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Drachm - Pacorus I
| Issuer | Parthian Empire (Parthian Empire (247 BC - 224 AD)) |
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| Year | 39 BC |
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| Weight | 3.35 g |
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| Obverse description | Diademed beardless bust of Pacorus I facing left, with flowing hair rendered in the Hellenistic tradition and long diadem ribbons trailing behind. The portrait exhibits a youthful, clean-shaven profile characteristic of early Parthian royal iconography. To the right of the bust, the figure of Nike advances leftward, extending a wreath toward the king in a gesture of royal acclamation. The design is executed in a style reflecting the fusion of Hellenistic artistic conventions with Parthian court imagery. |
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| Reverse script | Greek |
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| Additional information |
Pacorus I, son of Orodes II, led the most successful Parthian invasion of Roman territory in the empire's history — sweeping through Syria, capturing Antioch, and pushing deep into Asia Minor in 40–39 BC. His forces, commanded alongside the Roman renegade Quintus Labienus, inflicted humiliations on Rome that Crassus's defeat at Carrhae had only begun. The coins of his reign are consequently rare: a Roman counteroffensive under Publius Ventidius Bassus crushed the Parthians at the Battle of Mount Gindarus in 38 BC, and Pacorus was killed in the fighting.
Sellwood 49.1 represents the earliest die grouping attributed to his independent reign.