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Greek

Stater coin, ca. 421-365 BCE

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Description

Maker

Culture

Greek

Title

Stater coin

Year

ca. 421-365 BCE

Medium

Silver

Materials/Techniques

Materials

Dimensions

Weight: 11.8 g

Place

Elis

Type

Credit

Museum Appropriation Fund

Object Number

40.015.5

Projects & Publications

Publications

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Ancient Greek and Roman Galleries

In the 5th and 4th centuries BCE, the city of Elis hosted the Olympic Games. These games were highly profitable for the Eleians, and at the end of each festival they had an excess of silver that they used to mint their own coinage. This coin features a realistically rendered eagle head and a winged thunderbolt. These symbols are attributes of the father god Zeus, who is rarely depicted on coinage. This unique choice of symbols of Zeus was appropriate for the city hosting the games honoring the gods.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Stater coin with the accession number of 40.015.5. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.