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Search Advanced Search Search By Coin ID     Home ANCIENT/BYZANTINE Ancient Spain (872) Byzantine (753) MEDIEVAL/EARLY WORLD Germany (30) MODERN WORLD COUNTERFEITS AND IMITATIONS   Submit New Coin(s)   Sponsors page Terms of Service Contact Us About Us FAQ Page Coin Detail Click here to see enlarged image. ID:     720952      [UNVERIFIED] Type:     Greek Region:     SELEUCID KINGDOM Issuer:     Tryphon Date Ruled:     Circa 142-138 BC Metal:     Silver Denomination:     Tetradrachm Date Struck:     VF, attractively toned, double on reverse Weight:     16.23 g Die Axis:     12 h Obverse Description:     Diademed head right Reverse Description:     Macedonian cavalry helmet within oak wreath Primary Reference:     SNG Spaer 1822 Reference2:     SMA 263 Photograph Credit:     Classical Numismatic Group Source:     http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=84720 Grade:     VF, attractively toned, double struck on reverse Notes:     Sale: CNG 72, Lot: 952 Rare. A military commander and leading supporter of the usurper Alexander I Balas, Diodotos placed Antiochos VI on the Seleukid throne following Balas' death. Two years later, upon the death of the young king, Diodotos took the throne himself, supposedly upon the acclamation of his troops. Unlike previous usurpers, Diodotos did not fabricate his lineage into the Seleukid house, but maintained that the Seleukid line had ended, and his was the beginning of a new era. He broke tradition by assuming the title autocrat rather than king, and took the name Tryphon ('the magnificent'). His reign proved very unpopular, and a new Seleukid claimant, Antiochos VII Sidetes, rose against him. Within three years Tryphon was defeated and killed. The portraits on his coinage, with tousled hair and affected countenance, are often viewed as among the most flamboyant and pretentious of all Seleukid (and Hellenistic) portraits. Such a depiction is fitting given the tenor of his reign, and his choice of names, the root of which (truf-) meant 'extravagant' and 'effeminate.'

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