Item number: A347

Year: AD 335-350

Material: Gold

Size: 18.3 x 17.5 x 2.8 mm

Weight: 7.3 g

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2024

This is a stater gold coin minted between AD 335 and AD 350 by Kipunada, the last king of the Kushan Empire, which once dominated Central Asia and northern India. After facing successive challenges from the Sassanian Empire, the Gupta Empire, and the Hephthalites, the Kushan Empire lingered on in the western Punjab region.

The obverse of the coin features a typical Kushan design from the 2nd century onwards, reflecting a transition from Hellenistic influences to Indo-Scythian cultural elements. The depiction shows the king wearing a crown and clad in military attire, facing left. He holds an offering in his right hand, which he presents to an altar located at the lower left. In his left hand, he grasps a spear. Above the altar, there is a trident symbol adorned with streaming ribbons.

To the left of the king, beneath his arm, the Bactrian language is inscribed in Brahmi script as “Bacharnatha,” indicating the king’s title. To the far right, the king’s name “Kipunadha” is similarly inscribed. This design highlights the syncretic cultural and religious influences prevalent in the Kushan Empire during its later period.

The reverse of the coin features the seated goddess “Ardochsho,” emblematic of prosperity. In her right hand, she holds a ribbon, and in her left hand, she grasps a cornucopia, a symbol of abundance. This imagery reflects the profound Hellenistic cultural influence on Central Asia following Alexander the Great’s conquests.

Above the goddess to the left is the “Tamga” symbol, which serves as an emblem of the Kushan Empire. Tamga symbols were geometric identifiers used by nomadic tribes to distinguish different clans or tribes. The presence of these elements on the coin underscores the syncretic nature of Kushan art and religion, blending Greek iconography with indigenous and regional symbols.

The Kushan Empire’s origins can be traced back to the Yuezhi tribes of Dunhuang and the Qilian Mountains. During the Western Han period, the Yuezhi were pushed westward by the rising Xiongnu tribe from the Mongolian Plateau. This migration took them from the Ili River region to the Amu Darya area in Central Asia, where they became known as the “Great Yuezhi” nomadic confederation.

In the 1st century, Kujula Kadphises, one of the five chieftains of the Great Yuezhi settled in Bactria, defeated the other chieftains and began expanding his territory. Kujula Kadphises became the founder of the Kushan Empire, which emerged as a significant power contemporaneous with the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty.

物件編號: A347

年代: 公元 335-350 年

材料: 黃金

尺寸: 18.3 x 17.5 x 2.8 mm

重量: 7.3 g

來源: 福君錢幣 2024

這是公元335至350年，曾一度稱霸中亞和北印度一帶的貴霜帝國，經歷薩珊王朝、笈多王朝和嚈噠等新興勢力輪番挑戰後，在西旁遮普地區苟延殘存的末代君王基帕納達所鑄造的斯塔特金幣。

錢幣正面的圖案是公元2世紀起，逐漸擺脫希臘化影響轉而擁抱印度-塞迦文化的典型貴霜樣式，即戴著王冠和身披戎裝面向左側的國王，右手捧著要奉獻給左下角祭壇的祭品，左手則握著一支長矛。祭壇上方還有一個帶著彩帶飄揚的三叉戟圖騰。國王左腋下以波羅米文字拼寫的巴克特里亞語「巴查納塔」(Bacharnatha)，最右側則是國王的名諱「基帕納達」(Kipanadha)。

錢幣背面是一名端坐的富饒女神「阿多赫索」右手拿著綬帶，左手則捧著象徵富饒的「豐裕之角」，從中亦能窺看自亞歷山大東征以降，希臘化文化對於中亞地區的深遠影響。女神左上方是象徵貴霜的「塔木加」圖騰，塔木加是盛行於遊牧民族用以識別部落的幾何符號。

貴霜帝國的前身能追溯自敦煌和祁連山的月氏部落，西漢時期受到蒙古高原興起的匈奴部落逼迫，逐漸遷移自伊犁河一帶又繼續往中亞的阿姆河移動，成為稱作「大月氏」的遊牧集團。公元1世紀，遷居於巴克特里亞地區的大月氏五大翕侯之一的丘就卻，打敗其他翕侯並且向外擴張領土，成為跟同時期的羅馬和漢朝相互鼎立的貴霜帝國奠基者。