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Tetradrachm
| Issuer | Tenedos |
|---|---|
| Year | 100 BC - 70 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Tetradrachm (4) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| 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 |
| Orientation | 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 | A prominent double axe (labrys) occupies the central field, the principal civic symbol of Tenedos, with the blade rendered in bold relief. Flanking the shaft, a bunch of grapes appears on each side, alluding to the island's viticultural prosperity. The entire composition is encircled by a laurel wreath, with the ethnic inscription ΤΕΝΕ ΔΙΩΝ divided across the field to the left and right of the axe shaft. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
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| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Tenedos |
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| Additional information |
Tenedos, a small island at the entrance to the Hellespont, derived its economic importance almost entirely from its position controlling traffic into the strait. By the late second century BC, cistophoric and quasi-cistophoric coinages were proliferating across western Asia Minor, yet Tenedos maintained its own distinctive weight standard — a conscious assertion of local monetary identity at a moment when Rome's influence over the region was tightening following the defeat of Mithridates' predecessor states. The island had been passed between Pergamene, Rhodian, and ultimately Roman spheres of influence across the preceding century.
Callataÿ's die study identifies very few obverse dies for the entire series, suggesting a limited and probably episodic production rather than sustained mint activity.