Dear Friends of ancient mythology! About Triptolemos we have heard already in the myth of the Rape of Persephone. The story on this coin is the natural continuation, so to speak. The Coin: Thrace, Perinthos, Severus Alexander, AD 232-235 AE 35, 19.8g, 34.70mm, 180° obv. AV K M AVP CEV - AΛEΞANΔPOC AV bust, draped and cuirassed, seen from behind, radiate, r. rev. ΠEPI - NΘIΩ - N / ΔIC NEΩKO / PΩN Triptolemos, with waving chlamys, standing r. in biga with two winged snakes, joined together, holding reins in l. hand and sowing grain with raised r. hand ref. Schönert pl. 45, 737 (same dies); Varbanov 4072 (same dies) rare, VF, nice green-brown patina Note: In the time after Aurelianus Perinthos was renamed to Heracleia (Thracia) Mythology: We have heard about Triptolemos already in the myth of the Rape of Persephone. He was one of the five sons of king Keleus of Eleusis and his wife Metaneira. Both have admitted Demeter friendly as guest when she was in search of her daughter Persephone, even though she was disguised and they haven't recognized the goddess. When the elder brother of Triptolemos began to critizise her because she caused by thirst was emptying a whole jar of beer, she angrily transformed him into a lizard. To reparate her deed she decided to make him immortal by holding him above a fire. But Metaneira - anaware of this - interrupted the enchantment and her son died. Keleus was breaking out in tears and complained the fate of his sons. Because of that he is called Dysaules too. Demeter consoled him: "Dry your tears, Dysaules, you have still tree sons from whom I will give Triptolemos such abilities that you will forget the loss of your other two sons." Triptolemos had realized Demeter and gave her the crucial advice by which she could finally get her daughter back. Thankfully she teached Triptolemos, his brother Eumolpos and Keleus in worshipping her divinity and in her mysteries. Triptolemos got seed, a wooden plow and a cart dragged by two winged snakes. On the Raric plain in Attica - therefore sometimes called the son of king Raros too - she teached him in the art of agriculture and then sent him over the whole earth so that he could teach all other people. (Ovid Met. V, 450-563) There are additional myths where several times assaults on him were tried. So he came with his snake biga at last to Thracia where he was killed by king Lynkos who was punished by transformation into a lynx. (Ovid Met. V, 62-661) It is said that he has teached the art to built cities. He had an altar on the Raric plane and his own temple n Eleusis. It is said too that he was one of the three judges in the underworld. Background: His name Triptolemos probably means 'three-times-shaker = thorough winnower'. (Note: After threshing the grain it was necessary to separate the chaff from the corn. For this purpose the threshed grain was thrown with forks in the air and the wind blew the chaff sidewards. This is called 'winnowing'.) At the end of the 6th century Triptolemos changed from the prototype of a tiller to the propagator of a rural ethos. With his dragon cart - the same Demeter has too (Ovid fast. 4, 497) - he travel on Italy, Illyria, the land of the Getes and Africa. That corresponds to Attic cultural propaganda. The Orphics made him as son of Okeanos and Gaia a cosmic power and a symbol of the transition from the herdsmen to the peasant culture, the great revolution at the end of the Neolithicum. From these orphic beliefs probably originates his role as judge of the deads (Platon apol. 41a). As propagator of greek culture he remained alive in the hellenistic and Roman culture and often is seen on coins and other depictions. So there is a silver bowl in Aquileia where the campaign of Germanicus against the East is equated to the transmission of Triptolemos. I have added the famous frieze of Triptolemos from Eleusis. Demeter on th l. side hands Triptolemos the sacred grain ears, on the r. side behind him Persephone. This frieze ws located in the Telesterion, the the mysterious big hall in Eleusis Literature: (1) Ovid, Metamorphoses (2) Der kleine Pauly (3) Robert von Ranke-Graves, Greek Mythology Best regards
Wow, Demeter sounds cruel and rather careless of mortals and Triptolemos sounds co-dependent . A fun typo ... I'm fond of provincials featuring Triptolemos. This particular chariot looks very slow. Must've taken him forever to sow a field with these stoner serpents. EGYPT. Alexandria. Trajan AE drachm, 33.5 mm, 22.09 g Uncertain regnal year Obv: [AYT] TPAIANCE BΓEPM∆AKIK; Laureate bust of Trajan to right Rev: Triptolemos in a chariot drawn right by two winged Agathodaemon serpents Ref: Emmett 601; RPC III 4336.4 A couple more Alexandrians. These crews look like they could get the job done faster. EGYPT, Alexandria. Antoninus Pius year 14, CE 150/1 AE drachm, 34 mm, 28.8 gm Obv: Laureate bust of Antoninus Pius left Rev: Triptolemos driving biga of winged serpents right; L IΔ above Ref: Emmett 1683.14 EGYPT, Alexandria. Faustina II Regnal year 14 of Antoninus Pius (150/1 CE) AE drachm, 33 mm, 18.2 gm Obv: draped bust right Rev: Triptolemos, wearing an elephant head cap and chlamys, driving a biga of winged serpents right; LIΔ above Ref: Emmett 2004.14; Dattari 3926 Here his transportation looks more like a wheelchair (and wouldn't that be a wonderful Halloween costume for a paraplegic? ) ATTICA, Eleusis Eleusinian festival coinage 340-335 BC AE16 Obv: Triptolemos, seated left in a winged chariot drawn by two snakes Rev: Pig standing right on mystic staff, bucranium below Ref: SNG Cop 415
Hi TIF! Especially the last depiction is funny. Thank you for it! The typo with "winning" I have corrected. Best regards Jochen
This coin has had a rough life... but I can't say "no" to giant snakes. Marcus Aurelius. As Caesar EGYPT, Alexandria. Æ Drachm. Dated RY 14 of Antoninus Pius (AD 150/1). Bareheaded and draped bust right Triptolemus in serpent biga right L IΔ (date) above. Köln -; Dattari (Savio) 3210 or 3211; K&G 37.45.
Here’s my Triptolemos with Gaia reclining, Caracalla frowinning (or frowning), and I am still not sure what the snakes are doing. Coin From Hadrianapolis, picture from cng.
I dont have snake coins to share, but i love reading your stories . I then end up lost in wikipedia doing more reading about the subject and looking for pictures. This time i ended up reading about the Sea Peoples and the Greek dark ages. So thanks Jochen!
