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Hemistater - Azes

Issuer Indo-Scythian Kingdom
Year 58 BC - 12 BC
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Composition Gold
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Reverse description A standing female divinity, identified as the goddess Pakhalavati, depicted in frontal stance with robes rendered in flowing Hellenistic-influenced drapery. The goddess holds a lotus flower in one hand, raised toward the upper field. Kharosthi inscriptions flank the figure to the left and right, identifying the deity by name and epithet. The overall style reflects the syncretic Hellenistic and Indian artistic traditions characteristic of Indo-Scythian coinage.
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Reverse lettering Pakhalavati [Devata] Drupasaya
(Translation: Goddess Pakhalavati)
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Additional information

Azes I consolidated Indo-Scythian control over the northwestern subcontinent after defeating the last Indo-Greek king Hippostratos around 58 BC — a date significant enough that some scholars have proposed it as the origin point of the Azes Era, a dating system that continued in regional use for centuries. The hemistater denomination itself reflects the hybrid monetary thinking of the Indo-Scythian court, borrowing weight standards and denominational logic from the Hellenistic tradition the Scythians had militarily displaced.

MIG 162a is among the better-documented die groupings in the series, though attribution between Azes I and the later Azes II remains genuinely contested.

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