A Third Century Hoard of Tetradrachms From Gordion / Dorothy Hannah Cox

1953
PHILADELPHIA
PUBLISHED BY
MUSEUM MONOGRAPHS
DOROTHY HANNAH COX
THE UNIVERSITY MUSEUM
A THIRD CENTURY HOARD
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
OF TETRADRACHMS FROM GORDION
Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google
TABLE OF CONTENTS
page
ABBREVIATIONS v
CATALOGUE \
CONCLUSIONS 16
KEY TO GORDION INVENTORY ..... 20
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
MAP OF ASIA MINOR ri
PLATES I TO Vm ............................. 21
ERRATUM
Page 19, line 3 from end of text For "well ; read "wal1.'
111
ABBREVIATIONS
AJN American Journal of Numismatics
ANS -, American Numismatic Society Collection
BMC British Museum Catalogue
ETN Formerly E.T.Newell Collection
Hunter Col1. George Macdonald, Catalogue of Greek Coins in the Hunterian Collection, University
of Glasgow, Glasgow, 1899-
JIAN Journal international d'archeologie numismatique.
Muller, Alexander L. Muller, Numismatique d'Alexandre le Grand. Copenhagen, 1855.
Muller, Lysimachus L. Muller, Die Munzen des thracischen Konigs Lysimachus. Copenhagen, 1858.
NC Numismatic Chronicle.
Newell, Andritsaena E. T. Newell, Alexander Hoards III: Andritsaena. (NNM, No. 21). 1923.
Newell, Demanhur Edward T. Newell, Alexander Hoards II: Demanhur, 1905 (NNM, No. 19). 1923-
Newell, Demetrius E. T. Newell, The Coinage of Demetrius Poliorcetes, 1927.
Newell, ESM E.T. Newell, Coinage of the Eastern Seleucid Mints, from Seleucus I to Antiochus III.
New York, 1938.
Newell, Reattribution. E. T. Newell, Reattribution of Certain Tetradrachms of Alexander the Great.
1912. (Reprinted from: American Journal of Numismatics, XLV, (1911), pp. 1-10, 37-45, 113-125,
194-200; XLVI (1912), pp. 22-24, 37-49, 109-116.
Newell, WSM E.T. Newell, Coinage of the Western Seleucid Mints. New York, 1941.
NNM Numismatic Notes and Monographs of the American Numismatic Society.
SNGD Sylloge nummorum graecorum, Danish National Museum: The Royal Collection of Coins and
Medals. Macedonia. Copenhagen, 1943-
SNGF Sylloge nummorum graecorum, Vol. IV. Fitzwilliam Museum: Leake and General Collections.
Part II: Thrace. London, 1947.
SNGL Sylloge nummorum graecorum, Vol. III. The Lockett Collection. Part III: Macedonia Aegina.
ZfN Zeitschrift fur Numismatik.
IU
Q- OJ
A THIRD CENTURY HOARD OF TETRADRACHMS FROM GORDION
During the excavations at Gordion sponsored by the University Museum of the University of
Pennsylvania in the spring of 1951, a hoard of 114 silver tetradrachms1 was uncovered. These were
found in a small unpainted pot buried in the foundations of a house. The jug was cracked, and as it
fell apart, the coins remained in a solid corroded mass, only one or two falling away before they had
been subjected to a long process of cleaning. All the coins are in a highly crystallized state, and
the surfaces of many are badly eroded. As is usual with crystallized silver, the weights of the coins
are much under normaI. In addition to suffering from erosion the majority of the coins are further dis-
figured by test punches and gashes. Those from Syria and the East are, in general, more brutally
mutilated than those from Anatolia.
THE COINS
Inscribed PHILIP, c. 320 B.C.
Susa or Ecbatana
1. obv.: Herakles' head r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: $IAIIHI0Y Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on high-backed throne; legs parallel,
r. leg visible in front of 1.; feet on foot-stool; (3 in 1. field; monogram under
throne illegible.
26 mm., 15.77 gms. I
2. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in ex., BA2IAEQ2; name at r. and monograms illegible.
25 mm., 16.15 gms. / From same reverse die as one in ANS-ETN with M. (Muller,
Alexander, No. 129X From uncertain mint.
Through the kind permission of the Turkish government, the coins were sent to America on a year's
loan for exhibition at the University Museum. There they underwent some further cleaning and the
photographs on the accompanying plates were made by the Museum's photographer, Mr. Reuben Goldberg.
The pot is a squat, one-handled jug of unrefined brownish clay 0.116 m. high, 0.117 m. in diameter,
with short neck and trefoil lip. It is painted with a carelessly applied micaceous slip.
I wish to express my very sincere thanks to Mr. Sydney P. Noe, who made it possible for me to com-
pare the coins in this hoard with those in the American Numismatic Society's Collection. Many of the
specimens there are unpublished, or if published, are without attribution to a mint, or are listed according
to Muller's now somewhat obsolete classification. By having access to the trays of coins and casts, I
was able not only to find parallels, but in some cases, from labels written by Mr. Newell, to discover to
what mints he had assigned them, at least tentatively. The suggestions found there are here followed.
COX: GORDION HOARD Uuseam Monographs
V*
Inscribed ALEXANDER
Amphipolis, 328/7 B.C.
3. obv.: Head of Herakles r. wearing lion's skin.
rev.: AAE3ANAP0Y Zeus Aetophoros seated L; in 1. field caduceus.
27 ram., 16.18 gms. / (Newell, Demanhur, No. 614-656).
Amphipolis or Uranopolis, c. 300 B.C., and later.
4. obv.: Herakles' head r., in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: AAEEANAPOY Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on backless throne, his right foot drawn
back; in 1. field, A over racing-torch; under throne, m over star; border of dots.
26 ram., 16.60 gms. (SNGL, PL XXVH, No. 1443).
5. 061;.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but t under throne.
26 mm., 16.53 gms. - (Hunter Coll., VoI. I, p. 300, No. 39).
6. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but cantharos under throne.
25 mm., 16.38 gms. / (SNGF, PI. XXXVH, No. 2108, 2109; SNGD, PI. XVII, No. 697).
7. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field, obelisk with star above and X below; under throne, O over P.
27 mm., 15.88 gms. / (SNGD, PL XVII, No. 708).
Unidentified Macedonian Port, Mid-Third Century B.C.
8. obv.: Similar.
rev.: AAESANAPOY Zeus seated on throne with back; in 1. field, dolphin; below throne pr;
in ex., At.
27 mm., 16.07 gms. \ Similar coins are in various collections; one from same obverse die.
is in Athens, and examples from the same reverse die in Vienna and Berlin.
Sinope, c. 250 B.C. or later.
9. obv.: Herakles' head r. in lion's skin.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 on r. AAESANAPOY on 1. Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on backless
throne; in 1. inner field, M over SI; above his r. arm, aplustre; under throne O over i.
28 mm., 16.25 gms. | (Cf. Newell, "Alexandrine Coinage of Sinope," AJN (2nd ser.), 1918,
p. 121 and PL II, No. 33).
Black Sea District, Uncertain Mint. Last Quarter of Third Century.
10. obv.: Similar, border of dots.
rev.: Similar, but high-backed throne, no distinguishing marks.
32 mm., 16.05 gms. | The arrangement of the inscription places this in the Black Sea dis-
trict. This coin is overstruck on an earlier coin, from which the letters 2IAE are still
visible to the r. on the reverse. The original tetradrachm may have been of similar type,
or possibly a Seleucid coin was used as flan.
Pergamon (?), c. 300 B.C.
11. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but Zeus on high-backed throne; A above racing torch above 2 ; beneath
throne, bust of Athena 1.
25 mm., 16.40 gms. t (See p. 11, below for attribution to this mint).
CATALOGUE
Assus, after c. 228 B.C.
12. obv.: Similar, no border of dots.
rev.: Similar, but in I. field, griffon 1.
34 mm., 15-05 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 928).
Sigeium, after 228 B.C.
13- obv.: Siirilar.
rev.: Similar. Owl stg. 1. in 1. field.
32 mm., 15-59 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 651). Since Babelon and Newell (WSM,
pp. 349 f-) assign coins of Antiochus Hieraz to this mint on the basis of the owl as
symbol, we may well suppose this a later product of the same mint.
Tenedos, Second Half of Third Century.
rev.: Similar, border of dots; double-axe in 1. field.
29 mm., 16.19 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 1128; SNGD, PI. 18, No. 749).
15. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar. No symbol in field.
29 mm., 14.95 gms. t Obverse from same die as SNGD, PI. 18, No. 749-
Mytilene, c. Last Third of Third Century.
rev.: Similar, no border of dots; in 1. field, T over lyre.
29 mm., 14.15 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 976, ANS-ETN).
Erythrae, c. Last Quarter of Third Century.
17. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, bow and quiver above W; *> under throne.
32 mm., 16.26 gms. t (C/1 Muller, Alexander, Nos. 999-1004).
Magnesia-on-the-Maeander, after c. 240/1 B.C.
rev.: Similar, in 1. field, M; in ex., maeander pattern.
30 mm., 15-79 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 1077). The similarity in style of this ob-
verse and of the heads of Antiochus II from Magnesia (Newell, WSM, PI. I.XIII, Nos. 5-7
supports Newell's view (WSM, p. 290) "that during the fratricidal wars waged between
Seleucus II and Hierax, Magnesia had finally secured permission to strike autonomous
types only." The sentence refers to small denominations, but I think, should be under-
stood to include "Alexanders" as well, autonomous by reason of the symbol in the ex-
ergue.
Miletus, Third Century.
19. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, Hi.
30 mm., 15.68 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 1055).
20. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, border of dots; in 1. field Cl over star above lion; under throne, A.
30 mm., 15.42 gros. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 1034).
COX: GORDION HOARD Museum Monographs
Miletus, Third Century. (Cont'd.)
21. obv. and rev.: Similar.
30 mm., 15-95gms. t
No. 19 was struck in Miletus in the later years of Demetrius Poliorcetes (Newell,
Demetrius, p. 62). Nos. 20 and 21 show little change in style and are probably from the
mid-third century.
Phocea, after c. 228 B.C.
22. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, no border; in 1. field 1*1 over seal r.
30 mm., 15.78 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 984). Same dies as PI. LXXXV, A in
Newell, WSM.
Chios, c. Last Quarter Third Century.
23. obv.: Similar, no border.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, sphinx seated r. above P); under throne, W.
33 mm., 15.98 gms. t (Muller, Alexander, No. 1098).
Lycia and Phamphilia, Uncertain Mints.
24. obv.: Herakles'head r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: AAESANAPOY Zeus seated 1. on diphoros; in I. field, X
32 mm., 15.74 gms. / ANS.
rev.: Similar, in 1. field, tA .
30 mm., 15-93 gms. t
26. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but Zeus seated on throne with a back; in 1. field At over c.
31 mm., 15.72 gms. t
Amathus, after c. 323 B.C.
27. obv.: Head of Herakles r. wearing lion's skin; border of dots. Countermarked with head
of Demeter r., K in front.
rev.: Illegible. Zeus seated 1. on diphoros; in 1. field, prow r.; under throne, t.
26 mm., 15.75 gms. t (Newell, Demanhur, No. 2703/7; Reattribution, PI. XXX, No. 11).
The countermark is that of Kallatis, which Friedlander (Z/7V, IV (1877), p. 340) men-
tioned as occurring frequently on coins of Alexander. A fine illustration of the stamp on this
coin appears in Pick (Die Antiken Munzen Nord Griechenlands, I1, PI. I, No. 19). There the
K before the head is quite clear. On the coin here described the K was struck over two test
punch marks, and is barely visible.
Aradus, c. 230 B.C. and later.
28. obv.: Herakles'head r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: Illegible. Zeus seated 1. on high-backed throne; in 1. field, palm-tree; under throne,
A.
26 mm., 15.94 gms. 1 (Rouvier, "Numismatic des villes de la Phtnicie", /IAN, in (1900),
p. 143, Nos. 70, 71).
So little of the exergue is visible that it is impossible to say whether the die was dated
or not. This coin, however, and the following are probably to be dated after 230 B.C. since
at that time dies hinged in this position were introduced at the Aradus mint. (G.F. Hill,
"Notes on the Alexander Coinage of Phoenicia", Nomisma, IV (1909), p. 3).
CATALOGUE
Aradus, c. 230 B.C. and later (Cont'd.)
29. obv.: Similar, more florid style.
rev.: Similar, illegible, traces of date in exergue.
28 mm., 16.08 gms. t (Cf. Ibid., PI. Z, 3)-
Aradus, 218/17 B.C.
30. obv.: Similar, careful workmanship.
rev.: Similar; Zeus seated with feet on footstool; in 1. field, A above palm tree; in ex.,
31 mm., 15-99 gms. t The date and the variety, with both monogram and tree in 1. field,
are, I believe, unpublished.
Byblus, Last Quarter of Fourth Century
31. obv.: Head of Herakles r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: AAEEANAPOT Zeus seated 1., feet on footstool; in 1. field, A; border of dots.
27 mm., 14.89 gms. t (Newell, Demanhur, Nos. 3624-3652).
32. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, illegible.
28 mm., 16.15 gms. t (/bid., somewhat later than preceding).
Marathus, c. 316-301 B.C.
33- obv.: Similar
rev.: BA2IAEXffi AAEEANAPOY Zeus seated 1. on high-backed throne, r. leg in front of 1.,
feet on cushion; in 1. field inverted anchor and ET; under throne, E; border of dots.
26mm., 16.08 gms.
34. obv.; Similar
rev.: Similar, but under throne, A.
27 mm., 14.68 gms. / (Muller, Alexander, No. 1495). (Newell, WSM, p. 194, PI. XLffl, I;
Muller, Alexander, No. 1496).
Babylon, after c. 317 B.C.
rev.: Similar; traces of wreath in 1. field.
28 mm., 15.63 gms. / (Cf. Muller, Alexander, No. 71 Off., and Newell, Andritsaena, No. 83).
Uncertain Mints
36. obv.: Head of Herakles r. in lion's skin.
rev.: AAESANAPOY Similar; in 1. field, A; no border.
26 mm., 15.84 gms. t Phoenician or Eastern mint, or imitation?
37. obv.: Head of Herakles r., border of dots.
rev.: Illegible. Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on high-backed throne. No symbols or letters
visible.
29 mm., 14.74 gms. t Edge rotted away.
38. obv.: Similar.
rev.: AAESANAPOY Simflar; in 1. field, Q.
29 mm., 15.92 gms. t
This reading has been confirmed by Dr. F. Rosenrhal of the University of Pennsylvania.
Uncertain Mints (Cont'd.)
39. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, At.
29 mm., 15.98 gms. |
40. obv.: Similar.
rev.: AAESANAPOY Zeus seated 1. on high-backed throne, in r. Nike r. bearing wreath;
in 1. field, 9 above lion's skin draped on club; under throne, illegible mono-
gram.
29 mm., 15.88 gms.
Coins of Seleucus I with Zeus Nikephoros are not uncommon, especially in Mesopotamia
and Syria and the type also occurs at Sardis, but I know of no other tetradrachms of the type
with obverse of similar style.
41. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but Zeus holding eagle; in 1. field. A; in ex., f" ?
29 mm., 15.49 gms. t
rev.: Similar; in ex., E.
29 mm., 15.58 gms. t
Asia Minor, Uncertain Mints, after 250 B.C.
43. obv.: Head of Herakles r. wearing lion's scalp.
rev.: AAEEANAPOT Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on diphoros; in 1. field, Ut.
30 mm., 15.12 gms. 1 c. one-eighth broken away. Coins from same dies in the museums
at the Hague and in Vienna.
rev.: Similar. Zeus seated on diphoros; in 1. field fore-part of free horse 1. above T.
30 mm., 15.66 gms. I This coin is more typically Pamphylian in style than No. 25 above.
Termessos in Pisidia is not known to have had any coinage prior to the first century
B.C., yet it is tempting to attribute this tetradrachm to that city. The symbol and initial
are appropriate. The roads leading north from Phaselis and Aspendus ran through the
valley below Termessos before branching off to the west to Laodicea and to the east to
Apamea. This, particularly the western route, was the main line of trade for which the
Alexanders were probably destined (see p. 18 below). Termessos in the third century was
a rich city, so prosperous that it founded a colony near Oenoanda in Lycia (David Magie,
Roman Rule in Asia Minor, Princeton, 1950, p. 265).
45. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, no distinguishing marks.
35 mm., 15.32 gms. I Similar coin in ANS-ETN.
46. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar.
31 mm., 15.95 gms. I
This coin differs from all the other Alexanders in the hoard in the position of Zeus' r.
foot which is here pushed back under the seat of the throne. The only parallels which I
find for the leg in a similar position is a tetradrachm of Sardis (NC, 1883, PI. I, No. 4) and
one from Priene (Regling, Die Munzen von Priene, Berlin, 1927, PI. II, No. 34). Neither
shows any marked similarity to the specimen from Gordion.
Barbarous Imitations.
47. obv.: Head of Herakles r. wearing lion's skin; border of dots.
CATALOGUE
Barbarous Imitations. (Cont'd.)
rev.: Barbarous inscription. Zeus seated 1. on high-backed throne; in 1. field meaning-
less lines within wreath; border of dots.
26 mm., 14.75 gms. \ Peculiarly flat fabric, possibly copy of coin of Babylon, No. 178
above and SNGF, PI. XXXVHI, No. 2136.
48. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, S.
28 mm., 15.87 gms. / Copy of a coin from an Eastern mint. (Cf. SNGD, PI. XXII, No. 849).
49- obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar. Zeus seated 1. on diphoros; in 1. field, w; border of dots.
26 mm., 15.89 gms. t
50. obv. and rev.: Similar.
26 mm., 16.00 gms.
No. 49 seems a slightly earlier variety than No. 50. On the former an attempt is made to
represent the body of Zeus in perspective; on the latter, a copy of a copy, the head and legs
are in profile, the torso in full frontality. A similar coin from the Newell Collection is illus-
trated in Rostovtzeff's Social and Economic History of the Hellenistic World, Vo1. I, PI. LXVII,
Fig. 4, and ascribed to the Celtic tribes of the Danubian region. From the presence of the
two examples, Nos 124 and 142 in this hoard it seems more probable that these barbarous
coins were produced by the Celts in Asia Minor, the Galatians. In fact the majority of the
imitations from this hoard are probably Galatian rather than Danubian since they seem to be
copies of coins from Eastern mints which would be found more commonly in Phrygia than on
the banks of the Danube.
ANTIGONUS I (306-301 B.C.)
Antioch-on-the-Orontes.
51. obv.: Head of Herakles in lion's scalp r.; border of dots.
rev.: AAEEANAP0Y Zeus Nikephoros seated 1. on high-backed throne; in 1. field, M
27 ram., 15.93 gms. \ (Newell, WSM, p. 84, No. 1- Weber Collection, No. 2134).
MACEDON
DEMETRIUS POLIORCETES (306-283 B.C..)
Chalcis, c. 290-287 B.C. or later.
52. obv.: Head of Demetrius r., diademed and horned; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAEG2 AHMHTPIOT . Poseidon stg. 1., foot on rock; in 1. field, O; to r., rtl.
29 mm., 15.83 gms. I (Newell, Demetrius, p. 138, No. 151).
On the specimen known to Newell the monogram in the left field was illegible; here too it
is very worn and may possible be the same as that above the club on his No. 147 from this
mint. The very fine preservation of this tetradrachra is due largely to the exceptionally high
relief and the deep concavity of the reverse. These very characteristics together with other
considerations of style and size of flan preclude any possibility of attributing the coin to a
later date, i.e. the reign of Demetrius II. Yet for that ten years of great military activity no
gold or silver is known unless, as is probable, some variety of one of the following types in-
scribed BAZIAEA2 ANTirONOT is to be so dated.
ANTIGONUS GONATAS (277-239 B.C.)
53. obv.: Macedonian shield, head of Pan on boss.
rev.: BA2IAES2 ANTirONOY Athena Alkidemos5 striding I., in her raised r., fulmen, on
her 1. arm, shield; in 1. field Macedonian helmet; to r., monogtair, w (?).
30 mm., 16.62 gms. (Gaebler: Die antiken Munzen Nord-Griechenlands, IIIz, Makedonia
und Paionia, (Berlin, 1935) p. 186, No. 1.
ANTIGONUS DOSON (229-220 B.C.)
54. obv.: Head of Poseidon crowned with sedge to r.
rev.: Apollo seated 1. on prow; inscribed BA2IAEQ2 ANTirONOY; in ex., A.
32 mm., 15.15 gms. t (Hunter Coll. I, p. 340, No. 1).
55. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar.
30 mm., 14.69 gms. t
It is now generally agreed that, as Imhoof-Blumer (Monnaies grecques, p. 129) suggested,
the tetradrachms with Macedonian shield and Athena were inaugurated by Gonatas after the
battle of Lysimacheia in 277, the type with Athena to right antedating those with Athena to
left. The type with head of Poseidon and Apollo seated on a prow he thought commemorated
the battle of Cos and were struck immediately after that victory. Both types show a wide
variety in style indicative of an output extending over several decades. The first issues after
the battle of Cos had a trident as symbol (op. cit. No. 64); of definitely later style are those
with the monogram tin. The suggested sequence was: Macedonian shield, rev. Athena to r.;
Head of Poseidon, rev. Apollo on prow, symbol, trident; Macedonian shield, rev. Athena to 1.;
Head of Poseidon, rev., Apollo on prow, later issues. All of these Imhoof-Blumer dated in the
reign of Gonatas. Gaebler (op. cit. p. 187 following Tarn, Antigonus Gonatas, 1913, p. 463)
thought both series continued down into the time of Antigonus Doson. No. 115, on grounds of
preservation, fits well into the period Imhoof-Blumer suggested, the later years of Gonatas,
after c. 250 B.C. Both Nos. 54 and 55 are in splendid condition and must, as Gaebler and Tarn
agree, be from the reign of Doson. Head earlier believed the type originated with Doson after
his victorious naval expedition against Caria in 228 B.C.; it now seems more probable that that
occasion inspired its revival. The hoard offers no evidence on a final date for the striking of
the shield-type tetradrachms, nor on whether any were minted after the time of Antigonus Gon-
atas.
Coins of LYSIMACHUS
Amphipolis (c. 323-281 B.C.)
56. obv.: Head of Alexander r., wearing ram's horns.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 AY2IMAXOY Athena Nikephoros seated 1. on throne, shield at her side;
in 1. inner field, 4; to r., lff .
28 mm., 16.43 gms. / (ANS and Muller, Lysimachus, No. 543).
Sestus (c. 323-281 B.C.)
57. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, under Athena's arm, ivy leaf.
27 mm., 15.58 gms. v (SNGD, Thrace, PI. XXIII, No. 1128; ANS-ETN).
5Thr Athena has been so identified by Mrs. Agnes Baldwin Brett in an interesting discussion of the type
"Athena Alkidemos of Pella," in the American Numismatic Society Museum Notes, IV, 1950, pp. 55 tf.
CATALOGUE
Lampsacus, 323-281 B.C.
58. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, in 1. inner field, hf; in ex., crescent 1.
27 mm., 15.35 gms. t (ANS-ETN).
59. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, in 1. inner field, At; in ex., crescent 1.
29 mm., 15.75 gms. t (ANS-ETN).
c. 286/5 B.C.
rev.: Similar, to 1. in outer field, herm; in inner 1. field, .
31 mm., 15.90 gms. I (ANS-ETN; Miiller, Lysimachus, No. 91).
61. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, in inner 1. field M over crescent 1.
31 mm., 15.78 gms. | (ANS; Miiller, Lysimachus, No. 395).
62. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, in inner 1. field, indistinct symbo1.
30 mm., 15.48 gms. t (Similar to 61).
Cius, Posthumous
rev.: Similar, in 1. outer field club downwards, in ex., TT and bow in case.
30 mm., 14.10 gms. t Broken parts of edge missing. (Miiller, Lysimachus, No. 419).
Cyzicus (?), Posthumous
rev.: Similar; in 1. inner field caduceus, N on throne; tunny in ex.
30 mm., 14.87 gms. t (cf. Miiller, Lysimachus, No. 111).
Pergamon, c. 323-300 B.C.
rev.: Similar; l in 1. inner field; in ex., crescent 1.
28 mm., 15.67 gms. t This is attributed to Pergamon on the marked similarity in style of
the obverse to coins in the ANS allotted this city and to the presence of the crescent in
the exergue.
Magnesia-on-the-Maeander, c. 323-281.
rev.: Similar; in inner 1. field, filleted racing torch; in ex., maeander pattern.
27 mm., 16.19 gms. t (ANS-ETN; cf. Miiller, Lysimachus, No. 444).
Uncertain Mints
67. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in ex., fl.
29 mm., 15.70 gms. t
rev.: Similar; in inner 1. field, 1 .
29 mm., 15.62 gms. t
10 COX: GORDION HOARD Museum Monographs
69. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in inner 1. field, ! .
30 mm., 16.04 gms. t (ANS; Muller, Lysimachus, No. 521).
The small reverse type found on the three preceding coins is characteristic of posthumous
Lysimachi from Thrace. Similar coins are in trays of the American Numismatic Society and at-
tributed to the mints of Byzantium, Heracleia and Maroneia.
70. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; no distinguishing marks, and Athena holds no spear.
29 mm., 16.35 gms. t
71. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. field, 9 ; in ex., hr .
30 mm., 15.66 gms. t (ANS and Muller, Lysimachus, Nos. 310, 311).
72. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, in inner 1. field, E>; in ex., SI .
31 mm., 14.33 gms. t (ANS-ETN, cf. Muller, Lysimachus, No. 454).
73. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, no distinguishing marks.
31 mm., 16.15 gms. t (plated)
BITHYNIA
PRUSIAS I, c. 238-183 B.C.
74. obv.: Head of Prusias I r., diademed.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 DP0T2I0Y Zeus stg. 1. crowning the name of the king; in 1. field,
thunderbolt above MH over ANC.
33 mm., 14.08 gms. I ; broken; almost one-fourth missing. (Waddington, Recueil giniral
des monnaies grecques, etc., I2, pp. 219 f.).
PERGAMON
EUMENES I (263-241 B.C.).
75. obv.: Head of the deified Philetaerus r., laur.
rev.: $IAETAIP0T Athena enthroned to 1. crowning the name, 1. arm resting on shield;
in outer 1. field, cornucopiae; in inner 1. field, tfl; in r. field, bow.
28 mm., 16.25 gms. t (BMC, Mysia, p. 117, No. 42).
ATTALUS I (241-197 B.C.)
76. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in 1. outer field, ivy leaf; in inner 1. field, A; in r. field, bow.
30 mm., 15.28 gms. t (BMC, Mysia, p. 116, No. 35).
The mint at Pergamon has been dealt with ably and extensively.6 The early years of the
third century have been discussed by Newell and the sequence of the coins with the name
6Newell, The Per&amene Mint under Philetaerus,(NNM, No. 76), 1936. Imhoof-Blumer, Die Munzen der Dynas-
tic von Pergamon, Berlin, 1884. von Fritze, "Autonome Pragungen von Pergamon" in Corolla Numismatica
in Honour of Barkley V. Head, 1906.
CATALOGUE 11
Philetaerus as originally proposed by Imhoof-Blumer has been generally accepted. Of the two
coins from the latter series in this hoard, one fits admirably into the accepted chronology; the
other calls for radical rearrangement. From c. 300-281 B.C. coins of Lysimachus were struck
at Pergamon. No. 204 may well be one of these. From c. 281-280, there are tetradrachms of
Seleucid types; obv.: horse's head; rev.: elephant; c. 280-274, Alexander types with name of Seleu-
cus; and c. 274-263, tetradrachms with head of the deified Seleucus and on the reverse the name of
Philetaerus.
Eumenes I on his accession, may, as Newell implies, have continued this type or may
have changed immediately to the type with the deified Philetaerus. In any case, the similarity
of the reverses (Imhoof-Blumer, PI . I, No. 6, 7) makes it certain that this was the next type
issued by the mint. Imhoof-Blumer argues most convincingly from the character of the reverse:
the attitude of the Athena and the position of the spear, behind her feet, that his Nos. 8-12
must be from immediately subsequent issues closely followed by Nos. 13 and 14, which he at-
tributes to Attalus I. No. 76 of this hoard, with the spear still behind Athena's foot, but with
A already under her right arm, a new variety, falls logically between Imhoof's Nos. 13 and 14.
The fairly good preservation of the coin agrees well with the date assigned it, the early years
of Attalus I.
The stumbling block is raised by No. 75 (Imhoof-Blumer, No. 23, from Class A, VI, BMC,
Mysia, No. 42) attributed to Eumenes II, 197-139 B.C. The wear on this coin equals that found
on the average coin of Antiochus I and II from the hoard. We shall have occasion to show
that the hoard cannot have been buried much later than 210 B.C., the latest datable coins be-
ing from the early years of Antiochus III and a brilliant specimen from Aradus dated 218/217.
A much worn coin of Eumenes II in the same hoard is, therefore, out of the question. This can
only be a coin of Eumenes I, and we may well return to the earlier interpretation of the mono-
gram ^1 as the name of the ruler, Eumenes I. It might be added that monograms so clearly in
the genitive are rare. The evidence does not warrant7 moving all of the coins now attributed
to Eumenes II to the reign of Eumenes I, only those with the monogram tf. Fourteen speci-
mens of these were known to Imhoof-Blumer, an ample coinage for this reign.
In spite of the difficulty of upsetting Imhoof-Blumer's logical arrangement of the reverse
types, the new sequence which the composition of this hoard has forced us to adopt has two
advantages. First, the removal of these pieces from Eumenes II to Eumenes I does something
to correct a weakness inherent in Imhoof-Blumer's work. The lion's share of the known vari-
eties of the regal coins are there attributed to the reign of Eumenes II, although he himself
pointed out that during that reign the mint struck cistophori as wel1.* This seems an over-
abundance of coins for that forty-year period when compared with those allotted the previous
reigns during which only regal coins were struck. To the equally long reign of Attalus I, Im-
hoof gave fewer varieties, but those were apparently from large issues of which numerous spec-
imens have survived. To the twenty-year rule of Eumenes I, however, a remarkably meager
production was accorded. An increase of coins for that active reign produces a more credible
balance.
The second point concerns the obverse types. The head of the deified Philetaerus on
tetradrachms with the monogram $1 (Imhoof-Blumer, op. cit., PI. I, 13, PI. II, 14 and 15) and
No. 75 from this hoard shows the neck stretched forward and an over-heavy jaw characteristic
of the initial issues with this portrait (Ibid., PI. I, 6, 7).9 On the other hand, the coins of
Attalus I (Ibid., PI. I, 8, 9) bear idealized portraits, the neck upright and the great chin re-
duced to more normal proportions. The new sequence for the obverses is logical and supported
by considerations of style. To account for the reverses, one must suppose a die-cutter active
under Attalus chose an early type as a n odel for his reverse.
While discussing the coinage of Pergamon, the possibility of assigning another of the Gor-
dion coins to that mint should be mentioned. No. 11, a coin with name and types of Alexander,
can be dated in about 300 B.C. The obverse is compatible in style with the head of Herakles
on the anonymous gold stater described by von Fritze (op. cit., p. 49i PI. II, 8; also Luynes
We can draw no confirmatory support from similar tetradrachms in other boards. The only coins attributed
to Eumenes II in other hoards have other monograms, e.g., Wace, "Unpublished Pergamene Tetradrachm,"
JIAN, 1903, pp. 140-148, describing part of a hoard from Rhodes.
Imhoof-Blumer added Alexanders to the output of the mint at that time; this seems doubtful.
There are other coins with the prognathic head, but this is not the place to discuss them.
12 COX: GORDION HOARD Museum Monograph,
Col1. PI. XCIII, No. 2493), and dated in this period. The high-backed, narrow throne of the
reverse and the symbol of the Athena head (not bust as on No. 11) reappear in similar form
on Alexander types in the name of Seleucus I (cf. Imhoof-Blumer, op. cit., PI. III, Nos. 20,
21 and Newell, WSM, PI. LXVIII, Nos. 11, 12), produced at this mint some twenty years
later. After Philetaerus' break with Lysimachus, what would be more natural than to use
as a prototype of the new coins, an earlier coin from the home mint?
THE SELEUCEDS
ANTIOCHUS I (280-261 B.C.)
Seleucia-on-the-Tigris, c. 278-274 B.C.
77. obv.: Head of Antiochus I r.; border of dots. .
rev.: BA2IAEQZ ANTIOXOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos holds arrow and bow; in 1.
field, A; to r., l-f; border of dots.
28 mm., 15.69 gms. | (Newell, ESM, No. 149).
ANTIOCHUS I or II
Uncertain Mint
78. obv.: Similar, but without borders of dots.
rev.: Similar, but N in 1. field.
28 mm., 15.71 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1632. Same dies).
ANTIOCHUS II (261-246 B.C.)
Aegae, Aeolis
79. obv.: Head of Antiochus I r., diademed; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAE&2 ANTIOXOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in inner 1. field, goat's
head to 1.; in ex., IT1 4 .
29 mm., 15.83 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1513. Same dies).
Antioch, c. 256-246.
80. obv.: Diademed head of Antiochus II r., border of dots.
rev.: Similar to 79; in 1. field, K ; in r. field, Al . .
28 mm., 15.51 gms. t (Newell, WSM, 976, obv. die - 976 ). I
Seleucia-on-the-Tigris, c. 255-246 B.C. '
81. obv.: Diademed head of Antiochus I r.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 ANTIOXOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in L field, * ; to r., m .
28 mm., 15.95 gms. t
82. Similar.
29 mm., 15.08 gms. t (Newell, ESM, No. 189).
83. Similar, but monograms tfi and & .
28 mm., 15.90 gms. t (Newell, ESM, p. 70, No. 188).
* CATALOGUE 13
Uncertain Mint
84. obv.: Youthful head r., diademed.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 ANTIOXOT Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in 1. field, NE; in r. field,
ft .
28 mm., 15.80 gms. t
SELEUCUS II
Sardes, c. 246-245 B.C.
85- obv.: Diademed head of Seleucus II r.
rev.: BA2IAES2 2EAETK0T Apollo stg. 1. leans on tripod; ir inner 1. field, At over N
(very worn).
30 mm., 15.52 gms. I (cf. Newell, WSM, No. 1416).
86. Similar, but monograms (3 over At.
27 mm., 16.3 gms. / (Newell, WSM, No. 1417).
On none of NewelPs illustrations does the upturn of a diadem ribbon show.
Antioch, c. 228-226/5 B.C.
87. obv.: Similar, with border of dots.
rev.: Similar, but in outer 1. field 2. and in outer r., Y .
29 mm., 16.30 gms. 1 (Newell, WSM, No. 1021).
88. 29 mm., 15.47 gms. t (Part of edge broken away). From same pair of dies.
Apamea
89. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in outer 1. field rX and to r., I over O.
28 mm., 15.97 gms. I (Newell, WSM, No. 1153|3).
Nisibis, 240-230 B.C.
90. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in outer 1. field, * and to r., .. .
28 mm., 15.30 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 814).
91. obv.: Diademed head of bearded Seleucus r.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field $ ; no monogram at r.
26 mm., 16.52 gms. t Unpublished.
The head is similar to the bearded heads of Seleucus at the Nisibis mint. Cf. PI. VIII
of WSM; No. 2 on that plate being the closest paralleI.
Hecatompylus or Artacoana (246-226 B.C.)
92. obv.: Diademed head of Seleucus r.
rev.: Similar, but border of dots and in outer 1. field A and in r. field, E .
29 mm., 15.67 gms. t Unpublished. Obverse die same as Newell, ESM, No. 744, PI. LIV,
12).
Uncertain Mints
rev.: Similar, no border; in inner 1. field A 5 above A.
94. obv.: Similar, no border visible.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field, A ; monogram to r., illegible.
28 mm., 16.36 gms. I Unpublished. A coin of this reign from the Ephesus mint (Newell,
WSM, No. 1490) has the same monogram in 1. field, but there seems no other similarity
between the two.
ANTIOCHUS HIERAX, 241-228/7 B.C.
Alexandria Troas, c. 235-228/7 B.C.
95. obv.: Youthful head of Hierax r.,wearing winged diadem.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 ANTI0X0T Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in outer 1. field, M over
K ; in ex., horse feeding r.
33 mm., 15.32 gms. t (C/l Newell, WSM, No. 1580).
The obverse is same die as PI. LXXIV, 7, but the reverse is new, the form of the upper
monogram different.
96. obv.: Similar, but older head.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field + over 3 ; in ex., horse 1.
31 mm., 15.96 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1588) Same dies.
97. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. inner field above r. arm of Apollo, M; in 1. outer field, N; in ex.,
horse 1.
33 mm., 15.95 gms. t Unpublished. The obverse is very similar to Newell's No. 1591,
which he places as next to the last in his series. This coin must be from almost the
final Seleucid issue of the Alexandria Troas mint. Here the monograms are placed in the
field as they appear on a subsequent issue with the name of Alexander (Ibid., PI. LXXV,
A).
Magnesia ad Sipylum (241-228 B.C.)
98. obv.: Diademed head of Antiochus Hierax, r.
rev.: BASIAESffi ANTI0X0T Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in ex., two uncertain sym-
bols.
29 mm., 16.37 gms. I (Cf. Newell, WSM, No. 1462). The obverse is from the same die
as Newell's coin, (PI. LXI, 10); the reverse is new. The symbol to 1. in the exergue on
that coin is incomplete, but similar to the symbol at 1. on the Gordion coin. The symbols
here are very crude; by a stretch of the imagination they may be interpreted as Zeus
Lydios and a bunch of grapes, both types found on early bronzes of Magnesia.
Sardes (c. 241-228 B.C.)
99. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar; in outer 1. field H; in r. field, 3 .
28 mm., 15.91 gms. I (Newell, WSM, No. 1430).
SELEUCUS HI (226/5-223 B.C.)
Antioch
100. obv.: Head of Seleucus III r., diademed; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAES22 2EAETK0T, Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in 1. field $; in r., >
CATALOGUE 15
Antioch (Cont'd.)
101. nbv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but with addition of rose below monogram in 1. field.
Seleucia-on-the-Tigris (226/5-223/2 B.C.)
102. obv.: Head of Seleucus II r., diademed; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 2EAEYKOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in 1. field, M; to r., * .
28 mm., 16.17 gms. t (Newell, ESM, No. 216). Same dies as PI. XVII, 15, where die-
cutter omitted arrow in hand of Apollo.
Laodicea ad Mare, c. 230-223 B.C.
103. obv.: Herakles' head to r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAE&2 2EAEYKOY Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on high-backed throne, r. leg
drawn back; in 1 field, dolphin over W; under throne, At.
31 mm., 14.82 gms.
104. obv.: Same die.
rev.: Same die.
30 mm., 16.09 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1225 and p. 187). The surface of No. 103 has
been badly attacked by crystallization, but No. 104 is very fresh and must be dated close
to the time of Antiochus III.
Susa (226/5-223/2 B.C.)
105. obv.: Head of Herakles r. in lion's skin; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 2EAEYKOY Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on high-backed throne, r. leg
in front of 1.; in 1. field, -Ft; under throne, At.
27 mm., 16.63 gms. \ (cf. Newell, ESM, No. 377). The worn state of this coin does
little to confirm the date assigned it, but careless striking and test gashes contribute to
its battered appearance.
ANTIOCHUS HI (223-187 B.C.)
Antioch, c. 223-213 B.C.
106. obv.: Diademed head of Antiochus III r.; fillet border.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 ANTIOXOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; monograms in 1. field illeg-
ible, mostly off flan.
28 mm., 16.32 gms. t (Cf. Newell, WSM, No. 1045).
107. obv.: Similar, same die.
rev.: Similar, but in I. field, over Tf .
28 mm., 16.41 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1046). Two gashes on obverse; three punches
on reverse; unexpected signs of wear.
108. obv.: Similar, no border visible.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field, .
29 mm., 15.97 gms. t (Newell, WSM, No. 1051). This comes at the end of Newell's
Series I or close to 213 B.C. Marred only by some crystallization on the obverse, the
condition of the coin is brilliant. It can have seen little circulation before the burial of
the hoard.
109. obv.: Head of Antiochus III r., diademed; border of dots.
rev.: BA2IAEQ2 ANTIOXOY Apollo seated 1. on omphalos; in 1. field, A; to r. W (the
Laodicea ad Mare, c. 223-215 B.C. (Cont'd.)
rho off flan).
110. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in 1. field A; monogram to r. eroded except for initial down stroke.
29 mm., 16.25 gms. - (Cf. Newell, WSM, No. 1236). As second in Newell's series for
these years, this variety should fall between 215 and 210 B.C.
Seleucia-cn-the-Tigris, c. 223-221 B.C.
111. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, of crude workmanship; monograms crudely written; in 1. field, f; tor., X.
27 mm., 16.12 gms. t (Cf. Newell, ESM, No. 220, 221). A somewhat barbarous issue, dur-
ing the troubles with Molon. The reverse die was cut by a local artist who substituted the
native compound bow for the familiar arc.
112. nbv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, with border of dots; in I. field 4>; to r., w ; in ex., ift .
28 mm., 16.30 gms. - (Cf. Newell, ESM, No. 240).
PERGA, after c. 218 B.C.
113. obv.: Head of Artemis r., quiver at her shoulder; border of dots.
rev.: APTEMIAO2 IIEPrAIAS to r. and 1. of Artemis stg. 1. holding wreath and scepter, stag
at her side; border of dots. No distinguishing marks.
30 mm., 16.20 gms. t (Cf. BMC, Lycia, etc., p. 119, No. 1).
114. obv.: Similar.
rev.: Similar, but in r. outer field, herm.
30 mm., 15.42 gms. t (Weber Collection No. 7335). Different dies.
Of all of the coins in this hoard, which we have called "third century," these two coins
are perhaps the greatest surprise. Perga, unlike the neighboring cities of Aspendus and Side,
was not an ancient mint. The exact time and occasion which led to the opening of the mint can-
not be definitely placed. The year 218 B.C. seems a suitable time. In that year Perga, situated
at a strategic point on roads leading to other Pamphilian towns, opened its gates to Achaeus and
served as his general headquarters while he sent out envoys to other cities; it also supported
him in his attack on Side. In return, he no doubt conferred some lasting benefit on the city (sub-
sidy and right of coinage?), for Perga became a faithful Seleucid ally. Some years later its com-
mandant held out against the Romans until authorized by Antiochus to surrender.
CONCLUSIONS
In the list of coins from this hoard it will be noted that there are but two tetradrachms dated c.
213 B.C. or later. Of the seven coins for Antiochus HI, five are from the years 223-213 B.C. and two,
215-205 B.C. (according to Newell's dating). The only coin with a legibly inscribed date is No. 30 from
Aradus, from the year 218/7 B.C. The splendid condition of this piece, with almost no sign of wear,
shows that it can have been in circulation only a few years. On the evidence of the coins of Antiochus
III and the Aradus tetradrachm, the burial date of the hoard must be close to 210 B.C. Little is known
CONCLUSIONS 17
about the detailed history of Gordion. There was perhaps at this time a minor raid on the place of which
we have no record. The size of this unclaimed deposit suggests that the owner was a merchant. Pos-
sibly the money was stowed away while he went off on other business, perhaps to join or supply the mer-
cenaries whom Prusius levied to aid Philip in his war against Attalus at about this time.10 Even if the
burial of the hoard is pushed down to 189 B.C., when we know Gordion was abandoned and the Romans
entered and found it filled with treasure, all the major problems in dating remain.
With the early second century as a burial date for the hoard, the spread-flan posthumous Alex-
anders included in it must be from the third century and not, as so long assumed, second century coins
struck after the battle of Magnesia. The year 229/8 B.C. seems the most probable date for a large scale
re-introduction of the Alexander type to Asia Minor. In that year Attalus I gained a decisive victory
over Antiochus Hierax and with it control over northwest Asia Minor. "Emboldened by his successes,
he regarded himself as the equal of his former suzerains, the Seleucids, assumed the title of king and
started to transform the former Mysian dynasteia into a Pan-Anatolian basileia (228)."n This kingdom
he created not so much by any real expansion of territory as by contracting alliances. Many cities for-
merly part of the Seleucid domain were now recognized by Pergamon as free and allied to her, though, as
Magie points out, there is no reason to believe they paid tribute to her. Attalus was eager to stimulate
trade for Pergamon among these cities, and for western Asia Minor with Syria and Mesopotamia on the
one hand and with Greece and Macedon on the other. For this purpose a uniform and widely accepted
currency was necessary. He fostered the idea of the cities' adopting a single recognized type struck on
a single standard, that of the Attic tetradrachm, a coin acceptable to all the divers peoples with whom
he hoped to trade. He may also have been interested in finding nearby markets for his silver.13
With the loss of most of Asia Minor to Achaeus in 220 B.C., the cities formerly allied to Pergamon
were no longer free to strike coins. Alexander tetradrachms of Alexandria Troas, Sigeium and Phocea are
rare and these eight or nine years are more than ample to account for the few known specimens; in fact,
the rarity of these pieces suggests an even shorter period for their output. But if the life on the Alexan-
ders was relatively brief in Troas and Mysia, the idea of producing a pan-Anatolian currency was not a
failure. Some of the cities taking part in the original experiment under Attalus I continued minting the
type, and at some later date, probably after 200 B.C. (after 189 B.C.?) similar Alexanders were struck in
abundance by cities widely separated and outside the sphere of influence of Pergamon, e.g. Rhodes and
Kallatis on the Black Sea, and were used in trade with the East. Certainly the composition of hoards
buried during the Seleucid period proves that "Alexanders" of Asia Minor were the standard commercial
coin of the second century in Mesopotamia and Syria.
The idea of using Alexander types was no innovation. In some Asia Minor cities the type had
persisted, perhaps intermittently, since the time of Alexander. The mint of Miletus had been producing
Alexander-type tetradrachms since the time of Demetrius I15 or before. Magnesia-on-the-Maeander also
reissued "Alexanders" before 228 B.C. and, like Miletus, its coins may have been one of the reasons
for the general re-adoption of the type, not the result of a new policy. The posthumous Alexander tetra-
drachm from Magnesia in this hoard, No. 18,16 judging by its style, certainly antedates the last quarter
of the third century. The coins from these cities cannot be called "late Alexanders"; as the words are
here used they refer specifically to the tetradrachms of which the thin, spread flan is characteristic.
These two cities, moreover, lay to the southwest away from the line of trade for which the late great
general revival of the type seems to have been intended.
Broad-flanned Alexanders were introduced at some time subsequent to the striking of the Mag-
nesia and Miletus coins of the hoard and apparently on two occasions. With the labor group (Muller's
Only secondary sources are referred to in this ten. This paper makes no pretense of being historically
thorough; its aim is merely to interpret the evidence of the coins themselves. A study of primary sources, even a
more thorough search of the secondary material, might well reveal some incident in the history of Gordion which
would account for the burial of this hoard and fix its date. Such a study will also no doubt produce other evidence
for the following discussion.
Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History of the Hellenistic World, Oxford, p. 555.
David Magie, Roman Rule in Asia Minor, p. 101.
Rostovtzeff, op. cit., p. 637, who sensed some connection between these Alexanders and Pergamon, imputes
this motive to Eumenes II when discussing these posthumous issues, which he dated in the second century. He
also notes that the Seleucids early lost their control of the mines around Mount Ida, which became the property of
the Icings of Bithynia, Pergamon, Pontus and Cappadocia ("Remarks on Seleucids and Attalids," in Anatolian
Studies Presented to William Hepburn Buckler, Manchester, 1939, p. 289).
14Eli Bikerman, Institutions des Seleucids, Paris, 1928, p. 212.
Newell, Demetrius, p. 61.
See above, p. 3.
Class VII) we are not here concerned. To the earlier group (Miiller's Class VI)17 the year 228 B.C.
may, with some probability, be assigned as the date when these coins first appeared in territory under
the influence of Pergamon and largely to the northwest, while the coast of Caria was still in Egyptian
hands. This date rests in part on historical grounds, but the coins themselves are better evidence that
a very short time intervened between the last issues of Hierax and the first of the new Alexanders.
The coins of Tenedos, Nos. 14 and 15, though not following any Seleucid issue and with rather
smaller flans than the majority of late Alexanders, belong to this group as the almost uncirculated state
of No. 15 puts it close to the burial date of the hoard. No. 23, the Chios tetradrachm, from another mint
never controlled by the Seleucids, is more typical of late third century Alexanders.
No. 13, by the size and character of the flan, the symbol, the owl, and the absence of monograms,
recalls the last issues of Hierax at Sigeium. The workmanship on the Alexander is superior, but the
small neat lettering is equally characteristic of the Seleucid coins.
At Phocea the mint was active under Hierax and again, before the burial of this hoard, there is
an Alexander, No. 22, with the same symbol and a marked similarity of style to the last of the coins of
Hierax.
The most telling examples from the hoard, however, are the tetradrachms of Hierax from Alexan-
dria Troas. Newell (WSM, PI. LXXV, A) reproduces an Alexander from that mint.18 There the monograms
are placed, one in the outer left field, the other above the right arm of the seated deity. On No. 97 from
Gordion they are similarly placed. Of the two monograms on the Alexander, the one to the left appears
on a number of coins of Hierax (in slightly altered form on Nos. 95 and 96 above); and the second mono-
gram, above the arm, is perhaps an elaboration of At on No. 97. A comparison of these coins shows that
the activity of the mint was never really disrupted, but continued functioning with the same personnel,
including possibly the same die-cutter for the obverses of No. 97 and the Alexander, PI. VII, A.
In certain Asia Minor cities the production of city tetradrachms of purely local types followed
closely on the heels of the Alexanders. An outstanding illustration of this is the Herakles' head on an
Alexander type from Sardis (E. H. Bunbury, "Additional Tetradrachms of Alexander the Great," NC, 1883,
PI. I, No. 4) and the city tetradrachm (Imhoof-Blumer, Monnaies grecques, PI. G, No. 23). The similarity
in the obverses allows for no appreciable lapse of time between the execution of the two. Such city
tetradrachms are commonly dated after 189 B.C. and though cities no doubt struck Alexanders for various
lengths of time, it is possible that this year marked the change from the pan-Anatolian Alexanders to the
autonomous tetradrachms in many cities. Taking 229/8 B.C. as the beginning and 189 B.C. as the end of
the active production of the broad-flanned Alexanders, it follows that in much of Asia Minor these were
struck over a period of about forty years.
Pamphylia, however, presents a special problem. This province had great commercial importance,
yet none of the Seleucids, Attalids, nor Ptolemies ever exercised real sovereignty over it. Its ports of
Phaselis, Aspendus and Side had long been free cities with independent mints. While the coast of
Caria was still in Egyptian hands, those ports became a vital commercial link, connecting the sea trade
from Syria and Phoenicia by a relatively short land route to Lydia, Pergamon, and the Aegean ports in
northwest Asia Minor. Two roads led northward from Pamphylia passing through Perga and along the val-
ley below Termessos before they separated. The more westerly led to Laodicea where it joined the
Southern Highway, thence north to Lydia, Pergamon, and the Aegean ports. The eastern branch leading
to Galatia and the Black Sea passed through Sagalassos and Apamea. As an outlet for trade to the
south and east, during the troubled times in the Aegean, the Pamphylian ports were almost indispensable
to Pergamon and her allies. Although these cities had long-established autonomous mints, it is probable
that Attalus persuaded certain Pamphylian cities to join his loose monetary federation and to strike
Alexanders. At any rate, at least three cities in that district did produce such coins. Those of Aspendus
(Muller, Alexander, Nos. 1196-1217) and Phaselis (Ibid., Nos. 1178-1195) are well known, and to them
should be added those of an unidentified town (Ibid., 1697-1700). Their common characteristic is that all
are dated, the years running from 1 to 33. The beginning of the series must be very close to the inaugu-
ration of Alexander types in Troas and Mysia. The Pamphylian Alexanders in this hoard, Nos. 24, 25 and
When Muller, a hundred years ago, produced his comprehensive work on the Alexander coinages, he divided the
coins into seven chronological classes and attributed different variations to various mints. Classes VI and VII
with broad thin flans he grouped together and dated after 200 B.C. Class VII is distinguished from Class VI by its
more barbarous workmanship. This hoard includes no example of Class VII; only No. 10 might conceivably be so
classed.
This coin, as well as a second variety, is published by Sydney P. Noe in the American Numismatic Society
Museum Notes,V, 1952, pp.21ff, where he suggests c. 230 B.C. as the date when "they seem to have been minted."
Aspendus, though inland, is included among the ports because it lay not far from the sea on the navigable
Eurymedon.
CONCLUSIONS 19
26, are from the years 6, 7, and 14, all in fine condition. The new Alexanders probably enjoyed a
wider, more unquestioned circulation than the autonomous coins, but one wonders what inducements,
political and financial, were held out to these cities to make the occasion so noteworthy that the era
was recorded on their coins. If, as seems probable, the late Alexanders were introduced at the same
time as in the northwest of Asia Minor, in 229/8 B.C., then what event in 197/6 brought the series to
a close?
In that year Attalus I died. By then Caria was no longer in the hands of Egypt; the two Mace-
donian wars and hostilities along the Aegean coast of Asia Minor were past. Friendly relations with
Rome had been established; sea trade was safe and, in consequence, the overland route from Pergamon
and western Asia Minor to Pamphylia had lost its importance. This paper has tried to show that the
general adoption of the Alexander type from the Propontis to the Pamphylian gulf was instigated by
Attalus as an integral part of his fiscal policy for Pergamon and her allies and the promotion of trade
with the East. With the accession of Euroenes II and changed political conditions the cooperation of
the Pamphylian ports with Pergamon was no longer essentiaI. These facts all contributed to the ease
with which Antiochus III was able to conquer the coastal towns of Pamphylia in 197/6. This event was
of utmost political importance to that province. With the successful domination of Pamphylia by the
Seleucid, ties with Pergamon were disrupted. In the wake of the new conquest and change of allegiance,
a change in currency would almost surely follow, certainly in one based on Pergamene policy.
From the presence in this hoard of the late Alexanders, the coin of Eumenes II, and the two city
tetradrachms of Perga, one's immediate reaction is that the group was buried in the second century B.C.
The archaeological evidence from the site itself precludes our dating the hoard later than 189 B.C., at
which time the city was abondoned for a long time, and supports the earlier date of c. 210, arrived at
from the study of the Seleucid coins.
In the area where the find was made, Floor II was abandoned in 189 B.C. and was in use for an
undetermined number of years prior to that; on it lay the destruction caused by Vulso's sack of the
city.20 This floor ran unbroken up to the foundation wall in which the coins were hidden. The coins
were found below the level of that floor. The foundation, however, had been in use over a long period
of time and Floor HI, c. 30 cm. below, and dated c. 250 B.C., made use of this same well. Therefore,
the hoard was buried at some time between these dates, 250 and 189 B.C., and seemed more closely re-
lated to the higher floor and the later date. The late years of the third century B.C. fill these conditions.
20
See Livy XXXVII, 60.
KEY TO EXCAVATION INVENTORY NUMBERS
Gordion
Gordion
Gordion
Publication
Inventory
Publication
Inventory
Publication
Inventory
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
C 157
39
C 192
77
C 134
C 180
40
C 138
78
C 185
C 122
41
C 213
79
C 154
C 140
42
C 170
80
C 209
C 214
43
C 194
81
C 150
C 169
44
C 195
82
C 181
C 165
45
C 171
83
C 175
C 135
46
C 108
84
C 131
C 189
47
C 160
85
C 191
PLATE I
PLATE II
PLATE IE
PLATE IV
PLATE V
PLATE VI
>J"W\
PLATE VII
>
-_-
::.*
:.~
::.#
?_TE

A Third Century Hoard of Tetradrachms From Gordion / Dorothy Hannah Cox

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A Third Century Hoard of Tetradrachms From Gordion / Dorothy Hannah Cox

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1953

DOROTHY HANNAH COX

THE UNIVERSITY MUSEUM

A THIRD CENTURY HOARD

OF TETRADRACHMS FROM GORDION

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

KEY TO GORDION INVENTORY ..... 20

MAP OF ASIA MINOR ri

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

AJN American Journal of Numismatics

ANS -, American Numismatic Society Collection

BMC British Museum Catalogue

ETN Formerly E.T.Newell Collection

of Glasgow, Glasgow, 1899-

JIAN Journal international d'archeologie numismatique.

Muller, Alexander L. Muller, Numismatique d'Alexandre le Grand. Copenhagen, 1855.

Newell, Demetrius E. T. Newell, The Coinage of Demetrius Poliorcetes, 1927.

New York, 1938.

Newell, Reattribution. E. T. Newell, Reattribution of Certain Tetradrachms of Alexander the Great.

194-200; XLVI (1912), pp. 22-24, 37-49, 109-116.

NNM Numismatic Notes and Monographs of the American Numismatic Society.

Medals. Macedonia. Copenhagen, 1943-

Part II: Thrace. London, 1947.

ZfN Zeitschrift fur Numismatik.

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

A THIRD CENTURY HOARD OF TETRADRACHMS FROM GORDION

mutilated than those from Anatolia.

Inscribed PHILIP, c. 320 B.C.

1. obv.: Herakles' head r. in lion's skin; border of dots.

rev.: $IAIIHI0Y Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on high-backed throne; legs parallel,

r. leg visible in front of 1.; feet on foot-stool; (3 in 1. field; monogram under

26 mm., 15.77 gms. I

rev.: Similar; in ex., BA2IAEQ2; name at r. and monograms illegible.

Alexander, No. 129X From uncertain mint.

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

COX: GORDION HOARD Uuseam Monographs

Amphipolis, 328/7 B.C.

3. obv.: Head of Herakles r. wearing lion's skin.

rev.: AAE3ANAP0Y Zeus Aetophoros seated L; in 1. field caduceus.

27 ram., 16.18 gms. / (Newell, Demanhur, No. 614-656).

Amphipolis or Uranopolis, c. 300 B.C., and later.

4. obv.: Herakles' head r., in lion's skin; border of dots.

26 ram., 16.60 gms. (SNGL, PL XXVH, No. 1443).

rev.: Similar, but t under throne.

26 mm., 16.53 gms. - (Hunter Coll., VoI. I, p. 300, No. 39).

rev.: Similar, but cantharos under throne.

27 mm., 15.88 gms. / (SNGD, PL XVII, No. 708).

Unidentified Macedonian Port, Mid-Third Century B.C.

Sinope, c. 250 B.C. or later.

9. obv.: Herakles' head r. in lion's skin.

rev.: BA2IAEQ2 on r. AAESANAPOY on 1. Zeus Aetophoros seated 1. on backless

p. 121 and PL II, No. 33).

Black Sea District, Uncertain Mint. Last Quarter of Third Century.

10. obv.: Similar, border of dots.

rev.: Similar, but high-backed throne, no distinguishing marks.

or possibly a Seleucid coin was used as flan.

Pergamon (?), c. 300 B.C.

11. obv.: Similar.

throne, bust of Athena 1.

Generated on 2013-08-06 17:16 GMT / http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015008979372 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www.hathitrust.org/access_use#pd-google

Assus, after c. 228 B.C.

12. obv.: Similar, no border of dots.