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Lysimachos Tetradrachm

297–281 BC　・　silver　・　3rd century BC　・　King Lysimachos of Thrace

Lysimachos Tetradrachm（obverse）Lysimachos Tetradrachm（reverse）
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1905) / Public domain

The obverse shows a right-facing profile with horns on the head. The Metropolitan Museum of Art describes this as a portrait of Alexander. The seated figure on the reverse is identified as Athena in the museum's description.

On this type of coinage, the goddess of victory, Nike, is depicted on Athena's hand. This iconography can be confirmed by the records of another specimen at the British Museum. The connection between the ram's horns and Zeus-Ammon, and the significance of Alexander's portrait being used by his successors, are topics to be explored by consulting further sources.

The accession number for the piece shown is 05.44.430. According to the museum's records, it dates from 297–281 BC, has a diameter of 2.7 cm, and a weight of 17.01 grams. These are the records for this specific specimen, not the dimensions for all coins of the same name.

Basic Information

Type of coin
Issuing authorityKing Lysimachos of Thrace
Period297–281 BC
Materialsilver
Face valueTetradrachm
The specimen photographed
CollectionThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Accession number05.44.430
Open collection recordThe Metropolitan Museum of Art →
PhotographerThe Metropolitan Museum of Art
Terms of UsePublic domain
Diameter27mm
Weight17.01g

What can be seen from this one piece

  • 表には右向きの横顔があり、頭部に巻いた角の形が見える。　Observations from the photo
  • 裏には座る人物と、差し出した手の上の小さな像が見える。　Observations from the photo
  • 裏の人物の左右に、縦に並ぶ文字が見える。　Observations from the photo
  • 所蔵館は、表の横顔をアレクサンドロス、裏の座る人物をアテナと説明している。　Verified from sources Open material →
  • 同じ貨幣種の別個体では、大英博物館が、アテナの手の上の像をニケと説明している。　Verified from sources Open material →
  • アレクサンドロスの肖像とゼウス・アモンの関係、後継者による肖像の利用は、研究文献で考察されている。　Verified from sources Open material →

Another specimen of the same type

The British Museum　1919,0820.1　Open collection record →

This is another specimen of the same type. The dimensions and details are for this specimen and differ from the one in the photograph above.

Source

About this page

Checked against collection records：2026-09-08　Last revised：2026-09-08