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Tetradrachm
| Issuer | Minaean Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 250 BC - 150 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Round (irregular) |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Owl of Athena standing right with head facing front, rendered in a simplified imitative style. To the left, a fused or degenerate olive spray and crescent symbol — both characteristic elements of Athenian prototype coinage — are combined into a single device. The ethnic inscription AΘE appears to the right of the owl. The entire design is set within a shallow circular incuse square, as is typical of Arabian imitations of Athenian tetradrachms. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | AΘE |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
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| Additional information |
The Minaean Kingdom, centered in the Ma'in region of what is now northern Yemen, was primarily a trading state whose wealth derived from controlling overland incense routes connecting southern Arabia to the Mediterranean. Their coinage borrowed heavily from Athenian weight standards and owl types, a deliberate commercial choice meant to facilitate exchange with Greek-sphere merchants who trusted the familiar Attic format. It is less a local artistic expression than a trade credential.
Precise attribution within the Minaean series remains difficult — inscriptions naming individual rulers are inconsistently applied, and die studies are incomplete relative to comparable Hellenistic series.