Classical Tetradrachm of Mende

Classical
ca. 460 BCE

1 1/16 in. x 1 1/16 in. x 3/16 in. (2.7 cm x 2.7 cm x 0.4 cm)

This object has the following keywords:

• Animalia - Kingdom containing multicellular organisms having cells bound by a plasma membrane and organized into tissue and specialized tissue systems that permit them to either move about in search of food or to draw food toward themselves. Unable to make their own food within themselves, as photosynthetic plants do, they rely on consuming preformed food. They possess a nervous system with sensory and motor nerves, enabling them to receive environmental stimuli and to respond with specialized movements.
• Classical - Refers to an ancient Greek style and period that begins around 480 BCE, when the Greek city-states defeated the Persian invaders, and ends around 323 BCE, with the death of Alexander the Great. It is characterized by the rebuilding of cities after the Persian wars, the flourishing of philosophy, drama, architecture, sculpture, painting, and the other arts. In the visual arts, it is known for the mastery of the human form and sophistication of architectural design.
• crows - General term applied to many of the 40 species of glossy black birds in the genus Covus, although some birds in this genus are called "ravens" rather than crows.
• Dionysos
• kantharoi - Ancient Greek drinking vessels featuring a deep, footed bowl set on a tall footed stem and two vertical side handles extending from the bottom of the vessel to the rim. The kantharos is intimately associated with the wine god Dionysos, who is often depicted on vases holding a kantharos of type A or a rhyton.
• silver - Pure metallic element having symbol Ag and atomic number 47; a malleable, ductile, white metal with characteristic sheen, considered a precious metal. Silver is widely distributed throughout the world, occurring rarely as metallic silver (in Peru, Norway) but more often as silver-gold alloys and silver ore. Today silver is obtained as a byproduct in the refinement of gold, lead, copper, or zinc ores. Silver was smelted from the ore galena as early as 3800 BCE. As a pure metal, silver is second to gold in malleability and ductility, can be polished to a highly reflective surface, and used -- typically in an alloy -- in jewelry, coinage, photography, mirrors, electrical contacts, and tableware.
• tetradrachms - Ancient Greek coins worth four drachmas, originally of pure silver but gradually debased over its lifetime from the mid-6th century BCE until about CE 300.
• trees - Woody, perennial plants usually with a single, long, self-supporting stem or trunk, and which grow to a considerable height.
• vines - Trailing or twining plants, whose stems require support.

This object is a member of the following portfolios: