Kings of Paeonia. Patraos, circa 335–315 BC. AR Tetradrachm

Kings of Paeonia. Patraos, circa 335–315 BC. AR Tetradrachm (23 mm, 12.30 g, 11 h). Astibos or Damastion mint.

Obv. Laureate head of Apollo right.

Rev. ΠΑ[ΤΡΑΟ]Υ. Paeonian horseman in crested helmet and full armour galloping right, spearing a fallen enemy.

Refs: Paeonian Hoard 439 (same dies); Peykov E2160.

This dynamic and finely engraved tetradrachm belongs to the short-lived but artistically accomplished coinage of Patraos, king of the Paeonians, a Thraco-Macedonian people whose small kingdom lay north of Macedon along the Axius River. Struck during the era of Alexander the Great, the type unmistakably reflects the military ethos and artistic milieu of the Macedonian world.

The obverse, with the idealised head of Apollo, evokes both Hellenic refinement and the cultural assimilation of Paeonia into the orbit of Alexander’s empire. The reverse presents one of the most vivid martial scenes in Hellenistic numismatics—a Paeonian cavalryman charging a fallen foe, rendered with remarkable energy and precision. The subject celebrates the famed Paeonian cavalry, who served as elite allies in Alexander’s campaigns from the Granicus onward.

Condition: Sharply struck and fresh, with full detail and lustrous surfaces. An outstanding example of this historically resonant type. Extremely Fine.