Abstract
The author examines some depictions on a group of chalkoy of Mithridates I Callinicus (100–70 BC), the King of Commagene. The fi rst type is ‘caduceus of Hermes/eagle, holding a palm branch in his claws and a wreath in his beak’. The second one is a ‘date palm/ eagle’. The author supposes that the reverse type of the eagle with palm branch imitated the coins of Achaeus, the Seleucid dynast, who ruled in Asia Minor in 220–214 BC. The scholar believes the type of the eagle is associated with the worship of Zeus (Zeus-Oromazda) in Commagene during the Mithridates I’s rule. This cult of the offi cial royal ideology is to be linked with the Iranian tradition in Commagene that is indicated by the epigraphy of his son, Antiochus I. It seems likely that Mithridates, as well as fi rstly Achaeus, used in his coinage the symbols of his military successes in 90 BC, when the Parthians invaded Commagene were defeated. The author sure that the title «Callinicus» was also associated with the military symbolism, although there is another interpretation. Others coin types as the caduceus and date palm can emphasize the protection of Apollo-Hermes over the king. The inscriptions of Antiochus I record Apollo- Hermes. Thus, Mithridates I Callinicus possibly tried to give his own person the heroic status, while there is no evidence of his deifi cation.
Keywords
Hellenism, Commagene, Mithridates I, coinage, coin types, cults of Zeus, Heracles, Hermes, Apollo-Hermes
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