Please support our sponsors Log In | Register [83795 Coins (44240 Unverified)]

Search Advanced Search Search By Coin ID     Home ANCIENT/BYZANTINE Ancient Spain (872) Byzantine (753) MEDIEVAL/EARLY WORLD Germany (30) MODERN WORLD COUNTERFEITS AND IMITATIONS   Submit New Coin(s)   Sponsors page Terms of Service Contact Us About Us FAQ Page Coin Detail Click here to see enlarged image. ID:     777954      [UNVERIFIED] Type:     Greek Region:     THRACIAN KINGS AND DYNASTS Issuer:     Lysimachos Date Ruled:     323-281 BC Metal:     Gold Denomination:     Stater Struck / Cast:     struck Date Struck:     BC 323-281 Diameter:     18 mm Weight:     8.52 g Die Axis:     6 h Obverse Description:     Diademed head of the deified Alexander right Reverse Legend:     ΒΑΣΙΛΣΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ Reverse Description:     Athena Nikephoros seated left; monogram to inner left Mint:     Uncertain Primary Reference:     Thompson - Reference2:     MÜller - Reference3:     cf. Seyrig, Monnaies, pl. 23, 4 Reference4:     SNG Berry -; SNG Ashmoleon - Photograph Credit:     Classical Numismatic Group Source:     http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=93316 Grade:     EF Notes:     Ex Gorny & Mosch 118 (15 October 2002), lot 1193.Although this particular coin is unpublished, the style of the types is highly refined, suggesting an early issue, possibly even a lifetime issue. The obverse die used on this coin was also used on lot 1304 of Gorny & Mosch 147 (7 March 2006), which has a reverse with FI in the inner left field. Unfortunately, that variety is also unpublished. Lysimachos was a Macedonian of great physical strength and fortitude who rose to prominence as a bodyguard for Alexander the Great. He became governor of Thrace and parts of northwest Asia Minor bordering the Black Sea after Alexander’s death, and like the other Diadochi assumed the royal title in 306/5 BC. At the beginning of his reign, Lysimachos continued to use Alexander’s coinage types, later modifying them by replacing Alexander’s name with his own. In 297 BC, Lysimachos introduced his own coinage, and chose to honor his benefactor, Alexander, by using the latter’s portrait as the obverse type. Athena, Lysimachos’ patron god, was chosen as his new reverse type. This coinage was struck at a variety of mints in Asia Minor and, later, Macedon and Thrace. The currency gained wide popularity, and continued to be minted as civic issues by a number of the cities for over a century after Lysimachos’ death. G.K Jenkins noted the power of the Alexander portrait in his commentary on the Gulbenkian Collection: “The idealized portrait of Alexander introduced on the coinage of Lysimachos in 297 is characterized by the horn of Ammon which appears above the ear. The allusion is to Alexander’s famous visit to the oracle of Ammon at the Siwa oasis in 331, when the god is supposed to have greeted Alexander as ‘My son’.... [T]he best of the Alexander heads on Lysimachos’ coinage...have a power and brilliance of effect that is irresistible. It [is speculated] that these Alexander heads may have derived from an original gem carved by Pyrgoteles, an engraver prominent among the artists of Alexander’s court....”

Created and Managed by Alfredo De La Fe