6. ALKHAN: From the Anonymous Clan-rulers to King Khingila

The second Hunnic power to have established itself, beside the Kidarites, at the end of the 4th century CE was the Alkhan. Up to this point in time the Sasanians had controlled the areas south of the Hindu Kush to the Khyber Pass (showcase 2), and they struck coins there presumably at a mint in Kabulistan (No. 1). East of the Khyber Pass, the Kidarites ruled in Gandhara and Swat (showcase 3, 4, 5). Around 384/5 CE control of Kabulistan passed to the Alkhan, who took over the operating Sasanian mint; however, we do not know if this transition happened violently or peacefully. The Alkhan modified the Sasanian dies found there by replacing the legend with their clan name "Alchanno" and inserting their clan symbol (tamga) within the frame, while at first keeping the portrait of the Sasanian great king (Nos. 2–4). Coins of this phase have been found in Begram (old Kapisa, 80 km north of Kabul) and in Hadda near Jalalabad in Afghanistan (Fig. C).

At the beginning of the 5th century, the Alkhan changed the iconography of their coins, replacing the bust of the Sasanian king on the obverse with their own likenesses. At first this new type of portrait showed the ruler bare-headed; instead of a diadem, a necklace with prominent ribbons rising from the back of the neck functions as an emblem of rulership (Nos. 6-9). These very characteristic and individualistic portraits emphasize the artificially deformed skulls of the Hunnic rulers, an ideal of beauty and nobility that spread with the Huns even into Europe during their migration. In order to create this elongated shape, the infant's head was intentionally bound so that the skull grew to the desired form. Today this custom may seem very strange, but it would not necessarily have caused any kind of impairment.

Context
  • A. Symbol (tamga) of the Alkhan

A. Symbol (tamga) of the Alkhan

  • B. Excavation of the Buddhist stupa of Shah-ji-ki-Dheri near Peshawar (Pakistan) showing the remnants of the uncovered base of the stupa. The excavations were carried out in 1908/09 and 1910/11.
  • B. Detail of the stupa base with meditating Buddhas from the final construction phase of the monument (7th century CE). (© The British Library Board, Photo 1006/2, 746)

B. The monumental stupa of Shah-ji-ki-Dheri is one of the most important among Buddhist temple complexes in Gandhara. The stupa, which was supposedly founded by the Kushan king Kanishka I (ca. 127/28–150/51), was famous among Chinese pilgrim-monks. However, today nothing remains visible. During the excavations of the Archaeological Department of India in 1911, sixteen Alkhan drachms were found wrapped in a cloth. Based on their style and technique of production, these coins of the early Alkhan type (compare Nos. 8, 9) displaying elongated skulls were struck at the same mint, which may have been located in neighboring Purushapura (Peshawar).

The Chinese monk Song Yun (showcase 9, Fig. C), who visited the temple in 520 CE, described it as follows: "All kind of Buddhist objects are kept inside the pagoda. Here there are objects decorated with gold and jewels in thousands of forms and of such variety that it would be no simple task to name them. At sunrise the gilded screens glow like fire, while the light morning breeze brings the precious manacles to chime. Of all the pagodas of the Western world this is the most important."

  • C. The Buddhist stupa of Tapa Kalan, Hadda (near Jalalabad in the Kabul River valley, Afghanistan) (5th/8th century CE). (©Zemaryalai Tarzi)

C. The Buddhist stupa of Tapa Kalan, Hadda (near Jalalabad in the Kabul River valley, Afghanistan) (5th/8th century CE). (©Zemaryalai Tarzi)

In the deposit of reliquaries found at the stupa of Tapa Kalan, dated to the 5th century, over two hundred Sasanian and Byzantine coins as well as fourteen Alkhan drachms, five of which were from Khingila, were found (compare Nr. 7 and showcase 7).

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  • D. Tapa Shotor, Hadda. The base of the stupa with the image of a Bodhisattva Maitreya (the Buddha of the future) surrounded by devotees: to his left a monk with flowers; to his right a mother with child (4th/5th cenutry CE). (© Wien, WHAV)

D. Tapa Shotor, Hadda. The base of the stupa with the image of a Bodhisattva Maitreya (the Buddha of the future) surrounded by devotees: to his left a monk with flowers; to his right a mother with child (4th/5th cenutry CE). (© Wien, WHAV)

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