Kingdom Of Macedon Alexander III The Great - Kaunos

Caria - Kaunos, circa 300-280 BC​

This exceptional coin is struck from dies of the most extraordinary style, having been conceived and executed in such a manner as to render all other tetradrachms of Alexander that came before or after it mere caricatures by comparison. The head of Herakles is almost startling in its realism, his robust features conveying at once a certain humanity and a divine serenity. Zeus meanwhile is truly sculptural in his rendering, with an appearance we might better expect from a marble frieze than a coin - great attention has been paid to perspective, proportionality and geometry. That this posthumous tetradrachm represents the very finest style to be found on any such coin in the name of Alexander should be beyond refute.

When one compares these dies to the contemporary issues of the type from this mint, which are uniformly of poor style and execution, it is not perhaps implausible to conceive of this having been a special issue intended for some specific purpose or occasion, such is its medallic quality. It is often suggested that certain posthumous issues in the name of Alexander were intended to display his features in the guise of Herakles, and whether one accepts the idea or not, the similarities here to other known profiles are striking. Regardless, it is clear that this particular example is no ordinary tetradrachm, certainly being the work of a master engraver.