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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Valentinian, post: 4608327, member: 44316&quot;]Here is a large silver tridrachm of Hadrian with an unusual god and his unusual representation:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1141373[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Hadrian, 25-24 mm. 10.30 grams.&nbsp; (Some call it a tetradrachm, but not RPC.)</p><p>Struck at Tarsos, Cilicia (northeast coast of the Mediterranean Sea).</p><p>AVT KAI ΘE TRA ΠAP YI ΘE NER YI TRAI ΔAPIANOC CE&nbsp; </p><p>(mentioning three emperors, Nerva, Trajan, and Hadrian)</p><p>Laureate head of Hadrian right (scratches before)</p><p>TAPCEΩN MHTPOΠOΛEΩC</p><p>The god Sandan striding right on back of a horned lion, the god wears a towered crown with flame on his back, and holds a quiver, scepter, sword, double-axe, and diadem.</p><p>SNG France 2, 1407-9,</p><p>SNG Levante 996</p><p>Prier 767</p><p>RPC II 3266 (16 pieces known to them).</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>CNG says (my coin is the same type, but not from CNG)</p><p>&quot;The cult of Sandan, or Sandas, is a remnant of the 17th century BC Hittite occupation of Cilicia. In his Luwian form he was Teshub, the god of mountain storms. Within the Hittite sanctuary at Yazilikaya he is depicted as a bearded god with conical headdress, holding a club and plant, probably related to the Mesopotamian Tree of Life. Like the rest of the Hittite High Gods, Teshub&#039;s feet never touch earth; he either rides the back of mythological beasts, is borne on the shoulders of lesser gods, or strides above the mountain tops. The mountain tops recall the lofty Hittite homeland, as does the high-peaked cap, and the pyramidal shape of Sandan&#039;s altar. While Sandan&#039;s cult in Tarsos became assimilated with that of Herakles, in his origins as a nature god he is more closely attuned to the Greek king of the gods, Zeus. This depiction of Sandan appears some 2000 years after his first appearance in mythology, yet the similarities to the Hittite original are striking.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>Show us a tridrachm from Tarsos or another old god.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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