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Tetradrachm (Coin) Portraying Alexander the Great

A work made of silver.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of silver.

Date:

336-323 BCE

Artist:

Greek; minted in Sidon, ancient Phoenicia

About this artwork

Coinage of Hellenistic Rulers
The Hellenistic period spans the nearly three hundred years between the death of Alexander the Great of Macedonia (323 BCE) and that of Cleopatra VII of Egypt (30 BCE), a descendant of one of Alexander’s generals. The term Hellenistic is derived from Hellas, an ancient Greek word for Greece. It is used to describe both chronologically and culturally the era following Alexander’s conquest of Egypt and Asia, which resulted in the spread of Greek culture across a vast area. The melding of local and Greek artistic styles with the luxurious materials captured in the conquered lands resulted in magnificent artwork, including elegant coinage.

Following Alexander’s death, his empire was divided among his generals, who established independent kingdoms in Egypt; Persia; the eastern coast of the Aegean Sea, including Syria and Palestine; Greece and Macedonia; and Thrace. Almost immediately the generals began to covet each other’s land and power.

Alexander the Great (reigned 336–323 BCE) had an extraordinary impact on much of the world during his relatively short life. By the time he died at the age of 33, he had carefully crafted a reputation that made him seem larger than life, even heroic. In part he accomplished this by claiming that he was a descendant of the great Greek hero Herakles. Here he wears the skin of the Nemean lion, which Herakles killed during the first of his fabled Twelve Labors. Yet the face is Alexander’s, with its distinctively upswept hair and upwardly gazing eyes. Following Alexander’s death, his generals adopted his pose and style on their coinage, and this practice continued for the next two hundred years.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of the Ancient Mediterranean and Byzantium

Culture

Ancient Greek

Title

Tetradrachm (Coin) Portraying Alexander the Great

Place

Syria (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.

336 BCE–323 BCE

Medium

Silver

Inscriptions

Reverse: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ Μ

Dimensions

Diam.: 2.8 cm (1 1/8 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mrs. William Nelson Pelouze

Reference Number

1923.1150

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/9696/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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