Catalog
Dichalkon - Tigranes I Nike
| Issuer | Armenia, Kingdom of |
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| Year | 123 BC - 96 BC |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Obverse description | Bare head of Tigranes I facing left, depicted in the Hellenistic portrait tradition. The king wears a distinctive Armenian four-pointed tiara adorned with a star emblem at the centre, the tiara secured with a diadem whose ties fall behind the neck. The portrait exhibits strong, individualised features consistent with royal coinage of the late second century BC. |
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| Reverse lettering | BAΣΙΛЄΩΣ / MЄΓAΛOY - [T]IΓPANOY / ΦΙΛЄΛΛHNOC |
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| Additional information |
Tigranes I ruled Armenia as a Seleucid vassal for most of his reign, and the bronze coinage issued under him reflects the awkward cultural position of a kingdom caught between Hellenistic convention and emerging Armenian identity. His successor, Tigranes II "the Great," would go on to briefly construct one of the ancient world's most ambitious territorial empires — making the modest bronzes of Tigranes I effectively the opening chapter of that story.
Bedoukian's catalog of Armenian coinage remains the foundational reference for this series, though Kovacs has refined the attribution of several die groupings since its publication.