Lot 1246
Parthian Kingdom. Mithradates I. Silver Tetradrachm (15.62 g), 164-132 BC. Seleukeia on the Tigris, circa 141/0 BC. Diademed and draped bust of Mithradates I right. Reverse: BAΣIΛEΩΣ MEΓAΛOY APΣAKOY ΦIΛEΛΛHNOΣ, youthful Herakles standing left, holding skyphos and club; in exergue, monogram. Sellwood 13.2; Shore 35. Very Rare. Dark, original patina. NGC grade Ch VF; Strike: 4/5, Surface: 3/5. Scratches. Estimated Value $1,000 - UP
This very rare tetradrachm is interesting in several ways. First and foremost is the style of the engraving, which is magnificent for a coin struck at the periphery of the Hellenistic world. This can be attributed to the fact that it was struck at Seleukeia on the Tigris, which Mithradates I had just captured from the Seleukids in 141 BC. Being a major Greek metropolis, the mint employed talented artists, which Mithradates used to engrave the dies for his tetradrachms, and so the engraving was of fine Hellenistic style and depicts the Parthian king with a powerful and quite handsome bearded portrait. Likewise, the reverse takes its inspiration from Greek coinage: it shows the Greek hero Herakles, holding his famed club and lion's skin. The type serves to compare the demigod to Mithradates, and the surrounding legend names him as ΦIΛEΛΛHNOΣ ("Friend of the Greeks"), which was used to appease the Greek inhabitants living under his rule in his newly conquered territories.
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