HERA ON ANCIENT COINS

 

HERA WAS REVERED as a protector by many Greek cities, and subsequently they tried to represent her surpassing beauty on their coins. While not as common on coins as the goddess of love Aphrodite, the nature goddess Artemis, or the war goddess Athena, Hera appears on dozens of different coin types. Her signature attributes are the polos, a decorated pillbox hat, or the stephanos[2], a sort of crown or tiara. She is sometimes depicted veiled, with a fold of her garment draped over her head. Hera's companion animals were the cow, the cuckoo, and (especially) the peacock.

Composed in the seventh or possibly sixth century BCE, the so-called Homeric Hymns offer poetic descriptions of ancient Greek deities. Hera is tagged as the queen of the gods, sitting alongside her husband and brother Zeus. It was not a happy marriage, since the randy king of the gods pursued many lovers and fathered numerous offspring.

 
Samos. Bronze. (c.) 408/4-380/66 BCE. Image: Leu Numismatik AG.

Samos
The Aegean island of Samos held one of the most ancient and important temples of Hera[8], repeatedly enlarged and rebuilt over the centuries. The temple, which has just one remaining column standing, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

Hera figures prominently on Samian coinage, along with the scalp of a lion, which served as an emblem of the island, possibly because the cult image of the goddess had a lion reclining at her feet. Under Roman rule, Samos issued local bronze coinage bearing the head of Hera, with her companion, the peacock, on the reverse.

 
Argos, Silver Stater. (c.) 370-350 BCE. Image: Classical Numismatic Group

Argos
The city of Argos in central Greece honored Hera as its patroness. A wistful portrait of Hera wearing the polos appears on a rare silver stater dated to c. 370-350 BCE. Pedigreed to the famous BCD Collection, this coin brought over $50,000 in a 2013 U.S. auction.

To read the complete article, see:
Hera on Ancient Coins – Queen of the Gods (https://coinweek.com/hera-on-ancient-coins-queen-of-the-gods/)

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