THE HELLENISTIC COINAGE OF THE PONTIC KINGDOM

The history of the Pontic Kingdom coinage probably began during the reign of Mithridates II of the Kingdom of Pontus. Early Pontic coinage imitated the coins which had portraits of Alexander the Great. Later ones are well known for their high degree of realism in the depictions of the Pontic kings, who were proud of their Iranian ancestry.  However, Mithridates V and his son Mithridates VI partially abandoned oriental influences in their own coin portraits. Especially the rule of Mithridates VI and his wars resulted in a wide expansion in the number of mints and struck coinage. Mithridates VI dated most of his coins by the Bithynian year and by month and this has facilitated research. 

Evolution of Pontic coinage

Prior to the Kingdom of Pontus, the Pontic region had autonomous cities with Greek background,which were mostly coastal. The mints were were almost exclusively in Greek colonies.

It is likely that the first coinage of the Kingdom was struck during Mithridates II's reign, which is said to have lasted from 255 BC to 220 BCE. The first Pontic coins imitated the coins with Alexander the Great's image on them. Mithridates III had issued a substantial amount of silver coinage by the end of his reign. He was also the first Pontic ruler to have a coin with his own portrait.

There was a distinction between royal and city coinage. Royal coins were gold and silver. They also had the king's image and name. Coinage autonomously struck  by cities was bronze and had the name of the city on the reverse. These city coins were discontinued for period of  time, as the cities lost their autonomy under the reign of Pharnakes I. Mithridates VI restored the privilege of the cities to have their own coinage, but he retained some control, as can be deducted from the standardization of local coinage.

The coin portraits of the Pontic kings are very well made; only Greco-Bactrian coinage is minted in such a realistic detail. Greek engravers were hired to carve coin dies used in the minting process. The ruling Dynasty of Pontus were very proud of their Iranian descent, and the portraits clearly show their oriental features. Mithridates III struck a coin with God Zeus holding an eagle on one side, and the other side portrayed himself as a non-idealized bearded old man with short hair. It was customary to have more realistic coin portraits in the east. However, the Pontic dynasty had married early in the Seleucid royal line and despite the ruling dynasty's Iranian origins, the Pontic state is deeply Hellenistic. 

Pontic portraiture generally developed outside the typical Hellenistic art.Mithridates V was the first king who had a relatively idealized coin portrait of himself. The trend was further developed by his son Mithridates VI. This may have started from the desire of Mithridates V to demonstrate his Greek side more than his oriental background.

Late Hellenistic Pontic coins have been found around the Mediterranean. This may indicate mobility of people and goods from the period contemporary with the Pontic kingdom. Pontic coinage has been found in coin hoards together with other Hellenistic coinage. Such hoards have been found from the Near East and in south-eastern Anatolia. Pontic coins were probably widely accepted in the eastern Mediterranean region. The Kingdom of Bosporus was governed after its conquest by a son of Mithridates VI. Pontic coinage has been found on the northern shores of the Black Sea.

Coinage during Mithridates VI's reign

It has been suggested that Mithridates VI's policy allowed more isolated cities of the Kingdom from the central Black Sea region to profit. His goal may have been to bring a sense of unity to these urban centres. He allowed the most important cities to have their own copper coinage. For a brief period of time, Amaseia became the only Pontic city allowed to strike its own silver and gold coinage. Mithridates VI allowed this as a reward for the city's service to him. He also encouraged mints managed by temples.

Mithridates VI imitated Alexander the Great in his coin portraits. He is depicted as a young man with flowing hair, long sideburns, a prominent nose and a narrow forehead. His hair and eyes are in a style similar to what we see in coin images of Alexander. Mithridates' coinage represents the late Pontic style,which leaves behind the oriental tradition of non-idealized images of kings. The new style is closer to the Hellenistic coinage.

The most common  image on Mithridates VI's coins is a grazing animal ( usually a Pegasus or a stag) together with a star and a crescent- these can be found in various denominations. Ivy leaves and grapes are also included in the scene.It has been suggested that after the Kingdom of Pontus expanded westward under his reign, the image of Pegasus was abandoned and coins with a stag started to appear. Mithridates VI included scenes from the story of Perseus in some coins- this was done in order for him to emphasize his dual ancestry between Greece and Persia.Perseus is considered as the forefather of the Persian people.

The First and Second Mithridatic Wars were preceded by heavy minting. However, after the Second war all minting ceased. During the wars between Rome and Pontus, Mithridates VI funded his military campaigns by introducing copper and brass as new financial sources for the Pontic state. Both materials are useful for overvalued coinage. Pure copper coinage may have been meant to partly substitute silver coinage. It is also possible that copper coins were meant for use in the region of Cimmerian Bosporus.

Brass coinage

Brass is an alloy that was used relatively rarely in ancient times. Phrygia is the only region with a recorded regular use of brass from antiquity. Phrygia and Bithynia are known sources for Pontic brass coinage. Pontic brass coins were struck during the reign of Mithridates VI, and he can be regarded as the first ruler to make use of brass. Modern analysis has revealed that some of his bronze coins are in fact made from brass.

One study that analyzed Pontic and Celtic brass coins found out that selenium is an important impurity as it can be used to track down ore sources from the eastern parts of the classical world. Use of brass gradually spread towards the west.

Mints

There were mints in the cities of Amisos, Pharnaceia, Trapezus and Sinope. At the time of Mithridates VI the number of cities minting coins drastically increased. Cities such as Amaseia, Abonutheichos, Cabeira, Chabakta, Comana, Gaziura, Laodikeia and Taulara. Only Gaziura, of these cities, had minted coins in the past.

Edited from : Wikiwand