NEAPOLIS, Silver Stater of Neapolis, city in Macedonia, struck 510-480B.C.
Obverse: Head of Gorgon. Monstrous sisters with snakes for hair, tusks like boars and lolling tongues. The only mortal one of the three was Medusa. She had the power of turning to stone whoever looked at her, or whoever she looked at; the myth can be interpreted both ways. The hero, Perseus, defending his mother from the unwanted advances of King Polydectes of Seriphos, swore to bring him Medusa's head with tongue protruding.

Reverse: Incuse squared.

 

AMPHIPOLIS, Silver Tetradrachm of Amphipolis city found in 436B.C by Athenians in northern Greece. The city preserved its independence until 357B.C when it was captured by Philip II, King of Macedonia.
Obverse: Head of Apollo God of prophecy, music and healing. Like most of his fellow Olympians, Apollo did not hesitate to intervene in human affairs. It was he who brought about the demise of the mighty Achilles, of all the heroes besieging the city of Troy in the Trojan War, Achilles was the best fighter by far. Apollo easily defeated the Trojan captain Hector in single combat but he helped Hectors brother Paris slay Achilles with an arrow.

Reverse: Amphipolis in Greek on frame containing race-torch all with in incuse square.

 

RHODOS, Silver Tetadrachm struck in 387-304B.C in the large and important island off the south-west coast of Asia.
Obverse: Head of Helios. Helios, the Sun God, is the son of the Titans Hyperion and Theia. Helios' responsibility was to drive his divine chariot across the sky each day, with the sun trailing behind. The chariot was a gift from Hephaestus made of gold. The spokes on the wheels were silver, and rows of chrysolites and diamonds were along the seat. According to Bullfinch’s Age of Fable his sister Eos would announce his arrival each morning by the cock's crowing. In the evening, as the sun went down, he would return to the Islands of the Blessed, where he would let his horses graze in a pasture until the following morning. Helios was married to Rhode, and together they produced seven sons and one daughter. The most interesting story concerning Helios is about his son Pha;ton, whose mother was a mortal woman, he allowed Phaeton to drive his chariot after promising his son that he would give him anything he desired he tried to talk Pha;ton out of it, but to no avail. The young boy lost control of the chariot and burned much of the Earth as a result. Zeus struck him dead before anymore damage was done. Helios was also referred to by his father's name, Hyperion, sometimes and later as Apollo, when the old gods gave way to the new.

Reverse: Rose with bud on left.

 

AINOS, Silver Tetradrachm struck in circa 405-357B.C from the city Ainos, situated on a peninsula at the mouth of the river Hebros. 
Obverse: Head of youthful Hermes facing, wearing petaso, ornamented with beads above brim. A prankster and inventive genius from birth, Hermes was the messenger of the gods and guide of dead souls to the underworld who aided the heroes Odysseus and Perseus in their quests. Hermes was the son Zeus and a mountain nymph Maia, as a newborn he was remarkably precocious, on his very first day of life he found the empty shell of a tortoise and perceived its utility as a sounding chamber, stringing sinews across it, he created the first lyre. Hermes was known for his helpfulness to mankind both in his capacity as immortal herald and on his own initiative. When Perseus set out to face the Gorgon Medusa, Hermes aided him in the quest. According to one version of the myth, he loaned the hero his own magic sandals, which conferred upon the wearer the ability to fly. Some say that Hermes loaned Perseus a helmet of invisibility as well. Also known as the helmet of darkness, this was the same headgear that Hermes himself had worn when he vanquished the giant Hippolytu, this was on the occasion when the gargantuan sons of Earth rose up in revolt against the gods of Olympus. Hermes symbol of office as divine messenger was his staff, or caduceus. This was originally a willow wand with entwined ribbons, traditional badge of the herald. But the ribbons were eventually depicted as snakes. To support this mythology, a story evolved that Hermes used the caduceus to separate two fighting snakes which forth with entwined themselves together in peace it was Hermes' job to convey dead souls to the Underworld and as patron of travelers, he was often shown in a wide-brimmed sun hat of straw. Hermes was known to the Roman’s as Mercury. His most famous depiction, a statue by Bellini, shows him alight on one foot, wings at his heels, the snaky caduceus in hand and, on his head, a rather stylized combination helmet-of-darkness and sun hat. 

Reverse: AINION above goat standing to right and a trophy before.

 

SICILY, Syracuse Silver Tetradrachm of Syracuse struck 344-317BC.
Obverse: Head of Persephone to left wearing wreath of corn, three dolphins around. Beautiful daughter of Zeus and Demeter; sometimes considered an Olympian. While gathering flowers in a field one day, Persephone was abducted to the Underworld by Hades, who arose in his chariot from a fissure in the ground. Demeter, goddess of the harvest, was heartbroken, and while she wandered the length and breadth of the earth in search of her daughter, the crops withered and it became perpetual winter. At length Hades was persuaded to surrender Persephone for one half of every year, the spring and summer seasons when flowers bloom and the earth bears fruit once more. The half year that Persephone spends in the Underworld as Hades' queen coincides with the barren season. The heroes Peirithous and Theseus attempted to abduct Persephone and bring her back to the land of the living.

  Reverse: Galloping quadriga to left driven by charioteer holding goad.

 

OLYNTHOS, Silver Tetradrachm Struck 420-392BC in Olynthos, a city known as a center of the opposition to Athenian imperialism.
Obverse: Head of Apollo to left, God of prophecy, music and healing. Like most of his fellow Olympians, Apollo did not hesitate to intervene in human affairs. It was he who brought about the demise of the mighty Achilles. Of all the heroes besieging the city of Troy in the Trojan War, Achilles was the best fighter by far. He had easily defeated the Trojan captain Hector in single combat, but Apollo helped Hector's brother Paris, slay Achilles with an arrow.

Reverse: Greek legends around Lyre.

 

THASOS, Silver Didrachm struck 411-350BC in an island off the Thracian sea.
Obverse: Bare head of Dionysos to left wreathed with ivy. Dionysus, God of wine, son of Zeus and Semele rescuer of Ariadne after she had been abandoned by Theseus. Dionysus also rescued his mother from the Underworld, after Zeus showed her his true nature as storm god and consumed her in lightning. It was Dionysus who granted Midas the power to turn whatever he touched into gold, and then was kind enough to take the power back when it proved inconvenient. Reverse: Bearded Heracles Most famous of Greek mythological heroes. The Romans called him Hercules. To make amends for a crime, Heracles was compelled to perform a series of heroic tasks or Labors. Amongst these was slaying the many-headed Hydra, retrieving the Golden Apples of the Hesperides and bringing the hellhound Cerberus up from the Underworld.

  Reverse: Heracles kneeling to right clad in lion’s skin, shooting bow. Grapes in field.

 

PANTIKAPAION, Silver Didrachm struck 4th Century BC in the city Pantikapaion which was founded by Greek colonists from Miletos in the late 7th century BC. Situated on the west side of the Cimmerian Bosporos in what is now the Crimea, it achieved great prosperity through its exploitation of the abundant fisheries of the Straits and the export of wheat from the Crimea. This wealth is attested by its splendid gold coinage commencing in the mid-4th century and by the magnificently furnished rock tombs of its principal citizens in the 4th and 3rd centuries. Later, it was to become a regional capital of the kingdom of Mithradates VI of Pontos (120-63 BC) and later still the seat of the kings of Bosporos (1st cent. BC — 4th cent. AD). The coinage of Pantikapaion seems to have commenced with silver issues in the latter part of the 5th century, but it is for its beautiful gold staters that the mint is chiefly noted. They depict a facing head of the god Pan, pun on the name of the city, and on the reverse the griffin which Herodotos describes as being the guardian of the remote sources of gold.
Obverse: Head of Pan, God of shepherds and flocks, son of Hermes and a nymph. Pan was born with the legs and horns of a goat, which caused his own mother to spurn him. Pan was not any more popular with the nymphs; one ran away from him and was transformed into a reed, which inspired Pan to invent the shepherd's pipe of bound reeds of varying lengths. Pan was considered to be the cause of the sudden fear that sometimes comes for no reason, especially in lonely places which is where we get the term “Panic". 

Reverse: Griffin to left on stalk of corn head facing, holding a spear in his mouth.

 

LYKKEIOS, Silver Tetradrachm struck in 359-335B.C
Obverse: Laureate head of Zeus right. Supreme god of the Olympians. Father of Perseus and Heracles, the latter of whom once wrestled him to a draw. Zeus's Roman name was Jupiter. 

Reverse: Herakles strangling Nemean lion, club behind. Heracles, Roman name of Heracles, or more precisely the Roman adaptation of the Greek God of that name. Popular culture construes the names to be synonymous in the sense that one speaks of the Labors of Hercules, meaning the tasks assigned the hero in Greek mythology but there may have been a different Italian hero of legendary strength who was mixed with the Heracles brought to Italy by Greek colonists.

 

PHILIP II 359 -336BC Silver Tetradrachm of Philip II King of Macedonia, father of Alexander the Great.
Obverse: Laurelled head of Zeus to right. Supreme god of the Olympians. Father of Perseus and Heracles, the latter of whom once wrestled him to a draw. Zeus's Roman name was Jupiter.

Reverse: King wearing cassia, riding horse, pacing to left his hand raised.

 

ALEXANDER THE GREAT 336-323BC Silver Tetradrachm of Alexander the Great
Obverse: Laurelled head of Zeus to right. Supreme god of the Olympians. Father of Perseus and Heracles, the latter of whom once wrestled him to a draw. Zeus's Roman name was Jupiter.

Reverse: Eagle standing on thunderbolt looking back

 

ALEXANDER THE GREAT 336-323BC Silver Tetradrachm of Alexander the Great
Obverse: Head of young Heracles to right clad in lion’s skin. Roman name of Heracles, or more precisely the Roman adaptation of the Greek god of that name. Popular culture construes the names to be synonymous, in the sense that one speaks of the Labors of Hercules, meaning the tasks assigned the hero in Greek mythology but there may have been a different Italian hero of legendary strength who was mixed with the Heracles brought to Italy by Greek colonists.

Reverse: Zeus Supreme god of the Olympians. Father of Perseus and Heracles, the latter of whom once wrestled him to a draw. Zeus's Roman name was Jupiter. seated to left on throne holding and eagle and scepter.

 

LYSIMACHOS, 323-281B.C. Silver Tetradrachm of the Successor of Alexander the Great
Obverse: Diademed head of Alexander to right wearing horn of Ammon. 

Reverse: Athena enthroned to left holding Nike Goddess of Victory, crowning the name of the King. Athena-Olympian goddess of crafts and the domestic arts and also those of war; patron goddess of Athens. Athena was born from Zeus's head and was originally the Great Goddess in the form of a bird. She aided the heroes Perseus, Jason, Cadmus and Heracles in their quests.

 

PHILIP V, 221-179B.C. Silver Tetradrachm of Philip V
Obverse: Head of Philip V to right. 

Reverse: Athena Alkidemos advancing to left brandishing thunderbolt and holding a shield.

 

PTOLEMY, Soter 305-283B.C. Silver Tetradrachm of Ptolemy, trusted general in the army of Alexander the Great who was appointed satrap of Egypt in 323BC. In 305BC. Soter took the title of King and became the founder of the royal dynasty lasting 275 years and ending with the death of CLEOPATRA. 
Obverse: Head of Ptolemy to left. 

Reverse: Eagle standing to left with open wings on thunderbolt.