Mitra dynasty (Mathura)
Mitra dynasty (Mathura) | |||||||||||
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150 BCE–50 BCE | |||||||||||
Left image: Coin of
Brahmi . | |||||||||||
Capital | Mathura | ||||||||||
History | |||||||||||
• Established | 150 BCE | ||||||||||
• Conquest of Mathura and Saketa by the Northern Satraps around 60 BCE | 50 BCE | ||||||||||
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Today part of | India |
The Mitra dynasty refers to a group of local rulers whose name incorporated the suffix "-mitra" and who are thought to have ruled in the area of
Some sources consider that the Mitra dynasty ruled at a later date, during the 1st or 2nd century CE, and that they ruled from Mathura to
In addition to the Mitra dynasties of Saketa (
The dynasty
Seven rulers of Mathura are known:[4]
These rulers are never mentioned as "Kings" or Raja on their coins: there is therefore a possibly that they may only have been local rulers and vassals to larger king. Gomitra II and Brahmamitra especially are known for their large number of coins, which is not so much the case for other rulers.[4]
In the archaeological excavations of Sonkh, near Mathura, archaeological levels of the Mitra rulers were identified.[8]
Coins of the Mitra dynasty were found in
Relation with the Indo-Greeks
From numismatic, literary and epigraphic evidence, it seems that the
On this day, the year one hundred sixteen, 116, of the Yavana kingdom, in the fourth month of winter on the thirtieth day...
[This is] the well and tank of Ahogani, the mother of the merchant Virabala, who was the son of Ghosadatta, a brahmin of the Maitreya clan, with [her] son Virabala, daughter-in-law Bhaguri, and grandsons Suradatta, Rsabhadeva, and Viraddata.
May (their) merit increase
— Mathura Yavanarajya inscription.[10]
The Indo-Greeks may have been supplanted by Indo-Scythians around that date, who would then rule in Mathura as the Northern Satraps.[3]
From this time also (circa 150 BCE), archaeological research at Mathura reports an important growth of the city and extensive building of fortifications.[3] Stone sculptures in Mathura are also known from this period onwards, although Indo-Greek artistic influence cannot be readily seen.[3]
Given the suggestions of Greek presence and control concomitantly with the rule of the Mitra dynasty in the same time frame (150–50 BCE), it is therefore thought that there may have been a sort of tributary relationship between the Mitra dynasty and the Indo-Greeks to the west.[3] Numerous coins of Rajuvula have been found in company with the coins of the Strato group in the Eastern Punjab (to the east of the Jhelum) and also in the Mathura area.[11]
Shungas to the east
The period in which the Mitra dynasty ruled in Mathura roughly corresponds to the
The Mitra dynasty was replaced by the
"Datta" rulers of Mathura
Another dynasty of local rulers, named the "Datta kings" is also known to have ruled in Mathura.[12] These rulers are known as Seshadatta, Ramadatta, Sisuchandradatta and Sivadatta.[13] The coins of Ramadatta usually represent a Lakshmi standing, and facing elephants.[13] It is thought that they came just before, and were replaced by the Mitra dynasty.
References
- ^ JSTOR 29756891.
- ^ ISBN 978-90-474-1930-3.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: Ca. 150 BCE – 100 CE, Sonya Rhie Quintanilla, BRILL, 2007, p.8-10 [1]
- ^ a b c Indian Numismatic Studies K. D. Bajpai, Abhinav Publications, 2004, p.105 [2]
- ^ On the Cusp of an Era: Art in the Pre-Kuṣāṇa World, Doris Srinivasan BRILL, 2007, p.320 [3]
- ^ Ayodhya Revisited by Kunal Kishore p.24 [4]
- ISBN 978-81-7017-035-8.
- ^ Hartel, Herbert (2007). On The Cusp Of An Era Art In The Pre Kuṣāṇa World. BRILL. pp. 320–326.
- ^ Published in "L'Indo-Grec Menandre ou Paul Demieville revisite," Journal Asiatique 281 (1993) p.113
- ^ History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: Ca. 150 BCE – 100 CE, Sonya Rhie Quintanilla, BRILL, 2007, p.255 [5]
- ^ Mathurā and Its Society: The ʼSakæ-Pahlava Phase, Bratindra Nath Mukherjee, Firma K.L.M., 1981, p.9
- ^ History of Early Stone Sculpture at Mathura: Ca. 150 BCE – 100 CE, Sonya Rhie Quintanilla, BRILL, 2007, p.170 [6]
- ^ a b Dimensions of Human Cultures in Central India, A. A. Abbasi, Sarup & Sons, 2001, p.145-146 [7]