Seleukid Portraits on Non-Seleukid Coins
Cappadocian Coins in the Name of Antiochos VII
| Identification Number CA7-AR-02 | |
| Ruler: | probably either Ariarathes VI1 or his widow Laodike (in the time of her regency)2 or Ariarathes VII3 |
| Mint: | uncertain Cappadocian mint |
| Period: | c. 130 - c. 104 BC4 |
| Denomination: | AR Tetradrachm |
| Weight: | 16.44 g |
| Diameter: | 28 - 29 mm |
| Obverse: | Diademed head of Antiochos VII right, partially visible decoration on the end of the diadem; fillet border |
| Reverse: | ‘ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ’ right, ‘ΕΥΕΡΓΕΤΟΥ’ left (“of King Antiochos the Benefactor”); Athena Nikephoros (“carrying victory”) standing and facing left, holding Nike in right hand who faces left, and resting left hand on shield with a human face, spear propped against her left arm; ‘ΔΙ’ monogram above ‘Α’ in outer left field; faint ‘Φ’ in inner right field; laurel wreath border |
| Die Position: | 0º |
| References: | the same reverse type as Houghton, CSE, 266 - 267; Newell, SMA, 292; SNG Spaer, 1865 - 1866 |
| Note: | The decoration on the end of the diadem tie seems to be a Cappadocian detail. Similar patterns appear on some coins in the name of Ariarathes V (a little square panel containing a cross in the shape of an “X” with tassels at the very end). The attribution of this issue and its dating are based on Catharine C. Lorber’s and Arthur Houghton’s preliminary study of this early Cappadocian coinage in the name of Antiochos VII (Lorber, personal communication).5 |
| Identification Number CA7-AR-01 | |
| Ruler: | Ariarathes VII3 |
| Mint: | uncertain Cappadocian mint, probably Ariaratheia6 or Eusebeia-Tyana7 |
| Period: | c. 104 - c. 102 BC |
| Denomination: | AR Tetradrachm |
| Weight: | 16.62 g |
| Diameter: | 29 - 30 mm |
| Obverse: | Diademed head of Antiochos VII right; fillet border |
| Reverse: | ‘ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ’ right, ‘ΕΥΕΡΓΕΤΟΥ’ left (“of King Antiochos the Benefactor”); Athena Nikephoros (“carrying victory”) standing and facing left, holding Nike in right hand and resting left hand on shield with a human face, spear propped against her left arm; Nike facing right and crowning royal epithet; ‘ΔΙ’ monogram above broken-bar ‘Α’ in outer left field; ‘Ο’ in inner left field and ‘Λ’ in inner right field; laurel wreath border |
| Die Position: | 0º |
| References: | Lorber and Houghton, Cappadocian Tetradrachms in the Name of Antiochus VII, Series 1 - Issue 3 (obverse die A6); Newell, SMA, 298; SNG Spaer, 1872 - 1874; Klassische Münzen, stock No. 801085 (same dies) |
| Note: | The attribution of this issue to Ariarathes VII and its dating are based on Lorber’s and Houghton’s study Cappadocian Tetradrachms in the Name of Antiochus VII (with an Appendix of quantitive analyses by Petr Veselý). |
1 Ariarathes VI Epiphanes Philopator, King of Cappadocia, son of Ariarathes V and Nysa, reigned c. 130 - c. 110 BC (his regnal dates are not certainly known).
2 Laodike, wife of Ariarathes VI and sister of Mithridates VI, King of Pontos. After Ariarathes VI’s death (murdered by a Cappadocian agent of Mithridates VI), Laodike briefly ruled the kingdom. During this period the kingdom was seized by Nikomedes III, King of Bithynia, who afterwards married Laodike.
3 Ariarathes VII Philometor, King of Cappadocia, son of Ariarathes VI and Laodike (sister of Mithridates VI, King of Pontos), reigned c. 110 - c. 99 BC (his regnal dates are not certainly known).
4 The period between the death of Ariarathes V and an inauguration of other types of Cappadocian tetradrachms in the name of Antiochos VII (see coin No. CA7-AR-01).
5 My warmest thanks to Catharine Lorber for very helpful discussion and information.
6 Cappadocian city about 60 km east of Eusebeia-Mazaca.
7 Cappadocian city located at the northern foot of the Taurus range near the border of Cilicia. A powerful military fortress and a prosperous commercial center as early as the 5th century BC.