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Drachm - Ardashir I
| Issuer | Sasanian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 233-239 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
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| Currency | Dinar (224 AD-651 AD) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A stepped Zoroastrian fire altar with a single flame rising from its basin occupies the center of the design, flanked on either side by a standing attendant figure bearing a diadem (type G ribbons). The altar is depicted in architectural detail with a tiered column and base, conveying its sacred significance in Sasanian religious iconography. A Middle Persian (Pahlavi) legend in the field surrounds the scene. A beaded border encircles the entire reverse design. |
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| Reverse lettering | 𐭠𐭲𐭥𐭩 𐭠𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭬𐭦𐭣 |
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| Additional information |
Ardashir I founded the Sasanian dynasty by defeating and killing the last Arsacid king, Ardavan IV, at the Battle of Hormozdgan around 224 AD — ending nearly five centuries of Parthian rule. His early silver coinage was explicitly propagandistic, asserting both royal and divine legitimacy as he consolidated control over Iran and pushed westward against Rome. The specific emission spanning 233–239 falls squarely within his campaigns against Severus Alexander and later Maximinus Thrax, wars that destabilized Rome's eastern frontier for a generation.
The Göbl VIII/2 classification places this among the later phase of Ardashir's minting program, distinguished by refinements in die-cutting that separate it from the cruder early provincial issues.