Ptolemy III Euergetes, 246-222 BC, Triobol/Hemidrachm

Ptolemy III Euergetes, Triobol/Hemidrachm, AE, 246–222 BC, 36.59 g, 39 mm. Struck at Alexandria. Obverse: head of Zeus-Ammon right, with ram’s horn and fillet. Reverse: ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ, eagle standing left on thunderbolt. Broad, thick flan and large module characteristic of the heavy Ptolemaic bronze series. Svoronos 1003.

Ptolemy III’s reign marked the apex of Ptolemaic power, including major gains in the Third Syrian War and extensive administrative reforms in Egypt. The Zeus-Ammon portrait reflects the dynasty’s Greco-Egyptian religious syncretism and the king’s association with the native god Amun, while the eagle on thunderbolt served as the standard Ptolemaic dynastic emblem. The substantial bronze denomination typifies the closed monetary system of Ptolemaic Egypt, where fiduciary bronze played a central role in everyday transactions alongside precious-metal issues from Alexandria.