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Drachm Alexander III Type
| Issuer | Uncertain Eastern European Celts |
|---|---|
| Year | 200 BC - 1 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 2.03 g |
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| Obverse description | Highly abstracted Celtic interpretation of a male head facing right, derived from the Macedonian prototype of Alexander III. The hair is rendered as a series of bold, sweeping curved ridges radiating dramatically to the left, filling much of the flan in a stylised mane-like arrangement. The facial features are schematically executed, with a globular eye and simplified nose and chin. A vertical row of pellets adorns the right field, and a beaded torque or necklace element appears below the chin, reflecting characteristic Eastern Celtic decorative vocabulary. |
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| Reverse description | Heavily stylised Celtic rendering of Zeus Aëtophoros seated to the left, derived from the reverse type of Alexander III tetradrachms and drachms. The figure is reduced to schematic linear and globular elements, with the body and throne barely distinguishable as abstract forms. A sceptre is held in the left hand, rendered as a vertical line or rod. An amphora device appears to the left of the seated figure in the field. No legend is present, consistent with the anonymous Celtic imitative tradition. |
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| Additional information |
Celtic imitations of Alexander's drachms circulated across a vast swathe of central and eastern Europe for well over a century after the original Macedonian issues, produced by tribal mints whose identities remain largely unresolved. This particular piece falls into the broad "uncertain eastern" grouping — a catch-all that reflects genuine scholarly disagreement rather than lazy attribution. The Kostial and Pink references place it within a tradition of progressive stylistic abstraction, where each generation of dies moved further from the Macedonian prototype, not through ignorance but through deliberate local aesthetic preference.