Octadrachm (Coin) Portraying Arsinoe II
Description
The purpose of the first portrait coins was to identify the ruler. The front side became a mirror of the sovereign’s self-image. The back was often used to communicate the ruler’s accomplishments or intentions. The profile portrait was used because it suited the very shallow depth and limited surface of the coin. The tiny images were carved by engravers into bronze dies, one for the front and another for the back. The coins were then struck, one by one, in a process similar to how modern coins are created today. In place of human ancestors, some rulers substituted real or mythic heroes or even the gods as their progenitors. On the front (obverse) of this coin Queen Arsinoe (reigned 273/272-270/268 BCE) is portrayed with a tiny horn curled around her ear. The horn was the symbol of the god Zeus-Ammon and implies that the queen was in fact, a goddess on earth. The back (reverse) of this coin depicts a double cornucopia bound with a fillet.
Inscriptions (1)
English description
Cross-references (1)
- ARTIC-id 15477 tier-2
About this record's data
- From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Art Institute of Chicago (Egyptian).
- AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
- Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
- Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.