Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Dinar - Bahram II
| Issuer | Sasanian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 274-293 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Dinar (224 AD-651 AD) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Conjoined busts in profile of Bahram II, facing right, wearing an elaborate winged crown with korymbos, and his consort Shapurdukhtak, facing left, wearing a mural crown, their effigies depicted back-to-back in the Sasanian royal tradition. The king's beard is rendered in fine curled strands, and both busts are draped. A Pahlavi legend encircles the design within a beaded border, identifying the royal couple. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A fire altar with stepped base and two pendant ribbons (fluttering streamers) occupies the center of the field, flanked by two standing royal figures: Bahram II to the right and the deity Verethragna (Bahram) to the left, the latter presenting the king with a diadem or ring of investiture symbolizing royal power and divine mandate. Both figures are rendered in Sasanian court dress. A Pahlavi legend encircles the composition within a beaded border. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Bahram II ruled for nearly two decades but spent much of that reign in political crisis — his throne was challenged twice, first by his brother Hormizd in the east and later by the usurper Wahnam. Roman pressure under Carus briefly threatened the western frontier in 283, though Carus died in campaign before any decisive confrontation. The Sasanian court during this period was unusually susceptible to priestly influence; the high priest Kartir effectively co-governed and left his own rock inscriptions claiming authority over religious life across the empire.
Gold dinars of Bahram II are among the better-documented Sasanian issues, with multiple bust variants recorded across his long reign — distinguishing early from late issues depends primarily on crown typology.