Tigran II ruled the Armenian kingdom at its greatest territorial extent — around 83 BC he controlled a swath from the Caspian to the Mediterranean, briefly making Tigranocerta one of the most ambitious new capital cities in the ancient world. Rome eventually forced his retreat, but he died in 55 BC as a client king, never conquered outright.
The .585 fineness places this squarely in the Soviet-legacy tradition of Armenian gold issues, which consistently avoided the .999 standard common in Western bullion coinage. A deliberate commercial positioning choice by the Central Bank from the outset of the Republic's commemorative program.
Tigran II ruled the Armenian kingdom at its greatest territorial extent — around 83 BC he controlled a swath from the Caspian to the Mediterranean, briefly making Tigranocerta one of the most ambitious new capital cities in the ancient world. Rome eventually forced his retreat, but he died in 55 BC as a client king, never conquered outright.
The .585 fineness places this squarely in the Soviet-legacy tradition of Armenian gold issues, which consistently avoided the .999 standard common in Western bullion coinage. A deliberate commercial positioning choice by the Central Bank from the outset of the Republic's commemorative program.