★ Janiform head of Hera and Zeus ★

ISLANDS off TROAS, Tenedos. Circa 450-387 BC. Obol (Silver, 7mm, 0.62 g 3). Janiform head of Hera, on left, and Zeus, on right. Rev. ΤΕ Double ax within linear frame, all within shallow incuse square. SNG Copenhagen 509. SNG von Aulock 1587. Lightly porous surfaces. Very fine.

The coinage of Tenedos is very intriguing, especially given the many clear changes the coinage underwent in meaning. On early issues, the janiform heads on the obverse referred to the mythological foundation of the city, but by the second half of the 5th century these myths had either been forgotten or were thought to be not quite correct. The coins users wanted a more comprehensible type so the heads were changed from those of locally important mythological figures to the more universal visages of Hera and Zeus.