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Saturday, May 16, 2020

A gold octodrachm of Ptolemy III

NUMISMATICS: Octodrachm from Ptolemaic Egypt in Heritage sale displays spending power (Jeff Starck, Coin World).
In Heritage Auctions’ April 24 auction, a gold mnaieion of Ptolemy III Euergetes, posthumously issued circa 219 to 217 B.C. in Alexandria for Ptolemy IV, realized $20,400, with the 20 percent buyer’s fee.

The coin measures 27 millimeters in diameter and weighs 27.74 grams, comparable in diameter to a Presidential dollar, but slightly heavier than a Morgan dollar.
There are nice photos in the article.

For more on the coinage of the Ptolemaic kings, and the role of some of those kings in the Bible, see here and links. As noted in that post, Ptolemy III Euergetes is the branch from the roots of the daughter of the king of the south mentioned in Daniel 11:7-9 and Ptolemy IV Philopater is the king of the south mentioned in Daniel 11:11. For more on Ptolemy III, see here. And for a detailed account of the convoluted historical background to their reigns, see here.

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