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Drachm - Phraates IV
| Issuer | Parthian Empire (Parthian Empire (247 BC - 224 AD)) |
|---|---|
| Year | 38 BC - 2 BC |
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| Reference(s) | Sellwood 53.6 |
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| Reverse description | The Arsacid dynastic archer is depicted enthroned to the right in the characteristic Parthian manner, seated on an omphalos throne and holding a bow. A star appears in the field behind the royal figure's head, and a monogram is placed below the bow in the lower field. The reverse carries a seven-line Greek legend encircling the design, giving the full royal titulature of Phraates IV. |
| Reverse script | Greek |
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| Additional information |
Phraates IV secured the Parthian throne by murdering his father Orodes II and then systematically eliminating his brothers — a purge that stabilized his reign but earned him lasting hostility among the nobility. He was eventually poisoned around 2 BC by his Italian slave-wife Musa, whom Augustus had gifted him as a diplomatic gesture. That same diplomatic relationship had produced the celebrated return of the Roman standards lost at Carrhae in 53 BC, which Augustus treated as a triumph without a battle.
Sellwood 53.6 is a late-reign type, placing this piece in the final years of that long, blood-soaked tenure.