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Greek Coins :
Archive : Celtic Imitative of Alexander III, the Great
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Celtic Imitative of Alexander III, the Great - C.6178
Origin: Europe
Circa: 325
BC
to 200
BC
Collection: Numismatic
Medium: Silver
Additional Information: Sold
Location: United States
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| Description |
Obverse: Head of Herakles Wearing the Skin of
the Nimean Lion
Reverse: Zeus Enthroned Holding an Eagle and a
Scepter
When we speak today of "Celts," we mean people
who live on the very western edges of Europe, in
Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, Scotland and Brittany.
The word comes from Keltoi, the name which the
Greek authors of the 5th century B.C. and later
gave the native people of Western Europe from
Spain to Czechoslovakia. The Celts also spread
into Britain, Northern Italy, Germany, and parts of
Asian Turkey. They were known to the Romans
as the Gauls, but would have thought of
themselves not as one people, but as different
tribes. Celtic tribes at different times were
Rome's enemies, allies and, once conquered, the
soldiers, farmers and craftsmen of much of its
empire. This coin is highly influenced by the
coinage of King Alexander the Great.
How many hands have touched a coin in your
pocket or your purse? What eras and lands have
the coin traversed on its journey into our
possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull
out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of
who touched the coin before us, or where the
coin will venture to after us. More than money,
coins are a symbol of the state that struck them,
of a specific time and place, whether currency in
the age we live or an artifact of a long forgotten
empire. This stunning hand-struck coin reveals
an expertise of craftsmanship and intricate
sculptural detail that is often lacking in
contemporary machine-made currencies. This
coin is more than an artifact; it is a memorial to a
lost culture passed from the hands of civilization
to civilization, from generation to generation.
- (C.6178)
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