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Tetradrachm - Lysimachus Sestos
| Issuer | Kings of Thrace |
|---|---|
| Year | 297 BC - 281 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 16.89 g |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | Athena Nikephoros seated in three-quarter pose to left upon a throne, clad in chiton and peplos, holding in her extended right hand a winged Nike who crowns the royal legend above. Athena's left arm rests upon a large round shield decorated with a lion's head boss, while a transverse spear leans behind her. In the inner left field, a monogram appears as a mint control mark. The reverse legend ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ, meaning 'of King Lysimachus,' is inscribed in two lines flanking the enthroned figure, all within a beaded border. |
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| Additional information |
Lysimachus began issuing posthumous Alexander-type coinage before pivoting to this distinctive royal series, which placed his own name on the coin — a politically charged decision in a world where Alexander's successors were still litigating legitimacy through currency. The Sestos mint operated in the Thracian Chersonese, a strategically vital chokepoint controlling passage between the Aegean and the Black Sea, and coins struck there circulated heavily through the grain trade routes Lysimachus depended on to fund his wars against the other Diadochi.
Lysimachus died at the Battle of Corupedium in 281 BC, ending his kingdom abruptly. Posthumous issues in his name continued under subsequent rulers, making precise attribution to the lifetime series — as with this Sestos type — the more historically specific assignment.