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Didrachm - Ateas
| Issuer | Kings of Skythia |
|---|---|
| Year | 350 BC - 339 BC |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | Bearded male head facing left, wearing a lion-skin headdress with the scalp and jaws visible over the crown, in the Heraklean tradition; the hair rendered in detailed curling locks falling to the neck. The facial features are rendered in a bold archaic-Hellenistic style, with a pronounced brow and strong jaw. The flan is irregular and slightly off-centre, characteristic of hand-struck Scythian coinage of the 4th century BC. |
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| Reverse description | A Scythian horseman galloping to the right, depicted in profile wearing a belted tunic and cap, raising a spear or whip in his right hand with the reins held in his left; the horse is shown in full gallop with all four legs extended. The Greek legend ΑΤΑΙΑΣ (Ateas) is inscribed around the horseman, partially in the upper field and to the right, identifying the issuing ruler. The composition reflects strong Hellenistic artistic influence adapted to Scythian iconographic conventions, with vigorous rendering of both rider and mount. |
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| Additional information |
Ateas unified the Scythian tribes west of the Don into a single kingdom and, by the mid-fourth century, controlled enough of the northern Black Sea grain trade to challenge Macedon directly. This didrachm — struck on a Greek weight standard and almost certainly produced with the help of Greek die-cutters, possibly from Istros or another Pontic colony — represents the only royal coinage attributed to a Scythian king before the region fell under Macedonian pressure. Philip II defeated and killed Ateas at the Battle of the Isker in 339 BC, when the king was reportedly over ninety years old.