PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Arsinoe II Philadelphos. Died 270/268 BC. AV Mnaïeion – ‘Oktadrachm’ (27mm, 27.82 g, 11h). Alexandreia mint. Struck under Ptolemy II, circa 254/3-253/2 BC. Head right with ram’s horn, veiled and wearing stephanos; lotus-tipped scepter in background, Θ to left / APΣINOHΣ ΦIΛAΔEΛΦOY, double cornucopia, grape bunches hanging at sides, bound with fillet. CPE 388; Svoronos 460; Olivier & Lorber dies 1/11; SNG Copenhagen 134; Noeske 39; Hirsch 1808; Jameson 1811; Pozzi 3221–2 (all from same obv. die). Minor die wear on obverse, trace deposits. EF.
Arsinoe II, daughter of Ptolemy I and Berenike I, was born in 316 BC. Her early life saw her married off to Lysimachos of Thrace at the age of 15 and then to her half-brother, the brutal Ptolemy Keraunos. She conspired against the latter and was forced to flee circa 280 BC to the protection of Egypt, ruled by her younger full brother, Ptolemy II. Her beauty, charm and intelligence utterly captivated Ptolemy, and, after eliminating his previous wife with an accusation of treason, Arsinoe married her brother, probably about 276 BC. Sibling marriage was traditional among Egyptian royalty but among the Greeks it was known only among deities; thus their union advanced the concept of rulers being worshipped as divinities. Though unscrupulous, Arsinoe proved a capable queen and co-ruler, taking charge of Egypt’s foreign affairs. Her death in 270 or 268 BC was marked by her full deification and a huge outpouring of gold coinage bearing her veiled portrait. The ram’s horn just visible emerging from the veil is a further symbol of her deification, reminiscent of the horn of Ammon on images of the deified Alexander.
