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Drachm - Ardakhshir II
| Issuer | Persis, Kingdom of |
|---|---|
| Year | 40 BC - 5 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | Alram#570, Sunrise#598 |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Aramaic |
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| Reverse description | The reverse depicts the king standing in left profile, dressed in royal attire, holding an upright sceptre in one hand while performing a libation or sacrifice before a fire altar positioned to the left. The scene is rendered in the dynastic ceremonial style typical of Persis kingdom issues, emphasizing the ruler's role as a religious officiant. Aramaic inscriptions appear in the field, identifying the ruler. The composition is enclosed within a beaded border, consistent with other drachms of this series. |
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| Additional information |
The kings of Persis occupied a peculiar position in the late Achaemenid and post-Achaemenid world — nominally subordinate to the Seleucids and later the Parthians, yet issuing their own coinage throughout, a quiet assertion of regional autonomy that neither overlord fully suppressed. Ardakhshir II ruled during the period when Parthian power under the Arsacids was firmly established, making the continued independent coinage of Persis an act of political stubbornness as much as economic necessity.
Alram 570 and Sunrise 598 place this type within a well-documented sequence, though die linkage studies have shown the series to be more internally complex than early catalogs suggested.