Catalog
Stater - deified Alexander III Alexandreia
| Issuer | Ptolemaic Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 312 BC |
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| Value | Gold Stater (20) |
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| Obverse description | Head of the deified Alexander III facing right, portrayed with the attributes of the hero Heracles: wearing the scalp of the Nemean lion, its gaping jaws framing the upper portion of the face and knotted beneath the chin. The rendering is in the idealized Hellenistic style, with fine hair curling beneath the lion-skin headdress and delicate facial features conveying divine youth. The flan is slightly irregular, characteristic of early Ptolemaic hammered gold coinage. No legend is present on the obverse. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A war elephant moving to the right, rendered in bold low relief, with a prominent tusk, raised trunk, and caparisoned back. Beneath the elephant, the ground line is indicated by a series of horizontal striations suggesting a platform or exergual line. The composition is spare and powerful, with no border decoration. A Greek legend appears in the field, reading ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ, attributing the issue to Alexander. The reverse type is iconographically significant as one of the earliest representations of the war elephant on a Greek coin, reflecting Ptolemy's propagandistic use of Alexander's military legacy. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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