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Product Description
This genuine ancient Kings of Macedon Greek bronze AE15 coin was minted by Philip II, father of Alexander the Great, between 359 - 336 B.C.. The obverse shows the laureate head of Apollo facing right. The reverse shows a youth riding a galloping horse. Toned. Very Fine +. Ex-Northern, California, USA collection.
HISTORY
From a very old private collection of an Orthodox priest who originally collected these pieces in the 1950's on the Isle of Rhodes, this authentic artifact is part of a small collection we had purchased in the mid-1980's and have had since that time. The collection comprised a unique diversity of ancient Greek artifacts representative of everyday life in ancient Greece. It was a small collection and quite unusual in that everything was in its original state as collected.
Philip II of Macedon was the king of Macedon from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. The rise of Macedon, from a kingdom initially at the periphery of classical Greek affairs, to a power that came to dominate Ancient Greece in the span of less than 25 years, was largely thanks to the character and policies of Philip. He was the father of Alexander the Great and a member of the ruling Argead dynasty that founded the kingdom of the Macedonians.
Macedon achieved domination over Greece during Philip II's reign by the reformation of the Macedonian army, including the establishment of the Macedonian phalanx, the use of combined arms tactics and his extensive use of siege engines and artillery, as well as by the use of effective diplomacy and marriage alliances. After defeating the Greek city-states of Athens and Thebes at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, Philip II led the effort to establish a federation of Greek states known as the Hellenic League, with him as the elected hegemon and commander-in-chief of Greece for a planned invasion of the Achaemenid Empire. However, his assassination by a royal bodyguard, Pausanias of Orestis, led to the immediate succession of his son Alexander, who would go on to invade the Achaemenid Empire in his father's stead.
