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Æ - Demetrius I Poliorcetes Pella
| Issuer | Kingdom of Macedonia |
|---|---|
| Year | 306 BC - 283 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | Newell#128, HGC 3.1#1019, SNG Alpha Bank#962 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | Macedonian helmet in three-quarter view flanked by the horn-like projections of a bull's head or a trophy of arms, rendered in low relief at center. Below the central device, the royal legend ΒΑΣΙ appears in two abbreviated lines, reading left to right across the lower field, referencing the royal title of Demetrius I. The composition is bold and compact, consistent with the reduced module bronze coinage struck at Pella during the reign of Demetrius I Poliorcetes. The flan is irregularly shaped with a deep olive-green patina typical of Macedonian bronze issues of this period. |
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| Additional information |
Demetrius I earned the epithet "Poliorcetes" — the Besieger — largely from his failed attempt to take Rhodes between 305 and 304 BC, during which he deployed the largest siege engines the ancient world had yet seen. When Rhodes held out, the Rhodians sold the abandoned machinery for scrap and used the proceeds to commission the Colossus. The Pella mint was active during his consolidation of Macedonian power after defeating Antigonus Monophthalmus's rivals, though his reign ended in captivity under Seleucus I, where he drank himself to death around 283 BC.