ALCHON
HUNS
![](Alchon_Khingila_portrait.jpg)
![](Alchon_Tamga.png)
Portrait
of Alchon king Khingila (c. 450 CE), and the bull / lunar tamga
of the Alchon, as visible on Alchon coinage
![](AlchonHuns.jpg)
Find
spots of epigraphic inscriptions indicating local control by the
Alchon Huns in India between 500 - 530 CE
Alchon
Huns
370
- 670
Capital
: Kapisa
Common languages
: Brahmi and Bactrian (written)
Religion
: Hinduism, Buddhism
Government
: Nomadic empire
Historical
era : Late Antiquity
•
Established
:
370
•
Disestablished
: 670
Currency
: Drachm
Preceded
by
Sassanian
Empire ![](20px-Senmurv.svg.png)
Succeeded
by
Hephthalites
![](20px-Hephthalite_tamgha.jpg)
Nezak
Huns ![](Nezak_Crown.png)
Aulikaras
Turk
Shahi
Today part of : Afghanistan, Pakistan and India
The
Alchon Huns, also known as the Alchono, Alxon, Alkhon, Alkhan, Alakhana
and Walxon, were a nomadic people who established states in Central
Asia and South Asia during the 4th and 6th centuries CE.
They
were first mentioned as being located in Paropamisus, and later
expanded south-east, into the Punjab and central India, as far as
Eran and Kausambi.
The
Alchon invasion of the Indian subcontinent eradicated the Kidarite
Huns who had preceded them by about a century, and contributed to
the fall of the Gupta Empire, in a sense bringing an end to Classical
India.
The
invasion of India by the Hun peoples follows invasions of the subcontinent
in the preceding centuries by the Yavan (Indo-Greeks), the Saka
(Indo-Scythians), the Palav (Indo-Parthians), and the Kushan (Yuezhi).
The Alchon Empire was the third of four major Hun states established
in Central and South Asia. The Alchon were preceded by the Kidarites
and succeeded by the Hephthalites in Bactria and the Nezak Huns
in the Hindu Kush. The names of the Alchon kings are known from
their extensive coinage, Buddhist accounts, and a number of commemorative
inscriptions throughout the Indian subcontinent.
The
Alchons have long been considered as a part or a sub-division of
the Hephthalites, or as their eastern branch, but now tend to be
considered as a separate entity.
Identity
:
Name :
To contemporaneous observers in India, the Alchon were one of the
Hun peoples (or Huns), whose origins are controversial. A seal from
Kausambi associated with Toraman, bears the title Hunraj ("Hun
King"). Toraman is also described as a Hun in the Rishtal inscription.
![](640px-Alchono_legend_with_coin.jpg)
The word "Alchono" in the Greco-Bactrian cursive
script, on a coin of Khingila
The Huns appear to have been the peoples known in contemporaneous
Iranian sources as Xwn, Xiyon and similar names, which were later
Romanised as Xionites or Chionites. The Huns are often linked to
the Huns that invaded Europe from Central Asia during the same period.
Consequently,
the word Hun has three slightly different meanings, depending on
the context in which it is used: 1) the Huns of Europe; 2) groups
associated with the Hun people who invaded northern India; 3) a
vague term for Hun-like people. The Alchon have also been labelled
"Huns", with essentially the second meaning, as well as
elements of the third.
The
name "Alchon" generally given to them comes from the Bactrian
legend of their early coinage, where they simply imitated Sassanian
coins to which they added the name "alchono" in Bactrian
script (a slight adaptation of the Greek script) and the tamgha
symbol of their clan. Several original coins such as those of Khingila
also bear the mention "alchono" together with the Tamgha
symbol.
Philologically,
"alchono" may be a combination of al- for Aryan and -xono
for Huns, although this remains hypothetical. Another etymology
could be al-, Turkish for scarlet, and -xono for Huns, meaning "Red
Huns", red being a symbol of the south among steppe nomads.
Visual
appearance :
![](Khingila_portrait_(young).jpg)
Portrait
of Alchon king Khingila, fom his coinage (circa 450 CE)
![](Afrasiab,_elongated_skull_600-800_CE,_Afrasiab_Museum.jpg)
Elongated skull excavated in Samarkand (dated 600 - 800
CE), Afrasiab Museum of Samarkand
The Alchons are generally recognized by their elongated skull, a
result of artificial skull deformation, which may have represented
their "corporate identity". The elongated skulls appears
clearly in most of the portaits of rulers in the coinage of the
Alkhon Huns, and most visibly on the coinage of Khingila. These
elongated skulls, which they obviously displayed with pride, distinguished
them from other peoples, such as their predecessors the Kidarites.
On their coins, the spectacular skulls came to replace the Sasanian-type
crowns which had been current in the coinage of the region. This
practice is also known among other peoples of the steppes, particularly
the Huns, and as far as Europe, where it was introduced by the Huns
themselves.
In
another ethnic custom, the Alchons were represented beardless, often
wearing a moustache, in clear contrast with the Sasanian Empire
prototype which was generally bearded.
The
emblematic look of the Alchons seems to have become rather fashionable
in the area, as shown by the depiction of the Iranian hero Rostam,
mythical king of Zabulistan, with an elongated skull in his 7th
century CE mural at Panjikent.
Symbolism
:
Another way for the Alchon Huns to affirm their identity and to
differentiate themselves from their predecessors the Kidarites,
was the use of a specific symbol, or tamgha, which regularly appears
on their coinage and seals.
History
:
Invasion of Bactria (370 CE) :
The Alkhons are initially recorded in the area of Bactria circa
370 CE, from where they confronted the Sasanian Empire to the west
and the Kidarites to the southeast.
Appearance
of the Alchon tamgha
![](Alchon_Huns._Anonymous._Circa_400-440_CE_Imitating_Sasanian_king_Shahpur_II.jpg)
![](Alchon_tamgha_on_coinage.jpg)
An early Alchon coin based on the design of Sasanian coinage, with
bust imitating Sasanian king Shapur II (r.309 to 379 CE), only adding
the Alchon Tamgha symbol and "Alchono" in Bactrian script
on the obverse. Dated 400-440 CE.
During the reign of Shapur II, the Sasanian Empire and the Kushano-Sasanians
gradually lost the control of Bactria to these invaders from Central
Asia, first the Kidarites from around 335 CE, then the Alchon Huns
from around 370 CE, who would follow up with the invasion of India
a century later, and lastly the Hephthalites from around 450 CE.
Early
confrontations between the Sasanian Empire of Shapur II with the
nomadic hordes from Central Asia called the "Chionites"
were described by Ammianus Marcellinus: he reports that in 356 CE,
Shapur II was taking his winter quarters on his eastern borders,
"repelling the hostilities of the bordering tribes" of
the Chionites and the Euseni ("Euseni" is usually amended
to "Cuseni", meaning the Kushans), finally making a treaty
of alliance with the Chionites and the Gelani, "the most warlike
and indefatigable of all tribes", in 358 CE. After concluding
this alliance, the Chionites (probably of the Kidarites tribe) under
their King Grumbates accompanied Shapur II in the war against the
Romans, especially at the Siege of Amida in 359 CE. Victories of
the Xionites during their campaigns in the Eastern Caspian lands
were also witnesses and described by Ammianus Marcellinus.
The
Alchon Huns occupied Bactria circa 370 CE, where they started minting
coins in the style of Shapur II but bearing their name "Alchono",
and emerged in Kapis around 380, taking over Kabulistan from the
Sassanian Persians, at the same time the Kidarites (Red Huns) still
ruled in Ghandar. The Alchon Huns are said to have taken control
of Kabul in 388.
The
Alchon Huns initially issued anonymous coins based on Sasanian designs.
Several types of these coins are known, usually minted in Bactria,
using Sasanian coinage designs with busts imitating Sasanian kings
Shapur II (r.309 to 379 CE) and Shapur III (r.383 to 388 CE), adding
the Alchon Tamgha Alchon and the name "Alchono" in Bactrian
script (a slight adaptation of the Greek script which had been introduced
in the region by the Greco-Bactrians in the 3rd century BCE) on
the obverse, and with attendants to a fire altar, a standard Sasanian
design, on the reverse. It is thought the Alchons took over the
Sasanian mints in Kabulistan after 385 CE, reusing dies of Shapur
II and Shapur III, to which they added the name "Alchono".
Gandhar
(460 CE) :
![](491px-Khingila_portrait.jpg)
Portrait
of an older King Khingil, founder of the Alchon Huns, on one of
his coins, c. 430 – 490 CE
Around 430 King Khingil, the most notable Alchon ruler, and the
first one to be named and represented on his coins with the legend
(Kiggilo) in Bactrian, emerged and took control of the routes across
the Hindu Kush from the Kidarites. He seems to have been a contemporary
of the Sassanian ruler Bahram V. As the Alchons took control, diplomatic
missions were established in 457 with China. Khingil, under the
name Shengil, was called "King of India" in the Shahnameh
of Ferdowsi.
Alchon
ruler Meham (r.461-493) was elevated to the position of Governor
for Sasanian Emperor Peroz I (r. 459-484), and described himself
as "King of the people of Kadag and governor of the famous
and prosperous King of Kings Peroz" in a 462-463 letter. He
allied with Peroz I in his victory over the Kidarites in 466 CE,
and may also have helped him take the throne against his brother
Hormizd III. But he was later able to wrestle autonomy or even independence.
Between
460 and 470 CE, the Alchons took over Gandhar and the Punjab which
also had remained under the control of the Kidarites, while the
Gupta Empire remained further east.
The
Alkhon Huns may simply have filled the power vaccuum created by
the decline of the Kidarites, following their defeat in India against
the Gupta Empire of Skandgupt in 455 CE, and their subsequent defeat
in 467 CE against the Sasanian Empire of Peroz I, with Hephthalite
and Alchon aid under Meham, which put an end to Kidarite rule in
Transoxiana once and for all.
![](640px-SilverBowlNFPPakistan5-6thcenturyCE.jpg)
The silver bowl in the British Museum
![](586px-Hephthalite_horseman_on_British_Museum_bowl_460-479_CE.jpg)
Alchon
horseman, possibly Khingil
The so-called "Hephthalite bowl" from Gandhar, features
two Kidarite hunters wearing characteristic crowns, and as well
as two Alchon hunters (one of them shown here, with skull deformation),
suggesting a period of peaceful coexistence between the two entities.
Swat District, Pakistan, 460–479 CE. British Museum.
The numismatic evidence as well as the so-called "Hephthalite
bowl" from Gandhar, now in the British Museum, suggests a period
of peaceful coexistence between the Kidarites and the Alchons, as
it features two Kidarite noble hunters wearing their characteristic
crowns, together with two Alchon hunters and one of the Alchons
inside a medallion. At one point, the Kidarites withdrew from Gandhar,
and the Alchons took over their mints from the time of Khingil.
The
Alchons apparently undertook the mass destruction of Buddhist monasteries
and stups at Taxila, a high center of learning, which never recovered
from the destruction. Virtually all of the Alchon coins found in
the area of Taxila were found in the ruins of burned down monasteries,
where apparently some of the invaders died alongside local defenders
during the wave of destructions.
It
is thought that the Kanishk stup, one of the most famous and tallest
buildings in antiquity, was destroyed by them during their invasion
of the area in the 460s CE.
The
rest of the 5th century marks a period of territorial expansion
and eponymous kings, several of which appear to have overlapped
and ruled jointly. The Alchon Huns invaded parts of northwestern
India from the second half of the 5th century. According to the
Bhitari pillar inscription, the Gupta ruler Skandgupt already confronted
and defeated an unnamed Hun ruler circa 456-457 CE.
Sindh
:
![](Sind._Uncertain_Hunnic_chieftain._5th_century.jpg)
Uncertain
Hunnic chieftain. Sindh. 5th century
From circa 480 CE, there are also suggestion of Hunnic occupation
of Sindh, between Multan and the mouth of the Indus river, as the
local Sasanian coinage of Sindh starts to incorporate sun symbols
or a Hunnic tamgha to the design.
These
little-known coins are usually described as the result of the invasions
of the "Hephthalites". The quality of the coins also becomes
very much degraded by that time, and the actual gold content becomes
quite low compared to the previous Sasanian-style coinage.
Contributions
:
The Huns were precisely ruling the area of Malwa, at the doorstep
of the Western Deccan, at the time the famous Ajanta caves were
made by ruler Harisen of the Vaktak Empire. Through their control
of vast areas of northwestern India, the Huns may actually have
acted as a cultural bridge between the area of Gandhar and the Western
Deccan, at the time when the Ajanta or Pitalkhora caves were being
decorated with designs of Gandharan inspiration, such as Buddhas
dressed in robes with abundant folds.
First
Hunnic War: Central India :
Kausambi
![](640px-Ghoshitaram_monastery_in_Kosambi.jpg)
The
monastery of Ghoshitarama in Kausambi was probably destroyed by
the Alchon Huns under Toramana
![](484px-Kosambi_Huna_Raja_seal_impression.jpg)
"Hun
Raja" Toramana seal impression, Kausambi
In the First Hunnic War (496–515), the Alchon reached their
maximum territorial extent, with King Toramana pushing deep into
Indian territory, reaching Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh in Central
India, and ultimately contributing to the downfall of the Gupta
Empire.
To
the south, the Sanjeli inscriptions indicate that Toramana penetrated
at least as far as northern Gujarat, and possibly to the port of
Bharukacch. To the east, far into Central India, the city of Kausambi,
where seals with Toramana's name were found, was probably sacked
by the Alkhons in 497–500, before they moved to occupy Malwa.
In
particular, it is thought that the monastery of Ghoshitaram in Kausambi
was destroyed by Toraman, as several of his seals were found there,
one of them bearing the name Toraman impressed over the official
seal of the monastery, and the other bearing the title Hunraj ("King
of the Huns"), together with debris and arrowheads. Another
seal, this time by Mihirkul, is reported from Kausambi. These territories
may have been taken from Gupta Emperor Budhgupt. Alternatively,
they may have been captured during the rule of his successor Narsimhagupt.
First
Battle of Eran (510 CE) :
A decisive battle occurred in Malwa, where a local Gupta ruler,
probably a governor, named Bhanugupt was in charge. In the Bhanugupt
Eran inscription, this local ruler reports that his army participated
in a great battle in 510 CE at Eran, where it suffered severe casualties.
Bhanugupt was probably vanquished by Toraman at this battle, so
that the western Gupta province of Malwa fell into the hands of
the Huns.
![](Toramana_portrait_and_initials_Tora.jpg)
Portrait of Toraman and Gupta script initials Gupta allahabad
to Tora, from his bronze coinage. He sacked Kausambi and occupied
Malwa
According to a 6th-century CE Buddhist work, the Manjusri-mula-kalp,
Bhanugupt lost Malwa to the "Shudra" Toraman, who continued
his conquest to Magadh, forcing Narasimhagupt Baladitya to make
a retreat to Bengal. Toraman"possessed of great prowess and
armies" then conquered the city of Tirth in the Gaud country
(modern Bengal). Toraman is said to have crowned a new king in Banaras,
named Prakataditya, who is also presented as a son of Narsimha Gupta.
![](542px-Eran_Boar.jpg)
The Eran "Varaha" boar, under the neck of which
can be found the Eran boar inscription mentioning the rule of Toraman
![](320px-Maharajadhiraja_Sri_Toramana_on_Eran_boar_inscription.jpg)
Maharajdhiraj Shri Toraman "Great King of
Kings, Lord Toraman" in the Eran boar inscription of Toraman
in the Gupta script
![](Toramana_gold_coin_circa_490-515.jpg)
A
rare gold coin of Toraman in the style of the Guptas. The obverse
legend reads: "The lord of the Earth, Toraman, having conquered
the Earth, wins Heaven"
Having conquered the territory of Malwa from the Guptas, Toraman
was mentioned in a famous inscription in Eran, confirming his rule
on the region. The Eran boar inscription of Toraman (in Eran, Malwa,
540 km south of New Delhi, state of Madhya Pradesh) of his first
regnal year indicates that eastern Malwa was included in his dominion.
The inscription is written under the neck of the boar, in 8 lines
of Sanskrit in the Brahmi script. The first line of the inscription,
in which Toraman is introduced as Maharajadhiraj (The Great King
of Kings), reads :
"In
year one of the reign of the King of Kings Sri-Toraman, who rules
the world with splendor and radiance..."
—
Eran boar inscription of Toraman.
On his gold coins minted in India in the style of the Gupta Emperors,
Toraman presented himself confidently as :
"Avanipati
Torama(no) vijitya vasudham divam jayati"
"The
lord of the Earth, Toraman, having conquered the Earth, wins Heaven"
—
Toraman gold coin legend.
The fact that the Alchon Huns issued gold coins, such as the Toraman
issue, in addition to their silver and copper coins, suggest that
their empire in India was quite rich and powerful.
Defeat
(515 CE) :
Toraman was finally defeated by local Indian rulers. The local ruler
Bhanugupt is sometimes credited with vanquishing Toraman, as his
510 CE inscription in Eran, recording his participation in "a
great battle", is vague enough to allow for such an interpretation.
The "great battle" in which Bhanagupt participated is
not detailed, and it is impossible to know what it was, or which
way it ended, and interpretations vary. Mookerji and others consider,
in view of the inscription as well as the Manjusri-mul-kalp, that
Bhanugupt was, on the contrary, vanquished by Toraman at the 510
CE Eran battle, so that the western Gupta province of Malwa fell
into the hands of the Huns at that point, so that Toraman could
be mentioned in the Eran boar inscription, as the ruler of the region.
Toraman
was finally vanquished with certainty by an Indian ruler of the
Aulikar dynasty of Malwa, after nearly 20 years in India. According
to the Risthal stone-slab inscription, discovered in 1983, King
Prakashadharma defeated Toraman in 515 CE.
The
First Hunnic War thus ended with a Hunnic defeat, and Hunnic troops
apparently retreated to the area of Punjab.
The
Manjusri-mul-kalp simply states that Toraman died in Banaras as
he was returning westward from his battles with Narasimhagupt.
Second
Hunnic War: to Malwa and retreat :
![](Mihirakula_portrait.jpg)
Mihirkul
on one of his coins. He was finally defeated in 528 by King Yasodharman
The Second Hunnic War started in 520, when the Alchon king Mihirkul,
son of Toraman, is recorded in his military encampment on the borders
of the Jhelum by Chinese monk Song Yun. At the head of the Alchon,
Mihirkul is then recorded in Gwalior, Central India as "Lord
of the Earth" in the Gwalior inscription of Mihirkul. According
to some accounts, Mihirkul invaded India as far as the Gupta capital
Pataliputra, which was sacked and left in ruins.
There
was a king called Mo-hi-lo-kiu-lo (Mihirkul), who established his
authority in this town (Sagal) and ruled over India. He was of quick
talent, and naturally brave. He subdued all the neighbouring provinces
without exception.
—
Xuanzang "The Record of the Western Regions", 7th century
CE
The destructions of Mihirkul are also recorded in the Rajatarangini
:
“Mihirkul,
a man of violent acts and resembling Kaal (Death) ruled in the land
which was overrun by hordes of Malechs… the people knew his
approach by noticing the vultures, crows, and other [birds], which
were flying ahead to feed on those who were being slain within his
army’s [reach]”
—
The Rajatarangini
![](Sondani.jpg)
Pillar
of Yashodharman near Mandsaur, with the Sondani inscription claiming
victory over Mihirkul of the Alchons in 528 CE
Finally however, Mihirkul was defeated in 528 by an alliance of
Indian principalities led by Yasodharman, the Aulikar king of Malwa,
in the battle of Sondani in Central India, which resulted in the
loss of Alchon possessions in the Punjab and north India by 542.
The
Sondani inscription in Sondani, near Mandsaur, records the submission
by force of the Huns, and claims that Yasodharman had rescued the
earth from rude and cruel kings, and that he "had bent the
head of Mihirkul". In a part of the Sondani inscription Yasodharman
thus praises himself for having defeated king Mihirkul :
![](Mihirakula_of_the_Alchon_Huns.jpg)
Mihirkul
used the Indian Gupta script on his coinage. Obv: Bust of king,
with legend in Gupta script (Ja)yatu Mihirkul ("Let there be
victory to Mihirkul"). Rev: Dotted border around Fire altar
flanked by attendants, a design adopted from Sasanian coinage.
He (Yasodharman) to whose two feet respect was paid, with complimentary
presents of the flowers from the lock of hair on the top of (his)
head, by even that (famous) king Mihirkul, whose forehead was pained
through being bent low down by the strength of (his) arm in (the
act of compelling) obeisance
—
Sondani pillar inscription
The Gupta Empire emperor Narsimhagupt is also credited in helping
repulse Mihirkul, after the latter had conquered most of India,
according to the reports of Chinese monk Xuanzang. In a fanciful
account, Xuanzang, who wrote a century later in 630 CE, reported
that Mihirkul had conquered all India except for an island where
the king of Magadh named Baladitya (who could be Gupta ruler Narsimhagupt
Baladitya) took refuge, but that was finally captured by the Indian
king. He later spared Mihirkul's life on the intercession of his
mother, as she perceived the Hun ruler "as a man of remarkable
beauty and vast wisdom". Mihirkul is then said to have returned
to Kashmir to retake the throne. This ended the Second Hunnic War
in c. 534, after an occupation which lasted nearly 15 years.
Retreat
to Gandhar and Kashmir (530 CE) :
![](Post-Kushan_Gandhara_Kidara_Shahis_Sri_Pravarasena_Circa_6th-early_7th_century_CE.jpg)
Coinage
of Sri Pravarsen, successor of Mihirkul, and supposed founder of
Srinagar. Obverse: Standing king with two figured seated below.
Name "Pravarsen". Reverse: goddess seated on a lion. Legend
"Kidar". Circa 6th-early 7th century CE.
The Alchon Huns resettled in the area of Gandhar and Kashmir in
northwestern India under the rule of Sri Pravarsen (c.530-590 CE),
thought to be the son of Toraman. His reign probably lasted about
60 years from circa 530 CE. According to Kalhan's 12th century text
Rajatarangini, Pravarsen established a new capital named Pravarpur
(also known as Pravarsen-pur). Based on topographical details, Pravarpur
appears to be same as the modern city of Srinagar. He also built
a temple named "Pravaresh".
![](Narendraditya_portrait.jpg)
Portrait of Narendraditya Khinkhila, from his coinage
Pravarsen was probably succeeded by a king named Gokarn, a follower
of Shiv, and then by his son king Narendraditya Khinkhil. The son
of Narendraditya was Yudhishthir, who succeeded him as king, and
was the last known king of the Alchon Huns. According to the Rajatarangini,
Yudhishthir ruled 40 years until circa 670 CE, but he was dethroned
by Pratapaditya, son of the founder of the Karkot Empire, Durlabhavardhan.
Retreat
to Kabulistan :
![](Alkhan-Nezak_Crossover_coin_circa_580_590_to_650_680.jpg)
Alchon-Nezak
"crossover coinage", 580 – 680. Nezak-style bust
on the obverse, and Alchon tamga within double border on the reverse
Around the end of the 6th century CE, the Alchons withdrew to Kashmir
and, pulling back from Punjab and Gandhar, moved west across the
Khyber pass where they resettled in Kabulistan. There, their coinage
suggests that they merged with the Nezak – as coins in Nezak
style now bear the Alchon tamga mark.
During
the 7th century, continued military encounters are reported between
the Huns and the northern Indian states which followed the disappearance
of the Gupta Empire. For example, Prabhakarvardhan, the Vardhan
dynasty king of Thanesar in northern India and father of Harsh,
is reported to have been "A lion to the Hun deer, a burning
fever to the king of the Indus land".
The
Alchons in India declined rapidly around the same time that the
Hephthalites, a related group to the north, were defeated by an
alliance between the Sassanians and the Western Turkic Kaghanate
in 557–565 CE.The areas of Khuttal and Kapis-Gandhar had remained
independent kingdoms under the Alchon Huns, under kings such as
Narendra, but in 625 CE they were taken over by the expanding Western
Turks when they established the Yabghus of Tokharistan. Eventually,
the Nezak-Alchons were replaced by the Turk Shahi dynasty around
665 CE.
Religion
and ethics :
![](600px-Buddha_in_Sarnath_Museum_(Dhammajak_Mutra).jpg)
Meditating
Buddha from Sarnath, Gupta era, 5th century CE
The four Alchon kings Khingil, Toraman, Javukh, and Meham are mentioned
as donors to a Buddhist stup in the Talagan copper scroll inscription
dated to 492 or 493 CE, that is, at a time before the Hunnic wars
in India started. This corresponds to a time when the Alchons had
recently taken control of Taxila (around 460 CE), at the center
of the Buddhist regions of northwestern India.
Persecution
of Buddhism :
Later, however, the attitude of the Alchons towards Buddhism is
reported to have been negative. Mihirkul in particular is remembered
by Buddhist sources to have been a "terrible persecutor of
their religion" in Gandhar in northern Pakistan. During his
reign, over one thousand Buddhist monasteries throughout Gandhar
are said to have been destroyed.
In
particular, the writings of Chinese monk Xuanzang from 630 CE explained
that Mihirkul ordered the destruction of Buddhism and the expulsion
of monks. Indeed, the Buddhist art of Gandhar, in particular Greco-Buddhist
art, becomes essentially extinct around that period. When Xuanzang
visited northwestern India in c. 630 CE, he reported that Buddhism
had drastically declined, and that most of the monasteries were
deserted and left in ruins.
Although
the Guptas were traditionally a Brahmanical dynasty, around the
period of the invasions of the Alchon the Gupta rulers had apparently
been favouring Buddhism. According to contemporary writer Paramarth,
Mihirkul's supposed nemesis Narsimhagupt Baladitya was brought up
under the influence of the Mahayanist philosopher Vasubandhu. He
built a sanghram at Nalanda and a 300 ft (91 m) high vihar with
a Buddh statue within which, according to Xuanzang, resembled the
"great Vihar built under the Bodhi tree". According to
the Manjushrimulakalp (c. 800 CE), king Narsimhsagupt became a Buddhist
monk, and left the world through meditation (Dhyan). Xuanzang also
noted that Narsimhagupt Baladitya's son Vajra, who also commissioned
a sangharam, "possessed a heart firm in faith".
The
12th century Kashmiri historian Kalhan also painted a dreary picture
of Mihirkul's cruelty, as well as his persecution of the Buddhist
faith :
Solar
symbolism
![](Toramana_sun_symbol.jpg)
Solar
symbol on the coinage of Toramana
![](Alchon_Huns_ruler_Khingila_circa_440-490_CE_with_solar_symbol.jpg)
Khingil
with solar symbol
![](Alchon_Huns_Uncertain_king_Mid-late_5th_century.jpg)
Alchon
king with small male figure wearing solar nimbus
"In him, the northern region brought forth, as it were, another
god of death, bent in rivalry to surpass... Yam (the god of death
residing in the southern regions). People knew of his approach by
noticing the vultures, crows and other birds flying ahead eager
to feed on those who were being slain within his army's reach.
The
royal Vetal (demon) was day and night surrounded by thousands of
murdered human beings, even in his pleasure houses. This terrible
enemy of mankind had no pity for children, no compassion for women,
no respect for the aged"
—
12th century Kashmiri historian Kalhan
Shivism and Sun cult :
The Alchons are generally described as sun worshipers, a traditional
cult of steppe nomads. This stems from the appearance of sun symbols
on some of their coins, combined with the probable influence they
received from the worship of Surya in India. Mihirkul is also said
to have been an ardent worshiper of Shiv, although he may have been
selectively attracted to the destructive powers of the Indian deity.
Mihirkul
is said to have been the founder of the Shankaracharya Temple, a
shrine dedicated to Shiv in Srinagar, a shrine to Shiv named Mihiresvar
in Halad, and a large city called Mihirpur.
Consequences
on India :
The Alchon invasions, although only spanning a few decades, had
long term effects on India, and in a sense brought an end to the
middle kingdoms of India.
Destructions
:
![](568px-India_500_AD.jpg)
Alchon
territories of Mihirakula, c. 500 CE (in green)
Indian urban culture was left in decline. Major traditional cities,
such as Kausambi and probably Ujjain were in ruins, Vidisha and
Mathura fell into decline. Buddhism, gravely weakened by the destruction
of monasteries and the killing of monks, started to collapse. Great
centers of learning were destroyed, such as the city of Taxila,
bringing cultural regression. The art of Mathura suffered greatly
from the destructions brought by the Huns, as did the art of Gandhar
in the northwest, and both schools of art were nearly wiped out
under the rule of the Hun Mihirkul. New cities arose from these
destructions, such as Dashpur, Kanyakubj, Sthaneshvar, Valabhi and
Shripur.
Political
fragmentation :
Soon after the invasions, the Gupta Empire, already weakened by
these invasions and the rise of local rulers, ended as well. Following
the invasions, northern India was left in disarray, with numerous
smaller Indian powers emerging after the crumbling of the Guptas.
Many autonomous regional states rose to prominence following the
dislocation of Gupta power: the Aulikars, the Maukharis, the Maitraks,
the Kalacuris or the Vardhans, all in a constant flux of rivalry.
Rise
of Saivism :
Vaisnavism, which had been strongly supported by the Gupta Empire,
was discredited by the decline and the ultimate failure of the Empire.
All the newly arising regional powers preferred adopting Shaivism
instead, as did the Alchon Huns under Mihirkul, giving a strong
impetus to the development of the worship of Shiv, and its ideology
of power. Vaisnavism only remained strong in the territories which
had not been affected by these events: South India and Kashmir.
International
trade :
The Hun invasions are said to have seriously damaged India's trade
with Europe and Central Asia, particularly Indo-Roman trade relations,
which the Gupta Empire had greatly benefited from. The Guptas had
been exporting numerous luxury products such as silk, leather goods,
fur, iron products, ivory, pearl and pepper from centers such as
Nasik, Paithan, Pataliputra and Banaras. The Hun invasion probably
disrupted these trade relations and the tax revenues that came with
them.
During
their rule of 60 years, the Alchons are said to have altered the
hierarchy of ruling families and the Indian caste system. For example,
the Huns are often said to have become the precursors of the Rajputs.
On the artistic side however, the Alchon Huns may have played a
role, just like the Western Satraps centuries before them, in helping
spread the art of Gandhar to the western Deccan region.
Coinage
legacy (6th - 12th century CE) :
As they invaded northern and central India circa 500 CE, the Alchon
Huns issued several types of coinage on the model of the Sasanian
Empire, with ruler in profile on the obverse and sacred fire with
attendants on the reverse. It is thought that in the process of
minting coins in occupied lands, they transmitted Sasanian coin
designs to northern and western India. This created a major type
of Indian coinage called "Indo-Sasanian coinage", which
lasted in degraded form until the 12th century CE as far as the
Gangetic region.
Sources
:
![](291px-Talagan_copper_scroll.jpg)
The
Talagan copper scroll
Ancient sources refer to the Alchons and associated groups ambiguously
with various names, such as Hun in Indian texts, and Xionites in
Greek texts. Xuanzang chronicled some of the later history of the
Alchons.
Modern
archeology has provided valuable insights into the history of the
Alchons. The most significant cataloguing of the Alchon dynasty
came in 1967 with Robert Göbl's analysis of the coinage of
the "Iranian Huns". This work documented the names of
a partial chronology of Alchon kings, beginning with Khingila. In
2012, the Kunsthistorisches Museum completed a reanalysis of previous
finds together with a large number of new coins that appeared on
the antiquities market during the Second Afghan Civil War, redefining
the timeline and narrative of the Alchons and related peoples.
Talagan
copper scroll :
A significant contribution to our understanding of Alchon history
came in 2006 when Gudrun Melzer and Lore Sander published their
finding of the "Talagan copper scroll", also known as
the "Schøyen Copper Scroll", dated to 492 or 493,
that mentions the four Alchon kings Khingila, Toramana, Javukha,
and Mehama (who was reigning at the time) as donors to a Buddhist
reliquary stup.
Rulers
:
The
rulers of the Alchons practiced skull deformation, as evidenced
from their coins, a practice shared with the Huns that migrated
into Europe. The names of the first Alchon rulers do not survive.
Starting from 430 CE, names of Alchon kings survive on coins and
religious inscriptions :
•
Anonymous kings
(400 - 430 CE)
• Khingil
(c. 430 – 490 CE)
• Javukh
/ Zabocho (c. mid 5th – early 6th CE)
• Meham
(c. 461 – 493 CE)
• Lakhan
Udayaditya (c. 490's CE)
• Aduman
• Toraman
(c. 490 – 515 CE)
• Mihirkul
(c. 515 – 540 CE)
• Pravarsen
(c. 530 – 590 CE)
• Toraman
II (c. 530 – 570 CE)
• Gokarna
(c. 570 – 590 CE)
• Naran
/ Narendra (c. 590 – 630 CE)
• Yudhishthir
(630-670 CE)
|
c.400
- 440 |
(Anonymous
kings) |
c.430
- 490 |
Khingila |
c.490 |
Javukha |
c.461
- 493 |
Mehama |
c.490 |
Lakhana
Udayaditya |
|
Aduman |
c.490
- 515 |
Toramana |
c.515
- 540 |
Mihirakula |
c.530
- 570 |
Toramana
II |
c.530
- 590 |
Pravarasen |
c.590
- 597 |
Gokarna |
c.597
- 633 |
Narendra |
c.630
- 670 |
Yudhishthir |
Coinage
:
![](Alchon_Huns._Uncertain_King._5th_century_AD._Imitating_Sasanian_king_Shahpur_III.jpg)
An
early Alchon Huns coin based on a Sasanian design, with bust imitating
Sasanian king Shapur III. Only the legend "Alchono" appears
on the obverse in the Greco-Bactrian script.
Early Bactrian coinage based on Sasanian designs :
The earliest Alchon Hun coins were based on Sasanian designs, often
with the simple addition of the Alchon tamgha and a mention of "Alchon"
or "Alkhan". Various coins minted in Bactria and based
on Sasanian designs are known, often with busts imitating Sasanian
kings Shapur II (r.309 to 379 CE) and Shapur III (r.383 to 388 CE),
with attendants to a fire altar on the reverse. It is thought that
the Sasanids lost control of Bactria to the Kidarites during the
reign of Shapur II circa 370 CE, followed by the Hephthalites, and
subsequently by the Alchon.
Later
original coinage :
Later Alchon coinage became original and differed from predecessors
in that it was devoid of Iranian (Sasanian) symbolism. The rulers
are depicted with elongated skulls, apparently a result of artificial
cranial deformation.
After
their invasion of India the coins of the Alchon were numerous and
varied, as they issued copper, silver and gold coins, sometimes
roughly following the Gupta pattern. The Alchon empire in India
must have been quite significant and rich, with the ability to issue
a significant volume of gold coins.
Coinage
:
![](Toramana_coin_in_Western_Gupta_style.jpg)
Silver
coin of Toramana in Western Gupta style, with the Gupta peacock
and Brahmi legend on the reverse. Similar to the silver coin type
of Skandgupt. On the obverse the date "52" is also inscribed.
A modern image
![](Alchon_Tamgha_on_a_coin_of_Khingila.jpg)
Alchon
Tamgha symbol on a coin of Khingila
![](Khingila_Alchono_inscription.jpg)
Khingila
with the word "Alchono" in Bactrian script and the Tamgha
symbol on his coins
![](Khingila_of_the_Alchon_Huns_Circa_440-490_CE.jpg)
Silver
drachm of Khingil (early portrait) without headdress, mid-late 5th
century
![](620px-HunCoinDerivedFromSassanianDesign5thCE.jpg)
Silver
drachm of Khingil (mature portrait), Bactrian legend: "Khiggilo
Alchono"
![](Javukha_of_the_Alchon_Huns_Mid-late_5th_century.jpg)
Silver
drachm of Javukh, mid-late 5th century
![](Mehama_silver-drachm.png)
Silver
drachm of Meham legend: “Sahi meham", mid-late 5th century
![](Lakhana_of_the_Alchon_Huns_Late_5th-early_6th_centuries.jpg)
Silver
drachm of Lakhan, late 5th-early 6th centuries
![](Adomano_of_the_Alchon_Huns_Mid-late_5th_century.jpg)
Gold
dinar of Adomano, Kushano-Sasanian style, mid-late 5th century
![](Mihirakula_Coin.jpg)
Silver
drachm of Mihirkul, early-mid 6th century
![](Toramana_II_bronze_coin.png)
Bronze
drachm of Toraman II wearing trident crown, late-phase Gandharan
style. mid 6th century
![](Alchon_Huns_Toramana_II_Circa_AD_540-570.jpg)
Silver
stater of Toraman II, Kashmir style, mid-late 6th century
![](Narana-Narenda_of_the_Alchon_Huns_late_4th-early_5th_century_CE.jpg)
Bronze
drachm of Naran-Narend (possibly Toramana II) wearing trident crown,
late 6th century
![](535px-Khingila_of_the_Alchon_Huns_young_circa_AD_440-490.jpg)
Khingil
as a young king, without headdress. Artificial cranial deformation
clearly visible
![](440px-VishnuGandhara.jpg)
Vishnu
Nicolo Seal representing Vishnu with a worshipper (probably Mihirkul),
4th – 6th century CE. The inscription in cursive Bactrian
reads: "Mihir, Vishnu and Shiv". British Museum
Source
:
https://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Alchon_Huns