1917. J Numismatic Supplement No. XXVIII. 57 



and undefiled, a goodly sacrifice accompanied by an oblation." 

 Yasht V, 9. 



Ardvi<jura Anahita, the Anaitis of the Greeks (compared 

 by some with the Greek Artemis and by others with the Greek 

 Aphrodite), the Mylitta of the Babylonians, the Astarte or 

 Asteroth of the Syrians and the Venus of the Romans, was the 

 female deity that presided over waters. As water led to th 

 fertility of the soil, and as women led to the fructification and 

 increase of the human race, this deity Anahita, like her proto- 

 types among other nations, was connected closely with the 

 beauty of women and with their fructifying powers. Anahita 

 is mentioned further in the A vesta as purifying the wombs of 

 women and easing the pains of childbirth. 



Kangavar is a small town of great antiquity, lying directly 

 on the route between Bisitun and Hamadan in Persia and con- 

 tains important ruins of a temple of the Ancient Persian Diana. 

 Jackson (Persia Past and Present, p. 240), after examining 

 these ruins, believes " that they are the remains of a temple of 

 Anahita, the great Persian goddess of the heavenly streams, 

 whom the Greeks identified with Artemis or Diana and whose 

 worship was widespread throughout Iran in the time of Arta- 

 xerxes Mnemon in the fourth century before Christ." 



Curzon (Persia, vol. II, p. 133) states that ''Anahita, 

 Anahidh, or Tanata, the Anaitis of the Greeks, the ruins of a 

 temple to whom at Kangavar I have already noticed in vol. L 

 p. 51, was a goddess who from the end of the fifth century B.C. 

 played a part in the official religion of Persia somewhat similar 

 to the Phoenician Astarte, the Babylonian Mylitta, the Arabian 

 Alitta, and the Hellenic Aphrodite. According to Plutarch, 

 statues to her were put up in all the great cities of the empire. 

 She is supposed to have been of Armenian or Cappadocian 

 origin. The popular translation of her name into Artemis, or 

 Diana, appears to me to be incorrect.' ' 



The term Avan Ardshur, as given by Mr. Thanawalla, if 

 taken in its correct form Avan Ardvigura would mean * the 

 waters of the Oxus." Avan (plural form of av = water) means 

 waters, and the river Ardvigura of the A vesta has been identi- 

 fied with the Oxus. Anahita means "immaculate " 



«.' 9 



Drouin reads the legend APAOXt>0 as Ardokhsho (see Le 

 Nimbe sur les Monnaies des Rois Indo-Scythes, Revue Numis- 

 matique, 1901, p. 156). 



Dr. E. W. West (Grundriss der Iranischen Philologie, II 

 Band. Ill Lieferung, Pahlavi Literature, pp. 75 and 76) reads 

 and explains this legend as follows : — 



ApdovSos Ardvaxso (Avesta, A§ivanguhi). That is, Ashi 



vanguhi. 



proceeds 



Greek alphabet, which occasioned the use of the vowel o for 

 the sounds of h and v (English w), in addition to its own, these 



