Obverse: Bust of the King Crowned with a
Diadem
Reverse: An Eagle Standing on a Thunderbolt,
Facing Left
Ptolemy II Philadelphus, which means
'Brother/Sister-loving', was the second ruler of
the Ptolemaic Dynasty, son of Ptolemy I and
Berenike I. His construction efforts included that
of building the canal that linked the Nile to the
Gulf of Suez made possible by his
implementation of finance reforms. He was
married to his full sister Arsinoe II. He also
began a tradition of a four-yearly celebration to
honor his father. It was intended to have a
status equal to the Olympic games. Ptolemy II
also sought to complete his father’s vision of
making Alexandria the cultural capital of the
Greek world including completing the Pharos,
one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
According to the "Letter of Aristeas", Ptolemy II
requested 70 Jewish scholars come from
Jerusalem to translate the Pentateuch into a
Greek version to be placed into the Great Library
collection, further enhancing the cultural wealth
of the city. He died on January 29, 246 BC.
How many hands have touched a coin in your
pocket or your purse? What eras and lands have
the coin traversed on its journey into our
possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull
out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of
who touched the coin before us, or where the
coin will venture to after us. More than money,
coins are a symbol of the state that struck them,
of a specific time and place, whether
contemporary currencies or artifacts of a long
forgotten empire. This stunning hand-struck
coin reveals an expertise of craftsmanship and
intricate sculptural detail that is often lacking in
contemporary machine-made currencies. This
coin is a shining vestige of the ancient glory of
Egypt under Greek rule passed from the hands of
civilization to civilization, from generation to
generation.
- (C.2034)
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