Description:
This coin was minted in the ancient city of Kassope, in the southern region of Epirus, which is in present-day western Greece. Kassope was a remote city on a high strategic location that overlooked the Ionian Sea. A rugged and mountainous region, Epirus was home to the sanctuary of Dodona, the oldest oracle in ancient Greece and the second most prestigious after Delphi.
Epirus was unified into a single state in 370 BC by the Molossian Aeacidae dynasty. In 359 BC the Molossian princess Olympias, married King Philip II of Macedon and in 356 BC she gave birth to Alexander the Great. Pyrrhus of Epirus, who ruled from 306-272 BC, is regarded as one of the greatest generals of antiquity and had major success in his epic battles against the Romans. The Aeacidae dynasty ended in 232 BC, but Epirus remained a substantial power. However, in 167 BC, Epirus along with the rest of Greece, finally fell to Rome.
The obverse of this ancient Epirus coin features the head of Zeus wearing a laurel wreath. In Greek mythology, Zeus oversaw the universe and was the "Father of gods and men." He ruled as king of the gods on Mount Olympus and as god of the sky and thunder with the power to hurl lightning bolts as a weapon, which Zeus used to defeat the Titans. Known for his escapades, Zeus fathered many godly and heroic children including Aphrodite, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, Persephone, Dionysus, Perseus and Hercules. The reverse side shows an eagle standing on a thunderbolt surrounded by a wreath of oak leaves.
