Byzantion, Alexander der Große, stater — Athena seated left (CN type 20983)
Record status
Individual type · research required
Period
c. 110–90 BC
Issuing entity
ThraceStater in gold struck at Byzantion in Thrace under Alexander der Große, dated c. 110–90 BC. Corpus Nummorum, the online type corpus of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, records it as CN type 20983 (period: Hellenistic Period; issuing authority type: city).
Obverse: Diademed head of deified Alexander the Great with horn of Ammon, right. Reverse: Athena (Nikephoros) seated left, holding Nike and spear; shield behind. Legend: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ. Measured specimens give a mean weight of 8.45 g (mean of 2 recorded specimens) and a diameter of 20 mm (from 1 recorded specimen). The corpus assigns the type to the Attic weight standard. Published references cited by the corpus: Müller, Die Münzen des thracischen Königs Lysimachus, Kopenhagen 1858, nr. 158; de Callataÿ, L'histoire des guerres mithridatiques vue par les monnaies, Louvain-La-Neuve 1997, p. 142.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 4
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 2
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Byzantion was an ancient Greek city settled by colonists from Megara in the 7th century BC, located in Thrace. Alexander the Great, king of Macedon from 336 BC until his death in 323 BC, had reasserted control over Thrace in 335 BC before conquering the Achaemenid Empire. This stater, a denomination used across various regions of Greece, was struck by the city during the Hellenistic Period between c. 110 and 90 BC, carrying posthumous imagery of the deified ruler.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- gold
- Denomination
- stater
- Recorded diameter
- 20 mm (from 1 recorded specimens)
- Recorded mean weight
- 8.45 g (mean of 2 recorded specimens)
Technical characteristics
- Mint
- Byzantion
- Region
- Thrace
- Authority type
- City
- Weight standard
- Attic
- Issuing authority
- Alexander der Große
Design
- Obverse type
- Diademed head of deified Alexander the Great with horn of Ammon, right.
- Reverse type
- Athena (Nikephoros) seated left, holding Nike and spear; shield behind.
- Reverse legend
- ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΛΥΣΙΜΑΧΟΥ
Identification
- Period
- Hellenistic Period
- How to identify
- Check the mint name or ethnic, the reverse type and the legend together, then compare weight and module; types from the same mint often differ only in legend arrangement, magistrate names or control marks.
- Type corpus record
- https://www.corpus-nummorum.eu/types/20983
- Type corpus identifier
- CN type 20983
Documentation checklist
- Denomination
- Recorded
- Issue or mint date
- Recorded
- Material
- Recorded
- Weight
- Recorded
- Mint or printer
- Recorded
- Mint or printer mark
- Research required
- Catalogue reference
- Recorded
- Attached photograph (check rights)
- Recorded
Recorded means a field is present, not independently verified. Read its wording, supporting source and the entry’s confidence level.
Catalogue references
Research required
- Photograph reuse terms to be confirmed with the holding institution