Spectacular Tryphon Tetradrachm
SELEUKID EMPIRE. Tryphon. Circa 142-138 BC. AR Tetradrachm (32mm, 17.08 g, 12h). Antioch on the Orontes mint. Diademed head right / BAΣIΛEΩΣ TPYΦΩNOΣ AYTOKPATOPOΣ, spiked Macedonian helmet with cheek guards, adorned with wild goat’s horn above visor; monogram to inner left; all within oak wreath. SC 2031.2b (
this coin referenced); CSE II 564 (
this coin); HGC 9, 1055. Lightly toned, a few light scratches on obverse. Near EF. Rare.
From the MNL Collection. Ex Arthur Houghton Collection.
A military commander and leading supporter of the usurper Alexander I Balas, Diodotos placed Antiochos VI on the Seleukid throne following Balas' death. Two years later, upon the death of the young king, Diodotos took the throne himself, supposedly upon the acclamation of his troops. Unlike previous usurpers, Diodotos did not fabricate his lineage into the Seleukid house, but maintained that the Seleukid line had ended, and his was the beginning of a new era. He broke tradition by assuming the title autocrat rather than king, and took the name Tryphon ('the luxurious'). His reign proved very unpopular, and a new Seleukid claimant, Antiochos VII Sidetes, rose up against him. Within three years, Tryphon was defeated and killed.
