Catalog
Dichalkon - Tigranes I Zeus
| Issuer | Armenia, Kingdom of |
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| Year | 123 BC - 96 BC |
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| Value | Dichalkon (1⁄24) |
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| Obverse description | Bare-headed portrait of Tigranes I facing left, wearing the distinctive four-pointed Armenian tiara secured by a diadem. The effigy is rendered in a Hellenistic artistic style, with clearly delineated facial features including a pronounced nose and strong jaw. The tiara rises prominently above the head, its pointed projections characteristic of Armenian royal iconography of the period. The field to the right of the portrait is largely plain. No legend appears on the obverse. |
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| Reverse script | Greek |
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| Additional information |
Tigranes I ruled Armenia as a Seleucid vassal, and his bronze coinage reflects that dependency — these issues are thought to have served local exchange in a kingdom that lacked the infrastructure for sustained silver production. The dichalkon denomination itself is Greek in origin, adopted wholesale from Hellenistic monetary convention as Armenian rulers sought legitimacy through familiar civic forms.
Kovacs 65 and Bedoukian CAA 4 represent the same type catalogued independently; reconciling the two references remains a minor headache for collectors working the series.