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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Magnus Maximus, post: 4195035, member: 73473&quot;]Seleucus I was arguably the most successful of the Diadochi in the years after Alexander III&#039;s death. Seleucus started his career out as a captain an elite infantry unit, the hypaspistai, and accompanied Alexander in his campaigns to Persia and India. Seleucus was a small fry in the power negotiations between Alexander&#039;s generals in wake of the great conquer&#039;s death in 323 BCE. In gratitude for helping eliminate Perdiccas in 321, Seleucus was granted lucrative satrapy of Babylon. Unlike most Macedonian satraps, Seleucus treated the local population with reverence and respect. Seleucus accomplished this by honoring the local priest class and gods. In addition, Seleucus&#039;s wife Apama, was Sogdian royalty (an Iranian ethic group), which no doubt helped his position with the locals.</p><p><br /></p><p>After a second round of civil war between the Diadochi, Seleucus was forced to flee to Egypt to the court of Ptolemy I Soter. After assisting Ptolemy in his war with Antigonus in Syria, Seleucus was given Ptolemy&#039;s blessing to retake his old Satrapy. Babylon offered no resistance and Seleucus entered the city as a liberator. Seleucus himself dates the foundation of his Kingdom to this event in 312 BCE. After subduing the eastern satrapies and making a deal with the Indian King Chandragupta Maurya to exchange Elephants for Indian territory; Seleucus turned his attention to the West.</p><p><br /></p><p>Seleucus allied himself with Ptolemy, Lysimachus, and Cassander against Antigonus I in 301 BCE. The alliance won a spectacular victory, partially due to Seleucus&#039;s elephants, and Antigonus was killed. In 281 BCE, Seleucus and Lysimachus faced off in a final confrontation for control over Asia Minor and Greece. Seleucus won the subsequent Battle of Corupedium which saw Lysimachus perish and Seleucus become the most powerful man in the world. It should be noted that at the Battle of Corupedium both monarchs were in their late 70&#039;s and were the last officers alive who had served under Alexander the Great a whopping 42 years earlier.</p><p><br /></p><p>I suppose that with every other original Diadochi dead, Seleucus by definition &quot;won&quot; the <i>Wars of the Diadoch</i>i in 281 BCE. Unfortunately for Seleucus, he was soon murdered by a disgruntled son of Ptolemy I Soter, who himself was beheaded by the Celts in an invasion of Greece in 279 BCE.</p><p><br /></p><p>Seleucus&#039;s son, Antiochus I Soter, would hold together most of his father&#039;s realm and assure the Seleucid dynasty lasted an additional 2 centuries.</p><p><br /></p><p>Seleucus himself dates his empire&#039;s founding in 312 BCE, and minted an array of coins to celebrate his reign. The minting of Alexander III tetradrachms continued, as did the issue of the local Stater issues of Babylon. Babylon would remain the capital of Seleucus until 305 when Seleucus founded Seleucia on the Tigris.</p><p><br /></p><p>One of my numismatic goals is to put together a complete set of Seleucid tetradrachms/staters of each King. It will not be easy nor cheap, but what&#039;s life without a little challenge!</p><p><br /></p><p>So, without further delay:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1076655[/ATTACH]</p><p><b>SELEUKID EMPIRE. Seleukos I Nikator. </b>312-281 BC. AR Stater (22mm, 15.89 g, 11h). Ba’al seated left, holding scepter / Lion walking left; anchor above. SC 88.2a; HGC 9, 67a. Area of weak strike, some porosity. VF. Babylon mint.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>An artist&#039;s beautiful depiction of Babylon.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1076656[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>A bust of Seleucus I</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1076657[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Kingdom of Seleucus I before the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1076660[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The Kingdom of Seleucus I after the battle of Ipsus I</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1076665[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>A very detailed video of Seleucus&#039;s life</p><p>[MEDIA=youtube]hInfliCNWv0[/MEDIA]</p><p><br /></p><p>Fun fact:</p><p>There is a moon crater and an asteroid named after Seleucus.</p><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3288_Seleucus" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3288_Seleucus" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3288_Seleucus</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Please post your Seleucid coins!!!![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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