{"id":2593,"date":"2020-09-04T10:43:46","date_gmt":"2020-09-04T10:43:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mintageworld.com\/blog\/?p=2593"},"modified":"2020-09-05T11:03:43","modified_gmt":"2020-09-05T11:03:43","slug":"kushana-empire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mintageworld.com\/blog\/kushana-empire\/","title":{"rendered":"The Kushana Empire"},"content":{"rendered":"

The word Kushan derived from the Chinese term Guishuang, which refers to one of the branches of Yuezhi.\u00a0The Kushan Empire was a Syncretic Empire; this empire was formed during the 1st century CE; in the Bactrian territories. The Kushan dynasty was associated with Indo-European people who lived in\u00a0northwestern<\/em>\u00a0China until they drove to the west by another group, the Xiongnu, in 176\u2013160 B.C. The Kushan Empire was one of the five branches of the Yuezhi confederation. They are also known as Guishuang in Chinese sources. The origin of the Kushan Dynasty was connected to China and also; in Central Asia. They were the nomadic people and are also known as Tocharians; they use to speak Indo-European Languages. For the administrative purpose, they use to make use of the Greek language, but; during the latter part, they use to make use of Bactrian Language.<\/p>\n

The Kushan Empire had diplomatic contact with the Roman Empire, Sasanian Persia, the Aksumite Empire, and the Han dynasty in China. They were the center of the trade relationship between the Roman Empire and China. The Kushan Empire became affluent through trade, particularly with Rome, as they had issued a large number of gold coins. During their rule, the political, economic, religious, and cultural contacts between South Asia and Central Asia had boosted greatly.\u00a0The founder of the Kushan Empire was Kujula Kadphises, first Yuezhi chief. He established this empire; by getting supremacy over the three kingdoms, namely Kabul, Kandahar, and Afghanistan. He was the first Kushan prince who united the Yuezhi confederation during the 1st century CE. King Kujula Kadphises issued the title \u2018Great King\u2019 or \u2018King of the King\u2019 on all the coins patterned on those of Saka and Parthian rulers.<\/p>\n

When the power of Indo-Greek in the north-west borderlands decline, the Yuezhi migration caused some groups of Saka\u2019s got migrated to the Indian Subcontinent. In the middle of the 1st Century CE, the power of the Kushan Empire extended from Bactria across the Hindu Kush to Gandhara and Taxila (in modern Pakistan). By the middle of the first century CE, Kushan power extended from Bactria across The Kushan Empire ruled for about 120 years from 150 CE -270 CE. During the 3rd Century, this dynasty had fragmented into semi-independent kingdoms. When the Sasanians invaded India, they fell into the hands of the Sasanians Empire and; formed the Kushano-Sasanian Kingdom in the areas of Sogdiana, Bactria, and Gandhara.<\/p>\n

In India, the Kushan Empire had used its dynamic name as \u2018Koshano\u2019 on their coinage. Kaniska, the third ruler of the Kushan Empire, had ruled this kingdom from the late 1st century CE to the early mid-second century CE. It used to administrate from two capitals Purushapura (now Peshawar) near the Khyber pass; and Mathura in northern India.\u00a0 The introduction of gold coin in the Kushan Empire; was made by King Vima Kadphises. He issued his gold coins by melting down all the Roman coins imported to India in exchange for luxury items.\u00a0 Some of the numismatic stay that king Kujula Kadphises continued issuing coins that were an imitation of the posthumous type last Indo-Greek ruler in Central Afghanistan. The copper coins issue by him bears the royal portrait on the obverse side imitates the obverse side of the gold coins of the Roman Emperor Augustus.<\/p>\n

The Kushan Empire adopted an element of the Hellenistic culture of Bactria. The Hellenistic also referred to as Hellenization; or Hellenism, refers to the spread of Greek culture that began after the conquest of Alexander the Great in the fourth century, B.C.E.\u00a0 Generally, the Kushan Empire made the use of the corrupt Greek alphabet to suit their language. They issued a coin with added development of letter \u00de “sh,” as in “Kushan. In the first few years of King Kanishka, they made use of Greek legend along with Pali legend (in Kharoshthi Script). The Kushan legend was inscribed in Greek script and Kharoshthi script.<\/p>\n

The rule of the Kushan Empire was marked for three centuries; until the invasion of Kidarites. They were the feudatories of Western Satraps, the Satavahanas, and the first Gupta Empire rulers.<\/p>\n

The rulers of the Kushan Empire are<\/p>\n