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On this coin, the head of a youthful Herakles, wearing his lion-skin, appears on the obverse, with his father Zeus, king of the gods, seated on the reverse. For Alexander III (the Great), who claimed descent from the line of Herakles, coins like this one projected power. Thus, while their attributes (lion-skin, eagle, scepter) identify hero and god, the inscription ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ (of Alexander) identifies the leader.
Page data
- Page
- 1
- Source index
- 0
- Type
- photo
- Media ID
- 6fe1fd35cd58582e
- Size
- unknown
Document data
- ID
- 97371
- Core
- obj
- Type
- object
DTO data
{
"id": "97371",
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"title": "Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse)",
"description": "On this coin, the head of a youthful Herakles, wearing his lion-skin, appears on the obverse, with his father Zeus, king of the gods, seated on the reverse. For Alexander III (the Great), who claimed descent from the line of Herakles, coins like this one projected power. Thus, while their attributes (lion-skin, eagle, scepter) identify hero and god, the inscription ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ (of Alexander) identifies the leader.",
"date": "336–323 BCE",
"citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.981",
"rights": "CC0",
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"imageCount": 1,
"source": "import",
"dimensionsRaw": "Diameter: 2.6 cm (1 in.)",
"cul": [
"Greek, Macedonian, minted at Amphipolis (Macedonia), reign of Alexander III [The Great]"
],
"accession": "1916.981"
}
Context sent to Scholar
Document identity
{
"localId": "97371",
"label": "Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse)",
"core": "obj",
"dtoType": "object"
}
Document source metadata
{
"id": "97371",
"contentType": "object",
"title": "Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse)",
"description": "On this coin, the head of a youthful Herakles, wearing his lion-skin, appears on the obverse, with his father Zeus, king of the gods, seated on the reverse. For Alexander III (the Great), who claimed descent from the line of Herakles, coins like this one projected power. Thus, while their attributes (lion-skin, eagle, scepter) identify hero and god, the inscription ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ (of Alexander) identifies the leader.",
"date": "336–323 BCE",
"citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.981",
"rights": "CC0",
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"language": "en",
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"largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.981/1916.981_web.jpg",
"imageCount": 1,
"source": "import",
"dimensionsRaw": "Diameter: 2.6 cm (1 in.)",
"cul": [
"Greek, Macedonian, minted at Amphipolis (Macedonia), reign of Alexander III [The Great]"
],
"accession": "1916.981"
}
Document source extras
{
"tec": "silver",
"tombstone": "Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse), 336–323 BCE. Greek, Macedonian, minted at Amphipolis (Macedonia), reign of Alexander III [The Great]. Silver; diameter: 2.6 cm (1 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of J. H. Wade, 1916.981",
"collection": "GR - Greek",
"inscriptions": [
{
"inscription": "ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ",
"inscription_translation": "Of Alexander",
"inscription_remark": "Reverse"
}
],
"didYouKnow": "The Pegasos protome beside Zeus (on the reverse) indicates that this coin was minted at Amphipolis.",
"url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.981",
"creditline": "Gift of J. H. Wade",
"sketchfabId": "1c69626bb3564ce894136ae9483573ce",
"sketchfabUrl": "https://sketchfab.com/models/1c69626bb3564ce894136ae9483573ce",
"updatedAt": "2026-06-18 21:17:00.741000",
"imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.981/1916.981_print.jpg",
"sourceId": 97371,
"dept": "Greek and Roman Art",
"coll": "GR - Greek",
"med": "silver",
"thumbnail_url": null,
"image_url": null
}
Page context
{
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