Greek - Perseus - Macedonian King: 179-168 B.C. -
Bronze 19mm (4.7 grams) Struck in Macedonia 179-168 B.C.
Reference: Sear 6807, SNGCop 1279, Forrer/Weber 2222, var.
Head of the hero Perseus right, wearing winged cap terminating in bird's head,
harpa before.
Eagle, wings open, standing left on thunderbolt, head right; BA above, ΠEP
monogram to left, IΩ monogram to right, two stars in exergue.
* Numismatic Note: It is interesting to note that the same
hero, Perseus whom, according to mythology, founded Macedonia has the same name
as the last king of Macedonia. A similar thing happened in the Roman empire,
which was said to be founded by Romulus, with the last emperor being Romulus
Augustus.
The eldest son of Philip V, Perseus was the last king of
Macedon. He inherited a kingdom already largely dependent on Rome, but his
policies aroused Roman suspicions and armed conflict became inevitable. At the
battle of Pydna, in 168 B.C., Perseus lost his kingdom and he died two years
later as an exile in Italy.
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Perseus
(Περσεύς),[note
1] the
legendary founder of
Mycenae and
of the
Perseid dynasty there, was the first of the mythic heroes of
Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters
provided the
founding myths of the
Twelve Olympians. Perseus was the Greek hero who killed
Medusa and
claimed
Andromeda, having rescued her from a sea monster. According to legend, he
was a son of Zeus.
Perseus (Greek:
Περσεύς) (ca.
212 BC -
166 BC) was the
last king (Basileus)
of the
Antigonid dynasty, who ruled the
successor state in
Macedon created upon the death of
Alexander the Great. He also has the distinction of being the last of the
line, after losing the
Battle of Pydna on 22 June 168 BC; subsequently Macedon came under
Roman
rule.
Reign
In 179 BC
Philip V of Macedon died. In the previous year Philip had his pro-Roman son
Demetrius executed. Perseus had been jealous of Demetrius' success as ambassador
to Rome and had
convinced their father to have him poisoned as a potential usurper. The Romans
favored Demetrius, and Perseus' role in killing Demetrius did not endear him to
Rome when he took the throne.
One of his first acts on becoming king was to renew the
treaty with Rome. Yet, Perseus' other actions troubled Rome. His interference in
the affairs of his neighbors, his ousting of Roman ally
Abrupolis
from his territories, his armed visit to
Delphi, his
avoidance of the Roman ambassadors to Macedonia, and his dynastic marriages all
gave Rome cause for concern. Soon Rome and Perseus went to war in the
Third Macedonian War (171-168 BC). Although Perseus had some initial
success, the war ended with the King's surrender to the Roman general
Lucius Aemilius Paullus after his decisive defeat at the
Battle of Pydna, and his eventual imprisonment in Rome with his half-brother
Philippus and son Alexander.[1]
Blaise Pascal mentions in his Pensées (Lafuma 15) that Perseus was blamed for
not committing suicide, supposedly after his defeat and capture at Pydna. The
Antigonid kingdom was dissolved, and replaced with four republics.
Andriscus of Macedon broke off the Roman rule for about a year, but was
defeated in 148 BC by the Romans. In 146 BC, the four republics were dissolved,
and Macedon officially became the
Roman province of Macedonia.
On
178 BC he had
married Laodicea, daughter of
Seleuco IV from
Syria. Perseus' one son, Alexander, was still a child when Perseus was
conquered by the Romans, and after the
triumph of Aemilius Paullus in
167 BC, was
kept in custody at
Alba
Fucens, together with his father. He became a skillful
toreutes, learned the
Latin language,
and became a public notary.
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