SELEUCID KINGDOM. Antiochus V Eupator (164-162 BC). AR tetradrachm (29mm, 16.74 gm, 12h). NGC Choice XF 4/5 - 3/5, brushed. Antioch on the Orontes. Diademed head of Antiochus V right, diadem ends falling straight behind; bead-and-reel border / ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ / ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ / ΕΥΠΑΤΟΡΟΣ, Zeus seated left on backless throne, grounded scepter in left hand, Nike in outstretched right hand crowning royal name; ΔI monogram in outer left field. SC 1575.9. Ascending to the throne at the mere age of 10, Antiochus V, along with his regent Lysias, faced two major foreign policy issues: relations with Rome and the war in Judaea. Antiochus V was forced to grant independence to the Jews, who had revolted against his father under Judas Maccabeus. The young Antiochus took the throne only weeks after a decisive Seleucid defeat at the hands of the Jewish rebels, who promptly marched into Jerusalem and rededicated the Temple, now celebrated as the festival of Hanukkah. There was in fact little Antiochus or Lysias could have done to prevent the continuing dismemberment of the Seleucid state. The kingdom's army essentially only existed with Roman permission, and the failure of Lysias to prevent the assassination of the Roman ambassador to Antioch Octavius in 162 BC spelled doom for both him and his young ward Antiochus. HID09801242017 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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