II
55–35 BCE Vijayamitra/ Azilises Apollophanes
25 BCE – 10 CE Gondophares Zeionises Kharahostes Strato II
Strato III
Gondophares (Indo-Parthian) Rajuvula (Indo-Scythian)
Kujula Kadphises (Kushan Empire) Bhadayasa
(Indo-Scythian)		 Sodasa
(Indo-Scythian)
  1. O. Bopearachchi, "Monnaies gréco-bactriennes et indo-grecques, Catalogue raisonné", Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, 1991, p.453
  2. Quintanilla, Sonya Rhie (2 April 2019). "History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: Ca. 150 BCE - 100 CE". BRILL – via Google Books.
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