Very Rare Coin Issued By Alexander the Great’s Uncle
This excessively rare Greek silver stater was struck circa 334-330 BC at Tarentum (map) under Alexander I the Molossian, King of Epiros (r. 350-330 BC). Alexander I was the brother of Alexander III (the Great’s) mother, Olympias. This coin is possibly the work of the great Tarentine engraver Kal. The obverse shows Zeus Dodonaios wearing an oak wreath. The reverse has the inscription ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟ[Υ] / ΤΟΥ ΝΕΟΠΤΟΛΕ[ΜΟΥ] and a thunderbolt with an eagle to the left.
Alexander the Molossian was not only the King of Epeiros but also, through his sister Olympias, the brother-in-law of Philip II of Macedon and the uncle of Alexander III. At the same time his nephew was beginning his epic march to the East, he was called in by the Greek city of Tarentum to save it from the pressure of the aggressive Lucanians and Bruttians. He arrived with an army in 334 BC and was initially successful; he was, however, killed in a minor engagement in 330 BC. This coin was issued in Tarentum to pay his Epeirote troops. It was struck in the Corcyran standard since they preferred the non-Italic weight standard. The artistry is absolutely superb: the head of Zeus is immediately reminiscent of the contemporary issues of Olympias and of Philip II.