Obverse: head of Alexander the Great with ram’s horns and a diadem, to right.
Reverse: Athena seated on a throne, to left, holding in her extended right hand a little winged Nike. Her left rests on her shield, which bears a lion head, the emblem of Lysimachos. She wears a Corinthian helmet and her spear stands at her right side. In the field left and right of the figure is the inscription ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ (of King Lysimachos). Beneath the Nike is a monogram, and in the exergue the letter K. The Nike holds a stephane (wreath) with which she crowns the first letter of the name. Pella mint.
Read moreLysimachos was the only one of the Successors who, in most of his short reign, struck coins solely with the portrait of Alexander. Despite the great number of scattered mints, the iconography of Lysimachos’ coins remained unchanged and uniform, beginning in 297/6 B.C. with his first issues. On the obverse, the head of the deified Alexander adorned with the royal diadem and the ram’s horns, declaring his divine nature as son of Zeus Ammon. On the reverse is Athena enthrod. She holds the Nike who crowns the name of the king, thus, according to many scholars, signifying the support of the goddess to Lysimachos in his victory in the battle of Ipsus in 301 B.C.
In contrast to thematic uniformity, there are many variations in the rendition of the features of Alexander on the coins, reflecting the artistic currents in the different workshops of Hellenistic times. The engraver of the coin in the Canellopoulos collection, using clarity of line and smooth flat surfaces with gradual transitions, by means of unruly hair and a deeply penetrating expression, manages to create an idealistic portrait that shows at the same time the aspect of pathos that characterized the great warrior.
D. Sourlas
