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Coin: Tetradrachm with Head of Alexander III (obv) and Athena (rev)

Issuing Authority Lysimachus
Culture Greek
Title Coin: Tetradrachm with Head of Alexander III (obv) and Athena (rev)
Date 323–281 BCE
Medium Silver
Dimensions Weight: 0.04 lb.
Credit Line Burton Y. Berry Collection, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University
Accession Number 82.66.26

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About this Work

Description:
Obverse: Head of deified Alexander III, facing right. Reverse: Athena seated, left, with shield and spear, holding Nike. To left, enthroned cult image. In exergue, goat's head, left.

Inscription:
Reverse: to right and left, (Gr.) BASILEÔS LUSIMACHOU.

While in Egypt in 331 BCE, Alexander made a pilgrimage to the oracle of Ammon, an Egyptian god associated with Zeus—and was proclaimed to be the son of Ammon. Alexander promoted focus on this divine lineage, and a generation later, King Lysimachus used the image of Alexander with the ram’s horns of Zeus-Ammon to legitimize his own rule.


Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

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"Coin: Tetradrachm with Head of Alexander III (obv) and Athena (rev) | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=82.66.26