| Strato III | |
|---|---|
Coin ofStrato II andStrato III. Obv: Probable bust of Strato II. Possible Greek legend: ΒΑϹΙΛΕΩΣ ϹΩΤΙΡΟϹ ϹΤΡΑΤΩΝΟϹ ΚΑΙ ΦΙΑ / ϹΤΡΑΤΩΝΟϹ "Of Kings Strato the Saviour and Strato the Father-loving".[1] Rev:Athena holding a thunderbolt.Kharoshthi legend: MAHARAJASA TRATARASA STRATASA, POTRASA CASA PRIYAPITA STRATASA "King Strato the Saviour, and his son/grandson Strato the Father-loving. | |
| King of Gandhara | |
| Reign | 25 BCE – 10 CE |
Strato IIIPhilopator (Greek:Στράτων Γ΄ Φιλοπάτωρ; epithet means "the Father-loving") was anIndo-Greek king who ruled c. 25 BCE to 10 CE. He is only known through the joint coins with his fatherStrato II. He may have been supplanted, in conjunction with his father or later as an independent king, by theIndo-ScythianNorthern Satraps, particularlyRajuvula andBhadayasa, whose coins were often copied. Strato was the last of the line ofDiodotus and independentHellenistic king to rule at his death in 10 AD.[2][3]
Strato III may also have issued coins on his own, but these are rare and unconfirmed.[4]A few silver coins with a different portrait and the inscriptionStrato SoterDikaios ("the just") may also belong to Strato III as sole ruler, or to a fourth king named Strato.[5][n 1]
Just like the earlier king Strato I, Strato III is thought to belong to the dynasty ofMenander I, who also used the epithet Soter and the symbol of standingPallas Athena.
The chronology of the late Indo-Greek kingdom has been established byBopearachchi and other scholars from numismatical evidence alone. The coins deteriorated continuously, the Strato coins being the most debased and crude in style, a striking contrast to earlier kings who struck some of the most beautiful coins of antiquity. The decay was due to the increasing pressure of theIndo-Scythian nomads on the remaining Greek pockets, as well as their long isolation from the rest of the Hellenistic world.
Strato II, Strato III and Strato Dikaios struck debased silver drachms, which as mentioned portray Pallas on the reverse. Strato II appears as an old man with a sunken jaw on some of his coins, which is not surprising given that his grandson was co-regent. Strato II also issued bronzes and even lead coins of the common type Apollo/tripod. On some of Strato II's silver drachms the lettersigma is written as C, a not uncommon trait on late Hellenistic coins in the east.

Subsequent Indo-Scythian rulers, who replaced the Stratos in their territories, designed their coins in direct imitation of those of Strato II and Strato III. This is the case of theNorthern Satraps, who ruled in the territories fromSagala in EasternPunjab toMathura, such asRajuvula.[2]
Just as theYuezhi had copied the coins of the lastGreco-Bactrian rulerHeliocles inBactria, or theIndo-Scythians had copied the coins of the last westernIndo-Greek rulerHermaios in the area ofKabul, here again theIndo-Scythian Northern Satraps relied heavily on the numismatics of their predecessors.[2]
Notes
References
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) At theInternet Archive.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) At the Internet Archive.| Preceded by | Indo-Greek ruler (EasternPunjab) 25 BCE – 10 CE | No successor |