Hermaeus

Hermaeus Soter (, Hermaîos ho Sōtḗr, meaning "Hermaeus the Saviour") was a Western Indo-Greek king of the Eucratid dynasty, who ruled the territory of Paropamisadae in the Hindu-Kush region, with his capital in Alexandria of the Caucasus (near today's Kabul, Afghanistan). Bopearachchi dates Hermaeus to –70 BCE and R. C. Senior to –80 BCE.

==Biography== thumb|300px|Coin of Hermaeus wearing a Diadem|royal diadem, with Greek legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΕΡΜΑΙΟΥ, Basileōs Sōtēros Hermaiou, "(of) Saviour King Hermaeus". The reverse shows radiate [[Zeus making a blessing gesture, and with Kharoshti legend: Maharajasa Tratarasa Heramayasa, "(of) Great Saviour King Hermaeus".]] Hermaeus' name means "devoted to Hermes", and he seems to have been the successor of Philoxenus or Diomedes, and his wife Kalliope () may have been a daughter of Philoxenus, according to Senior. Judging from his coins, Hermaeus' rule was long and prosperous, but came to an end when the Yuezhi, coming from neighbouring Bactria, overran most of his Greek kingdom in the Paropamisade around 70 BCE. According to Bopearachchi, these nomads were the Yuezhi, the ancestors of the Kushans, whereas Senior considers them Sakas.