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Octadrachm (Coin) Portraying Queen Arsinoe II

A work made of gold.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of gold.

Date:

After 270 BCE, issued by King Ptolemy II or III

Artist:

Greek, Ptolemaic; probably minted in Alexandria, Egypt

About this artwork

Obverse: Head of Arsinoe II wearing stephane and veiled to right, tip of Ammon horn visible below ear
Reverse: Double cornucopia full of fruit, bunch of grapes hangs from each side; tied with fringed fillet

Queen Arsinoë II, the daughter of Ptolemy I and the sister-goddess-consort of Ptolemy II, is honored on this coin. Under her veil is revealed the ram horn of the Egyptian god Amun, a mark of pharaonic royalty. This coin was issued posthumously.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of the Ancient Mediterranean and Byzantium

Culture

Ancient Greek

Title

Octadrachm (Coin) Portraying Queen Arsinoe II

Place

Alexandria (Minted in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

270 BCE

Medium

Gold

Inscriptions

Reverse: ΑΡΣΙΝΟΗΣ ΦΙΛΑΔΕΛΦΟΥ

Dimensions

Diam.: 2.9 cm (1 3/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Martin A. Ryerson

Reference Number

1922.4934

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/5779/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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