CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series: The Ptolemies, Part III (original) (raw)
Related papers
Three Gold Coinages of Third-Century Ptolemaic Egypt
Revue belge de Numismatique et de Sigillographie CLIX, 2013, p. 49-150.
The paper reports the results of die studies of three major Ptolemaic gold coinages of Alexandria: the coinage in the name of the Theoi Adelphoi, featuring the jugate busts of the two first Lagid couples; the mnaieia in the name of Arsinoe Philadelphus; and the main issue of mnaieia depicting the radiate Ptolemy III wearing the aegis like a chlamys. The die studies reveal a distinct pattern of production for each of these coinages. Metallurgical analyses identify the stocks of metal used and provide new evidence for the absolute chronology of the first two coinages. The authors also discuss other evidence relevant to chronology, hoards and circulation, and the probable functions of the three coinages.
Notae Numismaticae, 2017
After Ptolemy Soter took possession of Egypt, he soon installed a closed currency system, at that scalę, a novelty in ancient coinage. With regard to the three metals Struck in the mint of Alexandria-the only mint in the entire country for almost 300 years-innovations in the manner of minting occurred when the kings were faced with specific needs. Millions of coins were struck. These coins appeared in a succession of series, sometimes struck continuously but not always. The different metals that were used filled different demands and needs. The Greek rulers adapted themselves to the country and to the economic and politic Situation, always showing a great sense of resilience with regard to the problems they faced. We can understand these issues in a new manner and refresh our view of this peculiar coinage by way of recent research on these coins' metallic content but also by way of archaeological experiments conducted on the minting process itself. How can the minting methods help us to understand the distinction between each series, and how can they help us to understand how the workers at the mints struggled with new challenges brought by the head of the mint? How can Egypt help us understand from a broader perspective the minting of coins in the Greek world? KEY WORDS: Egypt, Ptolemies, metallurgy, bronze coinage, experimental archaeology ABSTRAKT: Techniki bicia monet w ptolemejskim Egipcie. Obserwacja, analiza, nowe spojrzenie Wkrótce po objęciu w posiadanie Egiptu Ptolemeusz I Soter wprowadził zam-knięty system monetarny, co w takiej skali stanowiło novum w historii pieniądza starożytnego. Na skutek szczególnych wyzwań, z jakimi musieli się zmierzyć pto-lemej scy władcy, w Aleksandrii-jedynej mennicy działającej w kraju przez prawie 300 lat-wprowadzano innowacje w zakresie sposobu produkcji monet bitych li
The deep need of bronze coins (especially petty denominations), characteristic of the cities of the Libyan Pentapolis, is a common trait shared by the overwhelming majority of urban areas during the late Republic and early Empire. The demand for bronze coinage in the first decades of the Roman Empire made the Cyrenaican monetary system considerably receptive and flexible. It is in this context that the author proposes to interpret the Cyrenaican finds of bronze coins of Cleopatra VII and Augustus struck in Alexandria, among which eight were found in Ptolemais. The influx of Alexandrian bronzes to the cities of the Libyan Pentapolis seems to be connected with the presence of the Roman army in Cyrenaica under Augustus and Tiberius, especially with the legio III Cyrenaica which presumably had come from Egypt during the Marmaric war.
Coin minting techniques in Ptolemaic Egypt: Observe, analyze, recreate
2017
After Ptolemy Soter took possession of Egypt, he soon installed a closed currency system, at that scalę, a novelty in ancient coinage. With regard to the three metals Struck in the mint of Alexandria-the only mint in the entire country for almost 300 years-innovations in the manner of minting occurred when the kings were faced with specific needs. Millions of coins were struck. These coins appeared in a succession of series, sometimes struck continuously but not always. The different metals that were used filled different demands and needs. The Greek rulers adapted themselves to the country and to the economic and politic Situation, always showing a great sense of resilience with regard to the problems they faced. We can understand these issues in a new manner and refresh our view of this peculiar coinage by way of recent research on these coins' metallic content but also by way of archaeological experiments conducted on the minting process itself. How can the minting methods help us to understand the distinction between each series, and how can they help us to understand how the workers at the mints struggled with new challenges brought by the head of the mint? How can Egypt help us understand from a broader perspective the minting of coins in the Greek world? KEY WORDS: Egypt, Ptolemies, metallurgy, bronze coinage, experimental archaeology ABSTRAKT: Techniki bicia monet w ptolemejskim Egipcie. Obserwacja, analiza, nowe spojrzenie Wkrótce po objęciu w posiadanie Egiptu Ptolemeusz I Soter wprowadził zamknięty system monetarny, co w takiej skali stanowiło novum w historii pieniądza starożytnego. Na skutek szczególnych wyzwań, z jakimi musieli się zmierzyć ptolemej scy władcy, w Aleksandrii-jedynej mennicy działającej w kraju przez prawie 300 lat-wprowadzano innowacje w zakresie sposobu produkcji monet bitych li 'PICARD 2016. 2 See: CACCAMO-CALTABIANO 2001; for a conspectus of coin mold finds, see: ARIEL 2012. 3 CHEVILLON 2010; IDEM 2011. 4 See for instance N. George's PhD dissertation at the University of Liverpool. Supervised by M. Ponting, the work is titled: The production of coin blanks and Roman silver coinage fromAD 193-271. 5 For information on medieval minting techniques, including experimental archaeology and elemental analyses, see: ARLES 2009; ARLES and TEYREGEOL 2011.
Bronze Coinage of Ptolemaic Egypt in the Second Century BC
Drawing primarily on hoards, but also on metrological and metallurgical analyses, the authors propose a relative chronology and classification for Egyptian bronze coinage of the second century bc. This coinage is characterized by diverse obverse types that served as consistent denomination markers, even as the weights of the several denominations were reduced in piecemeal fashion. A debasement of the alloy introduced a metrologically stable currency that remained in circulation from before mid-century to 115 bc. The subtlety of the early weight reductions and the long period of stability raise doubt whether changes to the currency could have caused the much-studied price inflation of the second century.
Ptolemaic Coinage and Cultural Change in the Second Centur…
A lecture presented to the Oxford Numismatic Society in October 2023, examining some changes between the cultures of the Ptolemaic kingdom of the third and second centuries, changes within the second century itself, and how these are reflected on coinage. The accompanying slide show illustrates the talk and includes references to the forthcoming Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire, Part II.
A Metrological Survey of Ptolemaic Bronze Coins II: Alexandria First and Second Centuries BC
American Journal of Numismatics (AJN), 2021
A quantitative analysis is presented of weights of more than 4,400 Ptolemaic bronze coins representing Alexandria’s issues of the second to first century BC, from the time of Ptolemy V through the reign of Cleopatra VII. Large samples of over 40 coin types yield better weight statistics than previously published. Novel population analyses help describe and classify some types that are difficult to distinguish and enable comparisons with populations of other coin types. The distribution of some types in hoards are clarified based on quantitatively sound classifications. This study suggests new hypotheses of relationships and possible weight standards for the late Ptolemaic bronze coinage.