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Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse)
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Tetradrachm: Head of Young Herakles (obverse); Zeus (reverse)

336–323 BCE · silver

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

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.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description
Credit lineTetradrachm: 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
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