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Obol - Darayan I
| Issuer | Persis, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 132 BC - 100 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 0.61 g |
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| Obverse description | Bust of Darayan I facing right, depicting the ruler with a short beard, his head adorned with a royal diadem and a kyrbasia (pointed cap) surmounted by a crescent symbol. The portrait is rendered in the characteristic Persis style, combining Achaemenid and Hellenistic artistic conventions. The facial features are boldly struck, typical of hammered coinage of the period. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse script | Aramaic |
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| Additional information |
Darius I of Persis — not to be confused with the Achaemenid king — ruled as a vassal dynast under Seleucid overlordship before that authority collapsed in the region. These tiny fractional silvers were struck by local dynasts who deliberately invoked Achaemenid imagery to assert a continuity of Persian kingship that the Seleucids had interrupted. The political claim mattered more than the metal content.
At 0.61g, these pieces were struck to a standard derived from the Persic weight system rather than the Attic, a quiet but deliberate rejection of Greek numismatic norms.