Description
Macedonian Empire, Philip II of the Argead Dynasty, King of Macedon 359-336 BC, Gold Stater (8.61g, 18mm, Attic Gold standard), Group III – an early posthumous issue of Pella mint circa 336-328 BC, struck under the authority of Antipater in the position of Regent of Macedon, during the reign of King Alexander III ‘the Great’. Obverse: Laureate head of Apollo facing to the right. Reverse: Charioteer (Philip II?) commands biga right, holding reins in left hand and kentron aloft in right, control mark ‘kantharos’ below horse, “ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΥ” in exergue. PELLA Philip II 290; SNG ANS 141; SNG Munich 76. Struck with quite refined dies of nice style, particularly the reverse, the obverse, although still visually attractive, is struck with a rusty die; some reverse scratches, a very collectible type, virtually Extremely Fine.
Φίλιππος, Latinized as Phĭ́lĭppos, was the youngest son of King Amyntas III and his first wife, Eurydice I, and was a member of the Macedonian Argead Dynasty. In 359 BC, King Perdĭ́kkās III, Phĭ́lĭppos’s brother, died in battle against the Illyrians and his son, Amúntās, was crowned King Amúntās IV at the young age of 6. Although acting as the boy king’s regent as well as his tutor, Phĭ́lĭppos, after Perdĭ́kkās’ death, instead seized the Macedonian throne, declaring himself King Phĭ́lĭppos II over his young nephew. Under King Phĭ́lĭppos II, the Kingdom of Macedon was elevated from a minor kingdom on the fringe of general affairs to the dominating power of mainland Greece, all a result of the King’s military reforms and his keen diplomatic skill. At an early age, Phĭ́lĭppos was a political prisoner in Thebes where he witnessed the military skill of the great Theban general Epaminondas, memories of which influenced his military reforms when he later ascended the throne. Namely, the King developed the Macedonian Phalanx, an improvement to the Classical hoplite Phalanx, that were equipped with innovative Sarissa, a 5-7-meter-long pike that replaced the previously used hoplite’s Dory. To accompany their pike was a short sword, the Xiphos, and a smaller version of the Aspis, the Telemon. The Macedonian Phalanx model dominated the Greek city states of the Classical era and elevated Macedon to political dominance – over the next few centuries, this battle formation became standard for pitched battles until being dethroned by the more versatile legions of the Roman Republic.
