The Hellenis ic Fa Eas in His o ical Fic ion.
Ancien His o y, Mode n Ideologies
Rachel Mai s
ABSTRACT
I has become a uism ha i is impossible o econs uc ana a i e his o y o Cen al Asia in he pe iod
a e Alexande . Scan li e a y o epig aphic sou ces, and he pi alls o econs uc ing dynas ic his o ies
om coins, make schola s wa y o w i ing ‘his o y’ in he adi ional academic sense. I may he e o e come
as asu p ise ha Hellenis ic-pe iod Cen al Asia has eme ged as he se ing o anumbe o his o ical no -
els. This pape aims o decons uc he esea ch p ocess ha lies behind he c a ing o na a i e in se e al
such pieces. I will iden i y he p ima y sou ces and wo ks o schola ship used by au ho s, and explo e how
hese ha e been used o cons uc isions o Hellenis ic Cen al Asia which e lec no jus on he ancien
eco d, bu on he mode n au ho s’ poli ical and social con ex . The wo ks discussed will include Rudya d
Kipling’sThe Man Who Would Be King (on Alexande and his ou es in A ghanis an), Teodo Pa nicki’s(1955)
Koniec Zgody Na odów/The End o he Conco d o Na ions (which explo es he esonances o cul u al encoun e
in Hellenis ic Cen al Asia o he pos -Wa wo ld), and Gillian B adshaw’s(1990) Ho ses o Hea en (which
uses ahypo he ical G aeco-Bac ian alliance wi h Fe ghana as he backd op o his o ical omance).
KEYWORDS
His o iog aphy; his o ical ic ion; numisma ics; G aeco-Bac ian; Indo-G eek; Ai Khanoum.
INTRODUCTION
Schola ly a i udes owa ds ‘ eco e ing’ he his o y o Hellenis ic Cen al Asia ha e changed
o e ime, bu o along ime he e was acommon con ic ion a) ha he e was alos na a-
i e his o y o be eco e ed; and b) ha eco e ing such ahis o y was desi able. Some ha e
aken poin (b) u he and ega ded he eco e y o alos na a i e as he e y aison d’ê e
o he schola o Cen al Asia. Ta n, in The G eeks in Bac ia and India, dwel a leng h on he
hypo he ical los ancien G eek na a i e which he e e s o as ‘T ogus’ sou ce’:
The e was once aG eek his o y which co e ed he Fa he Eas gene ally, appa en ly down
o 87 BC, and he e was ano he G eek his o y which also deal wi h he Fa he Eas , hough
seemingly only as an appendage o he his o y o Pa hia; […] he sc aps end o combine,
no in o o he sc aps, bu in o a leas he ou line o awhole. The e will be some hing o be
said abou his la e , bu , as he e was once a adi ion, i is somebody’sbusiness o a emp
o eco e he ou line o i ; one is no labou ing in a acuum. (Ta n 1951 [1938], xxi)
O he his o ians o he mid- wen ie h cen u y specula ed on he iden i y o he au ho o
‘T ogus’ sou ce’, and he con en s o his wo k (Roy 1939; Bussagli 1956). Na ain concei ed o
his own wo k, The Indo-G eeks, as one o poli ical his o y (Na ain 1957, P e ace). Al hough
wa y o he scope a o ded by numisma ic e idence o he his o ian o ‘wande o in o he
land o omance, i he is no disciplined in unde s anding he limi a ions o he sou ce he is
STUDIA HERCYNIA XXV/1, 119–131
120 STUDIA HERCYNIA XXV/1
using’, Na ain also iewed his (p ima ily numisma ic a he han ex ual) ask as one o he
‘ econs uc ion o he his o y o he Indo-G eeks’ (Na ain 1957, P e ace).
The a chaeological publica ions on Ai Khanoum by Be na d and o he DAFA membe s make
i clea ha hey a e engaged in adi e en en e p ise. To his da e, he p e ailing heme in
wo ks on Hellenis ic Cen al Asia, by w i e s o all na ionali ies, had been one o eco e ing
alos na a i e his o y. Any such language is en i ely absen om he epo s on Ai Kha-
noum published in he Comp es endus des séances de l’ Académie des insc ip ions e belles-le es
(1966–1980), whose one– al hough a imes making he deligh o exca a o s a he spec acula
inds e y e iden – is mo e igo ously scien i ic. The wo d ‘his oi e’ is i sel a oided in hese
publica ions, which e ain om his o iog aphical specula ion and e lec ion.
In con as , mo e popula ising epo s on Ai Khanoum, especially hose in he English
language, main ain he language o his o ical edisco e y. In apublic lec u e a he B i ish
Academy in 1966, o example, Be na d akes his as his he o ical s a ing poin , be o e shi -
ing his ocus o his main subjec , he a chaeological emains:
Un il now he knowledge ha could be gleaned abou his o ien al Hellas o he hi d and
second cen u ies BC was an alizingly meag e. As a as i s his o y was conce ned, ou
in o ma ion, de i ing om wo sou ces– on he one hand, a ew a e ex s by G eek, La in,
and Chinese his o ians, ansmi ing o he mos pa sc aps o olde , los w i ings, and,
on he o he hand, he abundan coinage o he so e eigns o his G eek s a e– pe mi ed
us o ace, wi h much conjec u e, i s b oades ou lines. […] Bu wha abou any e idence
o i s ma e ial and cul u al ci iliza ion? Wha abou i s monumen s? (Be na d 1967, 71–72)
Be na d appea s o be ailo ing his app oach o his audience in wo senses. I is in he Eng-
lish-language schola ship ha he ‘los na a i e his o y’ ope was mos common; and his
alk was deli e ed as he B i ish Academy’sannual Albe Recki A chaeological Lec u e,
and was hus open o he public. Pa o he eason o a e u n o mo e na a i e app oaches
by Anglophone his o ians in he 1970s was p ecisely because o he need o speak o awide
audience who a ou ed such s yles. W i ing in he jou nal Pas and P esen in 1979, o exam-
ple, ‘na a i is ’ his o ian Law ence S one p oposed ha ‘one u he eason why anumbe
o “new his o ians” a e u ning back o na a i e seems o be adesi e o make hei indings
accessible once mo e o an in elligen bu no expe eading public, which is eage o lea n
wha hese inno a i e new ques ions, me hods and da a ha e e ealed, bu canno s omach
indiges ible s a is ical ables, d y analy ical a gumen , and ja gon- idden p ose’ (S one 1979,
15). As well as ahis o iog aphical app oach, he choice o ame in es iga ions in o Hellenis ic
Cen al Asia as asea ch o alos his o ical na a i e he e o e ep esen s apa icula mode
o public communica ion.
Iimagine ha ew o he pa icipan s a he hi d mee ing o he Hellenis ic Cen al Asia
Resea ch Ne wo k in P ague in 2018, whe e he p esen pape was deli e ed, would concei e
o hemsel es as engaged in he en e p ise o econs uc ing he na a i e his o y o Hellen-
is ic Cen al Asia. Ye he e is ano he g oup o w i e s whose goal is p ecisely ha : au ho s
o his o ical ic ion se in he G aeco-Bac ian and Indo-G eek kingdoms. The choice o hese
kingdoms as he se ing o wo ks o ic ion o e s achallenge– in he lack o he G eek and
Roman na a i e sou ces used by au ho s such as Ma y Renaul in he wo ks on Alexan-
de – bu also eedom o in e p e and in en . Fo hose o us who ha e ejec ed ana a i e
amewo k in ou own app oach o Hellenis ic Cen al Asia, such wo ks can be simila ly
bo h challenging and libe a ing o ead. We may be i ked a a econs uc ion o dynas ic e-
la ionships which does no ma ch wi h ou own eading o he numisma ic e idence, bu ye
121RACHEL MAIRS
d awn o he imaginings o pe sonali ies and quo idian de ails which we would no be able
o include in ou own wo k.
The e y exis ence o his o ical ic ion se in Hellenis ic Cen al Asia, o o he wise engaging
wi h i s his o y, may be su p ising o some, bu in ac he e a e ala ge numbe o such wo ks,
in a ange o languages ( o some examples, see Colo u 2008). Ido no p esume o co e all
o hem he e. They ange om he anci ul (a omance abou Alexande and Roxana The Maid
o Bac ia: Ki kman 1913) o he u e ly idiculous (apos -So ie dic a o sea ches o he los
omb o Alexande and Hephais ion in he Pami s: Be y 2007). Au ho s include academic
schola s o he Hellenis ic pe iod (P omme 2007; Iam g a e ul o Gun o Linds öm o his
e e ence) and w i e s o comic an asy (Hol 1999).
1
The h ee wo ks Ishall conside he e a e
Rudya d Kipling’sno ella The Man Who Would Be King (1888), Teodo Pa nicki’sKoniec ‘Zgody
Na odów’ / The End o he ‘Conco d o Na ions’ (1955), and Gillian B adshaw’sHo ses o Hea en
(1990). Iha e selec ed hese pa icula wo ks p incipally because hei au ho s a e ela i ely
explici abou hei sou ces o his o ical in o ma ion, and hei desi e o c a ahis o ical,
as well as li e a y, na a i e. These wo ks co e ab oad ch onological ange, om he la e
nine een h o la e wen ie h cen u y, and e lec de elopmen s in schola ship on Cen al Asia
a one emo e. As well as changing iews o ancien Cen al Asia, hey also show wha has
emained cons an – ap eoccupa ion wi h cul u al con ac and e hnic in e mingling– whe he
he au ho is w i ing a ale o ad en u e, his o ical science ic ion, o omance. Iaim o de-
cons uc he esea ch p ocess ha lies behind he c a ing o na a i e in hese pieces. Iwill
iden i y he p ima y sou ces and wo ks o schola ship used by he au ho s, and explo e how
hese ha e been used o cons uc isions o Hellenis ic Cen al Asia which e lec no jus on
he ancien eco d, bu on he mode n au ho s’ poli ical and social con ex .
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING
The Man Who Would be King is well known o mos mode n schola s o Cen al Asia, and has
equen ly been analysed as ap oduc o nine een h-cen u y B i ish p eoccupa ions wi h
ancien connec ions be ween G eeks and Indians (see, o example, Vasunia 2013, 77–89, and
Mai s 2018). I was i s published in Kipling’scollec ion o s o ies The Phan om Rickshaw and
O he Ee ie Tales in 1888, when he was wen y- h ee yea s old and wo king as Assis an Edi o
o The Pionee newspape in Allahabad. The na a o is anewspape edi o in Laho e, whe e
Kipling himsel had wo ked un il he yea be o e he publica ion o he s o y. He mee s wo
ad en u e s, D a o and Ca nehan, who ha e decided o go o Ka i is an and se hemsel es
up as di ine kings, an en e p ise which ends in disas e when hey a e e ealed o be mo al.
Kipling se e al imes men ions publica ions which his ic ional he oes consul , and which
we should suppose ha he also had a his disposal. D a o and Ca nehan a i e in he na -
a o ’snewspape o ice, and say ha hey ‘ equi e o see Books and A lases’ o plan hei
expedi ion o Ka i is an. Ca nehan says:
‘We ha e come o you o know abou his coun y, o ead abook abou i , and o be shown
maps. We wan you o ell us ha we a e ools and o show us you books.’ He u ned o he
bookcases.
‘A e you a all in ea nes ?’ Isaid.
1 Iam hank ul also o he many pa icipan s a HCARN III in P ague who sha ed wi h me hei own
a ou i e Cen al Asian his o ical ic ion guil y pleasu es.
122 STUDIA HERCYNIA XXV/1
‘Ali le,’ said D a o , swee ly. ‘As big amap as you ha e go , e en i i ’sall blank whe e
Ka i is an is, and any books you’ e go . We can ead, hough we a en’ e y educa ed.’
Iuncased he big hi y- wo-miles- o- he-inch map o India and wo smalle F on ie
maps, hauled down olume INF-KAN o he ‘Encyclopaedia B i annica’, and he men con-
sul ed hem.
As D a o ecalls his ime in A ghanis an du ing he Second A ghan Wa :
Ihanded him Wood on he ‘Sou ces o he Oxus.’ Ca nehan was deep in he ‘Encyclopaedia.’
‘They’ e amixed lo ,’ said D a o , e lec i ely; ‘and i won’ help us o know he names
o hei ibes. The mo e ibes he mo e hey’ll igh , and he be e o us. F om Jagdallak
o Ashang. H’mm!’
‘Bu all he in o ma ion abou he coun y is as ske chy and inaccu a e as can be,’ Ip o-
es ed. ‘No one knows any hing abou i eally. He e’s he ile o he “Uni ed Se ices’ Ins i-
u e.” Read wha Bellew says.’
‘Blow Bellew!’ said Ca nehan. ‘Dan, hey’ e as inkin’ lo o hea hens, bu his book he e
says hey hink hey’ e ela ed o us English.’
Ismoked while he men pou ed o e Ra e y, Wood, he maps, and he ‘Encyclopaedia.’
Kipling’s e e ence is o he nin h edi ion o he Encyclopaedia B i annica (1882), which con-
ained an a icle by Hen y Yule on ‘Ka i is an’, o which he au ho as well as his cha ac e s
clea ly made use (on his and Kipling’so he sou ces see Ma x 1999 and Vasunia 2013, 77–89).
I is no able ha Cap ain John Wood’s(1841) APe sonal Na a i e o aJou ney o he Sou ce o
he Ri e Oxus, he nex wo k o which he na a o e e s, was al eady some decades old, and
mo ed luidly be ween desc ip ion o con empo a y A ghanis an, and he egion’spas . In
such wo ks, as in Kipling’ss o y, pas and p esen a e con la ed, and ancien and mode n-day
popula ions iden i ied wi h one ano he . This can be seen in he equen e e ence by D a o
and Ca nehan o bo h hemsel es and he Ka i is anis as ‘sons o Alexande ’, in con as o
o he local popula ions. Whe e li le in o ma ion is a ailable, ancien sou ces a e aken as
equally alid as mode n e hnog aphical obse a ions (see u he Mai s 2018).
Wood is p obably bes known o Cen al Asianis s oday o his isi o he si e o Ai Kha-
noum, whose name he eco ded as ‘I-khanam’ (Be na d– F anc o 1978, 33–38). He no ed
he mounds and s anding walls o he ancien ci y, bu had no esponse o his que ies abou
coins and elics (Wood 1841, 394). He is in e es ed in he pe sis ence o aces o Alexande
and he G eeks in he p esen day, bu is on he whole mo e scep ical han Kipling’scha ac-
e s– who canno ha e ead him oo closely. He men ions he Alexande his o ians om ime
o ime, bu mos o en o s a e wi h eg e hings like ‘i is in ain in he del a o such a i e
[ he Indus nea Ka achi] o iden i y exis ing locali ies wi h desc ip ions handed down o us by
he his o ians o Alexande he G ea ’ o ‘i is almos ain o look, a e he lapse o so many
cen u ies, o indica ions o he G ecian gene al’sma ch’ (Wood 1841, 11, 39). He me se e al
people in no he n A ghanis an who claimed o be descendan s o Alexande , and ound such
claims uncompelling: ‘Among a ude and hal sa age people, no gi en o ch onicle hei doings,
and wi h whom books and men o ead hem a e equally a e, we would sea ch in ain o
alid e idence, ei he in suppo o e u a ion o hese p e ensions’ (Wood 1841, 372).
Majo Hen y W. Bellew, au ho o he hi d sou ce named by Kipling’sna a o , was an
a my su geon who had a elled in A ghanis an and Chinese Tu kes an. He w o e se e al
books on A ghanis an and he Pash o language, bu Kipling’s e e ence is speci ically o he
publica ion o alec u e he deli e ed in 1879 on ‘Ka is an [sic] and he Ka i s’ a he Uni ed
123RACHEL MAIRS
Se ices Ins i u e in Simla (Bellew 1879). As Kipling’sna a o s a es, Bellew’saccoun is
indeed ‘ske chy and inaccu a e’ (Ma x 1999, 50). In con as o Wood, he does pu ai h in
local accoun s o descen om Alexande : ‘ hei claim o his ances y is no wi hou some
ounda ion o we a e old by he his o ians o Alexande ’sAsia ic conques s ha he king
ma ied he ai Roshana, ano ed beau y, he daugh e o anoble o he dis ic which is now
known as Roshan; whils om he same au ho i ies we lea n ha 10,000 o his G eek soldie s
had aken o hemsel es wi es o he coun y’ (Bellew 1879, 14). This is he s o y p e e ed
by D a o and Ca nehan, al hough he commen s o Kipling’sna a o may sugges ha he
does no gi e i so much c edence.
Finally he e is H. G. Ra e y’sNo es on Ká i is an (Ra e y 1859), used as asou ce by Bellew,
and i sel d awing on Wood (Ma x 1999, 50). Like Bellew and Wood, Ra e y was also an o ice
in he B i ish Indian A my. He published on A ghanis an and he Pash o language. He ci es
Wood on he claim o descen om Alexande in Wakhan, and appea s o ha e asimila iew
o such claims. Al hough no o he sou ces o in o ma ion on Ka i is an a e named explici ly
in The Man Who Would Be King, he ac ha Ra e y’sa icle was published in he Jou nal o
he Asia ic Socie y o Bengal sugges s ha Kipling may also ha e d awn on o he w i ings in
his jou nal. The JASB co e ed awide and eclec ic ange o opics, bu one o i s s aples in he
nine een h cen u y was accoun s by B i ish soldie s o hei a emp s o ace he ou es o
Alexande in he No h-Wes , o ind ‘e idence’ (a chaeological emains, o al his o y, human
physical cha ac e is ics) o his p esence (Mai s 2018; Mai s o hcoming).
Kipling had a ich ange o w i en esou ces a his disposal. His a he , John Lockwood
Kipling, was cu a o o he Laho e Museum, which had splendid collec ions o Gandha ān a
and G aeco-Bac ian and Indo-G eek coins (Rodge s 1891; Smi h 1889, which includes aDe-
sc ip i e lis o he p incipal Buddhis sculp u es in he Laho e Museum supplied by John Lockwood
Kipling himsel ). I is p obable ha hese collec ions, oo, se ed as sou ces o inspi a ion o
Kipling’s ic ional accoun o los descendan s o Alexande in Ka i is an. ‘G aeco-Buddhis ’
sculp u es a e ce ainly men ioned in his la e no el Kim (1901), whose opening scenes ake
place a he Laho e Museum.
The Man Who Would Be King is no , o cou se, p incipally abou he G aeco-Bac ian and
Indo-G eek kingdoms, bu a he abou hei p ecu so – Alexande – and pu a i e succes-
so s– he B i ish in India. A he ime he no ella was published, he e was e y li le a ailable
mode n schola ship speci ically on hese kingdoms. Ancien au ho s such as Polybios and he
Alexande his o ians we e used by he w i e s whom Kipling ci es, bu he does no seem o
ha e used hem di ec ly himsel . Kipling’schoice o he no ion o los G eek descendan s in
Ka i is an as ana a i e ‘MacGu in’ is in i ing wi h how o he w i e s in B i ish India used
he opic: as asubjec wo hy o in es iga ion p incipally because i was hough o e lec on
he na u e, signi icance and legi imacy o B i ish ule in India.
KONIEC ‘ZGODY NARODÓW’ [THE END OF THE ‘CONCORD OF NATIONS’]
The li e his o y o Teodo Pa nicki (1908–1988) almos eads as an his o ical no el i sel (on
his li e and wo ks, see Skalmowski 1999). Bo n in Be lin o aPolish a he and Polish-Jewish
mo he , he spen mos o his ea ly li e in Russia and spoke Russian as his i s language. In
1920 he an away om his mili a y school in Vladi os ok ac oss he bo de o Ha bin in Chi-
na, whe e he joined he émig é Polish communi y and s a ed o use he Polish language o
he i s ime (see Bou kane 2015 and Bou kane 2018 on he in luence o Pa nicki’s ime in
China on his wo k). He s udied a he Polish uni e si y in Lwów, p esen -day Uk aine, du ing

124 STUDIA HERCYNIA XXV/1
which ime he a elled in Tu key and sou he n Eu ope. Du ing Wo ld Wa II he was i s
depo ed o Kazakhs an, hen wo ked o he Polish Embassy in Moscow and Teh an, be o e
spending asho ime in England, and alonge pe iod in Mexico Ci y. Pa nicki spen he las
wo decades o his li e in Wa saw.
His no el Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’ was w i en in Mexico and published in Pa is. The epon-
ymous ‘Conco d o Na ions’ is aG aeco-Bac ian ship on he Oxus. I s plo , which migh be
be e cha ac e ised as ‘his o ical science ic ion’ a he han mo e s aigh o wa d ‘his o ical
ic ion’ (Jam oziak 1978), almos de ies concise summa y:
The ac ion o Pa nicki’sbook akes place in he yea 179 BC and is loca ed on he boa d o
he main ship o he dynas y, loa ing on he Oxus i e . The ship, isola ed om he ou side
wo ld, is ascene o he ‘g ea ad en u e’ o he wo main p o agonis s: Heliodo , he old op
agen o he dynas y’ssec e se ice and his wi e, Dionea. The immense ship, whose name
was ecen ly con e ed o he cu en wa chwo d o he dynas y, ‘The Conco d o Na ions o
he Hea o Asia,’ becomes apeculia mic ocosm, in which he complex poli ical play slowly
un eils deepe laye s o he cul u al mel ing po o he Cen al Asia as well as he eligious
and philosophical mo i a ions o p o agonis s’ ac i i ies. Anxie y and ea pe mea e ‘The
Conco d o Na ions’ and he main cha ac e s, isola ed and o ce ully engaged in acompli-
ca ed in e play o apoli ical in es iga ion a e bound o slowly un a el he mys e y o each
o he ’siden i y, and disco e ca e ully hidden sec e s o hei pas . All i e main cha ac e s
o he no el– h ee op sec e agen s, Heliodo , Theophilus, and Manku as (aHindu agen o
King Deme ius), Dionea (Heliodo ’swi e) and amys e ious G eek adolescen Lep ines– en-
gage in he se ies o in e oga ions, na a i e accoun s and ques ionings, slowly un eiling he
complexi y o he Hellenis ic mosaic o he G eek kingdom in Asia. (Ma kiewka 2013, 169)
Pa nicki’sli e a y s yle has been desc ibed by one c i ic as ‘ ambling, edious, muddled… on
he e ge o o al chaos’ (Skalmowski 1982, 82). Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’ is ce ainly no aligh
ead, in any language.2 The book was clea ed o publica ion by he Polish censo p incipally
because he hough ha i s opaque language and complex plo lessened any po en ial o
sub e sion:
The no el may ha e some analogies wi h he cu en eali y ( he choice o he he o him-
sel – he head o secu i y and his a e, he ea esd opping sys em on he ship, he p oblem
o coexis ence o conque ed na ions wi h he G eek mas e s, e c.), in pa icula agmen s
on pp. 11, 46–47, 87–90, 537–538, 596, 636. I he au ho e en in ended hese allusions, hey
su e , howe e , om alack o concen ici y, no gi ing e ec i ely in gene al any ha m ul
guiding idea. In addi ion, hese possible analogies a e o e whelmed by he lood o people
and e en s, edious psychology and he di icul y o language3 (Kaniecki 2011, 207).
2 Iha e p ima ily used he F ench ansla ion by Elisabe h Czacho owska (Pa nicki 1991) a he
han he o iginal Polish. The e is no published ansla ion in o English, o o my knowledge any
o he language.
3 Powieść może nasuwać pewne analogie zak ualną zeczywis ością (sam wybó boha e a– sze a
bezpieczeńs wa ijego zmiennych losów, sys em podsłuchów na ok ęcie, p oblema yka współżycia
podbi ych na odów zpanami g eckimi i p.), k ó e w szczególności mogłyby nasunąć agmen y
na s. 11, 46–47, 87–90, 537–538, 596, 636. Jeśli byłyby o nawe zamie zone aluzje ze s ony au o a, o
jednak cie pią one na b ak koncen yczności, nie dając w e ekcie jakiejś gene alnej, aszkodliwej
idei p zewodniej. Poza ym e ewen ualne analogie są p zygniecione na łokiem osób izda zeń,
nużącym psychologizmem o az udnością języka.
125RACHEL MAIRS
Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’ has been analysed om mul iple angles, bo h in isola ion and in he
con ex o Pa nicki’so he w i ings. Psychological (Ma kiewka 2013), heological (Ma kiew-
ka 2007) and philosophical (Cze mińska 1972; Juszczyk 2004) eadings ha e been pu sued,
bu my in e es he e is na u ally in wo ks which analyse i as awo k o – and esponse o
wo ks o – his o ical na a i e abou Cen al Asia.
Pa nicki’sg ea es deb is o Ta n, bu he also makes use o p ima y numisma ic e idence.
Coins a e desc ibed se e al imes in he no el, o example when acha ac e compa es an
image o Deme ios IKallinikos on acoin o he image and iconog aphy o Alexande he G ea
(Pa nicki 1955, 320; Szymu ko 1994, 74). Al hough some o his desc ip ion o G aeco-Bac ian
coins comes om Ta n, Tomasz Ma kiewka has sugges ed ha Pa nicki had amo e di ec
sou ce o in o ma ion. As ayou h in China, his men o had been he diploma Kons an y
Symonolewicz (1884–1952), who had wo ked on he Bac ian and Indian coins in he He mi -
age in S . Pe e sbu g be ween 1908 and 1912 (Ma kiewka 2013, 168–169; apape deli e ed by
Symonolewicz o he numisma ic sec ion o he Russian A chaeological Socie y on Bac ian
and Indian coins is men ioned by Zhebelyo 2017, 67). I is possible ha Symonolewicz
possessed publica ions on hese coins which Pa nicki ead. In any case, i seems e y likely
ha he young Pa nicki’s i s in oduc ion o he G eek kingdoms o Cen al Asia came om
Symonolewicz du ing his ime in Ha bin.
In 1956, he yea a e he publica ion o Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’, Pa nicki w o e o a iend
ha his immedia e sou ce o inspi a ion was Ta n:
… he majo s imulus o w i e his book was almos acciden al acquain ance wi h an amazing
wo k by aB i ish Hellenis W.W. Ta n The G eeks in Bac ia and India (1938). […] I ound his
wo k in 1951, while Iwas sea ching o in o ma ion ega ding Pa hians which was ela ed
o my wo k on Wo d and Flesh [Polish Słowo iciało]. Wha Iwas looking o – Idid no ind
he e, bu ab and new wo ld opened be o e me, he wo ld ha ascina ed me om he i s
sigh – he G eeks in Asia in he 2nd cen u y be o e Ch is . (T ans. Ma kiewka 2013, 169)
This is also clea om su i ing a chi al ma e ials. While w i ing Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’
in Mexico, Pa nicki kep ase ies o no eca ds con aining sho quo es om he w i ings o
Ta n and om Polybios. As well as The G eeks in Bac ia and India, hese show ha Hellenis ic
Ci ilisa ion (Ta n 1927) and Alexande he G ea and he Uni y o Mankind (Ta n 1933) we e
impo an in shaping he no el (Ma kiewka 2007, 167). Pa nicki also ound inspi a ion in
A nold Toynbee’sAS udy o His o y, he i s olume o which appea ed in 1934.
Wha was i ha d ew Pa nicki o Ta n and o he G aeco-Bac ian kingdom? So much
abou Hellenis ic Cen al Asia spoke o his own expe ience o he in e wa and pos wa wo ld.
Pa nicki was ascina ed by he c ea i e po en ial o communi ies o mixed descen : ‘ he hyb id
subjec i i y o e y in elligen ye agile “hal -cas e” p o agonis s, acing complex mecha-
nisms o poli ics, na ionalisms, eligions, cul u es and ci iliza ions’ (Ma kiewka 2013, 167).
This has, o cou se, been an impo an heme in Hellenis ic his o y since he ime o D oysen,
bu o Pa nicki in his ci cums ances i ook on apa icula u gency. Like him, one o he
main cha ac e s o he no el, Lep ines, is hal -Jewish and his expe ience be ween cul u es and
iden i ies is o eg ounded. I is ha d no o ead passages such as he ollowing and hink o
Pa nicki’sown expe ience as amul ilingual pe pe ual exile in Moscow, Vladi os ok, Ha bin,
Lwów, Teh an, London, and Mexico Ci y:
126 STUDIA HERCYNIA XXV/1
‘Wha can you make ou o hal -cas es?’
‘You wan o say: wha can ahal -cas e do ha could no be done ei he by apu e G eek,
o apu e Jew, o aB ahmin o aShud a? I’ll ell you: he can c ea e such acommuni y ha
has ne e been anywhe e in he wo ld. No jus one hal -cas e, bu awhole class o us.’
‘Acommuni y happie han any o he ?’ (Pa nicki 1955, 485; ans. Ma kiewka 2013.)
Pa nicki’scha ac e s e e o hei ul ima e o igins in G eece, bu ‘e en hough hey y o
ein o ce hei G eekness by all a ailable means, i becomes clea ha i is he hea o Asia
ha has ans o med he G eeks a he han he o he way ound. “Wha has he hea o
Asia done o he G eek people?” is asen ence cons an ly epea ed in he no el’ (Ma kiewka
2013, 171). Cul u e and ci iliza ion a e ela i e: cha ac e s compa e he enc oachmen o he
Massage ae and Cho asmii in o Sogdiana and Bac ia o he G eeks’ own ea lie enc oachmen
in o Cen al Asia (Pa nicki 1955, 473).
In his and in o he espec s Pa nicki engages in dialogue wi h Ta n, a he han adop ing
his in o ma ion and conclusions unc i ically– e en hough, a imes, we ind co espondences
a he le el o ph aseology. Ta n’s‘Bac ia almos was he Oxus, in he sense ha Egyp was he
Nile’ (Ta n 1951 [1938], 102), o example, is delibe a ely echoed in Pa nicki’s‘ ha i e was o
he G eek kingdom in he hea o Asia wha he Nile was o Egyp ’ (Pa nicki 1955, 7; ans.
Ma kiewka 2013). The ela ionship be ween Koniec ‘Zgody Na odów’ and i s ‘sou ce’ The G eeks in
Bac ia and India has been analysed a leng h by Szymu ko 1994: as Żu ek 2016 poin s ou , a o -
midable endea ou , gi en he leng h and densi y o bo h books. Pa nicki includes acon e sa ion
which play ully e e ences he deba e o e which ‘Magnesia’ Eu hydemos aced his o igins o.
Ta n plumped o Magnesia on he Maeande ; Pa nicki gi es he o iginal name o he ship ‘The
Conco d o Na ions’ as he ‘Meand ia’ (Pa nicki 1955, 152; discussed by Szymu ko 1994, 77).
Like Kipling, hen, Pa nicki makes c ea i e use o he sou ce ma e ial a his disposal, in
c ea ing ana a i e which bea s some ela ion o he his o ical e idence, bu is en i ely his
own. Ido no know i he ead he epo s o he disco e y o Ai Khanoum, bu Iam ce ain
ha he would ha e been only oo deligh ed, and inspi ed, o ind ma e ial con i ma ion, o
so s, o he hyb id li e a y wo ld he had c ea ed.
HORSES OF HEAVEN
The Ame ican au ho o he his o ical omance Ho ses o Hea en (1990), Gillian B adshaw, in
con as o Kipling and Pa nicki, is an academic Classicis , who s udied a he Uni e si y o
Michigan and Uni e si y o Camb idge. As an au ho o mass-ma ke ic ion, who is s ill ali e
and w i ing in he age o he in e ne , he e is also conside ably mo e in o ma ion a ailable
on he sou ces she used in he no el. The he oine o Ho ses o Hea en, Heliokleia, is aG ae-
co-Bac ian p incess in he mid-second cen u y BC, who is ma ied o as pa o amili a y
alliance wi h he (much olde ) Saka king o Fe ghana. She has aG eek educa ion, p ac ises
Buddhism and main ains aco espondence wi h he men o Nagasena a he cou o he
Uncle Menande . Heliokleia mo es o Alexand ia Escha e, whe e she expe iences acul u e
clash and ul ima ely uns o wi h he husband’sson. The s o y is na a ed by Heliokleia’sSaka
lady-in-wai ing, Tomy is, who has a(pe haps anach onis ically) eminis pe spec i e. Indian
and Pa hian cha ac e s also ea u e.
B adshaw was al eady awell-es ablished no elis , wi h a epu a ion o his o ical accu acy,
by he ime she published Ho ses o Hea en. She has s a ed in an in e iew ha ‘Idon’ like o
iola e his o ical ac . Ilike o make an educa ed guess, when you each apoin whe e nobody
127RACHEL MAIRS
is su e wan wen on’ (E ans 1989, 5). He choice o opic o he new no el was ecei ed wi h
some scep icism:
Gillian B adshaw now wan s o w i e abou he Bac ian G eeks in Cen al Asia in 150 BC,
‘bu my agen and publishe s a e ex emely scep ical’. Isympa hise wi h hem, hough Idon’
doub he abili y o make agood s o y ou o he pe iod. Bu while he books on King A hu
we e e y popula , do Bac ian G eeks eally ha e he same allu e? (E ans 1989, 5)
The many un amilia names led B adshaw’spublishe o ask he o include aguide o p onun-
cia ion (B adshaw 1990, ii).
Fo una ely o he schola o Cen al Asia (and B adshaw canno ha e imagined many
among he eade ship), she s a es di ec ly in he no el’sP e ace and Epilogue wha sou ces
she used (Ta n 1951 [1938]; Na ain 1957; Woodcock 1966; he Ox o d Classical Dic iona y;
Colledge 1967; Sulimi ski on he Sa ma ians in he Camb idge His o y o I an; Zaehne
1961; Ma sden 1969; Sculla d 1974; He odo os; Polybios; he A es a), and he iews on hem.
Wi hin he ex , she u he quo es om o men ions Eu ipides, Simonides, He aklei os, and
Sappho. In addi ion o ci ing published wo ks, B adshaw hanks he Depa men o Coins and
Medals o he Fi zwilliam Museum in Camb idge o allowing he o look a hei Bac ian coin-
age ‘ o so i olous apu pose as his no el’ (B adshaw 1990, iii). She in oduces he book as:
a an asy se in a eal ime and place. The ime, 172 o he Seleucid E a, is he nice ound da e
o 140 BC; he place is Cen al Asia. The Hellenis ic G eek kingdom o Bac ia lou ished in
wha is now A ghanis an om he conques o Alexande he G ea un il app oxima ely
ha da e. I s his o y, howe e , is apa chwo k o igno ance and con o e sy, and e y o en
all ha is known o aBac ian ule is his name. An imachos he God, Heliokles he Jus ,
Deme ios he In incible– we know hey exis ed because hey s uck coins, bu wha hey
did ha was godlike, jus , o in incible, no one can say. Iam no ahis o ian, and his book
owes mo e o imagina ion han o lea ning. Icould e en ha e se his s o y in an imagina y
wo ld– bu I ind eal wo lds mo e su p ising and mo e in e es ing. (B adshaw 1990, ii)
The in luence o Ta n and Na ain, and hei in e p e a ions o he numisma ic e idence, is
clea es in he no el. Tomy is hinks ha ‘Ya ana queens do no hing bu plo and poison
people’, and ha ‘any o he amily, all hey wan is powe : Euk a ides mu de ed his mas e
o i ; Pla on his a he , Heliokles his b o he ’ (B adshaw 1990, 6, 374). In an ex ended scene,
Tomy is examines G aeco-Bac ian coins and eads pe sonali y in o he images o he ule s:
Ilooked a he Bac ian sil e coins I’d been gi en as an ad ance sala y: mos o hem had
Heliokles’ ace on hem, hough some had his a he Euk a ides’. Bo h kings had ala ge nose,
an indulgen , leshy chin, and sha p, dange ous eyes: s ikingly ugly aces and pleasan ones.
‘Do you suppose she’ll look as much like apig as he a he ?’ Iasked A mai i, showing
he he coins.
A mai i giggled, he whispe ed con iden ially, ‘She migh and she migh no . She’sonly
aEuk a id on he a he ’sside, you know.’
‘Who was he mo he ?’ Iasked.
A mai i’s ace li up as she ealised Ihadn’ hea d his juicy piece o news. ‘He mo he
was he sis e o King Menande o India, he daugh e o Deme ios he In incible.’
‘Wha ?’ Iasked, shocked. ‘She’sadescendan o An imachos?’
[…]