Hercules & Omphale, Queen of Lydia

A fresco found in Pompeii on 20-Feb-1851 in the "House of the Prince of Montenegro" in the oecus on west side of atrium, adjoining the tablinum. A drunken Hercules with Omphale and cupids who are stealing his club. Cut from the wall and taken to Naples Archaeological Museum. Image source: Wikimedia Commons.

I recently picked up an AE coin of Lydia with an image of Herakles on the obverse and a lion on the reverse. Herakles has an interesting connection to Lydia. According to Greek myth, Hermes sold Herakles into slavery to the Queen of Lydia, Omphale. This was a sort of penance urged by the ORACLE at Delphi for the killing of Iphitus. It was also held that Heracles was both slave and lover to Omphale and thus the rulers of Lydia were descended from Herakles.

“…Hermes sold Hercules, and he was bought by Omphale, daughter of Iardanes, queen of Lydia, to whom at his death her husband Tmolus had bequeathed the government. Eurytus did not accept the compensation when it was presented to him, but Hercules served Omphale as a slave, and in the course of his servitude he seized and bound the Cercopes at Ephesus; and as for Syleus in Aulis, who compelled passing strangers to dig, Hercules killed him with his daughter Xenodoce, after burning the vines with the roots.”
- Apollodrus, Library 2.6.3

Lydia, Akrasus, AE 13, 1.66 g, Pseudo-autonomous issue, c. 2nd-3rd century AD, near the time of Septimius Severus' reign
Obv: Bearded head of Herakles right wearing lion skin around neck
Rev: AKPAC-IΩ-TΩN, lion standing right
Ref: SNG Cop 3, BMC 10.8
Notes: for more on this coin, see: Herakles, Slave to Omphale, for more on pseudo-autonomous coins, see The Votive Deposit in Field 49.

This appears to be a very rare coin and it is impressively well engraved, struck, and well preserved. I have found 4 other examples of this coin including the one listed in wildwinds which is from the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF) (same dies as my coin). This coin is by far the best of type.

Similar pseudo-autonomous coins were minted by or for other cities of Lydia:
Apollonis, Attalea, Bagis, Gordus-Julia, Hyrcanis, Magnesia ad Sipylum, Saitta, Sardis, Silandos, Thyatira

Ovid takes the story of Omphale & Herakles a step further, enjoying the idea of big, strong Heracles as subservient to the barbarian Queen, with Omphale dressing Herakles in her clothes.

“While the attendants were making ready the viands and the wine for the wassail, she arrayed Alcides [another name for Hercules] in her own garb. She gave him gauzy tunics in Gaetulian purple dipped; she gave him the dainty girdle, which but now had girt her waist. For his belly the girdle was too small; he undid the claps of the tunics to thrust out his big hands.”
-Ovid, Fasti, 303

Artists have had fun with this image through centuries. This opening image is a fresco from 1st century Pompeii and many other paintings that can be found with an internet search of "Herakles and Omphale painting".

Share your coins of Herakles or Hercules, pseudo-autonomous coins of Lydia, or anything else you find interesting or entertaining.

 

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Great coin @Sulla80! Amazing detail on the lion for such a little bronze, that’s a beauty.

This bronze of Herakles and Omphale from Lydia is one of my favorites...she is wearing Herakles’ lion skin and holding his club.



Lydia, Maeonia. Pseudo-autonomous issue. AE Hemiassarion (18 mm, 2.92 g), time of Trajan, 98-117 AD. Head of Herakles to left. Rev. [MAIO]NΩN, Omphale standing right, wearing Herakles' lion skin and holding his club. RPC IV.2 online 1325.

 

A fabulous coin with her carrying his club!

 

Love the stories of Hercules, I always invision him as the stereo typical dumb jock. But thats the beauty of Greek hero's and gods they are by no means perfect.
Here's my contribution


Septimius Severus, AE22 of Anchialus, Thrace. 5.0g Obv: AY K Λ CE CEYHΡOC, laureate head right Rev:AΓXIAΛEΩN, Herakles standing right, strangling the Nemean lion. Ref:Varbanov 165.

 

Extremely fine example @Sulla80!

Rough surface on this one with Tranquilla and Herakles.
Ionia, Smyrna. Tranquillina AE22 Diassarion. Herakles
Obv: ΦOYΡI TΡANKYIΛΛEINA C, draped bust right, wearing stephane.
Rev: CMYΡNAIΩN Γ NEΩKOΡΩN, Herakles, naked, standing left, holding kantharos, lion-skin and club.

Interesting bust of Herakles on this Pseudo-autonomous.

Thrace, Byzantium. Pseudo-autonomous AE17. Hercules/Club of Hercules Obv: Head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin.
Rev: Club of Hercules. BYZANTIWN.
E. Schönert-Geiss. Griechisches Münzwerk: Die Münzprägung von Byzantion dates this coin to the second century AD.

 

My favorite Hercules-themed coins are those of this husband/wife pair.


Septimius Severus, AD 193-211.
Roman provincial Æ 18.6 mm, 4.37 g, 7 h.
Moesia Inferior, Marcianopolis, AD 193-211.
Obv: ΑV Κ CΕΠΤΙ CΕΥΗΡΟC Π, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Rev: MAPKIA-NOΠOΛITΩ-N, Herakles standing left, wrestling the Nemean lion.
Refs: AMNG I 585 v.; Varbanov 710; Moushmov 397; H&J 6.14.14.5-6; Mionnet Suppl. 2, 126.



Julia Domna, AD 193-217.
Roman provincial Æ 16.8 mm, 4.33 g, 1 h.
Moesia Inferior, Marcianopolis, AD 193-211.
Obv: IOVΛIA ΔO-MNA CEB, bare-headed and draped bust right.
Rev: MAPKIANOΠOΛITΩN, Herakles standing right, wrestling the Nemean lion.
Refs: AMNG I 606; Varbanov 673; Moushmov 419; SNG Copenhagen --; SNG Budapest --.

Club of Herakles!


Septimius Severus, AD 193-211.
Roman provincial Æ assarion, 16.0 mm, 2.51 g, 1 h.
Moesia Inferior, Nicopolis ad Istrum.
Obv: ΑV Λ CΕVΗΡΟC, laureate head right.
Rev: ΝΙΚΟΠΟΛΙ ΠΡΟC ΙC, club.
Refs: AMNG I 1425; Moushmov 970.

Herakles and his club after he was done with the Nemean lion.


Caracalla, AD 198-217.
Roman provincial Æ 28.3 mm, 13.70 g, 8 h.
Thrace, Serdica, AD 198-217.
Obv: AVT K M AVP CEVH ANTΩNEINOC, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust, right, seen from behind.
Rev: ΟVΛΠΙΑC CΕPΔΙΚΗC, Hercules standing right, forearm draped with lion skin, holding club set on ground and bow.
Refs: Ruzicka Serdica 266; Moushmov Serdica 397; Moushmov 4912; Varbanov 374; cf. BMC 3.173,15.

And it seems everyone has one of these roaches!


Gordian III AD 238-244.
Roman AR Antoninianus, 5.52 g, 23.2 mm, 2 h.
Rome mint, 4th officina, 8th-11th emissions, AD 240-243.
Obv: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate and draped bust, right
Rev: VIRTVTI AVGVSTI, Hercules standing right, right hand on hip, left holding lion's skin and resting on club set on rock
Refs: RIC 95; Cohen 404; RCV 8670; Hunter 71.

 

An interesting, pseudo-autonomous, labor of Herakles type from Saitta, Lydia:

Saitta Lydia, 3rd century AD : Ae Hemiassarion (19mm, 3.9gms)

Obv: CAITTAI; Turreted and draped bust of Tyche right
Rev: CAITTHNΩN; Herakles advancing right, head left, holding club over his shoulder and dragging Kerberos behind him (twelfth and final labor)

 

Phokaia El Hekte 387-326 BC Obv Head of Omphale wearing Lion skin headdress left club behind below seal anepigraphic. Rv Quadripartite incuse square. Bodenstedt 107 2.51 grms 11 mm Photo by W. Hansen It is interesting to see that the myth of Omphale resonated with the mint masters of Phokaia as they chose to place her image on a coin. My suspicion as to how this image can be differentiated from those of a beardless Herakles such as those found on the contemporary coinage of the Kingdom of Macedon is that in this case the lionskin headdress looks rather more like a typical veil worn by women and seen on many contemporary coins. Her story and image survives as it is the classic example of role reversal in the ancient world and conjured up many times most famously when Octavian's propagandists where commenting on the perceived similarities in the relationship between Cleopatra and Marc Antony.

 

Excellent Heraklean coins, all. @Roman Collector, I see the appeal of the paired Septimius and Julia. With so much lion wrestling it seems that this coin should make an appearance.

C. Poblicius Q.f., 80 BC, AR Serrate Denarius, Rome mint
Obv: ROMA, Helmeted and draped bust of Roma right; B above
Rev: C POBLICI Q F, Hercules standing left, strangling Nemean Lion; club at his feet; bow and arrows in quiver in left field; B above
Ref: Crawford 380/1; Sydenham 768; Poblicia 9

@Terence Cheesman, a stunning coin as always and thanks for connecting Cleopatra. Propertius writing late first century BC - born ~50 BC - draws clear connections.

"Omphale, the Lydian girl bathing in Gyges’ lake, gained such a name for beauty that Hercules who had established his pillars in a world at peace, drew out soft spinner’s tasks with hardened hands."

and he goes on describing the awfulness of Cleopatra, leading to the thought:

"What was it worth to have shattered Tarquin’s axes, whose life branded him with the name of ‘Proud’, if now we had to endure this woman? Celebrate a triumph Rome, and saved by Augustus beg long life for him!"
- Propertius, Elegies, III.11

Fifth king of Rome, Tarquin's tyrannical reign motivating the end of the monarchy. I am curious about the timing of the stories connecting Anthony-Cleopatra / Herakles-Omphale and how the telling of the story of Herakles may have evolved with the story of Cleopatra and Mark Antony.

 

i've never positively id'd this one..but its gotta a lion(?) on the reverse..

 

C. Poblicius Q.f., showing Roma on the obverse and Hercules strangling the Nemean lion on the reverse, his club below, and his bow and quiver to the left.

 

That is a simply fantastic coin, @Sulla80! I love that story about Herakles and Omphale. One like @Shea19's marvelous example is on my want list.

In keeping with the tone of that fresco with the falling down drunk Herakles, here's one of my favorite provincials...


SEVERUS ALEXANDER
AE25. 6.37g, 25mm. TROAS, Alexandria Troas, circa AD 222-235. RPC Online temp #3987 var. (obv legend); Bellinger A335. O: IM AR ƧE AΛEXANDROS, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right. R: COL AV-G TROA, drunken Herakles stumbling right, an arm around the shoulder of Pan to his right, a satyr on his left holding his hand and another behind him supporting (or restraining) him with both arms.