The cistophorus (, ''kistophoros'') was a

coin A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...

of ancient

Pergamum Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; ), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greek city in Aeolis. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a promontory on the north side of the river ...

. It was introduced shortly before 190 B.C. at that city to provide the

Attalid kingdom The Kingdom of Pergamon, Pergamene Kingdom, or Attalid kingdom was a Greek state during the Hellenistic period that ruled much of the Western part of Asia Minor from its capital city of Pergamon. It was ruled by the Attalid dynasty (; ). The ...

with a substitute for

Seleucid The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great, a ...

coins and the

tetradrachm The tetradrachm () was a large silver coin that originated in Ancient Greece. It was nominally equivalent to four drachmae. Over time the tetradrachm effectively became the standard coin of the Antiquity, spreading well beyond the borders of the ...

s of Philetairos. It also came to be used by a number of other cities that were under Attalid control. These cities included

Alabanda Alabanda () or Antiochia of the Chrysaorians was a city of ancient Caria, Anatolia, the site of which is near Doğanyurt, Çine, Aydın Province, Turkey. The city is located in the saddle between two heights. The area is noted for its dark mar ...

and

Kibyra Cibyra or Kibyra (Greek: ), also referred to as Cibyra Magna, was an Ancient Greek city near the modern town of Gölhisar, in Burdur Province. It lay outside the north-western limits of the ancient province of Lycia and was the chief city of ...

. It continued to be minted and circulated by the Romans with different coin types and legends down to the time of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; ; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through cursus honorum, the ...

, long after the kingdom was bequeathed to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. It owes its name to a figure, on the

obverse The obverse and reverse are the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''obverse'' ...

, of the sacred chest () of

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; ) is the god of wine-making, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, festivity, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre. He was also known as Bacchus ( or ; ...

Cistophoric standard

It was tariffed at four

drachma Drachma may refer to: * Ancient drachma, an ancient Greek currency * Modern drachma The drachma ( ) was the official currency of modern Greece from 1832 until the launch of the euro in 2001. First modern drachma The drachma was reintroduce ...

s, but weighed only as much as three Attic drachmas (the most important weight standard of the time), 12.5 grams. In addition, the evidence of hoards suggests that it did not travel outside the area which Pergamum controlled. It is therefore probable that it was overvalued in this area. In any case, the result was a closed monetary system similar to that in the

Ptolemaic Kingdom The Ptolemaic Kingdom (; , ) or Ptolemaic Empire was an ancient Greek polity based in Ancient Egypt, Egypt during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 305 BC by the Ancient Macedonians, Macedonian Greek general Ptolemy I Soter, a Diadochi, ...

. It is likely that this was a deliberate policy. In the long term, the average weight of the cistophori fell over the centuries from around 12.5 g per coin to around 8.5 g.

Design and themes

Cistophoric coinage fails to portray reigning kings in its coins. It is possible that this lack of royal iconography is the result of Attalid royal ideology. The royal coinage is mimicking itself as a federal coinage. Attalid kings were unable to portray themselves as a charismatic and militaristic authority like the other Hellenistic rulers, as the kingdom during reign of

Eumenes II Eumenes II Soter (; ; ruled 197–159 BC) was a ruler of Pergamon, and a son of Attalus I Soter and queen Apollonis and a member of the Attalid dynasty of Pergamon. Biography The eldest son of king Attalus I and queen Apollonis, Eumenes was pr ...

received much of its power practically as a Roman gift. He portrayed himself as a benefactor of the Greeks living within

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

. The types reflect the Attalid kings' claims of descent from

and

Heracles Heracles ( ; ), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a Divinity, divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of ZeusApollodorus1.9.16/ref> and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through ...

.Kenneth W. Harl "Livy and the Date of the Introduction of the Cistophoric Tetradrachma (sic)," ''Classical Antiquity'' Vol. 10, No. 2 (1991), page 269. The cista mystica on the obverse represents Dionysus while the bow case on the reverse represents Heracles, whose son,

Telephus In Greek mythology, Telephus (; , ''Tēlephos'', "far-shining") was the son of Heracles and Auge, who was the daughter of king Aleus of Tegea. He was adopted by Teuthras, the king of Mysia, in Asia Minor, whom he succeeded as king. Telephus was ...

, was the mythological founder of Pergamon.

References

Bibliography

* Langenegger, Werner (2023). "Gewichtsentwicklung der Cistophoren vom Attalidenreich bis Septimius Severus" evelopment of the weight of cistophores from the Attalid Empire to Septimius Severus ''Jahrbuch für Numismatik und Geldgeschichte'' 73, pp. 73-100. * Meadows, Andrew (2013). "The Closed Currency System of the Attalid Kingdom", in: Peter Thonemann (ed.): ''Attalid Asia Minor. Money, International Relations, and the State.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 149–205.

External links

Cistophorus
article in Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities Coins of ancient Greece Coins of ancient Rome {{AncientGreece-stub 190 BC

Cistophoric standard

Design and themes

See also

References

Bibliography

External links