Obverse: Head of Hercules Wearing the Skin of
the Nimean Lion
Reverse: Zeus Seated Holding an Eagles and
Scepter with Greek Inscription, “of King
Seleukos”
Seleukos I was one of the generals of Alexander
the Great and assumed control of Babylon after
Alexander's death. By degrees he became ruler of
Alexander's eastern dominions defeating his
rivals Demetrios and Lysimachos. At its peak
under Seleukos I and Antiochus I, the Seleukid
Kingdom comprised almost the whole of the
conquests of Alexander with the exception of
Egypt. In 305/04 B.C. he assumed the title of
basileus or king. Like the other
successors of Alexander, Seleukos I initially
issued coins with the types used in Alexander's
coinage in order to bolster his legitimacy as a
ruler through association.
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 currency in
the age we live or an artifact of a long forgotten
empire. This ancient coin is more than an
artifact; it is a memorial to one of Alexander the
Great’s most successful generals and the
kingdom he established passed from the hands
of civilization to civilization, from generation to
generation.
- (C.393)
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