another book on the subject is "The rise and fall of the

graeco-bactrian kingdom"  by H. sidky, published by abd publishers,

isbn 51-89011-33-2, 2004

a history of the kingdom including the indian conquests, illustrated

with photos of many coins and some ruins.  there is an extensive 38

page bibliography covering bactria and alexander the great.

i was able to obtain it through an internet book dealer

--- In DBMMlist@yahoogroups.com, "Jim Webster" <jim@...> wrote:

>

>

> ----- Original Message -----

> From: "Steve Burt" <steve.and.mary.burt@...>

> To: <DBMMlist@yahoogroups.com>

> Sent: Friday, May 30, 2008 2:28 PM

> Subject: Re: [DBMMlist] Re: revision of lists 1 - 50,15/5/08.

>

>

>

> >> I didn't - because I know sod all about Bactrians and, having been

> >> assured that Tarn is astoundingly dull, will stay that way :)

> >

> > Narain 'The Indo-Greeks' is more readable. Also much shorter (the

> > book, not the author).

> >

> to quote from an article I did for slingshot

>

> In English, there are four modern authors who have written on these

> kingdoms.

>

>

>

> Bactria, the history of a forgotten Empire. By H.G.Rawlinson. First

> published in 1912, it is obviously dated, much evidence has appeared

since

> it was written, but the author was well travelled and knew at least

part of

> the area personally.

>

>

>

> The Greeks in Bactria & India. W.W.Tarn. Posthumously revised 3rd

edition

> 1997. Interestingly Frank L Holt did the preface. Tarn was one of

the great

> Hellenistic scholars, and he wrote the book as the history of a great

> Hellenistic kingdom on a par with the Seleucids and Ptolemaic Egypt.

He tied

> the history in with Seleucid history, linked the Bactrian kings to the

> Seleucid royal house, and when considering Bactrian conquests in India

> basically seems to have read the sources as to give the kingdom its'

widest

> extent.

>

>

>

> The Indo-Greeks. A.K.Narain.

>

> Originally written in 1957 Narain wrote from an Indian perspective.

Hence he

> stressed Indian connections, and read the sources to limit the Greek

> conquests to the minimum extent. There are places where he agrees

with Tarn

> and places where he stands in awed admiration at the courage of Tarns'

> scholarship.

>

>

>

> Into the Land of Bones, Alexander the Great in Afghanistan. Also

Thundering

> Zeus, the making of Hellenistic Bactria. Both by Frank L Holt,   2005.

>

> Obviously a more modern account, Holt concentrates more on Bactria

than on

> the Indian conquests. In the 'Land of Bones' he also writes as an

American

> for Americans, comparing and contrasting US experience in

Afghanistan with

> Alexander's experience.

>

> He points out that there were an inordinate number of Greek kings,

forty of

> them, to rule between them no more than 250 years. For comparison, and

> depending on exactly how you count them, there were 15 Ptolemy's to

cover a

> similar period. Holt sees these Kings as proto-Afghan warlords,

fighting

> amongst themselves and occasionally being combined by a strong leader.

>