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Tetradrachm
| Issuer | Kyrene |
|---|---|
| Year | 435 BC - 375 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Silver |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| 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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| Reverse description | Bearded head of Zeus-Ammon facing left, depicted with short, thick, and tightly curling hair rendered in vigorous relief. The syncretic deity combines the features of the Greek Zeus with the ram-horned Ammon of Libya, reflecting Kyrene's cultural position between the Greek and Libyan worlds. The facial features are boldly modelled, with deep-set eyes, a broad nose, and a full curling beard falling in dense locks around the jaw and neck. The truncation of the bust is visible at the lower edge of the flan. The field to the right is largely plain. |
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| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Kyrene |
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| Additional information |
Kyrene's silver coinage was underpinned by one commodity more than any other: silphium, the now-extinct plant harvested from the Cyrenaican plateau that ancient physicians and cooks considered indispensable. The city held something close to a monopoly on it, and that economic leverage is precisely why a North African Greek colony could sustain such a confident, high-quality silver currency through the late fifth and early fourth centuries.
The silphium trade collapsed gradually — ancient sources including Pliny the Elder suggest it was already scarce by the first century AD, likely due to overgrazing. By then, Kyrene's monetary independence was long gone.