The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

Hecte: Head of Omphale (obverse); Incuse Square (reverse)

Hecte: Head of Omphale (obverse); Incuse Square (reverse)

387–326 BCE
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

The Lydian queen Omphale wears the lion skin of Herakles, whom she enslaved.

Description

This very small electrum coin shows the Lydian queen Omphale on the obverse. She can be distinguished from Herakles, whose lion-skin she wears, by her earring. Also visible, over her shoulder, is the hero’s club, while beneath her swims a small seal—phôkê in Greek, a punning reference to Phokaia, where the coin was made. The reverse features a much simpler design, a quartered incuse square.
  • Stories From Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).
  • {{cite web|title=Hecte: Head of Omphale (obverse); Incuse Square (reverse)|url=false|author=|year=387–326 BCE|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.973