Sases (Sasan) | |
---|---|
Apracha King (Gāndhārī: Apacaraja) | |
Reign | 1st century CE |
Predecessor | Aspavarma |
Successor | Vima Takto |
Dynasty | Apracharajas |
Religion | Buddhism |
Sases, also known as Gondophares IV Sases (Kharosthi: 𐨒𐨂𐨡𐨂𐨥𐨪 𐨯𐨯 Gu-du-pha-ra Sa-sa, Guduphara Sasa[1][2]), sometimes Sasan, was an Indo-Parthian king and Apracharaja[3] who ruled in Gandhara. He is only known from coins and ruled for at least 26 years after succeeding Gondophares.[4] At some point during his reign he assumed the title Gondophares, which was held by the supreme Indo-Parthian rulers.
With the modern datings supplied by Robert Senior, Gondophares IV is a likely candidate for several possible historical references to Indo-Parthian kings of the 1st century AD. Traditionally, these references have been thought to be about Gondophares I, as earlier scholars did not realise that "Gondophares" became a title after the death of this king, just as the name of the first emperor, Augustus, in the Roman Empire, was used by all later emperors as a title.[citation needed]
The interesting additional information we get from these coins is that Sasan, a former associate of Gondophares and afterwards one of his successors in the Taxila region, was the son of Aspa's brother