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| View Original: | Roman_-_Medallion_with_Olympias_-_Walters_592_-_Obverse.jpg (1800x1800) | |||
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| Keywords: Roman - Medallion with Olympias - Walters 592 - Obverse.jpg Together with 59 1 and 59 3 this piece is part of a series of large gold medallions that was commissioned to honor Emperor Caracalla representing him as the descendant of Alexander the Great These medallions found at Aboukir in Upper Egypt demonstrate the artistry and technical prowess achieved by an imperial mint perhaps that of Ephesus or Perinthus both cities in western Asia Minor Olympias mother of Alexander the Great is depicted here in profile The back shows a nereid sea nymph perhaps Thetis the mother of Achilles riding on a hippocamp a mythical sea-creature Thus the medallion forms part of a double comparison Caracalla is compared to Alexander the conqueror of the East; Alexander is compared to Achilles a hero of the Trojan War ca 215 243 Imperial Roman gold cm 0 6 5 4 d x diam accession number 59 2 35838 Found at Aboukir Egypt 1902 P Kytikas Cairo date of acquisition unknown by purchase Dikran Kelekian Constantinople and Paris date of acquisition unknown by purchase Henry Walters Baltimore date of acquisition unknown by purchase Walters Art Museum Henry Walters Acquired by Henry Walters The Search for Alexander The Art Institute of Chicago Chicago; New Orleans Museum of Art New Orleans; Royal Ontario Museum Toronto; National Gallery of Art Washington; Museum of Fine Arts Boston Boston; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco San Francisco 1980-1983 Alexander the Great Treasures from an Epic Era of Hellenism Alexander S Onassis Public Benefit Foundation USA New York 2004-2005 place of origin southwest USA Walters Art Museum license Ancient Roman art in the Walters Art Museum Art of Roman Egypt in the Walters Art Museum Media contributed by the Walters Art Museum needs category review Olympias Medals of Egypt | ||||
