MACEDONIAN KINGDOM. Philip II (359-336 BC). AV hemistater (13mm, 4.14 gm, 6h). NGC Choice XF 5/5 - 3/5. Amphipolis II, ca. 342/1-329/8 BC. Head of young Heracles right, wearing lion skin headdress, paws tied before neck; dotted border / ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΥ, forepart of lion leaping right; crescent upward below, linear border. Le Rider -. SNG ANS -. Cf. pl. 85, 2. Very rare and seldom-encountered denomination. Appealing matte surfaces with underlying luster. If not for the incredible career of his son, Philip II of Macedon might today be known as "Philip the Great." Under his rule, Macedon transformed from a poor backwater to the most powerful state in the Greek world, setting the stage for Alexander's conquests. His coinage also set the pattern followed by his more famous son: The head of the young Heracles, beardless and wearing a headdress made from the skin of the Nemean lion, on this rare gold half-stater is the clear antecedent of the same type found on Alexander the Great's later silver coinage.

HID09801242017

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