Demetrios II Nicator, 129-126 BC (Second Reign), Tetradrachm

Demetrios II Nicator, AR Tetradrachm, second reign, 129–126 BC, Antioch on the Orontes; 16.74 g; 29 mm. Diademed and bearded head of Demetrios II right. Reverse with legend BAΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΔHMHTPIOY ΘEOY NIKATOPOΣ; Zeus Nikephoros seated left on throne, holding Nike in right hand and vertical sceptre in left; control marks in the field. Struck on the Attic standard at Antioch during the second reign, hammered issue. Reference: SC 2181.8.

Issued on Demetrios II’s return from Parthian captivity, this Antioch tetradrachm series marks his restored rule and adopts the bearded portrait distinctive of the second reign, pairing it with the titles Theos and Nikator. The coinage financed campaigns in Syria amid conflict with Alexander II Zabinas and the political dominance of Cleopatra Thea. Production ended with Demetrios’ overthrow in 126 BC, after which Seleucid authority in northern Syria rapidly contracted.