Apollodotus I
| Apollodotus I | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Apollodotus extracted from the coins | |
| Indo-Greek king | |
| Reign | 180–160 BCE or between 174–165 BCE |
| Predecessor | Agathocles of Bactria |
| Successor | Demetrius II of India |
| Born | Bactria in Central Asia |
| Died | ca. 163–62 BCE Ohind near Taxila, India (modern day Pakistan) |
| Dynasty | Diodotid or Eucratidid |
Apollodotus I (Greek: Ἀπολλόδοτος Α΄ ὁ Σωτήρ) Prakrit in the Kharoshti script: maharajasa apaladatasa tratarasa) was an Indo-Greek king between 180 BCE and 160 BCE or between 174 and 165 BCE (first dating Osmund Bopearachchi and R. C. Senior, second dating Boperachchi[1]) who ruled the western and southern parts of the Indo-Greek kingdom, from Taxila in Punjab to the areas of Sindh and possibly Gujarat.[2]
Ruler of the Indo-Greek kingdom[]
Apollodotus was not the first to strike bilingual coins outside Bactria, but he was the first king who ruled in India only, and therefore the founder of the proper Indo-Greek kingdom. According to W. W. Tarn, Apollodotus I was one of the generals of Demetrius I of Bactria, the Greco-Bactrian king who invaded northwestern India after 180 BCE. Tarn was uncertain whether he was a member of the royal house. It is possible he was an illegitimate son of Euthydemus, making him Demetrius’ half brother. Later authors largely agree with Tarn's analysis,[3] though with perhaps even more uncertainty regarding who the king was, for his coins do not give many hints.
Apollodotus was either succeeded in India by Antimachus II, or the two kings were contemporary, Antimachus II ruling the more western territories closer to Bactria. Eventually Apollodotus I was succeeded by Menander I, and the two kings are mentioned by Pompejus Trogus as important Indo-Greek rulers.[4]
The 1st-2nd century CE Periplus of the Erythraean Sea further testifies to the reign of Apollodotus I and the influence of the Indo-Greeks in India:
"To the present day ancient drachmae are current in Barygaza, coming from this country, bearing inscriptions in Greek letters, and the devices of those who reigned after Alexander, Apollodorus [sic] and Menander."
— Periplus Chap. 47.[5]
Coinage[]
