Greek Kingdom of Persis (c.223 BCE – 200 CE), SILVER HEMIDRACHM.

Greek World, Kingdom of Persis (c.223 BCE – 200 CE), Hemidrachm(C)

Metal: Silver

Obverse: Diademed bust left wearing tiara

Reverse: Open diadem pattern

Persis was the heartland of ancient Persian civilization, the ruins of Persepolis and Pasargadae, two of the four capitals of the Achaemenid Empire are located there. The kingdom managed to remain largely independent of the successive Greek Seleucid and Parthian empires around it. The coin features on their reverse a Fire Altar, an important symbol of Zoroastrianism, one of the world’s oldest extant religions and was the state religion of Persis. The great Sassanian Kingdom, which came to dominate all of Persia was founded by a king of Persis, Artaxerxes (Aradshir), in 224 CE.