Exhibit: Alexander III Tetradrachm- 336-323 - Photographed 11/18/08- By Randygeki

I'll give this a shot

Alexander III AR Tetradrachm. Amphipolis mint. Head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin headdress / Zeus seated left, holding eagle and sceptre; dolphin before, PO below throne

Alexander III
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great

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"Building upon his father's success in Greece, Alexander III (Alexander the Great, reigned 336-323 BC) set about the conquest of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. By the time of his death at the age of 31, he ruled most of the known world from Greece to Afghanistan. Initially Alexander continued to mint Philip's gold and silver coins. Soon, however, the need for a silver coinage that could be widely used in Greece caused him to begin a new coinage on the Athenian weight-standard. His new silver coins, with the head of Herakles on one side and a seated figure of Zeus on the other, also became one of the staple coinages of the Greek world. They were widely imitated within the empire he had forged."

www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/cm/s/silver_tetradrachm_of_alexande.aspx

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Amphipolis
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphipolis

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I took the picture with a Kodak Easy SHare DX4530. I sat the coin in my window after the sun went down a little so the angle of light would help show more detail/depth. I think at some point the coin was in a pendant and was damaged somewhat when they took it out (note the mark right of the staff at the bottum.) I did not edit the picture in any way other than croping the image.


There are over 1300 varieties.

 

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everyones getting sick of seeing it I take it lol

 

randygeki, where'd you pick that coin up at? I don't remember reading a post about it earlier.

 

I got it at a local coinshop around august. I posted this pic orignaly (scanned)

 

I wanted a good pic that showed all the flaws and scratches which makes it look rough, but its pretty smooth

 

Hey Randy, That's a great photo and I think your window sill needs painting. Check this down load out. It has the round crop and other stuff easy to use.

http://www.photoscape.org/ps/main/download.php

 

Thanks
and I just painted the window not to long ago lol, my dog sleeps up there so... i get to paint it alot.

 

Another Outstanding Contest Post! I was hoping for more than a few anceint entries.

Thanks

This i a great great coin, and of historical significance. I have a few questions about the coin. First, as you mentioned this coin was created at the Amphipolis mint.. Where was that mint exactly and how any other mints were in production at that time?

What was the methodology of the production of coins of that period and how is that method reflected in the coin?

Ruben

 

Thanks Alot
I wrote up a big reply with maps and diagrams and my browser crashed :computer: :computer:

I'll try and repost most of it tomarow when Im awake

I was also thinking about doing another one on this coin its one my favorates.

 

Ruben, you can find out much on your own. Wikipedia has a nice entry on Amphipolis. An Athenian stronghold and colony, Philip conquered it to secure Thrace on his way to Asia, which he did not achieve, but which Alexander did.

Alexander, even more than Julius Caesar, is the subject of much high-quality historical research. When writing about his coins for The Celator, my co-author, Ann Zakelj, and I had to stay focused, because of the sheer volume. Robin Lane Fox is one historian you can find in bookstores and libraries. Robin Lane Fox was a technical advisor for the recent movie Alexander and as his payment -- already being a fellow at New College, Oxford -- he was a bit actor in a cavalry charge.

One point not noted so far is that these coins can be considered portraits or representations of Alexander. When we first posited that, disagreement was easy. Over the last six years, quite agreement has coalesced, for instance in Harlan Berk's new Whitman book, 100 Greatest Ancient Coins.

 

I dont know why I didnt metion anything about the portrait, thanks

 

Amphipolis




satilite veiw

maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&om=1&z=14&ll=40.800426,23.856897&spn=0.03697,0.069351&t=k


Amphipolis (north of the Aegean Sea)


"From: The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press.
Amphipolis , ancient city of Macedonia, on the Strymon (Struma) River near the sea and NE of later Thessaloníki. The place was known as Ennea Hodoi [nine ways] before it was settled and was of interest because of the gold and silver and timber of Mt. Pangaeus (Pangaion), to which it gave access. Athenian colonists were driven out (c.464 BC) by Thracians, but a colony was established in 437 BC Amphipolis became one of the major Greek cities on the N Aegean. This colony was captured by Sparta, and Brasidas and Cleon were both killed in a battle there in 422 BC After it was returned to Athens in 421 BC, it actually had virtual independence until captured (357 BC) by Philip II of Macedon. He had promised to restore it to Athens, and his retention of Amphipolis was a major cause of the war with Athens. In 148 BC it became the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia. Paul, Silas, and Timothy passed through Amphipolis (Acts 17.1). Nearby is the modern Greek village of Amfípolis."

http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Amphipolis.aspx
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"......Alexander seems to have liked Amphipolis, because one of his last plans was to spend no less than 315 ton silver for a splendid new temple in the city that was to be dedicated to Artemis Tauropolus. It was never built, but after Alexander's death on 11 June 323 in Babylon, his wife queen Roxane settled in Amphipolis, which appears to have become one of the residences of the Macedonian royals. In 179, king Philip V died in the town."

http://www.livius.org/am-ao/amphipolis/amphipolis.html

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Most lifetime issues of Alexander the Great were usualy bulky/thick, which did not alow for the entire design of the die to imprint on the coin. IMO looked better then the wide thin flan.

The coin was hand stuck with a die/avil. Dies were usually made of Bronze because it was sofeter and easier to work with then iron, (though some were made of iron as well) then the was anealed to make it stronger and less brittle.

The planchets were made by pouring molten metal into a mold and saved until needed. When it was ready to be used, they heated it just below melting point and placed it between the dies and the punch die was struck with a hammer.

"Ancient coin Collectinf vol 1"













http://www-scf.usc.edu/~ciccone/html/production.htm

http://www.archaeologystudent.com/coinarch/

 

I just want to say that I am far, far, far, from being an expert, and apoligize for any mistakes.

I was unable to find any info on how many mints were in production at the time, though I'm not saying its unkown.

 

great post!

Coin's not too bad either

 

To find the number of mints functioning at the time, the first place I would look would be Martin Price's catalog of these coins. Its quite expensive, though.

 

Thanks

and thanks (C_c)

thanks wont be able to get it, maybe i can find one at the library

 

It is possible to write such a thing in OpenOffice and export it to an HTML file. Then Open in in firefox and cut and past in in advanced mode into cointalk.

Alternately there is also an editor in firefox.

Ruben

 

Thanks. You can only do your research and write this anotated research. Your a far better expert than I am and I'm sure your effort has provided core knowledge that many people didn't at the time have!

Thanks for everything, all your efforts and this wonderful contest entry.


Ruben

 

I just did to much at once, but next time I will.

Thank you the other entries are very good so I was alost discouraged from making this one, but it was fun and worth it