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Hemidrachm Megalopolis
| Issuer | Arcadian League |
|---|---|
| Year | 175 BC - 168 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Hemidrachm (1/2) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Laureate head of Zeus facing left, rendered in fine archaic-influenced style with flowing hair and a full beard; the laurel wreath is rendered with naturalistic leaf detail, and the portrait displays strong, mature facial features characteristic of Arcadian League coinage from Megalopolis. The neck is truncated at the lower right, and the field is plain. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Pan, the patron deity of Arcadia, seated left upon a rocky outcrop, his body in three-quarter view; he holds a lagobolon (hare-stick) in his right hand and raises his left hand, with an eagle standing to the left in the field. The composition is typical of late Arcadian League hemidrachm reverse types struck at Megalopolis. |
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| Additional information |
The Arcadian League's late coinage was struck under the shadow of Rome's tightening grip on Greek affairs. This issue falls within the final years before the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BC effectively ended Macedonian power and accelerated Roman administrative pressure throughout the Peloponnese, conditions that curtailed many regional minting programs abruptly. Whether this series was terminated by political circumstance or simply obsolescence is unresolved.
Megalopolis had been the League's federal capital since its foundation by Epaminondas in 371 BC — a planned city built to consolidate Arcadian political identity against Spartan aggression. The hemidrachm denomination served inter-regional exchange within that federal structure.