THE EXPEDITION OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT TO HYRCANIA

Arrian wrote: “Alexander now took the soldiers who had been left behind in his pursuit and advanced into Hyrcania, which is the country lying on the left of the road leading to Bactra. On one side it is bounded by lofty mountains densely covered with wood, and on the other it is a plain stretching as far as the Great Sea in this part of the world. He led his army by this route, because he ascertained that the  mercenaries serving under Darius had succeeded in escaping by it into the mountains of Tapuria; at the same time he resolved to subdue the Tapurians themselves. [Source: Arrian the Nicomedian (A.D. 92-175), “Anabasis of Alexander”, translated, by E. J. Chinnock, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1884, gutenberg.org]

 “Having divided his army into three parts, he himself led the way by the shortest and most difficult route, at the head of the most numerous and at the same time the lightest division of his forces. He despatched Craterus at the head of his own brigade and that of Amyntas, some of the archers, and a few of the cavalry against the Tapurians; and he ordered Erigyius to take the  the rest of the cavalry, and lead the way by the public thoroughfare, though it was longer, conducting the wagons, the baggage, and the crowd of camp-followers. After crossing the first mountains, and encamping there, he took the shield-bearing guards together with the lightest men in the Macedonian phalanx and some of the archers, and went along a road difficult and hard to travel upon, leaving guards for the roads wherever he thought there was any peril, so that the barbarians who held the mountains might not at those points fall upon the men who were following.

 Having passed through the defiles with his archers, he encamped in the plain near a small river; and while he was here, Nabarzanes, the commander of Darius's cavalry, Phrataphernes, the viceroy of Hyrcania and Parthia, and the other most distinguished of the Persians in attendance on Darius, arrived and surrendered themselves. After waiting four days in the camp, he took up those who had been left behind on the march, all of them advancing in safety except the Agrianians, who, while guarding the rear, were attacked by the barbarian mountaineers. But these soon drew off when they got the worst of it in the skirmish. Starting from this place, he advanced into Hyrcania as far as Zadracarta, the capital of the Hyrcanians. In this place he was rejoined by Craterus, who had not succeeded in falling in with the Greek mercenaries of Darius; but he had thoroughly traversed the whole country, gaining over part of it by force and the other part by the voluntary capitulation of the inhabitants. Erigyius also arrived here with the baggage and wagons; and soon after Artabazus came to Alexander with three of his sons, Cophen, Ariobarzanes, and Arsames, accompanied by Autophradates, viceroy of Tapuria, and envoys from the Greek mercenaries in the service of Darius.

 “To Autophradates he restored his viceregal office; but Artabazus and his sons he kept near himself in a position of honour, both on account of their fidelity to Darius and because they were among the first nobles of Persia. To the envoys from the Greeks, begging him to make a truce with them on behalf of the whole mercenary force, he replied that he would not make any agreement with them; because they were acting with great guilt in serving as soldiers on the side of the barbarians against Greece, in contravention of the resolution of the Greeks. He commanded them to come in a body and surrender, leaving it to him to treat them as he pleased, or to preserve themselves as best they could. The envoys said that they yielded both themselves and their comrades to Alexander, and urged him to send some one with them to act as their leader, so that they might be conducted to him with safety. They said they were , in number. Accordingly he sent Andronicus, son of Agerrhus, and Artabazus to them."

Edited from : factsanddetails.com

BRONZE COINS OF THE PTOLEMAIC EGYPT

During the reign of the Greek Ptolemaic kings and queens, Egypt produced  substantial coinage. There are numerous designs in all kinds of metals, mint-designations and varieties that make the series both challenging and fascinating.

We’ll start with an 11 mm bronze of the founder of the dynasty, Ptolemy I, who ruled from 323-305/4 BCE as satrap and from 305/4-282 BCE as king. It was struck at the chief mint of Alexandria sometime from c.311 to 306 BCE, shortly before he declared himself king.

Not surprisingly, it features the portrait of his deified predecessor, Alexander III ‘the Great’ (336-323 BCE). It is paired with an eagle on a thunderbolt, a design which served as the ‘dynastic badge’ of the Ptolemies. It’s worth noting that the reverse bears the name of Alexander rather than Ptolemy.

Although stylistically different than the previous coin, this 17 mm bronze issued c.306-294 BCE at the Alexandria mint, most likely was issued after Ptolemy I had assumed the title of king. It has the same principal types of the previous coin, yet the reverse now names Ptolemy rather than Alexander.

This 20 mm bronze of Ptolemy I, struck at Alexandria after c.294 BCE, features a portrait of Alexander III wearing an elephant scalp. The reverse features the badge of Ptolemy.

This lovely 16 mm bronze of Ptolemy I was struck at Paphos on the island of Cyprus. Showing the bust of the goddess Aphrodite and the Ptolemaic eagle-badge, it was struck after c.294 BCE.

Issued at the same time and at the same Cypriot mint as the previous coin, this 22 mm bronze features an entirely different vision of Aphrodite, who’s crowned with an ornamented polos.

We now move on to Ptolemy II (285/4-246 BCE), the son and successor of Ptolemy I. This 23 mm bronze of Ptolemy II, struck at Alexandria sometime after about 265 BCE, looks much like the types introduced by his father some three decades before, as it features a portrait of Alexander III in an elephant scalp and the badge of the Ptolemaic dynasty.

Also struck for Ptolemy II is the 40 mm bronze, above, which belongs to a very large series the king initiated in about 265 BCE or soon afterward. It bears what would become the iconic obverse design for Ptolemaic bronzes: the head of the syncretic god Zeus-Ammon, adorned with a diadem and ram’s horn. In this case, he also has at the top of the diadem a design element that is believed to be a stylized crown of Ammon.

The reverse features two Ptolemaic eagles standing on thunderbolts, side by side. Though in some later cases two eagles indicate the joint-rule of two monarchs, at this time, Ptolemy II was the only reigning king, so we must presume they represent both the king and Zeus-Ammon.

Interestingly, this coin also bears another ‘trademark’ feature of most Ptolemaic bronzes struck from this point onward: a central cavity on both the obverse and reverse. Often, there are also strong traces of incised lines radiating outward from the center in a circular fashion. Both are diagnostic of their production rather than circulation damage.

It has been suggested that these new production features are tied to a monetary reform of the 260s BCE in which earlier Ptolemaic bronzes were demonetized. This may have been linked to larger economic reforms that modified the Egyptian tax system.

This 31 mm bronze of Ptolemy II from c.265 BCE or later bears the laureate head of Zeus and the badge of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Unlike the Ptolemaic bronzes we’ve seen thus far, it was not issued in Egypt, but at Ake-Ptolemais in Phoenicia, a prosperous region that in the Hellenistic era was hotly contested between the Ptolemies and their neighbor-kings, the Seleucids.

The two bronzes above, which range from 26 mm to 27 mm in diameter, also were not struck in Egypt. Indeed, they are believed to have been struck in about 264/3 BCE in Sicily on behalf of Ptolemy II. Like the coin from Ake-Ptolemais, they bear the laureate head of Zeus and the Ptolemaic badge.

We continue our survey of Ptolemy II’s bronzes with this 21 mm coin struck in Cyrene, a region of North Africa to the west of Egypt. It was struck c.270-261 BCE by that region’s ruler, Magas. It features the head of Ptolemy I and the thunderbolt of Zeus, above which the name of King Magas appears in the form of a monogram.

Ptolemy II also struck the above piece, a 10 mm bronze depicting his sister-wife Queen Arsinoe II (died 270/68 BCE). With a standing eagle on its reverse, it is attributed to the mint of Byzantium, where the continents of Asia and Europe meet.

We now transition to the issues of King Ptolemy III (246-222 BCE), the son of Ptolemy II and grandson of Ptolemy I. Above are two large and heavy coins of 33 mm to 35 mm from the Alexandria mint with the familiar Zeus-Ammon/Ptolemaic badge designs.

The 30 mm bronze of Ptolemy III, above, has the same types as the previous two coins. However, it was struck at the Phoenician mint of Tyre, as indicated by the club before the eagle.

Another common type of Ptolemy III is illustrated by the two specimens above, which offer a variation of the normal reverse with the eagles looking back toward a cornucopia set at their shoulders. They are from the Alexandria mint and are large pieces ranging from 37 mm to 39 mm in diameter.

An unusual reverse type for the Zeus-Ammon bronzes of Ptolemy III appears on the 16 mm coin, above. It was struck at Paphos on the island of Cyprus and shows a statue of the goddess Aphrodite.

We’ll round out our survey of the bronzes of Ptolemy III with those bearing portraits of living (or once-living) rulers rather than Zeus-Ammon. Shown above is a 12 mm coin that resurrects a type used by his father and grandfather, which pairs the head of Alexander III wearing an elephant scalp with the Ptolemaic badge.

The dynasty founder Ptolemy I is honored on the 22 mm and 26 mm bronzes shown above. The founder’s portrait is paired with the head of Libya, as these coins were struck in neighboring Cyrene, where she was recognized as the personification of the region.

Similarly interesting are the 19 mm and 20 mm bronzes above, which bear the distinctive portrait of Ptolemy III and the Ptolemaic badge. These issues are attributed to the mint of Corinth in Central Greece, where the Ptolemies had military interests.

A decidedly different portrait, also thought to represent Ptolemy III, occurs on this rare 16 mm bronze from the Ionian city of Lebedus, which at this time had been renamed Ptolemais. The reverse depicts the standing figure of Athena.

Our last bronzes of Ptolemy III bear portraits of his wife Berenice II, the daughter of Magas who ruled neighboring Cyrene. She died in 221 BCE, not long after her husband. The first of our three examples, the rare 16 mm bronze above, is attributed to the mint of Lebedus (Ptolemais).

Another portrait of Berenice II appears on this 25 mm bronze struck by her husband at a mint in northern Syria. Its reverse shows a filleted cornucopia and bears an eagle countermark.

The Berenice II portrait bronze above, also issued by Ptolemy III at a mint in northern Syria, has a different reverse type, the iconic Ptolemaic badge.

This article is concluded with  two issues of Ptolemy IV (222-205/4 BCE), the son of Ptolemy III and Berenice II. The first, a coin struck at the Alexandria mint, has the familiar Zeus-Ammon/Ptolemaic badge designs and is a large piece, being more than 40 mm in diameter and tipping the scale at more than 68 grams.

From the same issue is this 33 mm bronze of Ptolemy IV. Though (as noted earlier) the central cavities were part of the manufacturing process of most Ptolemaic bronzes struck after c.265/0 BCE, the ones on this example are especially pronounced.

Edited from : NGC

NOBLE STEEDS ~ THE HORSES OF LARISSA ON ANCIENT GREEK COINS

Horses were possibly the most prized animals in the ancient world. Most were valued for their use as transportation, as beasts of burden, and as cavalry steeds, yet they were also admired for their beauty, charm and their role in athletic events. Since these animals were so highly valued, it is hardly a surprise that they often are depicted on ancient coins. 

One of the finest regions in ancient Greece for horse breeding was Thessaly, a prosperous district with many fertile pastures. Its horses were large and of great endurance, giving rise to a local tradition of equestrian skills. The Thessalian cavalry was admired throughout the Greek world.

The famous horse of  Alexander the Great, named Bucephalus (“ox-head”), was Thessalian. Alexander’s father paid the astonishing sum of 13 talents for this animal, and it served Alexander well during his conquests, which ranged from Greece to Egypt and to the borders of Arabia and India.

Except for the wooden Trojan Horse preserved in the writings of Homer and Virgil, the most famous horse of Greek mythology was Skyphios (Skeironites), considered by the Greeks to be the first horse, born of the sea-god Poseidon and the earth. It is shown on rare bronzes of the Thessalian League struck in about 360 B.C., and on bronzes of the Thessalian city of Orthe struck in the late fourth through the early third centuries BCE.

Both types of bronzes show the forepart of Skyphios emerging from the earth. On the league issue the horse appears over an ornate trident head, representing Poseidon. On the civic issue of Orthe an olive tree grows upon the rocky outcrop from which Skyphios emerges.

Many cities of Thessaly feature horses on their coins, with the foremost being Larissa. Its inhabitants must have been especially proud of their horses, as on almost every silver coin they issued, they portrayed horses with accuracy, care and affection.

The earliest coins of Larissa to show horses are fractional silver coins — obols and half obols, of about 460 BCE. The artistry is stiff, and all that is shown is a bridled horse’s head.

Artistry improves over time

What followed over about the next 60 years was a larger series of silver coins in a broader range of denomination, including drachms and fractional issues ranging from hemidrachms to obols. These horses are shown rearing, bounding, leaping or prancing, and sometimes are mounted by a cavalryman.

In about 400 BCE. the largest series of Larissa drachms began, which lasted until the 330s BCE. The main type shows on its obverse the facing head of the local nymph Larissa, and on the reverse a horse that is grazing or is preparing to roll. These drachms feature some of the most charming images as the artists who cut the dies must have been familiar with horses, and were not reproducing stock images.

When Larissa’s horses are shown grazing their front legs are straight and their necks dip straight toward the ground. Quite different is the depiction of the horses preparing to roll: their knees are not locked, but bent, with one of the front hooves pulled up toward the belly; the neck, dipping toward the ground, is slightly curved.

One particularly beautiful drachm struck at various times from the late 5th through the mid-4th centuries BCE, shows a horse moving briskly with the local hero Thessalos at its side in the background. It is clear that Thessalos is trying to restrain the horse, yet the scene is almost tranquil.

A similarly beautiful composition on drachms of circa 380 to 365 BCE, shows a foal standing beside a mare. The mare is engraved in the typically high relief of these issues, whereas the foal is cut in comparatively low relief, thus placing it in the background. In this case both mother and foal stand in the same direction, calmly, with their heads raised.

Prancing horse

In addition to the grazing and rolling horses, the other common depiction at Larissa is that of a prancing horse. It occurs most often on drachms of circa 420 to 360 BCE. and on didrachms (staters) of the mid-4th century BCE. On these coins the horse has one each of its front and back hooves on the ground, and the other two raised, with the rear hoof being only slightly raised and the front being raised considerably. The horse’s back is straight and its neck fairly upright.

It is difficult to know if this type portrays “show horses,” but to the modern eye it may bring to mind the trained prancing maneuvers of a Lipizzaner stallion. A rare variant of the type struck in the early fourth century BCE. shows a horse in a similar pose, though with its head is turned back.

Horses with riders sometimes are depicted on coins of Larissa. Among the earliest of these are silver trihemiobols of about 480 to 440 BCE. which show a walking horse mounted by a cavalryman holding two lances. 

This scene would have been familiar from coins of nearby Macedonia, where it appeared on issues of the Macedonian kings and on some tribal issues of the region.

On rare occasions drachms from the period circa 380 to 356 BCE. show a horse with a rider. One particularly artful type shows a rider with a cape and a broad hat (a petasus) holding on tightly as his energetic horse leaps from the ground. 

Another type shows a cavalryman outfitted for combat; mounted cavalrymen also appear on bronzes of Larissa struck from the fourth through the second centuries BCE.

Unfortunately for horse lovers, this enchanting series of silver coins ended late in the fourth century BCE. due to the domination of the Macedonian Kingdom under its Kings Philip II (359 to 336 B.C.) and Alexander III.

Source: coinworld

GOD APOLLO AND HIS GUITAR ON GREEK COINS

Greece, Olynthus, 355-352 BCE. Silver Tetradrachm of the Chalcidian League, 432-348. Obverse: Laureate head of Apollo looking right, His hair flowing down the back of His neck . Reverse: Kithara with five strings; below, ΕΠΙ ΑΡΙΣΤΩΝΟΣ (DURING THE TIME [ OF ]  ARISTONOS ). 

This coin was minted at Olynthus during the period in which the Chalcidian League was under Spartan oversight but regaining strength. They minted their own silver coinage on the Macedonian standard, functioning as legal tender within all cities of the League.

The overall design elements remained consistent but style varied substantially over time. This coin’s depiction of the head of Apollo is a superb example of die engraving, remarkable for the strength and beauty of its style. These heads served as the predecessor for the portraits on the gold staters of Philip II.

The reverse depicts a professional version of the lyre, a kithara. As opposed to the standard lyre, which was predominately used as a folk instrument, the kithara was reserved for skilled musicians called kitharodes and the singers of Greek epic poetry. The word “guitar” is derived from the Greek kithara.

This coin resided in the collection of René Baron, the head of a French hospital, who focused on collecting artistic and historic coins.

The Creation of the Kithara

The kithara is an attribute of Apollo and symbolizes wisdom. It resonates in its box-shaped body which holds two parallel arms connected by a crossbar. Depending on the type and desired complexity, up to a dozen strings could be attached. It was played vertically, plucked with a plectrum in the right hand with the left hand damping the strings.

According to Greek Religion, the kithara was invented accidentally by the Greek messenger God Hermes, Apollo’s brother. Mere hours after being born, Hermes immediately embarked upon a journey to steal oxen from His brother, who was away from His herd.

During His trip, Hermes brushed against a turtle shell on the ground and thought to stretch seven strings across it. He plucked them and was instantly able to play exquisitely, creating the kithara.

After reaching the herd, Hermes attempted to steal 50 oxen, but Apollo caught Him in the act and the brothers began to quarrel, only to be interrupted by their father Zeus. To make amends with His brother, Hermes offered Apollo His kithara. Having only ever heard a standard three string lyre before, Apollo was so enthralled by the beautiful sound that, not only did He forgive Hermes, He also granted Him full dominion over all flocks and herds.

Hermes gladly accepted and formally became the God of herdsmen, swearing to never steal the kithara. Apollo fully devoted Himself to the art of music and brought stability and order into chaos with His playing.

                The History of the Chalcidian League

Fearful of Athens and the growing power of the Macedonian Kingdom, Olynthus and the other free cities of the Chalcidice banded together in 432 BCE, forming the Chalcidian League as a defensive coalition. Athens failed to break up this union due to its focus on the Peloponnesian War and its general disinterest in the region, helping solidify the strength of the League.

The capital was placed at Olynthus on a peninsula of northern Ancient Greece, on the shores of the Aegean Sea. The name “Olynthus” originates from the Greek olynthos, a fig that matures early, as this fruit was plentiful in the area.

The Chalcidian League was at the height of its power in the late 5th century BCE, but soon became the center of conflict. In 393 BCE, Amyntas III of Macedonia was under attack by the Illyrians and temporarily transferred territory to Olynthus for protection. When he regained control, the League refused to return his lands and he called upon Sparta to intervene. At the same time, there was unrest in the League and some members claimed that they were being forced to remain in the League against their will.

This forced Sparta to act and after a lengthy war, the cities were subjugated by Sparta in 379 BCE, with their power divided. Despite being summarily defeated, the Chalcidian League quickly began to regain power, something which alarmed Philip II of Macedon. To ensure his continued success in the region, Philip proactively attacked Olynthus, destroying the city in 348 BCE and disbanding the League permanently.

Article adapted from : Coinweek