Hellenistic influence on Indian art and architecture reflects the artistic and architectural influence of the Greeks on Indian art following the conquests of Alexander the Great, from the end of the 4th century BCE to the first centuries of the common era. The Greeks in effect maintained a political presence at the doorstep, and sometimes within India, down to the 1st century CE with the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and the Indo-Greek Kingdoms, with many noticeable influences on the arts of the Maurya Empire especially. Hellenistic influence on Indian art was also felt for several more centuries during the period of Greco-Buddhist art.
Athenian coin (minted c. 500/490 – 485 BCE) discovered in Pushkalavati, Gandhara. This coin is the earliest known example of its type to be found so far east.
"Victory coin" of Alexander the Great, minted in Babylon c. 322 BCE, following his campaigns in the subcontinent. Obv: Alexander being crowned by Nike. Rev: Alexander attacking king Porus on his elephant. Silver. British Museum.
The Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and the Hellenistic city of Ai-Khanoum were located at the very doorstep of India.
Sphinx
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A sphinx is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of an eagle.
The Great Sphinx of Giza, with the Great Pyramid in the background
A lion-headed goddess is a lion-goddess in human form, while a royal sphinx, conversely, is a man who has assumed the form of a lion. Henry Fischer
La Granja, Spain, mid-18th century