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Tetradrachm - Tiraios II
| Issuer | Characene, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 68 BC - 48 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Diademed and bearded bust of Tiraios II facing right, rendered in the Parthian artistic tradition with elaborately curled hair falling in rows of tight ringlets behind the ear and a full, carefully striated beard. The royal diadem is tied at the back with visible ribbon ends. The portrait is executed in high relief with strong, naturalistic facial features characteristic of Characenian coinage. The field is plain and the design is enclosed by a dotted border. |
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| Reverse lettering | ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΤΙΡΑΙΟΥ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ ΕΥΕΡΓΕΤΗΣ (Translation: King Tiraios, saviour and benefactor) |
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| Additional information |
Characene was a small but strategically positioned kingdom at the head of the Persian Gulf, wedged between the Parthian Empire and the shifting loyalties of Mesopotamian trade routes. Tiraios II ruled during a period when Characene functioned largely as a client state under Parthian suzerainty, yet continued striking its own silver coinage — a pointed assertion of local dynastic authority that Parthia periodically tolerated and periodically crushed depending on the political moment.
The BMC Greek catalog records only a single reference specimen for this type, suggesting extreme rarity in institutional collections as of the catalogue's compilation.