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Tetradrachm Triskeles Type
| Issuer | Uncertain Eastern European Celts |
|---|---|
| Year | 300 BC - 101 BC |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | Celticised laureate and bearded head of Zeus facing right, derived from Philip II Macedonian prototypes but rendered in a distinctly Celtic artistic idiom. The bold laurel wreath is composed of exaggerated, elongated oval leaves rendered in high relief with strong plastic modelling. The flowing hair and beard are depicted in characteristic Celtic swirling style, with bold comma-shaped curls and flame-like locks replacing the naturalistic treatment of the Greek original. The facial features are simplified and abstracted, with a prominent almond-shaped eye, a sharp nose, and stylised beard rendered as a series of pellets and volutes. The field is plain and unlettered. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The triskeles-type tetradrachms of the eastern Celtic world derive ultimately from Macedonian prototypes — Philip II issues in particular — that flooded into central Europe through trade, tribute, and mercenary pay during the 4th century BC. Over generations of local imitation, the original types were progressively abstracted, each die-cutter working from a coin rather than a living model, the imagery drifting further from its source with each copying.
Attribution within this series remains genuinely contested. Göbl's classification system brought order to the typology, but tribal assignment is largely impossible without hoard provenance data, which for this specific variety is sparse.