MYSIA, Lampsakos
AE17. 3.7g, 17mm
MINTED: MYSIA, Lampsakos, 4th - 3rd centuries BC
REF: BMC 51
OBVERSE: Janiform female head wearing taenia and earring.REVERSE: Pegasos forepart right; trident below.
Notes:
Slightly weathered toned orichalchum surfaces.
The term 'janiform' refers to heads with two faces looking in opposite directions, resembling the depictons of the Roman deity Janus, who was the god of the passage of time, of doorways, and of beginnings, transitions, and endings.
Historical Notes:
Lampsakos, on the eastern end of the Hellespont, possessed a good harbour, and its strategic location meant that the city was often fought over by larger regional powers such as Persia, Athens and Sparta. During his years in exile, the famed Athenian statesman Themistokles served the Persian Empire, and it was said that King Artaxerxes I (465-424 BC) gave him Lampsakos so that he could enjoy its famous wine. During Alexander the Great's campaign against Persia, he was so infuriated by the loyalty of the city to the Persians that it was only saved from his fury by the pleas of his former tutor, Anaximenes, who was a native of Lampsakos. The city also produced numerous other notable philosophers and historians.
MYSIA, Lampsakos . 4th - 3rd centuries BC . AE17 . Janiform head / Pegasos
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