View source for Maues

{{short description|Indo-Scythian king}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022|cs1-dates=y}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Maues<br>Μαύης
| image        = Maues on horse detail.jpg
| caption      = Maues riding in armour. Like many other Indo-Scythians, Maues did not issue portraits.
| succession   = [[Indo-Scythian]] king
| reign        = 98/85 – 60/57 BCE
| coronation   = 
| full name    = 
| predecessor  = 
| successor    = 
| spouse       = Machene
| issue        = 
| royal house  = 
| dynasty      = 
| father       = 
| mother       = 
| birth_date   = 
| birth_place  = 
| religion     = [[Hinduism|Greek Hinduism]]<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=WHz7hrkq2OIC The Decline and Fall of the Hindus: The Book on India's Regeneration]</ref>
| death_place  = 
| date of burial = 
| place of burial = 
}}
'''Maues''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: {{lang|grc|[[wiktionary:Μαύης|Μαύης]]}} {{Transliteration|grc|Maúēs}}; {{lang|grc|ΜΑΥΟΥ}} {{Transliteration|grc|Mauou}} (epigraphic); [[Kharosthi]]: '''{{lang|pgd|[[wiktionary:𐨨𐨆𐨀|𐨨𐨆𐨀]]}}''' {{Transliteration|pgd|Mo-a}}, {{Transliteration|pgd|Moa}},<ref name="Gardner">{{cite book |last=Gardner |first=Percy |author-link=Percy Gardner |title=The Coins of the Greek and Scythic Kings of Bactria and India in the British Museum |year=1886 |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924022932382 |location=London |publisher=Gilbert & Rivington Ltd. |pages=[https://archive.org/details/cu31924022932382/page/n147/mode/2up 68]-[https://archive.org/details/cu31924022932382/page/n151/mode/2up 72] |isbn=978-0-900-83452-3 }}</ref> called '''{{lang|pgd|[[wiktionary:𐨨𐨆𐨒|𐨨𐨆𐨒]]}}''' {{Transliteration|pgd|Mo-ga}}, {{Transliteration|pgd|Moga}} on the [[Taxila copper plate]];{{sfn|Konow|1929|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n37/mode/2up xxix], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n167/mode/2up 23]-[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n175/mode/2up 29], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n197/mode/2up 45]}} also called '''{{lang|pgd|[[wiktionary:𐨨𐨅𐨬𐨐𐨁|𐨨𐨅𐨬𐨐𐨁]]}} {{lang|pgd|[[wiktionary:𐨨𐨁𐨩𐨁𐨐|𐨨𐨁𐨩𐨁𐨐]]}}''' {{Transliteration|pgd|Me-va-ki}} {{Transliteration|pgd|Mi-yi-ka}}, {{Transliteration|pgd|Mevaki}} {{Transliteration|pgd|Miyika}} in the [[Mathura lion capital]] inscription,{{sfn|Konow|1929|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n175/mode/2up 30]-[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n203/mode/2up 49], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n191/mode/2up PLATE VIII]}}<ref name="Hultzsch">{{cite book |last=Thomas |first=F. W. |author-link=Frederick William Thomas (philologist) |editor-last1=Hultzsch | editor-first1=E. |editor-link1=E. Hultzsch |editor-last2=Konow |editor-first2=Sten |editor-link2=Sten Konow |date=1907–1908 |title=Epigraphia Indica |volume=9 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.48794 |location=Kolkata |publisher=Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing, India |pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.48794/page/n173/mode/2up 135]-[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.48794/page/n193/mode/2up 147] |isbn=}}</ref>) was the first [[Indo-Scythian]] king, ruling from 98/85 to 60/57 BCE.{{sfn|Gazerani|2015|p=15}} He invaded India and established [[Saka]] hegemony by conquering  [[Indo-Greek]] territories.<ref>The Grandeur of Gandhara, Rafi-us Samad, Algora Publishing, 2011, p.64-67 [https://books.google.com/books?id=PMEd8Cqh-YQC&pg=PA66]</ref>

==Name==
Maues's name primarily attested from his coins appear under the [[Gandhari language|Gandhari]] form {{Transliteration|pgd|Moa}} ({{lang|pgd|𐨨𐨆𐨀}}) and the [[Ancient Greek]] form {{Transliteration|grc|Maúēs}} ({{lang|grc|Μαύης}}),<ref name="Gardner"/> both of which are variants of the same [[Scythian languages|Scythian]] [[Saka language]] name {{lang|xsc|*Mava}}, meaning "tiger" and "hero".{{sfn|Harmatta|1999|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9U6RlVVjpakC&q=Moga+Moa+Maues&pg=PA410 410]}}

Another form of Maues's name appears on the [[Taxila copper plate]] as {{Transliteration|pgd|Moga}} ({{lang|pgd|𐨨𐨆𐨒}}),{{sfn|Konow|1929|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n37/mode/2up xxix], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n167/mode/2up 23]-[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n175/mode/2up 29], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n197/mode/2up 45]}} which is a Gandhari derivation of the Saka name {{lang|xsc|*Mauka}}, which also means "tiger" and "hero".{{sfn|Harmatta|1999|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9U6RlVVjpakC&q=Moga+Moa+Maues&pg=PA410 410]}}

The [[Mathura lion capital]] inscription refers to Maues as {{Transliteration|pgd|Mevaki Miyika}} ({{lang|pgd|𐨨𐨅𐨬𐨐𐨁 𐨨𐨁𐨩𐨁𐨐}}),{{sfn|Konow|1929|pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n175/mode/2up 30]-[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n203/mode/2up 49], [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007/page/n191/mode/2up PLATE VIII]}}<ref name="Hultzsch"/> which is composed of {{Transliteration|pgd|Mevaki}}, derived from Saka {{lang|xsc|*Mavyaka}}, meaning "tiger", and of {{Transliteration|pgd|Miyika}}, from Saka {{lang|xsc|*mayaka}}, meaning "prosperous".{{sfn|Harmatta|1999|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9U6RlVVjpakC&q=Moga+Moa+Maues&pg=PA412 412]}}

==Sakas==
[[Image:Coin of Maues.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Silver tetradrachm of Maues. The obverse shows [[Zeus]] standing with a sceptre. The Greek legend reads ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΝ ΜΕΓΑΛΟΥ ΜΑΥΟΥ (Οf the Great King of Kings Maues). The reverse shows [[Nike (mythology)|Nike]] standing, holding a wreath. [[Kharoshthi]] legend. [[Taxila]] mint.]]
The [[Saka]]s, and/or the related [[Parni]] (who founded the [[Parthian Empire]]) and [[Scythians]], were nomadic [[Eastern Iranian peoples]].

The Sakas from [[Sakastan]] defeated and killed the Parthian king [[Phraates II]] in 126 B.C. [[Indo-Scythians]] established themselves in the Indus around 88 B.C., during the end of [[Mithridates II of Parthia]]s reign. The Sakas and Pahlavas became closely associated during the Saka migration. This can be demonstrated from various sources, such as the adoption of names and titles. Maues took the title of "Great King of Kings", an exceeded version of a traditional [[Persian Empire|Persian]] royal title.

=== Ethnic origin ===
Some scholars have suggested that Maues may have been of [[Kambojas|Kamboja]] lineage. Sten Konow, in his edition of the Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum (1929), interpreted the name Kamuia (found in the Mathura lion capital inscriptions) as a Prakrit rendering of the Sanskrit Kambojika (“from the Kamboja lineage”). According to this view, figures such as Maues (Moga), Arta, and their relatives mentioned in the inscriptions may have belonged to the Kamboja clan rather than being of purely Scythian origin.<ref>Sten Konow, Corpus ''Inscriptionum Indicarum'', Vol. II, Part I: ''Kharoshṭhī Inscriptions (with the exception of those of Aśoka)'', Calcutta: Government of India, Central Publication Branch, 1929, pp. xxxvi, 36. [Available online at the Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007) and [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACorpus_Inscriptionum_Indicarum_Vol_2_Part_1.pdf).</ref>

== Maues Campaigns ==
Maues is the first recorded ruler of the Sakas in the Indus. He is first mentioned in the [[Moga inscription]]:

: "In the seventy eighth, 78, year the Great King, the Great Moga, on the fifth, 5, day of the month Panemos, on this first, of the Kshaharata and Kshatrapa of Chukhsa - Liaka Kusuluka by name - his son Patika - in the town of Takshasila..."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kushan.org/essays/chronology/minorindoparthian.htm |title=Moga inscription |access-date=2006-10-29  |archive-date=2011-08-07  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807125910/http://www.kushan.org/essays/chronology/minorindoparthian.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Mauses is possibly mentioned the Maira inscription in the [[Salt Range]] in Pakistan as 'Moasa'.{{sfn|Harmatta|1999|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9U6RlVVjpakC&q=kharosthi+inscription+moga&pg=PA193 193]}}

Maues vastly expanded his domain by conquering key cities along the Indus. This included seizing [[Taxila]] in [[Punjab]], and [[Gandhara]]s capital city [[Pushkalavati]] from the [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]]s.<ref name="Sagar">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0UA4rkm9MgkC&q=maues+moga&pg=PA124|title=Foreign Influence on Ancient India|last=Sagar|first=Krishna Chandra|date=1992|publisher=Northern Book Centre|isbn=9788172110284|language=en}}</ref> Maues has overstruck coins belonging to [[Archebius]] as well as [[Apollodotus II]] in Taxila.

The Sakas extend their power up to [[Mathura]] during his reign.<ref name="Sagar"/>

=== Route of the Invasions ===
When precisely and under what circumstances Maues arrived in India is uncertain, but the expulsion of the Scythian (Saka/Sai) peoples from Central Asia is referred to in the [[Han Shu]], where the cause given is their confrontation with the [[Yuezhi|Ta Yüeh-chih]], themselves undergoing an [[Yuezhi#Exodus of the Great Yuezhi|enforced migration]]. It is stated that "when the Ta Yüeh-chih turned west, defeated and expelled the king of the Sai, the latter moved south and crossed over the Suspended Crossing." That this route (from the [[Pamir Mountains|Pamirs]] into the [[Gilgit]] valley) was used in Maues' time is confirmed by the discovery of inscriptions in the [[Chilas]]/Gilgit area bearing his name ([[Ahmad Hasan Dani|Dani]], 1983 and 1995, pp.&nbsp;52, 55).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/indo-scythian-dynasty-1|title=INDO-SCYTHIAN DYNASTY – Encyclopaedia Iranica|website=www.iranicaonline.org|access-date=2019-07-23}}</ref>

== Coins ==
[[Image:BalaramaMauesCoin1stCenturyBCE.jpg|thumb|Coin of Maues depicting [[Balarama]], 1st century BCE. [[British Museum]].]]
[[File:Machene.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Coin of Machene, Queen of Maues. '''Obv.''' Tyche, wearing mural crown. Legend ΒΑΣΙΛΙΣΣΗΣ ΘEOTPOΠOY MAXHNHΣ "Godlike Queen Machene". '''Rev.''' Zeus with Nike, legend "Rajatirajasa mahatasa Moasa" in [[Kharoshthi]] "Great king of kings, Maues".]]
Maues issued joint coins mentioning a queen Machene ("ΜΑΧΗΝΗ"). Machene may have been a daughter of one of the Indo-Greek houses.<ref>RC Senior "Indo-Scythian coins and history", Vol IV, p.xxxvi.</ref>

An Indo-Greek king, [[Artemidoros]], also issued coins where he describes himself as "Son of Maues".

=== Buddhist Coins ===
A few of the coins of Maues, struck according to the Indian square standard, seemingly depict a King in a cross-legged seated position. This may represent Maues himself, or possibly one of his divinities. It has been suggested that this might also be one of the first representations of the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]] on a coin, in an area where [[Buddhism]] was flourishing at the time, but the seated personage seems to hold a sword horizontally, which favors the hypotheses of the depiction of the king Maues himself.

Also, Maues struck some coins incorporating Buddhist symbolism, such as the lion, symbol of Buddhism since the time of the [[Mauryan]] king [[Ashoka]].

The symbolism of the lion had also been adopted by the Buddhist Indo-Greek king [[Menander II]]. Maues therefore probably supported [[Buddhism]], although whether sincerely or for political motives is unclear. His coins also included a variety of other religious symbols such as the bull of [[Shiva]], indicating wide religious tolerance.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book | title = The Sistani Cycle of Epics and Iran's National History: On the Margins of Historiography | year = 2015 | publisher = BRILL | last = Gazerani| first = Saghi | pages = 1–250 | isbn = 9789004282964 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=92zsCgAAQBAJ&q=false}}
* {{cite book |last1=Olbrycht |first1=Marek Jan|editor-last1=Curtis|editor-first1=Vesta Sarkhosh|editor-last2=Pendleton|editor-first2=Elizabeth J.|editor-last3=Alram|editor-first3=Michael|editor-last4=Daryaee|editor-first4=Touraj|title=The Parthian and Early Sasanian Empires: Adaptation and Expansion |date=2016 |publisher=Oxbow Books |isbn=9781785702082 |chapter=Dynastic Connections in the Arsacid Empire and the Origins of the House of Sāsān |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/26895576}}
* {{cite book | title = ReOrienting the Sasanians: East Iran in Late Antiquity | year = 2017 | publisher = Edinburgh University Press | last = Rezakhani | first = Khodadad | chapter = East Iran in Late Antiquity| pages = 1–256 | isbn = 9781474400305 | jstor = 10.3366/j.ctt1g04zr8 }} {{registration required}}
* {{cite book |last=Harmatta |first=János |author-link=János Harmatta |editor-last1=Harmatta |editor-first1=János |editor-link1=János Harmatta |editor-last2=Puri |editor-first2=B. N. |editor-link2=Baij Nath Puri |editor-last3=Etemadi |editor-first3=G. F. |date=1999 |chapter=Languages and scripts in Graeco-Bactria and the Saka Kingdoms |title=History of civilizations of Central Asia |volume=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DguGWP0vGY8C |location=Delhi |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass|Motilal Banarsidass Publishing House]] |isbn=978-8-120-81408-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Konow |first=Sten |author-link=Sten Konow |date=1929 |title=Kharoshṭhī Inscriptions: with the Exception of Those of Aśoka |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32007 |location=Kolkata |publisher=Government of India Central Publication Branch}}

{{s-start}}
{{succession box
| before = (In [[Arachosia]], [[Gandhara]] and [[Punjab region|Punjab]])<br>''[[Indo-Greek]] King''<br>'''[[Archebios]]'''<br><br>(In [[Paropamisade]])<br>''[[Indo-Greek]] King''<br>'''[[King Hermaeus|Hermaeus]]'''
| title = [[Indo-Scythian|Indo-Scythian Ruler]] | years = (85–60 BCE)
| after = ''(In [[Gandhara]])''<br>''[[Indo-Greek]] king:''<br>'''[[Artemidoros]]'''<br><br>''(In [[Punjab region|Punjab]])''<br>''[[Indo-Greek]] king:''<br>'''[[Apollodotus II]]'''<br><br>''(In the south)''<br>''Indo-Scythian ruler:''<br>'''[[Vonones of Indo-Scythia|Vonones]]'''
}}
{{s-end}}
{{Indo-Scythians}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Indo-Scythian kings]]
[[Category:Buddhism in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Buddhism in Afghanistan]]
[[Category:1st-century BC Iranian monarchs]]