Catalog
1/2 Ꜹ Unit - Aphilas
| Issuer | Aksum |
|---|---|
| Year | 305-315 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 1.41 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Rightward-facing bust of King Aphilas, depicted wearing a distinctive headcloth ornamented at the front and terminating in a triangular ribbon at the rear. The king holds a whisk or fly-whisk in his right hand, an attribute of royal authority in Aksumite iconography. Above the effigy, a pellet on crescent motif divides the surrounding Greek legend in the field. The composition is enclosed within a border of dots, consistent with hammered gold issues of the Aksumite kingdom. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | AξⲰMA BICI ΔIH (Translation: [...] of the Aksumites, man of Dimele) |
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| Additional information |
Aphilas ruled Aksum in the early fourth century and is among the first African monarchs known to have struck gold coinage — a monetary ambition that placed the kingdom in direct commercial dialogue with Rome and Sasanian Persia along the Red Sea trade routes. His fractional gold issues are genuinely rare; surviving examples appear in only a handful of institutional collections worldwide.
The .900 fineness is consistent with Aksumite royal gold of this period, before later rulers debased the alloy to fund military campaigns and maintain tribute payments.