Tetradrachm (Coin) Portraying King Antiochus VII Euergetes Sidetes

-138·Silver·Diam.: 2.7 cm (1 1/8 in.)

The Hellenistic period spans the nearly three hundred years between the death of Alexander the Great of Macedonia (323 BC) and that of Cleopatra VII of Egypt (30 BC), a descendant of one of Alexander’s generals. The term Hellenistic is derived from Hellas, an ancient Greek word for Greece. It is used to describe both chronologically and culturally the era following Alexander’s conquest of Egypt and Asia, which resulted in the spread of Greek culture across a vast area. The melding of local and Greek artistic styles with the luxurious materials captured in the conquered lands resulted in magnificent artwork, including elegant coinage. Following Alexander’s death, his empire was divided among his generals, who established independent kingdoms in Egypt; Persia; the eastern coast of the Aegean Sea, including Syria and Palestine; Greece and Macedonia; and Thrace. Almost immediately the generals began to covet each other’s land and power. Antiochos VII (reigned 139–129 BC) was the last of the Seleucid kings who attempted to reclaim the once-mighty empire. His reign was occupied by fruitless battles and ephemeral victories; by the end, ancient Syria was his only domain. Like his father, Demetrios I Soter (reigned 161–150 BC), he was killed by rivals.

Catalogue

Year: -138
Medium: Silver
Dimensions: Diam.: 2.7 cm (1 1/8 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Ancient Greek

Artist

Ancient Greek

Sculpture

Ancient Greek art spans a period between about 900 and 30 BCE and is divided into four periods: Geometric, Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic. Throughout that period, artists worked with a wide variety of materials including bronze and stone for sculpture; terracotta for vases and figurines; various pigments for painting; and gold, silver, and bronze for coinage. In the Geometric period, not only were geometric patterns dominant but so too were abstract figures, especially horses , military, and funerary scenes. A lack of inscriptions can make the interpretation of this iconography difficult. Beginning in the 7th century BCE, the Archaic period ushered in an increasingly naturalistic style, especially in depictions of the human form. Influences from Egypt and the Near East can be seen in the appearance of motifs such as the palmette and lotus, along with composite creatures like griffins (bird/lion), sphinxes (human/winged lion), and sirens (bird/woman). Terracotta vases, especially those made in the second half of the sixth century BCE, depict aspects of daily life , funerary rites , warfare , and mythology . Experimentation with new techniques, such as black-figure and red-figure decoration, allowed for a wider range of figures and scenes to be depicted in greater detail. The Classical period, often defined by the Greek defeat of the Persians in 479 BCE, ushered in what is now known as the Golden Age of Greece. The city of Athens dominated the flourishing artistic scene, and the building of the Parthenon (the temple erected between 447 and 432 BCE on the Acropolis in Athens, Greece) paved the way for unprecedented achievements in architecture and sculpture. The final transition to the Hellenistic period, which lasted from about 323 through 30 BCE, occurred following the death of Alexander the Great, who famously spread Greek culture into the lands of his far-reaching conquest. Gods and heroes, who were previously depicted in two-dimensional scenes on vases or rel

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