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Drachm - Shapur II
| Issuer | Sasanian Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 320-379 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Reverse description | Central fire altar depicted with a ribbon or fillet hanging from its shaft, within the flames of which a small royal bust faces right — a devotional motif emblematic of Zoroastrian royal piety. The altar is flanked on either side by a standing attendant or priest, each crowned with a mural crown bearing a korymbos, facing the altar in a posture of veneration. The composition is symmetrical and hieratic, consistent with the canonical reverse type of Shapur II drachms as catalogued in Göbl and Sunrise references. The arrangement underscores the dynastic and religious authority of the Sasanian king as guardian of the sacred flame. |
| Reverse script | Pahlavi (Middle Persian) |
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| Additional information |
Shapur II ruled for 70 years — the longest reign in Sasanian history, spanning the entirety of the fourth century's middle decades — and spent much of it at war with Rome across Mesopotamia. The monetary output of his reign was enormous by necessity, funding near-continuous military campaigns that included the sieges of Nisibis and the campaigns that drove Julian's army to disaster in 363.
The Göbl Ia/6a pairing places this piece among the earlier die combinations of the reign, before the standardization that characterized later Shahpur II issues.