Description

Silver tetradrachm of Mithridates VI Eupator (the Great), king of Pontus, a coin struck around 115–105 BC at Amisos or Sinope. The coin has been cleaned.

A complex and ambitious figure—unyielding as well and a lover of the arts—Mithridates is often compared to Hannibal for his hatred of Rome and his role as a symbol of anti-Roman sentiment. However, he failed in his attempt to overthrow Roman domination in Anatolia and Greece. He was indeed one of the few kings to stand up to the Roman Republic, and for more than 25 years, during the Mithridatic Wars (88–65 BC). Rome’s military superiority, the quality of Roman generals such as Sulla, Lucullus, and Pompey, as well as the exhaustion of his kingdom’s resources in gold, manpower, and supplies, ultimately defeated his ambitions. (Source: Wikipedia)