Athena Review Image Archive ™
Classic-era silver coin from Knossos with minotaur
Classic-era silver coin from Knossos (425-330 BC; CNG; SG-3211)
The ancient town site of Kafala (Knossos) on the northern coast of Crete, next to the capital city of Herakleion, was well-known to local inhabitants, who plowed up ancient objects, including pottery, coins, and seals, as they cultivated their fields. Knossos had been occupied up through the Roman period, and during the Classical and Hellenistic eras (500-200 BC) had issued its own coinage, which interestingly showed pictures of labyrinths, Minotaurs, and Ariadne, inspiring many later interpretations, such as by Sir Arthur Evans.
In this example from the Classical period, dating from 425-330 BC, the coin obverse shows a Minotaur, while the
reverse at right shows the head of Ariadne, surrounded by a meander
pattern representing the labyrinth.
[Source: "Sir Arthur Evans and the Excavation of the Palace at Knossos," Athena Review, v3 no.3, 2003]
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