Ancient Greek and Roman Numismatic

Racked by fratricidal civil wars, and under continuous assault by neighboring states, the Seleucid kingdom continued to produce a circulating coinage in good silver with ruler portraits in fine Hellenistic style almost until its final collapse.  This fourth and final installment of the series covers the period from c. 128 BCE until 64 BCE, when the last remnant of the kingdom in northern Syria became a Roman province. Even decades later, the Roman governors continued to issue silver tetradrachms bearing the image of the Seleucid ruler Philip Philadelphus.

Alexius I Comnenus issued coins with a cross-on-crescent design that has been described as symbolizing the First Crusade or, alternatively, having "no satisfactory explanation." This paper employs historical and numismatic information to interpret the design. The result highlights a dramatic turnabout in Christian-Islamic symbolism.

Su alcune monete greche, oltre ai monogrammi interpretabili come cifre indicanti il numero di pezzi coniati, in alcuni casi vi sono dei segni graffiti dopo la coniazione della moneta che possono essere interpretati sempre come numeri relativi al taglio delle emissioni.

On some Greek coins, in addition to the monograms interpretable as figures indicating the number of pieces minted, in some cases there are graffiti made after the coinage of the coin which can always be interpreted as numbers related to the issue size.

This paper uses ancient geographical, mythological, and literary information to expand the interpretation of the reverse design of a small ancient bronze coin type issued by Ophrynion in Troas. The evidence indicates that the coin shows the infant Dionysos as usually described, but in addition that Dionysos is represented as an impersonator of the Trojan War prince Paris who was also known by the name Alexander, and in local legend may have been exposed as an infant on the steep hill at Ophrynion.

Ancient Greek history and coin types, together with several medieval Byzantine coin types, are used to interpret an Alexius I Comnenus coin design that has been described by a leading authority as having " no satisfactory explanation. " The result highlights a dramatic turnabout in Christian-Islamic symbolism.

Ancient Coin Found to Commemorate Trojan War Hero Pandaros
Robert M. Cutler, 2016
Abstract: An ancient bronze coin reverse of the city-state of Zeleia in Troas shows a geometrical design, sometimes called a monogram, whose significance has long been considered as uncertain. Reconsideration leads to a suggestion based on the Iliad of Homer that the design may represent a famous bow. This was the bow that the Trojan War leader and archer Pandaros used to defend Troy by wounding Menelaus and Diomedes, though the latter eventually slew Pandaros. If this design interpretation is correct, Zeleians retained considerable pride in Pandaros many centuries after his heroics in the supposed Trojan War and after Homer sang about him in the Iliad.

If Alexander Was Great, Why Was He Damned?
Intentionally defaced ancient coins of the damnatio variety are relatively common in the Roman Imperial series but their counterparts in the ancient Greek series are rare. Most of the defaced coins were issued by leaders who were severely disliked, but in a few cases coins of well-regarded rulers are similarly damaged. This paper addresses in particular the defaced coins of Alexander the Great of Macedon.