Ave!

Pontos, Amisos, Dionysos with Cista Mystica reverse

Æ; 20mm/8.0gm        Time of Mithradates VI, Circa 85-65 BC.

Con/ Struck with fresh dies, perfectly centered with a warm brown patina; about Extremely Fine.

Obv/ Dionysos, head wreathed with vines and grapes, right.

Rev/ Cista mystica draped with Panther skin; behind, thyrsos wrapped with taenia (ribbons); monograms flanking; below ΑΜΙΣΟΥ.

Ref/ SNG BM Black Sea 1209; SNG Stancomb 699; HGC 7, 243.

Seller's Note/ The complex iconography on the reverse of this coin deserves further explantation and is all about the attributes of Dionysos.

A cista mystica was a sacred woven basket or chest used in ancient Greek mystery cults, particularly associated with the worship of Dionysos.

The panther skin on the cista mystica is another reminder that panthers were the companions of Dionysos.

A thyrsus was a wand or staff of giant fennel covered with ivy vines and leaves, sometimes wound with taeniae (ribbons) and topped with a pine cone, and was carried during Hellenic festivals and religious ceremonies. Again, typically associated with the Greek god Dionysos and represents a symbol of prosperity, fertility, and hedonism.

The odd part of all our long-winded explanation is, that back in the day when this coin was struck, it needed needed no explanation in any manner!

In the painting, note the young Dionysos, hair wreathed with vines and grapes, panther companion by his side and his thyrsus resting on the ground.